The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1905-11-15
NINETY FER CENT OF USERS
sign WATER AGREEMENT
Report Of the Committee Adopted mt
Meeting of the Commercial
Club, with Resolutions.

A meeting was held in the Com
mercial club rooms Tuesday night of
business men and those interested in
irrigation matters. Questions were
discussed that are of vital import-
ance to the Tietan project. and ESQ.,
| lutions adopted which will be for
warded to Secretary Hitchcock at
once. These resolutions set forth
facts in regard to the land under the
Tietan project showing hat although
1t will cost heavily to reclaim this
body of land, the results to be oh
tanned will more than offset the cost
of reclamation The resolutions urge
the secretary to approve the report
of his engineers
In regard to the statement which
/ appeared in the state papers last sun
day to the effect that the secretary
had refused to approve the Okanogan
and Tietan projects, the concensus of
opinion at the meeting was that no
confidence should he placed in the
report.
one OF the most important matters
discussed At the meeting will appear
in the report of the water agreement
committee. This committee is COM
posed of J II, Fraser. f. G. Peck and
Fl. b. Scudder, and the report is Civ
en- herewith in full:
Commercial Club, North Yakima,
| Gentlemen: Your commit "a an
pointed to secure the adjus' ment OF
the water rights of the Yakima sys-
tenn respectfully submit the follow
! ing report.
You will see by this report that
| the Ellensburg water users and those
who take water from the Yakima riv-
err in the Yakima valley, proper, have
practically agreed to all that the gov
| eminent requires. We have met with
serious difficulty in securing the sig
natures of many of the water users
drawing their supply from the Nat
chez river. II has reached point
where we find that ~ comply with
the demands Of the water users from
the Natchez system. we shall require
! in the vicinity of 200 cubic feet OF
water more per second than there is
water to give them. Some have de-
/ manded more than they have ever
used; others have been unwilling to
concede anything for the public good.
II is fact which we must all face,
| that the government cannot do the
4
! the Yakima valley. not now under
water. until this water right business
IS adjusted. The supply from which
we can draw has been absolutely
fixed by the government. II we are
equally served. 1t will entitIe every
water taker throughout the whole
| system to one cubic foot OF water to
every so acres of land. This is equal
to rainfall of 46 inches between the
18th day of April and the / 9Th day of
October, annually, and we believe 1t
to be more bounteous supply than
any water users in other arid por-
tions of America get today.
The government simply requests Of
the water users that it may have the
right to reduce the amount of water
they use during low water to one Gu
/ bic foot of water for so acres, and
\ agrees that during high water each
water user may take all the water he
desires. It Is also willing that, dur
ing low water each water taker may
average his water; that is, II he uses
today twice as much as he is entitled
to. and shuts down his ditch tomor-
I row. the government consents.
4 very simple and feasible way Of
/ giving to each water taker the full
amount of water he requires Ia to ro-
tate the water In any individual ditch.
or. that is, allow one man to take all
| the water one day. and another man
/ the next day, and so on This Ia Gus
| tomary in almost all parts of arid
| America. and It Ia conceded that the