The Colorado statesman., 1906-09-08
FUND
DEMANDED BY SPEAkEeS AT IR.
RIGATIoN CONGRESS.
LAND WITHDRAWAL. POLICY
Second Days Session Marked by Wig
orous Debate-Payette Furni-hes
cantaIoupes-Address by EIwood
Mead

Mead.
Boise, Idaho.-The policy of with
drawing cast areas of the public do
main from entry under the land laws
in order to create forest reserves or
conserve the water supply for pur'
poses of irrigation, which has been
vigorously opposed by influential in
terests in the West, had its defenders
and it's opponents at Tuesday nights
session of the National Irrigation Con-
gress.
The debate was marked by a bitter
attack on the national administration
by United States Senator w. B. Hey.
burn of Idaho and vitriolic exchange
between Mr.. Hepburn and Congress
man Reeder of Kansas. At another
stage of the debate Senator Hepburn
was persistently hissed by his audi
ence, and to obtain hearing was
forced to declare his intention to fin
ish his remarks.
Prof. ]. V. Vernon of the New Mex
leo agricultural station addressed the
congress on Pumping for Irrigation in
New Mexico
The slogan, "$100,000,000 for re-
clamation," was brought before the
congress by Fred j. Kiesal of Ogden,
chairman of the Utah delegation. Mr..
Keisel said the West must go to Con-
gress with this determination. He
would not, he said, insist on this lump
in one appropriation. He cited the
great appropriation for the Philip
60 \ l. 4 ri,
lar purposes and insisted that the West
was justified in asking and demanding
100000, 900 more to be used in new
projects. Mr.. Keisel declared that the
people of the West were not persistent
enough, and said that they were not
giving to irrigation the attention which
the subject deserved. The governor
of Nevada, he said, had promised to
come and bring train load of his peo-
pie, but instead, and unfortunately
they were detected by prize fight at
Goldfield.
Leigh H. Freeman of North Yakima,
Washington, was less modest than Mr..
Koisel in his demand, which was $500
100000 for irrigation" He asserted
that England had expended an amount
greater than this for irrigation in In
dia, and other vast sums in Egypt
Tuesday was Payette cantaloupe day
at the exposition. The melon of the
Payette valley is esteemed as being SUI
perior and the people there determined
to give the congrss crowds a feast.
With that end in view they shipped up
an enormous number and distributed
about 5000 at their booth.
Elwood Mead, in the course Of his
address, said:
Colorado was the first state to pass
law requiring the measurement of
the flow of bitches as a guide in the
diversion of streams. l helped meas
ure the first ditch under that law.
wyoming was the first state to deal
exclusively with the water as public
property, and l had much to do with
reconciling men who before had be-
lieved that water was like air, to be
taken by anybody without regulation
or control, with law which required
them to secure permit from the state
before beginning diversion.
The first trips of the water commits
sioner in Colorado were regarded as
an impertinence. He was welcomed by
the dog and threatened with the shot
gun. | think the attitude of the irTi-
gators of Colorado and Wyoming is the
attitude of irrigators in every state
when public control is first exercised