The San Francisco call., 1906-08-26
Progress of irrigation
Work In Idaho.

III
- nearly responsible than any
other one man for the organi-
zation of the National Irrigation
Congress at Salt Lake in 1891, while
acting as editor of the Irrigation Age
of Denver, is again bringing his pen
to bear upon the need of such an or
ganization, emphasizing the good that
it has done in the past, and the i'm
mensely greater good that it IS pos
sible for it to accomplish in the
future.
The father of the Irrigation Con-
gress,' as he IS frequently called, IS
at present making his home in San
Diego, Cal, but he had an editorial
article in the Nevada State Journal
OF Reno, under the caption, THE lr-
rigatiOn Congress" in which he said:
The National Irrigation Congress
began its history-making career at
Salt Lake City in September, 1891.
Its fourteenth annual session tone
year having been skipped in the early
period will be held at Boise, Idaho,
September 3 to s, inclusive, and prom
ises TO be the biggest event IN re-
markable series of conventions The
reasons for the unusual success of
the Boise meeting are obvious enough
after little thoguht, yet 1t IS worth
while to mention them.
LOCATION is CENTRAL.
Idaho enjoys central location in
the arid region, and this factor al
ways counts heavily in favor of
large attendance The meetings at
Salt Lake in 1901, and at Ogden in
1908, drew larger and more repre-
sentative crowds of delegates than
any similar occasions in the history
of the irrigation. movement. This
influence will produce similar result
this year.
None of the irrigation States
piques the popular interest more than
Idaho. The public is dinly conscious
of wonderful attractions IN that part
of the West, but the locality is not
so we'll known by contract as most
other States, especially Colorado,
Utah and California, three States in
which the convention has assembled
FIVE times People want to see Idaho;
they will avail themselves of most
unusual opportunity to see 1t to the
best advantage in September, when
its hospitality will be as deep as its
canyons, as lofty as its mountains,
and as wide as its plains.
RICH VALLEYS OF THE BOISE.
! "All things considered, Idaho has
more to show the visitors in the way
| of irrigation achievement than any
other State 1t is a fine example of
what can be done by average men,
with average capital, under average
conditions of soil and climate. Those
who think little irrigated farms can
I Il f1fa
sagebrush wilderness will change
their minds after they have inspected
the valleys of the Boise, the Payette
and the Weiser. Those who imagine
that the city-bred man cannot score
a success as an irrigator and farmer
will be enlightened by studying the
story of Idaho's New Plymouth on
/ the ground. And those who are Ia
boring under the delusion that profit
/ able fruit-grOwing is limited 10 the
semi-tropical climate of California
will be amazed when they go among
4 the orchards and study the balance
/ sheets in many localities.
Apart from these local attractions,
this years irrigation congress will be
a magnet for all who are interested
in the land and water problems OF
the West because of certain big ques-
| tionS which are sure to come up for
discussion. The foremost of these is
the manner in which the reclamation
service is administering the Newlands
law
NEWELL AND HIS MEN"
''The officials of the reclamation
service-"Newell and his men," as
their critics are calling them-were
compelled to walk in an untrodden
path. The greatest piece of social
legislation ever enacted in this coun-
try was committed to their hands,
with no precedents to guide them.
Extraordinary power was vested in
the Secretary of the Interior, not only
in the matter of making appropria-
tions for various projects, but in pur-
chasing property needed for Govern
ment purposes and in adjusting a
multitude of details in regard to land
and water problems. While power
rests with the secretary, the young
men of the reclamation service are
his "eyes at the 'front.'" as Lincoln
said of some of his assistants. These
young men come in contact with the
i Western people, and are generally
held responsible when there is occa-
sion for criticism.
In carrying out the law, 1t has fre-
quently been necessary to have deal
ings with private irrigation interests.
Sometimes the Government has felt
disposed to enter upon projects which
private enterprise wanted to handle
itself; in such cases opposition has
arisen. Sometimes the Government
has refused to buy property when
private parties wanted TO sell and
frequently private parties who were
quite willing to sell demanded price
which the Government was not will
!. ing to pay.
CRITICS ARE NUMEROUS.
. During the four years that the law
has been on the statute book a good
! sized grist of private grievances has
accumulated, not all of which are of
the class insf mentioned There have