Albuquerque evening citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1905-1907, 1907-04-15
Reclamation Service to Com
plete Present Systems to
Produce More Revenue.
LANDS WILL Be
RESTORED TO ENTRY
Contractors Refuse to Bid Because
OF High Prices of Labor
and Materials.

Washington, d. c., April 1.-THE
nigh wages now paid to laborers of
all classes as well as to more expert
help, the increased cost of material
and the lack of adequate funds with
which to forward irrigation projects
has caused the secretary of the in
terror to somewhat change the pol
icy of that department and to con-
centrate all efforts upon irrigation
systems which will soon become
revenue producing. This is of con-
siderable interest in New Mexico,
where there are number of favor
able irrigation projects which the
people interested had hoped would be
taken up by the reclamation service
at once. 1t appears, however. that 1t
will yet be some time before more
new projects are launched. but that
in the interim, the government will
concentrate all it's efforts towards
completing the work now under way.
This in itself will be quite beneficial.
since it will assure the completion of
the big Elephant butte and other
projects, at the earliest possible day
and thousands of acres of rich lands
will thereby be placed under irriga
ton in the immediate future. Secre-
tary Garfield, of the department of
the interior, has issued a set of in
structions to the director of the
reclamation service, which show
clearly the course to be pursued and
the reasons therefor. These instruc-
tionS are as follows:
l. Concentrate on and give pref
erence to the works upon which con-
struction is nearly completed and
where the projects will soon be pro-
ducing revenue.
2. Discontinue further expendi-
lures for general Investigations.
3. Arrange wherever practicable
for the reduction or suspension Of
work on projects which are so locat-
ed that favorable bids for construc-
lion have not been secured.
A. Recommend for restoration to
entry all Ends now reserved under
the terms of the reclamation act, the
reclamation of which can not be
undertaken in the near future, with
holding, however, all reservoir sites or
lands which may be required for
rights Of way for future works whose
practicability has been determined.
In explanation of these instructions
the secretary said:
The notably increased cost of ma
terials and construction. the uncer-
tainties encountered in transportation
and the scarcity and high price of
bidding for the government work.
Conditions have altered so mater
tally since the first estimates of cost
of construction We're made and the
allotments of the fund approved that
| have deemed ii advisable to direct
that a reduction of the work in some
instances and a suspension in others
be considered.
1T would be most unwise to con-
tinue work where circumstances are
50 disadvantageous or to incur eX-
penses which in the future may be
considered as unduly large.
by concentrating on those works
now nearing completion new reve-
nues will be coming into the fund and
when the labor conditions and trans
portation facilities become normal
the work on other projects can go
forward more economically and with
greater rapidity. The expenditures
during the past quarter have aver
aged about Sl,500,000 a month. At
this rate the funds available for new
construction will be exhausted before
the end of the calendar year"