Arizona republican., 1909-10-20
Secretary BaI|inger seeing|t All While He Waits
 BUT HE HAS TO HURRY
Paid His Respects Tester day to Local Representa- tives of All Interior Blu reaus-Held Conference With W. U. A.

Richard A. Ballinger. secretary of the interior, spent a very busy day in
 Phoenix and vicinity yesterday and leaves Mesa early this morning for
 Roosevelt. As he expects to get back
 to Phoenix tonight. he will have an
 other day of activity and leave the next morning for Parker. If the brief interview the secretary accorded a re-
 porter last evening may be taken as an indication. it may be said that the visit here. short as it was, has been
 enlightening and pleasing to him and
 that his impressions formed of what
 he has seen and will see will place the
 Salt river project in some ways in a
 more favorable light. The secretary can better appreciate the particular conditions that prevail here and note the difference between this valley and others that may be dealt with under the same general legal restrictions, as for instance in the general fact that most projects have an abundance of water but a lack of land in proportion. while here the conditions are re- versed: and again in respect of school
 land. in that here most of it is culti- vated and already possesses vested water rights. while elsewhere most of it is vacant and without present vested rights to water
 MT Ballinger said last night that the project here is of greater magni-
 tude than he had expected to find it and the character of the soil as in stanced by it's productiveness and it's possibilities through intensive farm ing is quite surprising. After noting during his brief ride of yesterday the fine citrus orchards and the well-tilled farms. he said he knew of no place that seems to promise so much through later development. The gov ernment work here. he says. is on an extensive scale and when completed he has no doubt will be a model of both construction and efficiency.
 Asked concerning the embarrass- ment in certain features of it. caused through abandoning the cooperative work, the secretary said the only way to secure more money tO extend >the project is through congressional ac- tion. He has suggested to the senate irrigation committee. and is pleased to say that those he has talked with have been quite favOrably disposed. that he believes the department s,ouid be given authority to issue bonds against the irrigation revenues. in suf- ficient amount to complete the proi- ects under way. He called attention also to the fact that President Taft in his Spokane address had declared him self as favorable to such a policy.
 MT. Ballinger said he was very much pleased with what he saw at the Indian school during hIs short visit and he had had very pleasant calls also on the surveyor general the l9nd office officials and at. the capitol He had put in a very busy day and expects to have another strenuous one today. Returning from Roosevelt to- night he will leave Thursday morning for Parker. where he hopes to meet Postmaster General Hitchcock. He VIII return as far as the A. & c. june l tion and thence go to Ash Fork. where he plans to meet the east-bound linn ited Friday morning. After stops at Albuquerque and Santa Fe. he will go direct to Washington.
 The secretary says he has been travelling most of the time since the latter part of June, with the exception or two weeks spent in the capitol last month. During the summer he has visited all the larger and more impor- tant projects all over the west as well as great many Indian schools | ana reservations. and come in contact l with great many things afieId that l are directly under his department. He says he has probably spent more time m the field than any of his prede- cessors. but he felt it was important to the interests under his department l that he should familiarize himself 1 somewhat with the details of local | conditions
 Secretary Young. who had met MT Ballinger at Yuma, was present at a l dinner rendered him on Monday i night. Mir Ballinger briefly but earn | estly and impressively addressed the | members Of the Water Users associa. ton there on the future of the work | of reclamation. He said he was in fIU 1 sympathy with it, but his sympathy l could not be expended on any particu- lar state or locality and that he was ] bound by the limitations of the law and the amount of money at the dis | posal of the service He said that both his own state of Washington | and Arizona had already received more | money than they could have expected | and Inc repeated what he has said in |