El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-05-12
CHARGE THAT ALBUQUERQUE IS
PULLING CHEsTNUTS IN FIGHT IN DAM
Continued From Page one.j

IN rage One.1
waste of this valley, now beginning to
feel the blessings of prosperity L trust
YOU will not blight the present inter
ests of others in looking after your
own rights" he said I have no doubt
that later the reclamation service
Will help the people of the upper val
ley to irrigate their lands by means
of diversion dams" st this point the
speaker was interrupted by Mr.. Fergu-
son, who asked whether anybody on the
Rio Grande or any 1000 people on the
Rio Grande could under this decision Of
the secretary obtain 1000 acre feet per
apnum OF water each.
Questions Answered
L SO understand it, was the ansW err
This decision holds good despite all
the appropriations made by the recla-
nation service"
Attorney A B. Stroup, of Albuuuer-
que, asked whether the granting of this
1000 acre feet was not after all left TO
the reclamation service. Mr.. THOMPSON
expressed the conviction that the order
OF the secretary would stand, for each
500 acres SO utilized would be so near
flow of the river materially
The reclamation service desires to
prevent the construction OF large reser-
voirs and only contemplates the delay
OF such ventures unt-l such time as
work On the Elephant Butte dam should
furnish data on which TO base construc-
ton of other DAMS. continued the
speaker.
Col w. S. Hopewell interrupted:
Isn't it fact that the Elephant Butte
dam is for flood storage onIy?'
Mr.. Thompson replied: 1t is not to
impound the usual waters, but the flood
waters, to save the immense flood wa
rar-- h1n~
anybody else"
Mr.. Hopeweil then asked whether the
normal flow Of the river " as not al
ready appropriated and Mr.. Thompson
replied that such was his understand
ing; he belieTed that the territorial en-
gineer had refused to grant further
rights on this ground, out asked TO be
corrected If mistaken. sir Clancy cor
rected him. stating that the action of
the engineer was taken because of the
regulation imposed by the department
or the interior with reference to the
Engle dam
Territorial Engineer Invited.
Chairman Prince here suggested that
a telegram be sent for Vernon l.. SuIIi-
van, the territorial engineer. to have
MIN come to Albuquerque and give the
information desired The suggestion
net with the approval of Mr. Thomp-
son.
At this juncture Col. R. E. TwitcheII,
OF Las Vegas asked the chairman
whether or not the treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo did not guarantee every ounce
OF water in the Rio Grande to the peo-
pie who irrigate the land, the question
TO be answered as legal one Mr.
Prince answered in the affirmative but
he said the practical question was 10
be found in the attitude of the terri
torial engineer.
Mr.. thompson, who still held the
floor, here asked Mr. Sutherland to con-
tinue along the lines he had spoken on.
but NIr. Sutherland said he desired
rather to speak a little later
Col Hopeweu suggested that w NJ
Reed. district engineer Of the reclama-
ton service at Ell Paso, be wired for to
come 70 Albuquerque. Mr.. Prince then
sent kilograms to both Mr. Sullivan and
Mr. Reed. requesting them to come i'm
mediately, a decision having been
reached that the meeting reconvene in
the morning if they come.
The Laws Expounded
The next speaker was attorney gen
eral Clancy. Mr.. Clancy said he gave
the legal advice on which the terri
torial engineer based his actions. but
he did not feel called upon TO give a
legal opinion about an ina ginary case.
been informed about the legal status
of the project" he said. The statutes
of New Mexico contain provision for
the obtainment of water by private in
by companies and by the GOV
eminent. These provide that when the
reclamation service has filed notice with
the territorial engineer of its inten-
ton to appropriate water that water is
not thereafter open to appropriation :
The sole condition attached TO this
Is that the reclamation service within
three years after the filing of such no.
tice shall place on file plans and speci-
fications of the project upon which II
expects to use the water
Under this provision the reclar1at ton
service has filed on all the hitherto I'M
appropriated waters of the Rio Grande
more than it had ever reserved in for
mer years leave You TO judge of
the engineers status"
Santa Fe Mans Figures.
Mr. McMillen then suggested that !
Robert l. Cooper of Santa Fe. who is |
an irrigation engineer, be heard. Mr.. |
Cooper took the floor
1T is up to US" Mr.. Cooper began en-
srgetically ito show the proper recla- |
nation engineer the facts in regard to !
holding up the drainage of 10000 |
square miles to irrig1te only 200. 900 /
acres I viii give you some figures.
The Rio Grande from October. 1904 |
to September. 1905, a period of one |
year. flowed past the station Of the re- |
;lamation service and the geologic sur |
Tey at San Marcial, 2,S95, 600 acre feet |
IF water This Is enough to fill the |
at Elephant Butte, which |
holds 1000 900 acre feet and 70 al /
ow II Tines as much to go by as we /
ire to deliver to Mexico. With The res
ervoir thus filled the water will irri-
gate all the remainder Of the project |
or five years
Il fail to see the justice In holding
rom five to seven times the water nee |
sssary to irrigate the land in the Me-
'illa valley, for Is to 20 years, as an
experiment. Where the flow is large |
Ind never reaches the Rio Grande il !
,ould be used to irrigate thousands OF !
acres"
One Of the Las Cruces delega-
ion here asked for the mean annual
low of the river. Mr.. Cooper gave
he figures for the II years prior and
1905 as LOSSES acre feet per
ear.
The speaker then named eight noun
ain tributaries of the Rio Grande so
percent of whose water never reach the
liver. disappearing in the sand. He
tated that 1t was now impossible for
he territorial engineer to grant an an