The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1910-10-27
OUR WATERLAWS
EXTRACTS FROM STATE ENGl-
NEER LEAFS ADDRESS AT
PUEBLO MEETING
WAIERRIGHTS ON STREAM
Recommends State Water Code That
Would Facilitate Prompt Ad-
Indication of Rights by
the Authorities

80 1 SAio 1 IN lOlloN llS e lFEct'
from the address of State Ereinee.
Lea before the National Ir. igatioI
Congress, will be of iItere It in STOW
ing the scope and ope alton of til:
present water laws of South Dakota:
Since irrigation became an e tao
iished institutions in this great western
country, tie necessity of regulat II
the distribution of the water su III
by statute and the administration Oi
the water laws by some zen raj an
thority in each state has been rea ize1
and this necessity has been net b.
the creation of the position of state
engineer.
While the office of state engi~eer is
not peculiar to the arid and seUi.
arid states, it is true that these stat5s
have, for the most part, pICviCaa
themselves with state eng'nCe S VIII S
duties have to do chiefly with irri-
Cation.
Since the state engineer is charged
with the distribution of water to those
entitled to its use, an es e tiaI
requisite to such distribution is tn
establishment or determination o.
well defined rights. 1t is a wei known
fact that a majority Of water rights
in the United States were ACQUIRED
with public supervision the pro ~edrre
conforming in most cases TO lo-al CTS
toms and usages prevailing at the
time.
In order to furnish Information coz
corning present methods employee t.
define old water rights. a desc Triton
of the procedure followed in my own
state. South Dakota. will be given.
Prior to the year 1905 the G was no
state supervision of flowing streams
in South Dakota, and lO~al custom :
were followed in the mater Of a =
prOpriating water for beTPfc Fl pU~-
poses. In the western pat of the
state considerable PAGER mining was
done in the gnlches and a'o"g tn
streams in the Black Hills. s c. o~e"-
atoms required the rse of flowing wa
ter in most instances, ard in such
cases the appropriation would be Tade
by posting a not Ce on a psf Or tree
at or near the point Of diversion. l.
some instances a copy of the not C
was fled at the court house of tNp
county in which the appropriation
was made. ard the a~np"ONriati n TINS
became a matter Of record. Most Of
these placer workings haze bean
abandoned, and the water rights in
such cases have lapsed from nom use
In this way the records show a J. &c
number of appropriations o. waite
which are no LONGER valid. h't VIII '"h
will require careful inves'i~ai2n t.
separate from those remaining in { ]
force and effect.
The former state laws aUthori e
appropriations of water in the manner
described. and the pener2l C-st"m o.
the country permitted arp OPT t r
to place on record such claims to the
water supply as tney deemed adys-
able. The natural tende cv was t
make the claim large euorgh to cove
all possible requirements. and in m0st
eases greater than there was any e .
p~ectaiton of using. This resulted in
many cases in absurd and speculative
claims. and the records show hume -
Gus instances where each Of 2 MN
Der of claims to water of a stream. !
ed n accordance with the f rme
statues, involved a lager 0ua"'it of
water than had ever flowed in it, e e.
during food periods. One rroV sio"
Of the former statues re mi ted t
requirement of a water rioht of s ge
and appropriation under such curcum.
stances was entitled to the eni0v
ment of such a quantity of waite" as h
actually applied To re"efci"i use. Slch
water rights, acqu red rn"e" tn o
water laws, as haze heen kept alive, a"o
recognized as valid and of full 70 ce
The keeping alive of a We" right co
sisted in making beneficial rse Of
the water claimed during q p~"r'io7,
at least, of each year. and ia lure to
use the water for a Deriod Of two
years, constituted abandonment.
In 1905 South Dakota adopted a
code of water laws p"oidirg for tn
adjudication of existing rights and the
complete public cont 'ol Of the water
in the future. The office Of sta e On
g'neer was created. and to the en-
gineer was given general su"ervis o.
of the waters OF the state and of the
measurement and Appropriation thern-
Of. This law was amended and re-en-
acted in 1907 so as to make II anplic-
able to all beneficial uses OF watts
without, limiting its applicat on to ir
rigation alone.
The state engineer Is authorized to
make photographic surveys OF TIE
various stream systems of the safe
beginning with those most u-ed for
irr CATION. These surveys corr prise d
measurement of the stream cha7ne'
and also If important tribrta les. Al
irrigation bitches along the strerm
are surveyed. their capa i'y d tern
ined. and the number Of a res Of land
irrigated under them asoer'ai ed. It
is not practicable to make stream
guagpgs in connection with ties
photographic surveys on account o
the short time available fo~ rs pr
pose. In many cases, however, the