The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-03-11
BY O. E. ARNEY.


| Special to The Tribune.
BOISE, March 10.-In an article on
| February "a / called attention TO con-
| veyance OF some 800 and more acres Of
| Idaho's state school fund lands by the
Governor GoodinG administration 10 the
| Trlbunes publication constituted the first
| advice to the people of Idaho on the
subject.
For fourteen months or more the state
| OF Idaho had in Its treasury S5A2T95 OF
| the Washington Water Power company 3
money for a deed, given without notice
outcry at the courthouse. without the
! existence OF any minutes to show the
transaction whatsoever.
AS evidenced by my previous article.
every existing file In the land office In
Boise-and there. are suspciously few
files left-pertaining to this peculiar
ty. OF soft pedal manipulation outside
the law and unworthy of those who pre-
tend to serve the people with consclen-
tious regard for laws, rules and regula-
tons.
The sole file which gives to the public
any idea Of the scope OF the transaction
is the letter from the Washington Water
Power Company to the Idaho state land
board, written November ~. 1908, en-
closing exchange for $3427.95 FOR per-
petual easement to overflow. back up
and hold water upon portions of sections
Is and 36. townships As and 40. ranges 2,
and (: w. B. NJ" and closing with
most remarkable statement:
I'VE are Of the opinion that In view
Of your constitutional provision and stat
utory enactments that the right and
title acquired by this deed Is somewhat
doubtful, but presume that in case our
title should be successfully attacked the
money for the easement would be re-
turned To us"
for state office in Idaho today TO take
the public into his confidence and state
what he would have done-what he VIII
do-should such a letter come to him as
member OF the state land board of
Idaho. No honest man would have ac-
ceptcd such funds and passed them into
the treasury as a part Of the assets OF
state fund for the endowment Of the
public schools unless he was too igno-
rant to be In office anywhere,
north. II is here. The people of that
north Idaho section have exercised the
right OF petition, and their request
breathes OF a reason fraught with SIN
document:
Whereas. the Washington Water
Power company have erected a dam or
barrier approximately ten feet high.
across the Spokane river at Post Falls.
Idaho; raising the water In Occurs d Alene
lake and tho rivers which empty their
| flooding, as permitted by the agreement.
| the enumerated subdivisions Of school
sections 16 and &c. az set forth and
Your memorialists further charge and
| state the facts TO be that the Washing
| ton Water Power company referred to
| Is foreign corporation engaged in the
occupation of generating electric power
| for transmission and use: that such cor
| poration so maintains its dam and works
at Post Falls, Idaho, for private gain,
and thereby generates electric energy and
the eastern portion Of the state OF Wash
| ington, and by thus maintaining n dam
as aforesaid at Post Falls on the Spo-
kane Io river ,s causes a.. the ] water Of Occur
overflow their banks within tho state
| OF Idaho. depriving her citizens of their
natural resources and diverting the same
to the detriment OF said, state and to
| the upbuildng of a foreign state and
| by the wrongful obstruction OF the nor
| NAL flow CT the water Of the Spokane
OF Idaho lands. as herein set out. the
| state of Idaho and it's irreducible school
fund suffer great injury and loss
Whereas, the foregoing illegal confls-
| dren OF the state Of Idaho has been
permitted TO go unquestioned by the
state board OF land commissioners from
the date when the act of piracy was
committed until the present time. now.
| therefore. we, your memorialists. citizens
of the state OF Idaho. demand that you
Idaho, institute the necessary legal pro-
| ceedlngs TO cause the removal of the OBJ
struction at Post Falls that the water
| may be permitted to escape. and thus
| restore the school lands In question as
| well as thousands OF acres OF other
lands. much OF which are the home
steads Of settlers.
Your speedy compliance will miti-
gate to degree the humiliation OF our
| people caused by permitting a corpora =
| tion from another state to enter and de
stroy our fairest and most productive
valleys. as well as deplete the school
lands, which are the heritage of this and
| succeeding generations"
This petition to Governor Brady con-
stirutes severe arratgnment OF his
predecessors In trust. This is vigorous
languagel 1t charges Conspiracy, IL
legal conflscation OF the heritage OF
| school children Of Idaho" and "humila-
| ton OF our people" And why not?
I met n gentleman on the train last
week who lived on the Saint Mary's
river. one OF the tributary streams men
| toned In the above petition. He told
me he had seen a field from which a
vested q bounteous crop OF hay. prior to
the building OF this Washington water
power dam at Port Falls, swimming In
water and the water following the Sickle
bar OF his moving machine; and that the
| hay he fished out OF the place was pitt
ful In comparison with the splendid stacks
OF hay he garnered from the same ground
| the years before this easement was
granted to the foreign power company.
Another north Idaho man told me yes
| terday OF one of these settlers whose
| place wns flooded by the raise OF water