Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1910-09-29
FOR AN IRRIGATION DISTRICT

The owners Of land around Noun
tain Home will. at a meeting to he
held on Saturday next, consider a
matter of momentous Importance.
namely, the creation of an irrigation
district to embrace the lands which .
it is quite apparent. will remain UNI
watered for years to come if further
dependence be placed on private cap
ital. Many solutions of the situation I
have been offered and men with the
means and ability to carry the pro-
iect to successful completion have
become interested at different times.
but they have been confronted with
an insurmountable wall in the shape
Of the seemingly Understandable liz
igation in which the system and wa
ter owners have become involved
This litigation has been in process
of adjudication for almost two years,
but the end is not yet in sight and
there are too many other attractive
fields for capital to hope that its aid
may be enlisted until every vestige
of a law suit in connection With the
Mountain Home water situation shall
have been stricken from the court
records. This avenue of hope then,
being closed, it seems to be up to the
land owners to do something for
themselves
Something over a year. ago Sena-
tor Carl Davis proposed that an r.
rigation district be created. He had
given the matter careful study and
explained the provisions of the law
thoroughly At that time. however,
other propositions which appeared
more feasible were before the people
hence his suggestion was not given
due consideration. 1t looks now as if
this scheme is the only one into which
the people can enter with any hope
Of an early realization of the asDi-
rations which induced them TO settle
upon these lands.
The law relating to Irrigation Dis
tricts provides that whenever fifty or
majority of the holders of title or
evidence Of title to lands susceptible
OF irrigation from a common source
and by the same system of works,
desire to provide for the irrigation Of
the same, they may propose the or
ganization of an irrigation district
The equalized county assessment
roll shall be sufficient evidence If
title to such lands. but other evil
dence may be received, including re-
CENTS or other evidence of the rights
of entrymen on lands under any law
OF the United States of this state
and such entrymen shall be compeJ-
ent signers of such petition. and the
lands upon which they have made
entries shall, for the purpose of said
petition, be considered as ownerd by
them The fact that so small n
portion Of the land affected has gone
to patent has heretofore been con-
sidered a drawback, but the law dis
tinctly states that entrymen on gov
eminent lands have the same rights
in this matter as the owners Of pat
ented lands
1t is unnecessary for the purpose
of this article to go into the provi-
sions Of the law as it relates to pre-
senting the petition to the county
commissioners, voting on the Ques
ton of creating the district, organi
cation of the district, election of di
rectors. ETC., ETC.. as copies OF th,
entire law may be had at the ofic,
of the State Engineer, but it may Dc
well to print out few of the advan
tages of operating under this law
An irrigation district is analag
Gus to a school district that is. the
title to all of the property is vested
in the district and stands back of th'
bonds which are issued for the pur
pose of constructing the system. Thi
gives basis Of security for tn
bonds
An irrigation district possesses tn
right of eminent domain. with tn
power by and through its board O
directors to cause TO he condemnc
and appropriated in its name and 70
its use all lands, water rights, res
ervoirs. canals and works construct
ed or being constructed by privat
owners. and lands for the storage {
needful waters. Thus, an irrigatio
district here could take over by pul
chase or condemnation the systei
already constructed and make it a
integral part of the system to be cor
structed This alone is very vail
able feature, as the system woul
be turned over to the irrigation di
trict at a reasonable valuation, an
would add to the value of the pro