Arizona republican., 1912-10-03
Advice of Attorney Christy Heeded and Appeal for Injunction Against Pro posed New Contract Will Not Be Used
MANY FARMERS
 ARE SIGNING UP
Matter Up to Secretary Fisher But If He Decides Adversely Objection Will Not Be Pressed by Valley Farmers

Washington, D. c. Oct 9 Salt River Valley Water Users As sOCiation, Phoenix:
 Petition for rehearing will be called to the attention of Secretary Fisher on his return. Meanwhile, conditions and terms fixed by departmental order of August ?. as modified September 16 must be compiled with.
 SAMUEL ADAMS,
 Acting Secretary"
 Heeding the mild advice of Legal Advisor George D. Christy, the council and governors of the water users as sociation yesterday abandoned the idea of carrying the fight for a further mo- dificatiOn of the rental contract into the courts, and finally decided to wait until Secretary Fisher has received and acted upon the petition of protest At an afternoon meeting of holders of Class A land, Captain Christy's advice prevailed, and in the same way the prior fighters concluded to await the arrival of word from the pepartment. In the meantime, a large number of farmers signed contracts-many of them adding the line signed under
 
 partment in wire to the local office The telegram quoted above arrived at $500, after the adjournment of the joint meeting and the prior fighters.
 There was a full quorum of council men and governors at the morning meeting F. L. Wilkinson was chosen to preside. A communication was read from Project Engineer Fitch. to the ef- feet that having secured permission from Washington, the paymaster of the local office would receive contracts signed under protest-together with the money.
 The time of the meeting was mostly taken up in hearing Christy on the rights and positions of the various classes of water users. He explained the consequences of taking the matter into court, seeking to restrain the ser Vers from cutting off the water of those who would not sign the contract He said that water users are not in position to make a fight, have no con- troI over water in the Roosevelt res ervoir, and the only ones who can rightly make use of the courts are pri- or lighters. An injunction can only af-
  became distinctly up to one Of the prior lighters present to offer his services as a suitor against the government but the job was not eagerly sought, ev en after it was decided to let the as sOciatiOn stand the expense of the liti gatiOn in the test case. It was the sense of the majority that proceed ings should be started in the name of one of their number and that costs should be put up by the association the other water users to sign the con tract with the line under protest" It was clearly shown that is the only method of getting court action without q tremendous outlay for individual le gal representatives, and not a single man present was willing to take his case to court. It was pointed out that if the case is lost, all but users of river water might lose their service, and without bringing the matter to vote, it was laid on the table unanimously. The Ostensible purpose is to wait un- til something is heard from Secretary Fisher, but it is the impression of more than one that there will be no further action on the part of the water users, and that they will accept the terms of the agreement in place of anything better-but still hoping that new ad- ministration may change conditions with the personnel of the department. It was Captain Christy's only optimis tic point, that a new administration will come into power and change the rules of the service. He said "a new administration" not new president.
 Again Christy repeated HiH when he said that signing the contract under protest will not affect the legal stand ing of the water users. If the case is taken into court, and won, the fact that a contract has been signed does not prevent it's provisions being changed, if one signer is willing and the other compelled to do so.
 It was resolved to ask MT. Christy to prosecute the appeal, and to try to get Fisher to come to the valley. The water users want to talk to him per sonally, and so, get their troubles more cleanly before his attention. That Fisher will for any consideration saange the contract over the head of his assistant in charge of reclamation, is thought by many extremely unlike fy Adams wire came almost as a di- rect reply to the objectors but it is ad- mitted there is a chance that the course of the department will be changed when Fisher returns and hears the case of the Salt River valley farmers,