El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-07-09
Valley Land Owners Plan
Irrigation Law to Protect
bitches.

In the event the government should
fail to take over the Franklin canal,
what would be the status of the water
users in the Valley was the pertinent
question brought out at the Joint meet
ing OF the county commissioners, farmers
and valley land owners, held Tuesday
morning in the county court house.
The matter was brought out BY 7.
Porcher, who stated that he understood
the canal was about to slip through
their fingers. R. +. Burgess being pres
emit was asked for enlightenment.
4 am as much at loss as YOU over
the question as to why the government
does not take some definite action on
the canal" said Mr.. Burgess. The ques-
ton of the government taking over the
canal had been decided. and the govern
ment seemed entirely satisfied with the
bargain that it had made.
"Many of You NAV not know" he con-
tinued, but the Franklin canal us
built across at least so percent of the
lands without deeds being obtained. The
owners permitted the building of the
canal, but did not give any deeds. The
canal has been in peaceful and uninter-
rupted possession for 20 years. As far
as the record title Is concerned. there IS
not more than One-half of the land COW
cred bv it. If we had to secure that,
we would have to run down heirs of per
sons, in some instances who owned the
land in 1899 1t would be impossible
for the deeds to be secured and it
would cost more than the canal These
people are distributed over the country
some in New Mexico, some in Arizona and
some in Chihuahua. II YOU would go
to them it would mean to pay something
for the deed.
"The government should not undertake
to demand of the Water Users assOcia-
ton a record title. The government, il
it wants to take the canal, and finds
the price reasonable, ought to take It;
The supreme court OF the state has held
that a title by limitation is a sound
title It might not be a title that you
would want to buy in every case.
Suppose that a man would come IN
and saw that his father owned an IN
terest in the land over which the canal
was built. and there had never been a
deed given. and he clain'ad his. and his
fathers right? The interest would be
so small that it would not be worth go
ing into court for. There are not a
dozen of these adverse claims Outstand-
inr and no one has asserted his adverse
right in this instance for the past p
wears. not to nv knowledge. Something
ought to be done to require the govern
ment to make a definite determination
on this matter. The canal company IS
willing to give surety bond to protect
the association and the government
against the assertion OF any adverse
claims"
Pass Resolution.
Those present then unanimously
passed the following resolution: "Re-
soy ed. that II is the sense of this meet
ing that the board Of governors OF the
Water Users association should take I'M
mediate and effective steps to ascertain
from the department OF the interior
upon what terms and what time, the
department viii take over the Franklin
canal
Urge Irrigation Law.
Farmers and valley land owners OF
EI PasO' meeting with the county com
missiOners Monday morning took the
initiative step towards formulating and
putting into effect in the state code
governing regulation and distribution OF
water to various irrigated lands.
Fl PasOans take the credit for being
the first to promulgate a spe- fled sys-
TEN of irrigation laws. and IN TINS move
ment they were supported by the farm
crs and land owners of tie PecJS cOun-
ties. These latter counties on the ground
that FL PasO was the metropolis OF the
southwest, urged the residents OF this
SECTION 10 start lne movement ioI SANE
irrigation legislation, and in this they
would fall in line.
The principal features adopted at the
meeting Monday morning, which IRE 10
form the nucleus for the proposed
statute on irrigation. and adopted are
as follows: The, right to bring water
across one mans land, and to do this
BY condemnation proceedings if neces-
sarv. in this connection it was agreed
that this right should be vested in some
governing body, and not left to the dis
The second provision that was incor-
porated in the skeleton frame of laws
that wer adopted was the right to