The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1913-12-09
ADD To BEAUTY
AND UTILITY
San Francisco Has a Right to the
Hetch Hetchy Valley Water
supply

The following argument was made
by Miss Marie Grumbles of the eIey-
enth grade OF the DunneHon High
School, in a debate Dec. ), the sub
ject of which was, Resolved. that
Congress Should Refuse Hetch
Hetchy Valley for the Use of San
Francisco" AS will be seen by the
dispatch that follows Miss Grum-
bles' essay, the United States Senate
took the young lady's advice:
Mr.. Vice-Presidett, Honorable
Judges and Fellow Studens:
The subject for debate is: That
Congress should refuse to turn the
Hetch Hetchy Valley to San Francis
After twelve years of persistent
effort San Francisco has con-
vinced many eminent conservation
lists and a majority of the lower
House of Congress. of the justice of
her request for reservoir rights in
the Hetch Hetchy Valley and in the
Yosemite. National Park.
The bill has been passed by the
House of Representatives and is now
awaiting the action of the Senate.
But listen! San Francisco is con-
fronted by an emergency, since prac-
tically one-third of the municipality
is without adequate water supply;
the city already owns a portion of
the dam site; that of the 119, ,622
acres of land in the Yosemite Ma
tional Park, only l $50 acres will be
flooded by the proposed reservoir;
and the city is ready to give other
land, acre for acre. for the territory
ii asks the nation to surrender.
Senator Key Pittman, of Nevada,
thus summarizes these advantages
OF the bill: 1t conseryes the surplus
water OF the Tuolumne river, not
only for the supply of domestic use
around those cities, but for the ben
eft of the irrigationists of the valley.
water that today is wasted and
cannot be saved except by the build
ing of these dams. 1t creates a wa
ter power, hydro-electric energy of
over $4,000 horse power, which
must be supplied TO all these people
at cost, thereby being the greatest
aid to relieve them from the mon
opoly that has been supplying them
with light and power in that section
Of the country for years.
1t not only serves the purpose of
irrigation, but it gives power to
pump the surplus water to irrigate
hundreds of thousands of acres of
land that can never be irrigated in
any other way. 1t goes further than
that: 1t provides fund for build
ing roads and boulevards and open
ing up one of the grandest national
parks that exist in this country.
The ten points made by Senator
Thomas regarding the advantages oi
the bill are these: First, the city OF
San Francisco is the owner by loca
ton under the laws of California, Of
the waters which it seeks to i'm
pound for municipal purposes, hav
ing expended in their acquisition fol
surveys and Investigations and il
the purchase of land something like
$4,000.
Second, the city is the owner o
about two-thirds Of the floor of th'
Hetch Hetchy Valley. 1t does no
belong to the United States, but wa
acquired by the city from private
owners years ago. II is also tn
owner of other tracts in the vale,
and in the Stanislaus Forest Reser
yation, and the bill proposes to eX
change these surplus holdings 70
such part Of the Hetch Hetchy Val
ley which may be submerged in ex
cess of it's own territory.
Third. The Yosemite Valley EN-