Imperial Valley press., 1913-12-01

i ne present IcSlSlstCuIc CoHoISIS VI
one hundred and twenty men, Of
whom a hundred are chosen at each
state election in November. They go
to the state capital in the following
January and at the end of April they
adjourn finally. Thus, after four
months service they stop work, when
they have just begun to know the
needs of the state.
"But if, as I propose, they met
every four months, they would not, as
now, rush through a mass of ill-con-
sidered legislature at the beginning of
their term Of office, but would have
time to consider all proper legislation,
would know what they were doing,
and therefore do it better. What
would be thought of any city council
or county board of supervisors which
met only during the first four months
of two-year term Of office?
"Now that we have the recall it is
no longer necessary to hire and pay
two sets of legislators to do the same
work Under the single chamber leg
islative system any legislator could be
recalled between sessions if his vote
displeased his constituents. Thus the
people would at all times be able to
control legislation without the neces-
sity of using the cumbersome methods
of the initiative and referendum.
81 stand for state owned storage
reservoirs and state control of elec-
tricity. The state should permit local
municipalities to drew off sufficient
water for domestic uses and irrigation
purposes. The distribution of cleo
tricity should be either by sale to
municipalities or to private concerns.
That could be worked out gradually.
But the state should retain title to
all unused water rights and should
never part with them, nor should it
part permanently with electrical
rights.
"All claims for water rights now in
existence and not in use should be
terminated in favor of the state unless
use is begun within a limited time, I
should suggest one year. No new
water rights should be granted.
"Water for irrigation purposes and
for domestic uses and electricity for
heat, light and power and in the
northern part of the state water for
navigation so vitality concerns every
citizen of California that they should
not be permitted to pass into private
ownership, but should be preserved as
a common heritage. But their use
should be regulated by the state in
years to come in accordance with the
needs of each generation.
"The present system, which permits
the first appropriation of water to own
it, subject to rights Of riparian claim
ants, is a system by which men are in
duced to claim water for purposes of
speculation, hoying that the water will
become of value and that they will be
permitted to levy tribute on future in
habitants.
"Under the present California laws,
cities, towns and irrigation districts
are obliged to build their own stor-
age reservoirs and when they need
water this is generally burden too
heavy for the population. AS result
tens of thousands of acres, especially
in the San Joaquin-Sacramento valley
remain unirrigated.
But if the state built storage reser-
voirs, the irrigation districts could af-
ford to build their own distributing
system The state should charge
sufficient amount to cover the cost OF
construction and maintenance"
Mr.. van Wyck is lawyer. He was
graduated from the state universitv.