, 1915-02-11
Waterpower Bill.

that the real "object, purpose and
erect of the waterpower bill "is
to nserp by the National Govern
ment the rights and jurisdiction
OF the states in and over the flow.
Ing waters of the stream TO the
detriment OF the states and to the
water consumers." The minority
report on this Measure presents
the question of state control of
water within a state in elaborate
form. The feature of the bill which
has already passed the house and
Is now before the senate for action.
The contentious of the minority
are fortified by NUMEROUS cita-
tons and quotations from the lead
ing cases involving state rights.
The fact that the minority is sign
ed by Senator Clark of Wyoming,
for many years chairman of the
Judiciary committee and one of
the senate's leading constitutional
authorities; by Senator Works of
California, a lawyer of wide ex-
perience and acknowledged ability,
adds to the forcefulness of the
documentary protest against the
enactment of the waterpower bill
as proposed.
"The bill in it's entire scope and
purpose is an infringement upon
and an usurpation of the sovereign
powers of the states" declares the
minority report, and adds: This
is not only its effect, but it is the
avowed intention of its friends to
transfer, in part at least, from the
states to the national government
the control over the use of the
waters of the streams within the
states. Ostensibly it is proposed
to authorize the government to
lease its own lands; but the pub
lie lands that may be leased for
powersites are in themselves prec-
ticaily worthless. The government
has no ownership or interest in
the water flowing in the streams
except that of a riparian owner,
and that ouly in states where RI
parian rights are recognized. In
most of the western states riparian
rights are abolished and the own
ersLip of the water vested in the
whole people of the state, to be
appropriated and applied to bene-
fetal uses as the laws of the states
may direct. The government owns
the land precisely as a private in
dividual owns his land, and with
the same rights and privileges as
to the use of the water that flows
by it, no more no less. 1t does
not own it in it's sovereign capacity,
and has no sovereign power over it
or over the water that flows past
it. But the effect of this bill is to
lease, not alone the land it owns,
but the waters of the stream upon
which it borders, and by condi-
tions and restrictions in the lease
to determine how and for what
purpose the lessee shall use the
water, as we'll as the land. This
is in violation of the principles
enunciated by the courts, and an
encroachment upon, and a plain
and open violation of, the sovereign
rights of the states to govern and
control such use. 1t is an ingen-
ious effort to fasten upon the pri-
vate ownership of the land, by the
government, the sovereign right to
control the use of the waters, a
right that the government does
not possess under the constitution
and cannot be given it by statute,
which admittedly does belong to
the states.
"The terms upon which the sec
rotary of the interior is authorized
to lease land for power purposes
are so unreasonable and burden
some and SO clearly in conflict
with state rights and state laws as
to prevent any prudent business
mon from i~nvestinp auy money in