The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1915-09-21
GREAT IRRIGATION
PROJECTS SUFFER
because Of Slowness Of Development,
and Myron T. Herrick Suggests
That Better Finance Might
Prove Solution of Diff
fculty.

| San Francisco, Sept. 2l.---Myron Il.
Herrick, former ambassador to France
presented to the international Irrigation
congress to-day his views from the
standpoint of banker as to how the
great irrigation projects could be fur
thered by better finance. He began by
quoting the secretary OF the interior as
saying, of the private enterprises Few
| If any of the investments have ever re-
turned to the eastern or European share
holder or bondholder the amount of the
original expenditure" and, speaking of
the government project: "It must be
admitted that the slowness of develop.
ments and the use OF the reclaimed land
has been source Of disappointment"
Mr.. Herrick sketched the vast extent
of the 26 irrigation projects undertaken
by the United States reclamation serv-
ice. One of the comparisons he drew
to visualize the extent of the projects
was that the service had constructed or
was maintaining and operating $500
miles of canals which in a straight line
would run from Palm Beach, Fla, to
Fairbanks, Alaska, and back again. The
estimated area of the projects was 2,9ls,-
800 acres, of which ,343, ,I93 acres or 81
lis farms, could now be watered. The
investment in capital and labor of the
owners of these farms when fully de-
veloped will be about $l75,000,000, he
said, and the value was constantly in
Splendid as the development
was, it was being reached through trials
and tribulations largely arising, in Mr..
Herrick's opinion, from faulty methods
Of finance.
He said in part:
"The 1902 act provides that all mon
eys Except the per cent set aside for |
purposes) received from the |
sale and disposal of public lands in most |
Df the western states shall be used in
rrig>tion projects in those states. The
receipts from the sale of public lands
mount to ssI,Sl3,772.7I, which have
low, of course, all disappeared.
Consequently as the secretary of the
Interior declares: The resources of the
reclamation fund are now oyerburdened
nd the projects now under way cannot
'e competed within a reasonable length
t time unless there shall be large ac-
essions of the fund This is timely
"The reclamation service employees a
orce of 1925 persons; it has invested
normous funds in power plants, ma
hinery, implements and in equipment .
nd improvements for carrying on its
Tork. Its expenses run on whether this ,
es idle or is kept busy, while if IL ,
hould do its work by piecemeal the :
perations of the service-organized as !
is for large undertakings-will be- !
'me so costly that the investments OF !,
he government viii end in loss.
@The troubles that now confront the |,
,clamation service were foredoomed :
'om the start because Of the faulty !
ethod of finance by which il was in
of this trusting !.
pom an uncertain source of funds and :
venue for conducting its operations.
he correct way (if may be bold enough J,
} say itl is the simple ordinary way :
issuing debentures. Each project !
lould have been required to stand good !.
r its own debentures, and these de- .
'ntures should have been issued in rep !,
sentation of the officially appraised :
lue of the land is improved and been !, =
deemed out of a sinking fund created n
tis HsiaiHicht payments vi the lhnd az
gners. n
Besides creating an adequate supply
capital. this method Of finance would q,
We made the Investment Of the gov !,
nment profitable and also have light \.
ed the burden Of the land owners. =
le sooner this or some other method :.
adopted the better il will be. In n,
ed, a change is absolutely necessary.
cause the secretary OF the interior A,
'rns that a cessation Of all work is :.
while the director Of the serv. :,
reports that land owners are fall g.
: in arrears and must be granted re-. g.
walls even after the expiration Of the II
'ent 20.year extension. The United
ates government may possibly worry Al
ing under present arrangements-but "a
: land owners cannot" -