Arizona republican., 1918-01-08
DRAINAGE ISSUE TAKEN UP WITH
 PROJECT PEOPLE

Selecting John L. Gust as temporary legal advisor and considering the very important drainage question affecting the Salt River valley, members of the board of governors or the Water Users association held a session lasting from morning until evening. undoubtedly one of the most important matters be- fore the meeting was the drainage question and a discussion of ways and means to install such necessary drain- age throughout the project as would prevent the water-losging of any of the land as has occurred in many other western irrigation districts, notably the Grand valley in Colorado, the Rio Grande valley north of Fl Paso, and sections of the San Joaquin valley near Fresno, Cal.
 The fortunate thing in the Salt River valley is that owing to the nat ural slope of the country toward the river and the excellent fall of the river bed itself of about IS feet to the mile, the drainage problem here be- comes a much simpler one than 1t is in many western sections. The board of governors, recognizing the value of taking hold of this important move ment in time-after a full discussion of the matter-passed a resolution authorizing President Orme to prompt ly appoint a committee of five mem l bers to investigate this matter and be prepared to report at a very early | date.
 l A delegation of water users within the district adjacent to the Indian school, accompanied by Dwight B.
 Heard, who has given this matter of drainage considerable personal inyes-
 tigation attended the session headed l hly al I J1t OF
 the United States Indian school. In
 the party were J. H. Hone, Fred Colter and others.
 Mir. Brown stated that he believed the thing to do was to remedy the
 situation before it got too serious, and that all of his neighbors in the section
 affected on North Central avenue were ready to take action, but they
 thought it would be much simpler to do this work through the Water Users
 association if it could be done legally
 and practically, and thus save by
 pumping much of the water for use for
 lands within the Salt River project for
 which water is not now available. than
 to operate under a drainage district
 law and merely carry the surplus wat
 CT out of the district without making
 any practical use of 1t.
 MT. Heard in his remarks, showed
 the serious results which had beer
 followed in other western sections
 where they had delayed in putting 1T drainage as an adjunct to irrigation
 and showed the remarkable oppor-
 tunity existing in the Salt River valley
 to install system of drainage whicl
 would insure for all time to the people of the Salt River valley freedom iron such disasters as have occurred il other sections. He also explained iron a map recently completed by the rec lamation service that there were sev eral districts existing today in tn, Salt River valley where drainag,
 either by pumping or by drainage dis tricts would be of decided advantage ,, and showed that the areas needn. such drainage were steadily increasing Tonto Case Is Settled
 A definite agreement which will set tie an argument of long standing, wa, reached with Marion Braddock wh, : has land in the Tonto basin. Brad dock is to get 5000 for the submerg ing of his land by the overflow. II return he is to drop all claims fo compensation. This is a hold owe case from the former project manage ' ment. Braddock retains his land. Much Money Taken in
 5 Incident to the meeting, Dr. Charle
 A. Van der Neer, secretary of the as 5 sociation, reported that up to Januar, 3 the total acreage upon which pay s ment for irrigation service had beel l made was 150,sS5A acres In Nove.n 9 Der and December the doctors depart 5 ment has taken in s354.000 in collec ? tions and has been one busy littl
 place. Of these collections about s44, = GOO was from the sale of power.