Arizona republican., 1919-02-04
RIVER REGULATION
 BOON FUR ARIZONA
 SAYS [. H. MAXWELL

That river regulation applied to the Gila river will accomplish bigger bene- ficial results in Arizona and prove the stupenduous benefits to the coun- try from the adoption of the Newlands plan and that the national army should be employed, fighting the desert in times of peace, was the subject of q talk given to the Water Users Associa- tion yesterday, by George H. Maxwell.
 In his talk at the Brotherhood Club luncheon and the later lecture at the joint meeting of the board of governors and council of the Water Users Asso- citation, Mir. Maxwell made it very evi- dent that he has lost none of his vigor so characteristic of his addresses in the old campaigns of 15 years ago, when he jokingly said, his regular habit was a three hours speech He drove his point home in both ad- dresses yesterday with the same sledge hammer force that those who were here 15 years ago so well remember.
 One of these points was the neces- sity of solidarity and united effort by every man in the Water Users As sociation for the benefit of the entire body of water users. Every man who is being damaged by too much water, said MT. Maxwell, or whose land is being water logged or alllalied should have the benefit of the cooperation of every other man under the system through the Water Users Association. for his protection. and every man who is being menaced or damaged by drouth or too little water, should have the | same united cooperation for his pro- lection.
 MT. Maxwell declared that any other i policy meant eventual loss and dam ! age, not only to the particular indi- | vidual, but to every other property ] owner in the district. Such a policy of mutual effort for mutual protec- | tion is one of the fundamental de- mands of any properly managed irri- | gated system. It cannot be otherwise 1 he said.
 The people of this valley, Maxwell l contended have the enjoyment of the l greatest boon ever granted by all the | people of the nation to any locality or community, and it was not given tt i them for their own selfish benefit tC do with as they please. The gift car ried with it a solemn obligation tc complete the work begun by the gov ernment by perfecting the most splen didly organized and managed irriga- | tiOn system in the world. That neces- | Sitates relieving every one of the men, ace of too much water, or of water logging or of alkali-ing any lands. Il likewise necessitates insuring every 1 irrigator, under the system an ample supply of water, no matter what class his water right may nominally belong to, provided the water is to be had And the water is to be had in enormous quantities, fro mthe underground res ervoir, the great gravel beds underly- ing the district, even though there may be q shortage of water in the reservoir, he said.
 In detailing the methods to be | adapted, MT. Maxwell said that it is pumps. big pumps and little pumps deep well pumps and shallow wei pumps. every kind of pump and every kind of well. If a deep well is put dowr and it develos a good flow of water for the pump, he said that each ma1 should thank his stars for it: and if i does not satisfactorily lower the watel where necessary, put down shallow wells. he said, and keep trying, keel experimenting until the exact system is discovered.
 Money has to be spent experiment
 ing, he said but if the people perse
 were they will finally succeed not onl,
 in lowering the water table where i ; has risen too high, but also in enor
 mously increasing the available wate . supply. In that way it may in the en,
 prove that water logging some of tn
 land was a benefit to the people, be
 cause it awakened the people to tn
 imperative need for pumps. The grea
 drouth in Southern California. abou
 twenty years ago, said Mir. Maxwel
 was the greatest blessing that eve , happened to that country. It forced tn people to improve their undergroun r water supply and they discovered tn