Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1920-10-06

dividuals to the extent of benefit de-
| rived by each. No assessment can be
made unless there is direct benefit,
| and the state law limits the amount
that can be assessed against the high
prairie land not actually in the river
bottom to Is cents per acre or $40
per quarter section and such assess
ment can only be made where the high
land is actually benefited, by draining
natural reservoirs and casting this
water upon the low bottom land, and
thereby benetlting the high land to
the detriment of the bottom land, and
the bottom lands, public highways,
cities and villages, water powers, and
others will be assessed only for actual
benefits received and in proportion to
such benefits under proceedings sim
liar to those in judicial ditch cases,
All benefits derived from such i'm
provement will go to the district or
to the state, and federal government,
in proportion to the amount invested
by each. Such benefits will consist in
benefits to wet and overflowed lands,
fisheries, water powers and naviga-
ton and possibly irrigation.
The possibilities of this develop
ment are of such magnitude that to
fully appreciate it one must make
careful Investigation of what has
been done elsewhere and the great
advantage of cooperation.
The Illinois fisheries pay annually
over $1,000 per acre rental, and it is
claimed that fisheries where pike and
the better kinds of fish are raised the
same pay as high as $50 per acre.
This being true it will be readily seen
that reservoirs can be constructed on
every tributary to the Minnesota
River at points where the greatest
capacity can be secured with the least
loss OF land and the larger the capac-
1ty OF such reservoirs the better pro-
lection will be afforded to the agri-
cultural land and cities, and the bet
ter and more valuable use can be
made OF the surplus waters for power
purposes and navigation.
In many instances such as the dis
astrous floods near Madison, Candy
and Marshall Minnesota, this year.
easy relief can be afforded under the
district plan by opening old channels
or constructing new ones leading the
voirs to be constructed and it is be-
lieved plans can be worked out by
competent engineers to remedy or re-
lieve all cases Of damage by surplus
waters in every part of the water
shed, and to utilize such waters for
some beneficial purpose For thirty
five years we have advocated the con-
seryatiOn of the surplus waters, and
to that end the construction of reser-
vOirs wherever available sites can be
procured from the source to the outlet
OF every stream and have pointed out
the disastrous results of draining the
natural reservoirs all over the coun-
try and rushing all the surplus wa
tiers into streams and then going to
| the lower reaches of the Mississippi
River and constructing immense levies
to keep that stream from overlooking
its banks and inundating millions of
acres of valuable land, such levies be-
ing of no value whatever for water
powers or fisheries or for navigation
] While on the other hand, by investing
] the millions of dollars at the upper
reaches of the Mississippi, in i'm
/ pounding reservoirs the surplus wa
ters may be used over and over again
for power purposes, fisheries and nav
1 lgation, and not only redeem the low
land at the lower end of the Missis-
sippi but also all along that stream
and it's tributaries
The Tri-State Flood Control asso-
citation and other like organizations
have -agitated and discussed this
question so much that congress has
| finally appointed Flood Control
Committee to consider these great
questions, and the agricultural depart
ment of the federal government has
taken the matter up and actually COM
pleted a survey and study of the Red
River Flood problems.
The scarcity of coal emphasizes the
necessity of utilizing all the available
water power of the country and the
eternal flowing on of streams makes
all investments in such public i'm
provements at whatever cost profit
able
The development of the Minnesota
River as proposed will fill the Min
nesota River Valley with manufacture
ing plants, operated by cheap hydro
electric power and will be an immense
resource and benefit to all the proper
ty and people Of the proposed district
and also the state at large.
| Because your farm or your county
is included in the proposed district
does not signify that your farm or
your county will be subject to an as
sessment for the benefit of the bottom
land or any other land than your
| own, but it does give you and your
county the advantage of all benefits
that may be derived from cooper
alton in pushing forward any improve
ment within the scope of the law gov
erning the district.
Under the law no improvement can
be made unless the benefits exceed
the cost of the Improvement and
damages
The organization of the proposed
district will enable us to present our
cause effectively to both the state and
federal government and give us the
machinery whereby we may, if deem
ca advisable, cooperate with the
state and nation in carrying out such