The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1921-01-17
What the Reclarna-
zion Service Ac-
complished in 1920


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You will recall that in the winter
of 1919 everybody was thinking
Row THE world would ever recover
from the effects of the war and how
1t would meet the construction and
readjustment problems. The wal
industries suddenly stopped and dis
charged tremendous numbers Of
! laborers, and soldiers would soon
be return ing from Europe and from
the training camps and Jobs must
he provided. The world was in
chaos and business was cropping
about largely in the dark, meeting
emergencies as best it could; the
country was almost paralized by the
thought of the tremendous indebted
ness that would have to be paid; ir-
rigatiOn development was at stand
still, not a dollar could be secured,
and those who in the past had. in
vested in irrigation bonds had suf-
fered great losses. The irrigation
failures and the defaults in the pay
ment of principal and interest of ir-
rigation securities had discredited
not only Idaho, but the entire west
in financial centers in which private
capital might be found. The govern
ment Indebtedness was so great that
it seemed impossible to get the at
tention of congress to make further
appropriations for reclamation,
hence when the outlook for irriga-
ton development in Idaho was at
it's very darkest hour, the Idaho
Reclamation association was organ
lied.
This organization Immediately
started a campaign of publicity for
several hundred millions of dollars
of federal appropriations for recla-
nation; it urged and advocated thru
the press and in public meetings the
necessity of the western states being
united in their demands on congress
and that in order to make the cam,
paign effective, those who went to
Washington should be in position
to speak for all the arid states, and
that the senators and congressman of
the west should stand together on
a federal policy recognizing the
necessity for the reclamation of the
west. We urged the formation of
organizations similar to the Idaho
association in all the western states
and that such association should
then send delegates to general
Western States association, which in
turn should determine and carry on
such campaign for reclamation as
to focus the attention of congress
and the east on the west, and while
reclamation was the keynote, the ad-
vertising which the west would get
from this campaign would help in
every industry.
Note the changes that have taken
place since the Idaho association was
Everybody in Idaho is
talking irrigation and looking for
ward to great development. The
whole Snake river valley is alive to
this great development The Ameri-
can Falls reservoir, the Fall river,
reservoir, the Yellowstone diversion,
the Bruneau project, the Boise
project, and the Black
The latter is now almost a
certainty owing to a revival of in
terest by the Emmett Irrigation dis
trict and the building of the Black
Canyon dam.
We urged the calling of the west
ern states conference at Salt Lake
and paid the preliminary expenses
for calling that conference, which
led to the organization of the west
srn states association. The cam
paign Of our association has at
.racted attention in other western
states and has resulted in the forma-
ion of the northwestern league and
IN the Colorado Basin project; it has
ed to the appointment of commit
.ees to revise and remodel the irriga-
ion bonding law so that private
capital may be induced to aid where ,
The parties do not want TO wait for
federal appropriation.
Our campaign directly and in
directly resulted in bringing for the
irst time in the history of the
country the appropriation committee
If the house of representatives to
he west for the examination of what
irrigation has done and what it may
accomplish thru government aid.
The association started cam
,aign for western man for secre-
airy of the interior and it has been
AIKEN up by the entire west, and the
last now comedies our demand. The
'nly question is to agree on the man.
n view Of what has been accom-
'lished and the interest that the as
ociation has aroused, not only in ir-
igation generally, but in specific
Projects in Idaho and in the improve
nent of the laws and in advertising
he west, the public should support
[ as An inuesfmanf 90 IL honoAfa NJ