The Winslow mail., 1923-01-12

qualifications for Adjutant General
! be made more liberal and more in
/ line with the tenets of a democracy.
| State Insanity Law.
/ Your attention is called to a recent
| decision in the Superior Court of Ma
ricopa county, by Judge Elmo Boil
niger, declaring the Arizona statutes
governing the commitment of persons
| to the State ASYLUM to be unconstitu-
tional, and l suggest the enactment of
whatever amendments may be neces-
| sary to remedy the defects in this law
Gasoline Test.
| Numerous complaints are made
from time to time that gasoline and
des. The State possesses no means
of determining whether or not these
complaints are justified l therefore
recommend that the Legislature en-
act law providing for a standard
/ gasoline and oil test, to be conducted
by the State Sealer of Weights and
Measures. The cost for making such
tests to be betrayed by fee to be
charged for each examination.
/ Il
Before many years have passed,
some of the great mines of the State
which are now bearing the major por-
tion of taxation will in all probability
be depleted and remain but a mem
ory. 1t is imperative that we look
into the future and plan the develop
ment of other resources to take the
place of those industries. We have
no unlimited field which to choose.
We have vast potential resource
still undeveloped in the Colorado
River which offers great possibilities
! toward the irrigation of our arid land,
and the almost unlimited creation of
cheap electrical power for the opera
tion of our industries.
If it is at all practicable, and men
who have studied the proposition
carefully say that it is, to utilize the
waters of the Colorado River to ir-
rigate over two million acres of land
in Arizona, then we should bend every
energy toward the achievement of this
purpose. Arizona cannot afford to
give away her greatest natural re-
source, with millions Of acres await
ing development, and she cannot af-
ford to plunge blindly into contract
that may be unfair to her. Her peo-
pie must know what the development
of the gigantic enterprise of harness
ing the waters of the Colorado River
means to the State. We must know
how much water can be used in Ari-
ZOna, how many acres can be irrigat-
ed, and what steps are necessary to
secure the quantity needed for the
adequate development of our State.
| The most important problem before
/ this Legislature is that of whether or
not it is advisable for Arizona to en-
ter into the compact which was draft
ed at Bishops Lodge, near Santa Fe,
/ New Mexico, by representatives of
the States of Wyoming, Colorado, New
Mexico, Utah, Nevada California,
Arizona and the United States Gov
ernment 1t is most important that
this subject be fully investigated be-
fore the State is committed to any
irrevocable line of action.
The danger of the loss of life and
the destruction of property which
hangs over the Yuma and Imperial
valleys. due to the menace of the un-
! controlled flood waters of the Colo
RADIO River, makes it imperative that
this menace be removed at the earl
! lest possible time.
Whether the proposed pact will fa-
cilitate the early harnessing of the
river is debatable. The pact contains
no provisions for the construction
| of any dams 1t is essential that in
considering the provisions of the pact,
all factors be taken into cOnsi0era-
ton, including those omitted from the
pact
The Fourth Arizona Legislature in
! 1919 enacted a law, which was ap-
proved March II, 1919, creating the
Arizona Resources Board. with full
power to secure such information as
would aid in estimating the area pos
sible to irrigate in Arizona from the
waters of the Colorado River. and
$40 000 per wear was appropriated for
the use Of this Board The Fifth Ari-
znna Legislature created the office of
| Water Commissioner in an act ap-
nroved March 5. 1921. appropriated
S25.000. and authorized the Water
| Commissioner to expend the money
to secure information rs to the pos
eibilities of the development of the
Colorado River
So far as I have been able to dis
cover very little information of con-
structive nature is now available as
a result of the expenditure of any of
these funds.
hove listened patiently during the
past few weeks to manv conflicting
opinions with reference to the devel-
opment of the power and irrigation
possibilities Of the Colorado River
Advocates of the proposed pact inter
pret its provisions in one way. and its
opponents in another The pact is
written in very simple language: it
ahould not be necessary to draw any
fine-spun conclusions The language
appears to me TO he definite
Tt is regretable that sufficient data
| l. avoiIobIo Of tbic fiI,,a n