The Fallon standard. (Fallon, Nev.) 1920-1958, 1924-07-30
Truckee River Water Findings Filed
By Special Water Master Talbot
Declares All Stored Waters In Lake Tahoe Belongs To
Government. Grants Allocatons to Farmers Including
Reservation and NewIands Project; Power Company
Claim at Wadsworth Dimssed.

The findings of Special Master
Talbot, appointed by Judge Earring
ton to make allotments of water
from the Truckee river and set up
the rights of the Newlands project
troll, have been filed. and proves one
OF the most exhaustive and compre-
kensiye documents ever filed before
the court on water matters in this
state. in addition TO setting out each
individual water right on the True
kee TO the farmers from the head OF
the river TO Pyramid lake, Judge
Talbot sets up control of storage.
The following review of the decision
which will be passed upon by Judge
Harrington, is from the Reno Ca.
zette:
Tahoe Stored Water
The proposed decree holds that
the federal government owns and
controls all of the waters of Lake
Tahoe, stored by means of the dam
tItCltu there Ds TIE OlQ DOuutl
Boom and Lumber Company and
later acquired by the United States
government. The proposed decree
also finds that the federal govern
ment is also entitled to a six foot
control over the lake waters. but the
LITTER findings. according to attor-
neys, does not establish such range
- ID -
owners at the lake but only as
against the water users of this valley
who were made defendants in the
suit.
Indian Water Rights
The proposed decree also vests IN
every Pyramid lake Indian a water
right with a priority of 1869, by
reason of Indian treaties and Indian
land Withdrawals, although only a
small portion of the water so vested
In such Indians has ever been divert
ed or placed TO beneficial use.
The decree restricts use of the
water appropriated for the benefit
OF the Indians to their actual needs
ard makes provision against the dl
tiers or homesteaders.
Holds River Is Federal Governments
Furthermore. the proposed decree
holds that all of the unappropriated
water i'm the Trnckee river belongs
exclusively TO the federal govern
p1ent, and not TO the state of Nevada,
end in this connection declares that.
xrh hon n fa1ara1 .trfs Il
drew public lands for the Newlands
project IN 1902, II automatically
withdrew TrucBee waters for its rec
lamation, making 1t unnecessary for
the federal government to apply to
the state of Nevada for water for
federal reclamation projects.
State or Federal Ownership
In the opinion of many attorneys
the suit and the proposed decree has
raised for decision by the United
States supreme court the all impor-
tant question of whether the federal
or state government owns the waters
OF Interstate streams, matter the
say, which has never been squarely
decided by the nations highest
courts.
The latter point, they say, will
almost certainly be carried TO the
supreme court whatever the final
decision of Judge Harrington may
be In the matter.
Attorneys also say that the ques
ton of Tahoe rights also must be
more fully passed upon to the extent
that definition must be made of
what are 'stored waters" and what
constitutes a free runoff'' from the
lake. They infer that the proposed
decree would vest the right to the
free runoff to the ranchers here who
have been placing such a free runoff
to beneficial use for many years.
Priorities Date Back to 1859
In preparing his findings the spe-
elal master gave recognition to pri-
critics dating back as far as Decem-
her s, 1859, when the commissioner
OF the general land office withdrew
from entry or settlement the area
which now constituted the Pyramid
Indian reservation. The decree makes
provision for the irrigation of $3.50.
acres of Indian reservation bottom
land for which II gives the govern
ment the right to divert through the
Indian ditch 5S7 cubic feet of water
per second, but not exceeding 12.152