Douglas daily dispatch., 1927-08-23
Upper States Back
Arizona River Pact
Continued from page one)

NtA1CO SIdJe cISlIlCSI. WAcOA w
clared that the purpose of the con-
I ference would be destroyed if the
California proposal were accepted and
the question which the seven states
had met to thresh out were dele
gated to a commission to decide.
One fact stood out in relief, its
clarity growing as successive speakers
for Arizona outlined her position:
Arizona will not recede from her
demand for half the water allocated
to the lower basin and Will not sign
the Santa Fe compact until it is
supplenl by O subsidiary instru-
ment guaranteeing what she holds
! are her inherent rights in the Colo
RADIO river.
| Almost equally apparent was the
desire of the four upper basin states
to secure full signature of the COM
pact before any development takes
mace on the lower river to protect
them from prior appropriations of
water. Practically uilanimity existed
! on the point of state sovereignty, all
the spokesn1en except Califor1ia'S
contending that "federaI bureaucracy"
eventually would result in too muck
centralized power in Washington
California's Swing Johnson bill pro.
videS that the federal government
build dam for irrigation and power
purposes at Boulder canyon.
Six governors were at the confer.
ence table today and a seventh was
expected tomorrow The following
Hunt, Arizona; william H. Adams,
Colorado r.. c. Dillon. New Mexico;
Frank @. Emerson, wyoming, and
George H. Dern, Utan. Governor
Balzar, Nevada, was absent.
( Governor Dern, presiding as chair
man, opened fire on what he termed
liuwarranted federal aggression on
states rights when, in lengthy address.
he declared federal bureaucracy will
carry us On to disaster. He was
supported by other speakers in the
contention that the water Of western
streams should be state owned.
Governor Hunt, Engineer Malone
of Nevada and Mulford Winsor OF
Yuma dWelled at length on tho
necessity Of throwing off the old man
OF the sea, federal Bureaucracy, il
the west was to progress unharnpered.
Given over to presentation of Ariz-
ona's case the afternoon session found
Fl. S. McCluskey, Arizona state in.
dustrial commissioner and former
secretary to Governor Hunt, delivering
particularly acrimonious TRADE
against California for hiding behind
the power trust bugaboo
Governor Hunt demanded that the
right of states to secure revenue from
and control development of hydro
electric power within or upon their
boundaries be recognized The Cali
fornia bill for developing the Colorado
is predicated on the fact that states
cannot tax federal property and the
Boulder dam would be owned by
the federal government, said Cow
ernor Hunt, who also stipulated that
/ Arizona would sign the compact If
supplemented by a subsidiary instru-
ment, and would enter into another
compact settling the water question
provided it specified no power plants
be built on the lower basin until
another pact governing such con-
structlon was drawn and signed by
both Arizona and California. Tom
Maddox, former Arizona state engi-
neer and a member of that states
river commission, expected to sum
up ArlZona'S case tomorrow.
Paraphrasing' Winsor in part, Nc
| Cluskey outlined the history of the
river controversy. as it affects Arizona
He scoffed at the contention that the
Los Angeles metropolitan area needs
1.500 second feet of water, charging
California wished to get domestic
water from the Colorado in order to
conserve water in California streams.
| Private capital, he contended, could
| develop the Colorado more cheaplv
than government money as provided
IN the Swing Johnson bill At the
morning session Governor Emerson
said that the inability of the seven
western states to get together would
constitute a poor commentary on the
| ability of those states to handle their
| own affairs
He referred to CALIFORNIA; sugges-
| ton for commission to settle the
water question, Governor Young hav..
ing included in the plan appointment
OF two reclamation service engineers
by President Coolidge to sit on the
| commission.
| Successfully other speakers outlined
Arl1ona'S position in the controversy
State Senator A. H. Favour, of Pres
colt, Immediately attacking Governor
Young's plan. Only delay in settle
inent of the dispute could result from,
subscription to the plan, he declared,
inasmuch as the whole proposition
would have to go back to the inter-
ested state legislatures in the end.
| Winsor said Arizona must have its
vested rights in taxation of power.
because it would be the only asset
the state would have after mining
and forestry resources have been ex,
hausted. California, he continued,
has three times as much water in
streams as Arizona yet insists upon
more than half the Colorado flow.
The whole of Arizona is in the
Colorado river basin, he pointed ouc,
as opposed to only 2 per cent OF
Ca y ornia. Winsor attacked the COM
pact as unfair to Arizona and the
Swing johnson bill as a creator of
prior appropriations which would
leave Arizona without water for future
development.
/ CHAPLIN Trades S65O.OOO