White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1929-10-18
WATER RIGHT OWNERS
TO MEET TONIGHT


members make up the group repre-
senting the owners of approximately
1iity per cent of the Hantord water
right land that is taking an active in
terest in the matter, at meeting on
October ii, voted to call a meeting
of all OF trose they represent to dis
cuss the situation that has developed
and to take such action as they deem
advisable, This meeting will be held
in the high school at White Bluffs
Friday evening of this week.
For time following the Kizer
meeting in Hanford last spring, it
seemed that an amicable solution
coud be worked out and many were
encouraged to believe that it might
be possible. At Mr.. Kizer's sugges-
ton, a sub or jointicommittee of six,
made up of three members from each
of the two committees in existence
at that time, was organized. 1t CEN
tered its activities in attempting to
agree upon a set of bylaws for a
corporation that it was proposed to
form to take over the irrigation prop
critics at the receiyership sale. After
several meetings Of this sub-com-
nnittee, set of bylaws was agreed
upon except in ONE particular. John
McFee, D. S. Wilkinson and w. J..
Kincaid representing one half of the
subcommittee, proposed that the cor
pcration be managed by board of
tive trustees and that the territory be
divided into, three districts, the resi-
dents of the Hanford district electing
two of the members, the residents of
White Bluffs two, and the In-B-
Tween, one. The other three MEM
bers of the subcommittee, c. r.
Wooten, H. H. Boie and w. L. En-
yeart, opposed this and contended
that the trustees should be elected by
the stockholders in the corporation,
regardless of their location.
In accordance with agreement at
the Kizer meeting, in which the
water right owners present voted
their unanimous approval, the ques-
ton was submitted to Mr.. Kizer for
a ruling. He suggested the compro-
mise that the territory be divided into
two districts of approximately equal
size and voting power; that each OF
the two districts elect three trustees
and that the six so elected select the
seventh member Of the board. After
several meetings, the group repre-
sented by McFee, Wilkinson and
Kincaid accepted this compromise but
the other three members, Wooten,
Boie and Enyeart, turned it down.
And there the matter stands,
Wooten tried to get somewhere by
calling general meeting of the
water right owners a few weeks ago
but only portion of them attended
and some Of them did not approve
of the corporation that he proposed
at that time. A week or two later
! he asked FOR a -naeakins of the sub
committee. At this meeting he was at.
tended by T. A. Spratlen, M. F.
O'Brieu and Carl Heidmann. The
new water right owners committee
was represented at this meeting by
w. 7. Kincaid, D. S. Wilkinson and
L. A. Codding, the latter substituting
for Mr.. McFee, who was prevented
by previous engagement, from at
tending.
These latter three men understood
that the meeting was for the purpose
of attempting to harmonic the diff
ferences that had developed, but the
meeting was not very old be-
fore they were told by Wooten and
Spratlen that the only way there
could be any harmony would be for
them to get behind the Wooten COM
mittee in putting over its program,
and endorsing in its entirety Wooten's
idea Of the nature of corporation
that should be formed This proposal
was accompanied by threats on the
part of Wooten and Spratlen that
if they did not do so they would be
run out of the country"
No one knows now what action will
be taken at the meeting this even
ing but it is pretty safe to presume,
from the type of the men who will
attend, that they will not be influ-
enced in any way by empty threats
or coercion. In the meantime, the
proposition of digging wells as an
insurance against the possibility that
the ditch matter is hopeless, is gaining
in interest and attention daily and
there are now probably twenty water
right owners who have definite plans
for digging wells or are giving the
matter serious consideration.