Evening star., 1946-05-29
Letters to The Star
Reclamation Association Officer
Replies To Mr.. Ickes


To the Editor of The Star:
In his column of May 20, appearing
in The Star, former Secretary Harold
l.. Ickes makes a number OF unfounded
statements and false innuendoes con-
corning the National Reclamation As
sociation in an effort to discredit or
crush those who will not join in his
crusade to federalize the power industry
OF this country at any COST
AS Secretary of the Interior, Mr.
Ickes was obligated to comply with the
reclamation laws laid down by Congress.
But what was Mr.. Ickes' unrecorded
record during his long regime as Sec
retary of the Interior? Not being in
terested in the purposes Of the Recla-
nation Act to reclaim arid lands, but
being interested in putting the Federal
Government into the power business,
he set about changing the Bureau of
Reclamation into bureau of power,
against the wishes of the arid States
and without congressional action.
In April of 1912, Secretary Ickes in
Bureau of Reclamation, John C. Page,
and the writer to his Office where he
served notice that he was not interested
in the irrigation of arid lands but only
In the Federal power program, and is
sued an ultimatum that the National
help him put over his Federal power
program, or there would be no more
reclamation of arid lands in the West
II he could prevent it. The association
accepted Mr.. Ickes' challenge and in
few weeks Mr.. Ickes, with fingers
crossed, suspended the sentence"
Methods resorted to by Mr. Ickes to
attain his ends include: % An opinion
two years ago by his solicitor changing
the~ intent of Congress as expressed in
the 1888 Reclamation Act which re-
quired the amortization of Federal in
veStments in commercial power plants
in so years with interest to the Gov
ernment at the rate of 3 per cent an
nually on unpaid balances; to pro-
posal that only per cent of the invest
ment need be repaid annually, which
would have the effect of having the
taxpayers of the Nation subsidize COM
mercial power investments in the West
to the extent OF the original investment,
amounting, if put into effect, to Fed
eral subsidy to Western power users Of
millions of dollars annually.
% The issuance in January of this
year of an Interior Department power
policy which Is contrary to the Federal
reclamation laws. The Bureau of Rec
lamation was ordered to put the power
policy into effect.
80 The replacement of experienced
reclamation engineers in key positions
with publicity men, and the creation
of huge propaganda machine to carry
Mr.. Ickes' power program forward
The National Reclamation Associa-
ton at its annual meetings and before
the committees of Congress has opposed
much of the Ickes power program on
the ground that 1t was not economically
sound and if put into practice would
sooner or later result in Congress cur
failing or abandoning the Federal Gov
ernment's Western reclamation pro-
gram. The Ickes power program must
of necessity be carried on under the
Federal Reclamation Act upon which
the arid West must rely to reclaim its
desert lands by irrigation.
Unable to force the association to
desert its principles and purposes and
fearing that his ambitions may yet fail,
Mr.. Ickes dusts off the old and thread
bare charges and repeats them again
IN his column. F. o. HAGIE,
Secretary Manager, National Recla-
nation Association.