| Show THE irrigation CONGRESS that a gathering of such magnitude the ithe great irrigation congress now lee session aaion in this city coull could be called aether her with so few preliminaries and ath such perfect response from all aters tells plainly ane importance 1 urgency of the subject that brings m together erS 8 a represent lon ion of brains and influence never ore met west of the missouri six en states tates and territories have res ded to the call and sent their best beat W to represent them in the assembly the idea of holding such auch a congress mated with the state irrigation liven tion held at lincoln nebraska ift february last A committee was appointed to consider the matter at their instance the legis re of colorado took the eject act in hand danli with a to have the congress assem jbf at denver but in the meantime ahe the qui atio afas called to lo the attention of ff governor thomas by the chamber af commerce of this city and he forthwith sent out a circular letter which at the time was published in all ahe he western papers inviting the gov conors of the western states and ter ft stories to appoint delegates to meet falth a congress on gress here the list of delegates given in another column attests e respect that was paid to the cat cal abi hotels last night showed the cence nce of a small number of dele jatee the most conspicuous arrivals wing ng the california representatives a came in a body there arrived some of the head lights from colo wyoming and kansas provos eibers bers and others from southern etab ash who came in last night to attend ine meeting eting of the utah delaga i were taking things leisure at the collen callen they dav ave come prepared for doing sonae some ll garo goroun urs work the provo board la Is to its services to the congress ey wore were accepted with a vote of IC banks auk s at the meeting of the delegation last night 4 As published in the NEWS last week he utah county delegates were ious to have the utah delegation into the congress with their line of amcy ey defined this was opposed by be other members mr king of avo vo off offered ereda a resolution that the b h members come together during Con congress greis and appoint a committee 16 prepare amendments to the ai va laws for presentation at the next ion of the legislature J gp yue the resolution was adopted with an merit providing that the report ke also iso presented to the congress of attoe the united states 11 the delegation then elected governor awas for chairman and ellas elias A alth secretary C C goodwin and IW 11 king were chosen members of y till committee on resolutions J W connellan tonn ellan was selected for vice ent of the congress for utah the chamber of commerce at 11 pj Clock was about the deadest dearest spot in 1 the file city but the condition at the exposition building explained the cause there the decorators were just ejust f putting dg the a finishing nish I 1 ng touches on their kimt of the work while squads of foreign n delegates were sauntering about the building discussing topics coni con i with the convention at fifteen minutes to 12 the bustle of genuine activity began the provo band in the balcony above the speakers platform were heard from in a splendidly executed piece of music in the meantime the voice of the leader of the california delegation was heard beard calling his collenges colle ages together at a few minutes to 12 the members member began pouring into the hall ball and in less than five minutes every seat that had bad been prepared was taken and benches wore were brought in to accommodate the overflow several ladles ladies adorned one side of the delegates del division the western press on the platform at the opening of the sen sem siou there were present for the chicago inter infer ocean mr gilbert E bailey for the san francisco examiner Ezar Mner mr W V F perkina for the engineering adwa mr geo H frost for the danver republican mr W C edwards of the times held a 11 special commission mr ed ivins of the herald staff represented the denver news mr T M samuelson was looking after the interests of the provo Dip dispatch patch mr thomas tongue of denver represented an english press syndicate and add mr W M birmley was present in behalf of the ogden commercial THE OPENING at precisely 1230 col cal Doun donnellan ellan arose arise and called the ibe convention to order whereupon mr fred simon read the circular letter b by governor thomas inviting the western governors to send delegates to the congress mr simon announced the states and territories entitled to representation and col donnellan Dju Dann uellan ellan then introduced gov thomas to the assembly the governor advanced to the platform amid applause and spoke as follows GOVERNORS ADDRESS gentlemen of the irrigation it is my pleasant duty on behalf of the people of the territory of utah to give you a cordial welcome and to express their thanks and appreciation of the patriotic sense of duty which brings you here to consider questions so closely related to their welfare and prosperity brity and also to the welfare and prosperity of the states and territories ju in the arid and region I 1 cannot in the brief space of time allotted to an address of welcome enter into a discussion of the important subject of the history and development of irrigation nor of the vital questions which relate to the great irrigation field of the arid region the various phases of the sub subject eject will be maje made the basis of special papers that have been prepared f for 0 r y your our information I 1 can only refer briefly to the practical part af the question que and to the subjects enumerated in the call when the question of calling an irrigation congress was first discussed it seemed to me there would be a special fitness in holding it in the great salt lake valley where in 1847 the cultivation of the soil was commenced by mormon settlers and where upon success or failure depended the life or death of the country as a place of human habitation the irrigation system which has been developed in utah is a combination of the two systems which prevail in the dakotas on the east and california on the west in california a great system of direct irrigation has been developed by diversion of the waters from her mountain streams in the dakotas an extensive system of irrigation has been developed by water from artesian wells in utah water is obtained for irrigation both from mountain streams and artesian wells it was fitting therefore in a business as well as historic sense that the first great congress held by the western people to consider the important subject of irrigation should assemble in the salt lake valley in utah the congress is called for the purpose of hastening the reclamation of the arable arid and lands so far as possible and for the purpose of petitioning congress to cede to the states and territories the arid lands within their borders for the purpose first of reclaiming the same second in aid of the public schools and third for such other public purpose as the legislative assemblies of the states and territories may respectively determine the call has awakened national interest in the subject of irrigation the the reclamation in the large portion of the west is a subject of absorbing interest to the people the call seems to have struck a popular chord and the response has been most hearty indeed almost unanimous I 1 believe this congress will prove to be a great educator but few people in the east have an adequate idea of the physical conditions of the western country or of the amount of capital which Is ib necessary to be expended or of the difficulties to be overcome before water can be successfully diverted from the rapidly flowing mountain streams for purposes of irrigation these streams some of which are not perennial have their source in the hearts of the great mountain ranges and are fed by the snow deposited on the mou mountain crests and in the de deep ep recesses of the canyons in the winter time many of these streams cut deep and enter the valleys far below t the e upper levels in order to bring the water out on the higher lands it is necessary to commence tha work of diversion far back in the canyon and make a way for it along afong the rocky munt mountain aln side when the open valley is reached other serious difficulties are met the valley which appeared to the eye to be so uniformly level is found tobe intersected by a network of furrows furrow and sand ravines made by the rainfall and the melting snows of spring time when the ditch is completed unless the work be of an extensive character tho the amount of water furnished is only sufficient to irrigate a limiter area because J in these arid regions the supply is rapidly diminished by absorption and excessive evaporation if a canal be constructed sufficient to reclaim a large area another forral bable difficulty is met mety the water supply cannot be depended upon in the faring time the snow melts rapidly and th the flow of water being beyond the demand the surplus water runs to waste As ae the warm season advances the supply gradually decreased u until i i ti 1 1 in n th the e a summer u in in er season deaso u when the water jo ia most needed unless the stream is very large which is not often the case the supply fails altogether or is so much reduced as to be practically valueless for purposes of irrigation the building of large canals jig is therefore us useless elees in many oases unless some provision be made for storing the water which now runs to waste the building of large storage reservoirs is the remedy proposed to be placed in the canyons and other places specially adapted for the purpose I 1 believe no one will question the ment that but little land is left and in but few localities for which water can be obtained without great expense it seems thenia the growth of the western cou to is to depend upon the settlement of the public lands a stationary period has been reached unless some intelligent and immediate action be looking to the increase of the water supply there abere may be some persons inclined to doubt the statement that a stationary period has been reached and who will point to the recent phenomenal growth in certain localities as evidence evident e to the contrary there has been a rapid growth in places where great gnat commercial activity prevails prevail caused by the building of railroads the development of mining industry and from other industrial causes and which will probably continue for some time to come in utah the federal census will show that in the purely agricultural counties with some exceptions the growth has been very slow alow the truth is that utah rich as she is in all that can make a state great and prosperous has haa been sending away her people to the more ep ova acely arcely settled states and territories orle a the hive has been swarming for man many y years in the case of the great vest nests the western ocean has been reached and the tide of immigration has been turned back in search of new fields and these new fields are to be found in the arable lands of the arid region which only wait for water to make them habitable for man passing to the be question of the support of the public scho Is it is hardly necessary for me to remind ad you that the government under which we live has always takes taken a deep interest in the e lu cation of its people ale its course in this respect has illumined one of the brightest pages of our national nat fonal history it has ha given away more lands in support of the public schools than would equal many empires in extent the benign influence of this generous grant has been felt by every state admitted to the union since the passage of the ordinance of 1787 under the provisions of this great ordinance and of later laws sections 16 and at 34 of every section of land in the great tract of territory north and west of the ohio was reserved for the schools of the states to be thereafter formed out of said territory Ferri tory in what Js is known geographically as the western westeri states the arbitrary selection of the lands ladds by law did not affect their value but as to the states and territories of the arid region it has bag rendered them practically valueless because of natural conditions condition which cannot be changed or removed A statement of the case of utah will serve to bring this fact out more clear ly in this territory the tillable lands are found in the valleys and form but a small proportion of the whole the majority of the school sections are found on the mountain tops and sides and in places where they cannot be cultivated where they are found in the valleys the title has mostly passed to settlers the phe land office was not dot opened in utah u until antl I 1 march 1869 and the lands in the valleys bad been largely taken up by the settlers sett lera before that time the few reserved school sections remaining ni ng I 1 in n tb the e valleys are with but two or three exceptions of nominal value consequently ly so far as utah is concerned and this is probably true in a greater or less degree of all of the states and territories in the arid region the en dowmont which it was intended by the government to be given to the public schools is lost such action then should be taken by the general government as will wil I 1 place the states and per ri tories of the arid region on an equality with the other states and territories that have been able to realize more fully from the bounty of the government we believe our claim for mid aid I 1 in n this respect is j just and our action in preseD presenting ting it patriotic in speaking of the cause of the public schools I 1 desire to be understood as referring more especially to utah the rhe situation situ adon of the states and territories in the arid and region differ materially with respect to the size of the streams the extent of the land which can be irrigated under improved methods for saving and using the water and the provisions made or attainable for their school systems consequently the relative importance of the purposes for which the lands may be donated differ materially and what might be a suitable donation for one state scale or territory may require considerable modification I 1 in another in order to adapt it to the greatest needs and confer the greatest benefits upon the people it is for this reason that the call suggests that the matter be so handled bandied as to give each state and territory a voice in deciding to what purposes such donations shall he be applied the call indicates there may be other ether purposes to which a part of the proceeds derived from the sale of the public lands may be applied I 1 will not attempt to mention them here nor to present their claims I 1 will remark incidentally however that in the mountain reg regions ioma the settlements are found in valleys which are often remote from each other the highways connecting these settlements often run over mountain tops and are difficult and costly to construct aul aej maintain some of these public roads stretch out for hundreds of miles and reach into the adjacent states and territories oriee orlee in the early years of the government public 1 I lands land wore were donated in aid of such enterprises the public spirited and energetic men who force their way over rugged mountain tops and make paths which are used by those who follow after them should be as much entitled to aid as were the men who built highways in other sections under more favorable favo raMe rabie conditions I 1 will also remark that the question of preserving the great grazing ranges which now furnish nutritious food for hundred of thousands of cattle and sheep is one of transcendent importance tance the people of all of the country are interested in preserving this important source of foot food supply under the present conditions these lands are rapidly |
