OCR Text |
Show LAID GRASTs FOR CASALS. It is more than likely that some measures will be introduced into Con gross, during the present session, to grant lands in aid of the construction of irrigating canals iu Utah ; or that some of those presented lat se.-sion will be again brought up. It is equally as proper that land should be granted by government to aid in the construction construc-tion of such necessary works, in a region like this where irrigation is a necessity of cultivation, as that railroads rail-roads should have such grants. And it is time some recognition should be made of the vast labor that has been expended, in the effort to make Utah productive by cutting water ditches snd irrigating canals. There are yet extensive tracts of land if the Territory Terri-tory that would become much more valuable than at present, if there could be water brought to irrigate them; and with land grants to pay in part for the work it could be done. But, we think it will be well for Congress to carefully guard any grants that it may, in its liberality, feel disposed dis-posed to make, with such restrictions m will ensure the proposed work being done by the parties seeking the grants. It is advisable to have land now laying in native wildness brought under cultivation ; but it is also advisable to guard against land speculators who, with a franchise granted to them, might seek to defraud the Government and the Territory. We are strongly in favor of encouragement being given to bring new land under cultivation, but are equally as strongly in favor of its being done on such terms and conditions condi-tions as will secure the proposed object ob-ject by having the work finished of cutting canals, before the land granted grant-ed can be claimed by the seekers of the franchise; or such portion of the work a3 will secure the government against frauds by speculator. |