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Show RULING IMS CITY WATER RIGHTS DECISION OF UTAH JUDGE REVERSED IN SNAKE CREEK CASE Court of Appeals Holds Title to Water Is Vested in Irrigation Rights; Opinion Removes Danger Which Threatened Salt Lake City Supply; Litigation of Years' Standing Settled JUDGMENT of the United States distriet court for Utah, Judge Tillman D. Johnson, presiding, in the case of the Snake Creek Tunnel eompany, owned by a number of mining companies, against the water users of Midway and the Midway Irrigation com- pany of Wasatch county, was reversed by the United States court , of appeals in St. Louis and a dir(jitjdui-favf--ofthe irriga- tion company. Yesterday A. B. Irvine, attorney for the irrigation company, received a letter from the clerk of the United States circuit court of appeals advising him that the court had handed down an pin- : ton reversing the judgment of the IVnited States district court of Utah 1 and entering a decree dismissing Its complaint and in favor of the irrigation irriga-tion company on its counter claim, the decree holding that the Irrigation company Is entitled to an Injunction enjoining the tunnel company from asserting any claim to the waters from the tunnel. RIGHTS FIXED. The importance of this decision is far reaching because a decree in favor fa-vor of the tunnel company would have rendered insecure the water rights of the Irrigation company not only in the case of the company directly di-rectly interested, but all over the mountain country. Salt Lake City was particularly in-terested in-terested in the outcome of the case in that it has a numher of cases pending involving the same question as presented the United States court of - appeals. The tunnel companies in the Cottonwood from whence comes the largest part of the water supply of Salt lke City since the decision of Judge Johnson had been preparing to assert title to the waters wa-ters Towing from these tunnels and some of these tunnel companies had even gone to the extent it is stated of incorporating companies in other states to which companies they had transferred their claim to the waters. This was obviously done for the purpose of permitting these companies com-panies to get into the federal courts on this question the expectancy being, be-ing, it is declared, that the United Slates circuit court of appeals would affirm the decision of Judge Johnson. CITY AFFECTED. j It was said last night by officials of the city that some of these min-. min-. ing companies had alrrady entered into negotiations with Salt Iake .City fo sell the city the water which has been held up pending this de-j de-j cision of the court of appeals, j Members of iliH bar as well as ir- ; rigation :.i!d mining companies have , b'-en watching this case with a great deal .f inrerest. Mr. Irvine said last night that the full test of the decision de-cision bad not ben received, but that he had been advised by the clerk ; of the court of appeals that the decision de-cision of Judge Johnson had been reversed and decree entered in favor fa-vor or his client quieting its title to the water and enjoining the tunnel tun-nel company from asserting tny claim therein. Kor more than forty years Midway has been supplied by water from Snake creek in Wasatch county, all the waters of The creek being utilized. The Snake Creek Mining and Tunnel company, ten to f.fieen years ego drove a runnel into the water shed of Snake creek, a distance of about three nnles. the entrance to the tunnel being on its own ground the present end of the tunnel extending over to the Park City side of the divide into the Dab-Judge Dab-Judge ground.. The tunnel developed 14 second feet of water. The tunnel company claimed this water and entered into a contract with the .Provo Reservoir company, selling the water to that company. The water was pken down through the channel over vt he Provo bench. CLAIM RESISTED. The Midway Irrigation company, an organization of farmers in the vicinity of Mod way. resisted this claim. The tunnel company instituted action in the United States district court of Utah to quiet titles to the water and to enjoin the Irrigation company from Interfering Interfer-ing with It. Judge John A. Marshall was on thej bench at the time the suit was in-j stituted and beinr disqualified to hear' the case. Judge Pope of the United! 1 1 'ontimied on page 4. 1 I DECISION OF I (Continued from page J.) Kittles district court of New Mexico , waas called In to try the case. The tunnel mining company waa .represented by the firm of tlowatt. Mr iMIIlan and Nebekar. The case was ' taken under advisement by Judge I'ope, 'but pending a decision by him. he waa (summoned by death. This necessitated a new trial, j HISTORY OF CASE. I la lhe meamlnieJudg Marshall was Iretlred from the bench and had laerome a member of the legul firm of Howatt, iMaishall. McMillan A Crow. which I firm represented the tunnel company In lhe second trial which was heard J before Judge Tillman I. Johnson. Tha trial of the case consumed thirty days, a a great deal of expert testimony being introduced. The result of the trlnl before be-fore Judge Johnson waa a decision in favor of the tunnel company. In the first trial tha irrigation company com-pany was represented by Thurman, Wedirewood Irvine. In tha second trial. Judge Samuel R Thurman having hav-ing bean elected to tha aupreme bench of I'tah. tha Irrigation company was represented by Wedgewood, Irvine sV Thurman. After the second trial, General Gen-eral Wedgewood died, and an appeal was taken by the Irrigation company to tha I'nlted circuit court of appeala at flt. I -on Is. Attorney A. R. Irvine snd Hnm D. Thurman representing the Irrigation Ir-rigation company in ita appeal. Tha case was araued in Ht. Iouis on 1 decern de-cern her I, 1120. by Herbert It. McMillan Mc-Millan representing tha tunnel company com-pany and A. B. Irvine the Irrigation company. |