Show claiming that boating experiences on the green colorado and san juan rivers demonstrate that these rivers in utah possess none of the attributes of highways of commerce and the beds of the streams therefore belong to the united states the government has filed its briefs in the case to determine the stream bed ownership according to information received in salt lake monday by randolph S colllns one of the attorneys in the case mr colllns has received from charles M blackmar chief government counsel cople of the brief which he will distribute to the parties at interest the case involves a contest between the government and the state of utah over the ownership of the stream beds it having been already established that beds of navigable streams belong to the state and those of non navigable streams to the united states the last of a number of hearings was held in salt lake in december before charles warren special master of the united states supreme court who will make recommendations to the high court tor final action arguments in the case will be beard before mr warren beginning april 9 in washington pallo T farsworth jr of salt lake Is chief counsel for utah the governments brief reviews the voluminous testimony taken at the hearings and contends that the evidence conclusively shows the three streams in question are not navigable and the title to the beds therefore belongs to the united states the government also attaches much importance to the reports of early expeditions and scientific research conducted by various federal agencies the scientific investigations by the united states over a period of 60 years into the possible uses of the river the brief sets forth excludes any conclusion that the rivers are navigable utah has sat silently by from statehood until 1925 and permitted the government to make expenditures for these investigations without comment or claim intimating that the state asserted ownership to the riar beds based upon navigability scores of placer miners hava operated in the beds of these rivers claiming rights under location notices posted and tiled under the laws of the united states there Is no evidence that utah has ever protested against this method of procedure and sought to compel the placer miners to acquire their rights under the laws of utah |