| Show wacer WATER FOR eor THE DRY ladd LAND ONE of the most moat important questions to be considered at the present time by the city council is the sup eup pi water for the residents on the dry dW ry benches no N 0 one denies or can dony deny their great need of water for culinary and irrigating purposes the line of water supply Is clearly marked below the ditches all nil alafa Is verdant and fertile pleasant tu the eye and inviting to the seeker after a home orchards lawns lawne iturri nut aut vegetation shade trees ff frails and flowers abound above there are houses and fences and littie little sot adf of garden gardens buethe general appearance speaks of drouth and barrenness and when ther thel struggling settlers are deen teen packing water wat to in buckets and barrel barrels SOM sometimes ti e in the great heat of the summer bun sun sympathy is at onca ones created and the question arises why donot do not the city fathers make provision for the crying wants of tho the people to this question there are many replies it is claimed that water cannot bo be provided for that upper district without immense expense that the settlers bettle ra there went upon those dry benches understanding that there was no water supply and would not be that the prior rights of the older battlers saut satt lera iera interfere with the claims of tho the newer nowery and must be paramount both in law and in equity that the city is not under any obligation to mako maka the demanded supply that tho two teal teai residents dents denta on the dry pl places aces pay but buit little taxes and the citizens of other parts parta would complain ideo large an outlay as would be be involved od were expended on those com places we will briefly cons consider idez these objections no doubt it will cost cott much money to bring an ihn adequate water supply upon those parched and thirsty places whose inhabitants are crying for help but the cost Is not a consideration in view of tha needs of the citizens there their future prospects depend upon this supply their health is endangered their ilves lives and particularly the lives of their little children are in J jeopardy from the lack inck of water if that region were made tIll tillable ables the change would soon be so great that a return would come comb for the outlay the expanse expense of bringing down a very large quantity of water efrom tile tho adjacent hills where springs may be is ia not so large but that a private company has expressed d a willingness to do the work if of the water is secured to it ahm thib proposition has gone so far that a motion liaa lias been made and entertained in the city council to allow that company the privilege we do not think such a motion will prevail it ought not to do so it is the duty of the tho city council to attend to this business according to the powers vested in it by the city charter if a private corporation can afford to do it tho tile municipal corporation can the tho city ought not to yield to vats individual la or organizations 3 that which is a public right and a duty thera thero should be no private control ot of ought to 10 belong to the public wo we aro not prepared to cay whether or not the source ol of f supply it 1 his bis proposed rp ased to pinea placa in private handa hands is 9 adequate up to or of the most feasible means meana available but we wish the pont point to be ba noted that if it will pay under private control it will do so under publio publia control if properly managed to tho the statement that the people went wenton on ule uie dry benches knowing Irn owing their lack laek of claim for water vater we have nothing to eay in rebuttal but we do deny the observation that thata thay never nuver expected IX pact ed to obtain stater water rights they certainly looked for a time when the resources of the cibyl would bo be such buch that they would be fible alkie to acquire acquin e title lay lar to water as they had bad to the land the con condi condl editions tiona iiona of many other places place aln in the territory have been signally changed with the rolling years and why should not these dry benches become well watered gardens as others have that such buch expectations were had bad as was natural Is well known and the city connall council has recognized those expectations form formally ally aily and is under admitted obligations ligat fons ions to satisfy them when the question of giving power to the city council to borrow money for the purpose of building the jordan and salt lake city canal was waa about to be put to the popular vote the city council issued an address to the voters duly attested from which we take the tho annexed paragraph people have gone upon the high ground above the present dl di ditche tche tchee built houses and made homes in the confident hope and expectation that water would some day be obtained for them there are many hundreds of these citizens whose homes would be practically valueless if it were de finitely known that the t no water would ever over be gotten to them while th the rights to water of the older settlers may not be by mutual concessions and exchanges of water for the good of the whole the proposed canal should dand and doubtless will make it possible for the long distressed residents of the dry benches as well as those on the lower land lands to have a supply of water equal to their needs the residents ot oi the benches may reat tab lab assured that tho council will do everything g in its power to amford ambord them a supply ol of water we consider that a complete answer to several of the objections mentioned above the expectations of the dry bench people are admit ted the rights of uhe the old r are considered tho tha city pledges itself to do everything possible to supply the dry benches with water on I 1 this promise and obligations obligation the people referred to voted for the loan and have paid their proportion of revenue from which the debt deb is to be liberated if the amount ib small whose fault is it not theirs with an adequate water supply the value 0 of their property will in cre ore crease creese ase and their taxes will Inc increase rease rense accordingly the common revenue is for the common good the rich taxpayers tax payers cannot lawfully claim all ake benefit of the public funds and if they grumble at a large expenditure pe pend iture on a that pays a small email amount of taxes have not the residents of the latter cause to complain when they gain no benefits at all from the revenue to which they contribute non oon tribute their lawful part how much has been expected in any public improvements on the dry benches how much for roads lights police force or anything else eise ane artesian well may be pointed to that gives the whole question away if the city was right in boring for water for the benefit of the dry benches an enterprise with excellent motives but with no present result willit not ba right in bringing down the water from the hills for the bama sama purpose and persone persons dersons PWe we donot donov do nou not think any argument can be made strong enough to hold a drop of water against the lawful claims and just pleadings of the people in the upper regions of this city for water enough to drink cook with and give life to their gardens humanity equity duty the tho growth of the municipality tiie the pledged faith of tha the city and sound public polity unite to in urging upon the city fathers to take immediate steps in behalf of the sufferers and wo we hope that this important matter will not nol be too frequently laid upon the table the want is 13 imperative pera tive the supply should bozorth coming or at nit least the promise thereof should illuminate the future with bright rays ot of precious hope |
