Show gifford pinchot writes regarding water powers april 1916 mr 0 E hulsh finish editor the reporter eureka utah I 1 my dear mr hulsh the iniquitous shields bill giving away the water powers on our nava gallon gation streams about which I 1 wrote you ou on Febra arg has been dinv en through the senate but it has not passed tle tl e house there Is still a good chance not only to stop this raid on public 3 but to pass a fair and honest water bill in its place everything I 1 said about the shields bill in my letter to you was con f amed in the debate according to its own supporters this bill turns over to the power Inte restes water pov er equivalent to twice the me nie ch anical power of every kind now nou used in the united states or enough I 1 to meet the needs of two hundred million people this it does in per although prete iding to limit the grant to fifty years small won der there Is pressure to get it through on march a substitute for the shields bill was reported to the I house of representatives unlike the shields bill this house bill makes no perpetual grant of public water power but wisely and in tact fact sets a limit of efty years nevertheless it is not yet a good bill for example it gives away the public water pow ers ors without compensation there Is i 0 reason why the water power cor po rations lons should not pay for what tl ey get the rest of us do the houe bill should be an ended ac cordingly it if the houe corrects its own bill and tl it en pisses passes it the good bill from the house and tl e bad bill from the senate wilt will go to conference and the differences difference will be adjusted by the conferees the managers of the waterpower campaign believe that a majority of the conferees will be friendly to them and will report a bill in their interest they will then try to rush the conference bill through probably in the confused contused and crowded final hours of the ses sea slon sion such a plan has often served the sep ecial interests in the past and it is dangerous now during the debate on the shields bill this course was openly advised ti ere was under disca slon an airen dement giving prefer nce nee to the applicant for public water power who offers the best terms to the public one of the supporters of the shields bill senator nelson of minnesota at ter referring to the amendment as bad and vicious went on to say it Is something that we can elial nate in conference we might let it go in and then dispose of it lr ir conference congressional record march 8 1916 page we can beat this plan only by let ting the people understand the fa facts acts this the power interests have set out to prevent by confusing contusing the public nind with interested statements and jerA onal attacks I 1 am asking for your help once more to get the house to pass a good bill and tl en to stand by it no mat er what conferees may do it the house firm the people will vin this fight but the house needa neede 0 know that the people are behind it let me call your attention again to the ferns bill a good bill dealing with water power on public lands and notational forests which has twice passed the house an undesirable substitute the mers bill now be fore the senate gives the bublie wa ter powers away in perpetuity un der it the power interests could oc oe cupy and exploit the grand canyon itself the greatest natural wonder of the continent the water power interests want eiery everything thing or nothing in the last eight years they have killed eight water power developments bills that were fair both to the corporations and to the public what the people need is water power development on eq terms without further de lay layl they can have what they want by letting the house know it sincerely yours gil FORD PINCHOT |