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Show IPRESSMENDEBATE DEATH BENEFITS AND SALARIES! ST. LOUIS, Mo.. Nov 19 Salaries of permanent officers to be elected and denfh benefits were discussed today to-day hy delegates perfecting the organization organ-ization of the Newspaper Web Pressmen's Press-men's Union of North and South America, formed here Monday. It was announced the per capita tax would be 75 cents a month and that dues, which vary in different cities, would be the same as those of the International In-ternational Printing Pressmen's and Assistants' union from which the new organizatoin withdrew. the sprinft months It should be clearly clear-ly understood, however, that the building build-ing of storage reservoir dams is a costly undertaking and that unless there Is ample security back of every effort of this kind, it had better not be attempted. I remember years ago, a few of the prominent men of Hunts-ville Hunts-ville asked me to look into a reservoir site and estimate what it would cost to build a dam They informed me before 1 began the examination that they had $10,000 to put Into the pro-jeer pro-jeer and could probably borrow fen or tiftot n thousand dollars more It was therefore a crushing of their prospects when I repotted that the dam would likely cost $175,000. In some such way, every earnest at tempt made lo provide more water for late use has failed and, it is believed, be-lieved, will continue- to fail until the large majority of the water users of the rountv combine to bring it about. The Mate, through its legislature, has recently passed a measure which paves the way for combining a number I I of relatively small independent irrigation irri-gation enterprises into one large organisation or-ganisation possessing sufficient credit I and means to overhaul and enlarge existing ex-isting systems and to provide all with a plentiful supply of water. The ma jority of the water users of the county are considering the advisability of or-1 ganlslng under this law known :t ihe 1 ion District Law of Utah and a few brief references to some of itsi provisions may not be out of place. First, as to the security afforded for the selling of bonds. The assessed valuation of Weber county exclusive of Ogden City as finally adjusted bv i In state eemalization board is over six and three quartet million dollars. I Here, as elsewhere, however, when ever irrigation is practiced, the bulk ot the taxes are paid by the owners of Irrigated Ir-rigated land Although the farm and rruil lands f the county nearlj nil ol which are irrigated constitute less I than 1". pr-r rent of the land within the j countv. their assessed valuation forms aboul 7" per cent of the total. So tbi ' if it is possible to include in the proposed district from (0,000 to 50,000 acres of irrigated and partially irri-i' gated lands and from 30,000 to Ki.non acres of dry lands and pastured lands, the security afforded would be much more than the law requires. By this I have reference to a lew i which has for j ears been in operation' in California and which at the last : pc citl session of the Utah legislature was enacted I am told verbatim. I am I familiar with the operation of this law In California where it is known as the' irrigation bond commission composed of three state officers, the attorney general, the state engineer and the state bank commissioner. This law has done more to stabilize irrigation securities in California than any other agi nc and I am verj glad to learn that it is now the law in Utah Those who are interested can secure a copy from the secretary of state, and I shall here merely outline its salient features Before any irrigation district in the state can have its bonds certified to as being legal investments for all truM funds and for the funds of all insur- anc companies, banks and tm?t companies com-panies and for the funds invested in bonds (if cities, counties, school dlS-j diet.-, etc., the affairs of the district! shall he first investigated by the bond! commission. Such an investigation involves the tamtam inrl raIIb tf 1 u n A I supply the water erquirenn nts of th soil and crops, ihe need of drainage, the feasibility of the proposed sstem, the market value of the water, canals, reservoirs, etc., the market value of I the lands within the district and whether or not the value of the bond Issue exceeds '"i" per cent of the market ealue of the lands within the district Thus it is evident that every prominent prom-inent feature of the proposed irrigation irriga-tion district will have to be carefully Investigated from three different view points, iz the legal, engineering and financial. Notwithstanding (he rigidlt of the I requirement under this newly enacted law I believe we can present a project which will meet with the approval ot 'the attorney general, the state engl ineer and the bank commissioner and, I in this belief, I hope to present at a i later time other phases of the irriga jtlon district law of Utah. |