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<br />-7- <br /> <br /> <br />below, whioh this bill aims to oorreot. There CJould be no profit in doubling the <br />evil Whioh is to be oured. <br /> <br />Clearly this bill might have been to deal with the heavy rainbelt section <br />without inoluding the entire Arkansas River and thereby involving the upper <br />reaohes of the stream. <br /> <br />The oontrol of' the whole river under this bill threatens upper stream irri- <br />gation. <br /> <br />Under the oiroumstanoes the measure should be amended to aooomplish its <br />purposes in the seotion where navigation and flood oontrol are important. The <br />people, the f'anning o onditions , the olimate and the amounts of rainf'all in the <br />upper and lower river seotions, oonvert them into distinot areas whose separate <br />problems cannot be solved by the same f'ormula. If the lower river needs this <br />bill--so be it. But Nature and man have joined in making us diff'erent. No law <br />will ever alter these faots. <br /> <br />In the report of the speoial oommittee of the Reolanation Assooiation the <br />follo.ving reconunendation was made and was thereafter adopted, <br /> <br />"That appropriate steps be taken to resist resort to the Com- <br />meroe Clause of' the f'ederal constitution, through various legislative <br />enaotments and a liberal oonstruotion thereof' by judioial deorees, <br />as a means of' imposing oomplete f'ederal oontrol of' water resouroes <br />in disregard Qf applioable state water laws." <br /> <br />If the people of the West believe in this statement of prinoiples and those <br />reo ommen dati ons then they must hasten to the def'ense. <br /> <br />Even if the bill were amended and Colorado were to be exoluded f'rom its <br />terms so that navigation interests on the lower Mississippi were not pennitted <br />to oontrol or inf'luenoe the use of' ..ter on the upper Arkansas, nevertheless the <br />danger to irrigation on every other stream will oontinue. <br /> <br />Colorado is the haystaok state where all of' the waters of' most of' the im- <br />portant Western rivers rise to flow outward aoross her borders. Similar plans <br />may oonoeivably be aimed at every other river. Already the North Platte, the <br />South Platte and the Republioan are being inoluded within the provisions of a <br />similar plan to develop the streams of' the Missouri Valley. <br /> <br />The editor of a great midwestern newspaper demanded reoently that irri- <br />gation on the upper Missouri and the Yellowstone Rivers should not be permitted <br />to prevent the development and enlarged operation of navigation in Missouri <br />after the ohannel of' the main stream shall have been deepened nine feet under <br />the proposed plan. His argument was based on the assertion that navigation was <br />praotioed on the lower Missouri many years before irrigation was oanenoed in <br />Montana and North Dakota. He denied the right to impound water on the upper <br />river f'or irrigation when it might be needed below. <br /> <br />Similarly our irrigation uses of' the water of' the South Platte, the North <br />Platte and the Eepublioan in Colorado followed the use of' boats by the trappers <br />