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Show -68- Eetwsen the making of this treaty with Mexico and the next development of international consequence in the fixation of American water rights, Okla- homa was converted from a territory into a State of the American Union.,^^^a with its first constitution partially recognizing water rights under the doctrine of the arid west„ 151 About this time there reached the United States Supreme Court a contro- versy over the power of the State of New Jersey to prevent, by legislative act, the diversion of water from a river of that State for transmission to . the City of New York by a corporation under contract there to supply water Grande above the international section of the river and left in the place of the navigable stream covered by the treaties only a strip of perpetually dry land* This opinion was based upon absolute territorial sovereignty which had been repudiated by the United States in the various river disputes covered by this study. Of priority in use of the waters of the Rio Grande Mr. Harmon said* "Both the common law and the civil law undertake to regu- late the use of navigable streams by the different persons entitled to it. Neither has fixed any absolute rule,.but both leave each case to be decided upon its own circumstances. But I need not enter upon a discussion of the rules and principles of either system in this regard, because both are muni- cipal and, especially as they relate to real property, can have no operation beyond national boundaries (Creasy Int» Law, p 161}.*) So they can only settle rights of citizens of the same country intersese. The question must, therefore, be determined by considerations different from those which would aPPly between individual citizens of either country " 21 Ops, Att'y Gen* 274 281. Compare Wyoming v. Colorado, 260 U.S. 1, 43 Sup. Ct. 2 66 L, Ed. 999 (1922). ¦^ Oklahoma was admitted into the Union in the year 1907* Proclamation of Nov. 16, 1907, 35 Stat* at L. 2160, 7 Thorpe«s Constitutions, 1^269, pur- suant to an enabling act passed in 1906. Act of June 16, 1906, c.3355* 3U S.tat. at L. 267, 5 Thorpe»s Constitutions, 2960. . 1S1 * ' ' y The Constitution of Oklahoma contains these provisionsj Art. XVI, Par. 3a-"The legislature shall have power and shall provide for a. system of levees, drains, and ditches and of irrigation in this State when deemed expedient, and provide for a system of taxation onthe lands affected or benefited by such levees, drains, ditches and irrigation, or on. crops pro- duced on such land, to discharge such bonded indebtedness or expenses ne- cessa_rily incurred in the establishment of such improvements; and to provide for compulsory issuance of bonds by the owners or-lessees of the lands bene- fited.'or affected by such levees, drains, and ditches or irrigation.0 7 Thorpe's Constitutions, I4.323* Art. II, Par. 23.-nNo private property shall be taken or damaged for private use with or without compensation, unless by consent of the owner, excepffc for private ways of necessity, or for drains and ditches^ across lands of others for agricultural, mining, or sanitary purposes, in such manner, as may be prescribed by law*" 7 Thorpe's Constitutions, l4275» '..:¦¦. |