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Show 14 COMMISEIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. already, and yet had an expenditure of $25,000, in addition to the purchane of the anal, been made in cleaning it out and extending it to this mwation since Con-gress adjourned, they would t h y be receiving a supply d c i e n t for them to make this year's crop. The position of this c a d company is, that it has the lawful right, which it h& been exercising for more than ten yem, of taking from the Gila River practically all of the water that the river will carry at its average flow, and that it takea this water from this river at a voiut so far uo into the mountains that there is no feasible olau hv which any other anal cantakeany excess supply fromapoint above its head, and that, as a result. there is no d h l e wav to out water onto this Indian reservation excent through the channel df this -ai and an extension of it from a point at or about Florence to the Indian reservation, a distance of abont 10 miles. That the expendi-ture of a mderats sum of fmm S150,MX) to $200,000 will p w over to the Government the undisputed ownership and right, together with a practicable channel for convey-ing the water to the Indians in the only manner that it is posaihle, or ever will he, to get it to them. And that, even after the expenditure of $2,MX),000, and the con-struction of the dam, which it may be found advisable to build, it will yet he neces-sary, we do not hesitate to say, in the opinion of the Government experts, to obtain a channel from this canal by which to use the water upon the reservation. Further-more, the purchaaeof this canal will undoubtedly relieve the Government at once of the charge that is now, and will continue to he, made against it, of permitting its Indians to starve or he degraded to mendicants, and in the meantime give the Gov-ernment ample time to consider at it8 own convenience the larger propoaition of the 9an Carlos dsm, which at the beat will he years in constructing, if it is ever done. We desire to he permitted to place before the Secretary of theInterior, or your Department, the facta toverify the position thst we here take, and of proving beyond qnestbn, first, that the only way of ever furnishing the Pima Indians with water is through this canal; second, that it ishy all d d s the cheapeat way; third, that it is the quickest way; and, lastly, that it has no political or national irrigation pol-icy connected with it, hut is a straight buainess proposition from the canal to the Government, without any intervention of other interests. June 29,1901, this office recommended that Inspector Graves be instructed to make a thorough investigation as to the proposition sub-mitted by this company, its standing, resources, etc., and whether any arrangement could be made with it by which a water supply could be procured forthese Indians. It was thought that this investigation might lead to some practicable method for supplying the Indians with water to meet their needs other than by purchasing the canal. July, 29, 1902, Agent Hadley, of the Pima Agency, presented for special consideration the question of irrigating the Gila River Reser-vation by the building of the &n Chrlos reservoir, stating that no other reservoir could water the reservation in such a way as to make the Pimas an independent and well-to-do people; and he asked that Inspector W. H. Code (who had succeeded Inspector Graves) be sent to the reservation togo over the ground with him. As this O5ce had no information regarding the construction of a reservoir in the San Carlos or in the Tonto Basin, except the legislation authorizing the investigation of the San Carlos dam site by the Geological Survey, the letter was transmitted to the Department September 5, -1902, without recommendation. |
