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Show PREFACE This three-volume work on the water rights laws in the 19 Western States is a comprehensive sequel to the 1942 single-volume publication authored by Wells A. Hutchins entitled "Selected Problems in the Law of Water Rights in the West." That book was extensively used and the supply was soon exhausted. In the 1950's, he initiated the research needed to prepare the manuscript for this multivolume work. Since the appearance of the 1942 book, there has been a great amount of additional legislation and court decisions and two new Western States had to be considered. Moreover, the present, much more extensive, work treats more facets of the subject and discusses a number of items in greater detail. Rights to the use of water from various surface and underground sources often are of crucial importance in the Western States. The 19 States to which this study relates include the 17 contiguous Western States plus Alaska and Hawaii. The 17 contiguous States comprise the six extending from North Dakota to Texas, the three bordering the Pacific Ocean, and the intervening eight States. This work is a comparative analysis of the development and status of the constitutional provisions, statutes, reported court decisions, and some adminis- trative regulations, practices, and policies regarding water rights laws in the Western States. The analysis includes the nature of such water rights and their acquisition, control, exercise, transfer, protection, and loss. In addition to the relevant State laws, Federal, interstate, and international matters are also discussed. An extensive appendix includes summaries of selected components of the water rights systems of each State. Although critical or laudatory comments are occasionally included, Mr. Hutchins' general purpose was to objectively portray the development and status of the laws rather than to propound his views on what the laws should be. The general coverage and arrangement of the work is set forth in the summary of contents. The more detailed aspects of the subject are reflected in the extensive table of contents for each volume which should help to guide the reader through the numerous topics and subtopics. Volume three will include indexes to the entire publication to further assist the reader. To facilitate the use of this work as a source book on Western water rights laws, different ramifications of particular statutes, cases, or other items are treated in two or more places. This study should be useful to the wide variety of private persons, organizations, institutions, and Federal, State, and local government officials concerned with the laws regarding the use of water resources. These may include lawyers, judges, legislators, administrators, economists, engineers, other social, political, and physical scientists and research workers, educators, vii |