The CHAIRMAN. Would there be any water available for irrigation?

Mr. CHILDERS. In the river?

The CHAIRMAN. In the river.

Mr. CHILDERS. In the river; yes.

The CHAIRMAN. How much of the waters of the river do you propose to use through this canal?

Mr. CHILDERS. The proposed canal, I believe, provides for 9,000 second-foot capacity.

The CHAIRMAN. Well, without using those technical terms, what proportion of the waters of the river would you use?

Mr. CHILDERS. Well, that is an engineering question, Mr. Chairman, that I could hardly give you an answer to accurately. At this time that would amount to 9,000 against 20,000, perhaps nearly onehalf of the normal flow.

The CHAIRMAN. You heard the statements of those interested, as we all are, in the welfare of the city of Los Angeles, wanting certain waters from the Colorado River for the purpose of domestic use in the city.

Mr. CHILDERS. Yes, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. Would there be sufficient water left for the use of Los Angeles and those other municipalities in the southern part of California if you take all the water you need for the all-American canal?

Mr. CHILDERS. As we understand, the communities on the coastal plain of southern California contemplate taking about 1,500 feet, which is relatively a small amount of water compared with what we take for irrigation.

The CHAIRMAN. How many acre-feet would flow through the canal?

Mr. CHILDERS. Well, in second-feet it is 9,000. I believe you multiply that by 2 every 24-hour run to get it into acre-feet. That would be 18,000 acre-feet per day, if I am correct in that.

The CHAIRMAN. What is the annual rainfall in the Imperial Valley?

Mr. CHILDERS. Very negligible; I think it is about 3 inches, on the average.

The CHAIRMAN. What acre-feet do you need for the purpose of irrigation?

Mr. CHILDERS. Over the 10-year period ending, I believe, in 1922 we used an average of 3.76 acre-feet. That consumption is gradually being lessened. I believe the water duty to-day is a little less than it was a few year ago.

Representative SWING. You mean on the land?

Mr. CHILDERS. On the land, for irrigation.

Representative SWING. That is not at the point of diversion? Mr. CHILDERS. No; that is not at the point of diversion. I am talking about the water duty on the land. Of course, you understand there is a loss-canal losses and evaporation.

The CHAIRMAN. Yes. Under a certain section of this bill, as I recall it, the Secretary of the Interior could allocate these waters among the different States for the purpose of irrigation.

Mr. CHILDERS. I think that is true.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you assume that there would be enough water going down the all-American canal to take care of all of the irrigable acres in the Imperial Valley.

Mr. CHILDERS. Yes, sir; we think so. We think there is enough to take care of the lands in the United States in the river. The allAmerican canal, when it is completed, will irrigate something slightly less than a million acres of land.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you know the total irrigable area that might be made available in the event of the construction of the Boulder Canyon dam and the all-American canal?

Mr. CHILDERS. I do not. That is set out very largely, Mr. Chairman, in Senate Document 142. Those facts are available. But there is this to be said: Nearly every morning we wake up to find some one else that has found some new use to make of this water. Even at the time this exhaustive report was made I believe Los Angeles and the communities around there at least had not announced that they had any intention of going to the Colorado River for water, and those things are coming up all the time, so it is very necessary that all of that water be conserved, in our opinion.

The CHAIRMAN. Well, the cost of the construction of the allAmerican canal will be taxed against the water users in the Imperial Valley?

Mr. CHILDERS. That is true. That is, against the land would be the more accurate way to put it.

The CHAIRMAN. What would be the annual maintenance and operation charge? I want to know if you have worked out figures indicating the annual operation and maintenance charge, the M. & O. charge?

Mr. CHILDERS. I could not give you those figures, Mr. Chairman. I think perhaps Mr. Davis, if he follows, might be able to give us some information on that.

The CHAIRMAN. What estimate have you regarding the cost of the construction of the canal?

Mr. CHILDERS. That is set out in the all-American canal report, and I believe it is placed at about $36.40 per acre, if I remember the figures correctly.

The CHAIRMAN. You don't remember the total?

Mr. CHILDERS. The total is twenty-nine million seven hundred and some thousands of dollars that would be allocated to that portion of the canal. And then I believe there is something like $900,000 that goes to the Yuma project under the contract. A trifle over $30,000,000. That is what we speak of in round figures, $30,000,000 for the construction of the canal.

The CHAIRMAN. What is the average value of land per acre in the Imperial Valley after the water is brought to it?

Mr. CHILDERS. That is a very hard question to answer at all accurately, as you will understand, Mr. Chairman. Good land can be purchased all the way from $150 to $500 per acre, depending upon various conditions, particularly the character of the soil, its location in relation to roads and highways and towns and markets. The CHAIRMAN. That includes the water right?

Mr. CHILDERS. Yes, the water right goes with the land. Every acre of land in an irrigation district, you understand, has its legal

right to the water, to its proportion of the water, based on the

assessment.

The CHAIRMAN. Does that conclude your statement, Mr. Childers? Mr. CHILDERS. That is all I wish to say.

The CHAIRMAN. Does any member of the committee desire to ask any questions?

That will be all. Thank you, Mr. Childers.

Senator JOHNSON of California. I will next call Mr. Heald.

STATEMENT OF MR. ELMER W. HEALD, EX-SERVICE MAN, REPRESENTING THE AMERICAN LEGION, CALAPATRIA, CALIF.

Senator JOHNSON of California. Mr. Heald, will you state your name, your residence, and your occupation, please, and then make your statement in regard to this measure?

Mr. HEALD. Mr. Chairman, and gentlemen of the committee, my name is Elmer W. Heald. I reside in the city of Calapatria, county of Imperial, State of California.

I am an ex-service man, and enlisted in the United States Army May 13, 1917, in the city of Los Angeles, Calif. I embarked for France on July 21, 1917, and remained there until July, 1919, and was discharged at Camp Dix, N. J., in October, 1919.

I am appearing before this committee on behalf of the American Legion. I represent the Interpost Council American Legion of Imperial County; the American Legion, Department of California; and I am also appearing under the sanction and authority of the national legislative committee of the American Legion.

I wish to state at the outset that this legislation has been indorsed by the American Legion, Department of California, at several of its State conventions; and was unanimously indorsed by the national convention of the American Legion held in San Francisco in October, 1923. The following resolution was adopted by the national convention of the American Legion at San Francisco, Calif., in

1923:

Whereas the undeveloped resources of the Colorado River constitute one of our Nation's greatest assets; and

Whereas the life-giving waters and potential energy of said river, equivalent in value to millions of dollars, is annually running to waste in the flood waters of the river and constituting a menace to life and property while it runs to waste; and

Whereas the Department of the Interior of the United States has recommended to Congress the construction of a project for the protection and development of the lower Colorado River, commonly known as the Boulder dam and all-American canal project, as the first unit of the ultimate complete development of the resources of said river; and

Whereas this project is vitally necessary to safeguard the lives and property of many ex-service men and thousands of others living in the lower Colorado River Basin, now constantly threatened with devastation and destruction from annual floods of that river; and

Whereas under said project thousands of ex-service men and women will be given the preferred right to acquire homes and farms by entry upon several hundred thousand acres of public lands in Arizona, Nevada, and California now arid and worthless, but which by this project will be made intensely productive and valuable: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the American Legion, in national convention assembled, does hereby favor the adoption by Congress of a program for the ultimate complete development of the Colorado River, and favors as the first unit of that program the passage of legislation that will carry out the recommendations

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heretofore made by the Interior Department providing for the construction of said Boulder dam and all-American canal, and that the national legislative committee of the American Legion be directed to use all legitimate means to secure the passage of such legislation.

The following resolution was adopted by the State convention of the American Legion, Department of California, held at Eureka, Calif., in 1923:

Whereas there has been recommended to Congress a project which calls for the construction of a 600-foot dam at or near Boulder Canyon in the Colorado River and an all-American canal to be constructed entirely upon lands of the United States, which canal will irrigate vast areas of fertile lands now idle; and

Whereas the above-mentioned dam will offer flood protection for thousands of American citizens in the territory known as the lower Colorado River Basin and adequate storage for both the upper and lower basins of the Colorado River; and

Whereas the above-mentioned canal will irrigate vast areas of land of the public domain now idle and will bring them into productivity; and

Whereas under said project the ex-service men and women of the United States will receive a preference right of 90 days to file on said lands, which are now withdrawn from entry: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the American Legion, Department of California, in annual convention assembled at Eureka, Calif., does hereby call upon the Congress of the United States upon the assembling of same immediately to take up and act favorably upon the measures pending in Congress or measures covering all the features of the present Swing-Johnson bill which may be introduced; and be it further

Resolved, That said convention hereby indorses the aforementioned project and instructs its delegates to the national convention of the American Legion, to be held in San Francisco, Calif., in the month of October, 1923, to secure the passage of a resolution directing the national legislative committee of the American Legion to use its every endeavor to secure the passage of such legislation and placing that organization on record as indorsing the project.

The idea of land settlement for the soldiers returning from France began to take definite shape early in the year 1919. During the year 1919 Congress set aside $110,000 to the Interior Department, which money was to be used for the purpose of making a complete survey of all lands in the United States available for soldier-settlement purposes. Such a report was made by the department. The report shows that in the New England States and the States in the Mississippi Valley there was practically no land available for soldier settlement. It also showed that in the South there was some swamp land available for soldier settlement and in the West there were large areas of desert land available for that purpose. The swamp lands would of necessity have to be drained before they would be suitable for settlement purposes, and irrigation water and storage would have to be provided before the desert lands of the West could be made available for soldier settlement. Aside from this, the Government has done practically nothing in the way of supplying lands for soldier settlement with the exception of opening certain reclamation projects to settlement by ex-service men. The question arises as to whether or not there is any demand by ex-service men for lands. A careful study of the records of the Reclamation Service and the Interior Department discloses some interesting facts and information in regard to this question.

Speaking from the standpoint of an ex-service man I can state that the matter of land settlement was a subject of considerable discussion and interest to the men themselves long prior to the time

they were discharged and while they were still in France, and I can remember very distinctly that considerable literature and propaganda was circulated amongst the men, while still in the service in France, relative to the possibility of obtaining land after their return to the States. The records will show that in 1920 the Reclamation Service opened up what was commonly known as the Platte project in Nebraska and Wyoming. In that project there were 80 farm units, comprising 5,078 acres. There were 3,298 applications made by the ex-service men for these 80 farm units. The men were required to make a cash deposit to cover the initial construction cost of the irrigation system which had been constructed for the purpose of supplying these 80 units with water in accordance with the terms of the reclamation act; and the 3,298 ex-service applicants deposited with the Reclamation Service the sum of $1,192,000 in cash to cover these charges.

Since that time the United States has opened up two other small reclamation projects, and I was unable to get the figures in regard to those two projects, the exact number of farm units opened. They apparently were not available. But I was assured by the Reclamation Bureau that the figures were about the same. There were a

large number of applicants and very little land for them.

All of these projects were smaller than the Platte project. And in every instance there were a greater number of applicants than there were farm units available.

A study of the records of the Department of the. Interior discloses also that between the discharge of the soldiers in 1919, and up to March 1, 1924, there had been filed with the department 204,541 applications by ex-service men for land upon which to settle, and Doctor Brown, of the Reclamation Service, informed me that the applications were still coming in at approximately the rate of 1,000 a month. That these applications are bona fide and made with the avowed intention of procuring land, if there is any land, is very well demonstrated by the interest exhibited in the NebraskaWyoming project and the other projects mentioned.

In further substantiation of my statement that there is a great demand by ex-service men for land and farms upon which to settle I call the committee's attention to the California veteran legislation, by which all veterans who enlisted in the State of California and were bona fide residents of that State at the time of their enlistment are entitled to receive State aid in procuring homes and farms. Up to the present time, 24,000 ex-service men have been placed upon homes and farms under the State veterans' legislation in the State of California, and there are some 124,000 applications on file for additional homes and farms.

As I have stated before, there is no land available for soldier settlement, other than the swamp lands of the South and the desert lands of the West. The Colorado River Basin offers one of the finest bodies of unclaimed desert land still belonging to the United States Government. The Boulder Canyon Dam and the all-American canal will make possible the reclamation of approximately 1,200,000 acres of public domain in the lower basin of the Colorado River. The largest single tract of Government land in this basin