In this connection I call attention to the fact that we have a large shipbuilding lant at Wilmington and the Maritime Commission has made provision to mainain it indefinitely. Moreover the Maritime Commission proposes to lay up a reat many of the surplus warships on this river and near Wilmington. The roject is fully favored by the authorizing committees in the House and the enate and is considered very meritorious by the Chief of Engineers and his oard. It is of great importance to North Carolina. If you think it necesasry will be glad to appear before the committee especially to urge this matter. With all good wishes, Yours very truly, JOSIAH M. BAILEY. Senator THOMAS. We will recess at this time until 10 o'clock omorrow morning. (Whereupon, at 12:05 p. m., March 5, 1946, a recess was had until 0 a. m., March 6, 1946.) The subcommittee met at 10 a. m., Hon. Elmer Thomas, of Oklahoma (chairman) presiding. Present: Senators Thomas of Oklahoma, Hayden, O'Mahoney, Chavez, Maybank, Gurney, Reed, Wherry, Cordon. CORPS OF ENGINEERS FLOOD CONTROL GARRISON RESERVOIR, N. DAK. Senator THOMAS of Oklahoma. The committee will be in order, Garrison Reservoir in North Dakota and other projects in North Dakota would be considered at 10 o'clock this morning. The Senators from that State are interested in these items and we have with us Senator Langer. Senator Langer will present his statement and then present such witnesses as he has. Senator Langer presents a letter and therein quotes a telegram received by him from the Haggart Construction Co., of Fargo, N. Dak., which he asks that it be placed in the record in connection with his statement. Without objection, this will be agreed to. (The letter is as follows:) MISSOURI VALLEY FLOOD-CONTROL PROJECTS TELEGRAM FROM HAGGART CONSTRUCTION CO. Hon. KENNETH MCKELLAR, UNITED STATES SENATE, February 16, 1946. United States Senate, Senate Office Building, Washington, D. C. MY DEAR SENATOR: I am in receipt of a telegram today from the Haggart Construction Co., Fargo, N. Dak., which reads as follows: "Contact Senate Appropriations Committee members and request them to reinstate 4,000,000 recommended by engineers and Budget Bureau for Cherry Creek Reservoir near Denver. Restore 500,000 for Harlan County dam. Reinstate 1,000,000 for Garrison dam. Kansas City flood control and levee work requires additional million. Work for all Missouri Valley projects instead of just ones in our State to demonstrate regional unification under existing agencies" The above is self-explanatory and is forwarded to you for your earliest attertion. With kindest regards, I am Sincerely, WILLIAM LANGER Senator LANGER. Former Congressman Usher L. Burdick will testify at this time. Senator THOMAS. Mr. Burdick, for the record, please state your name, residence, and background. I want the record to show you have been in Congress. STATEMENT OF USHER L. BURDICK, WILLISTON, N. DAK. GARRISON RESERVOIR, N. DAK. Mr. BURDICK. My name is Usher L. Burdick. I reside at Williston, N. Dak. I was a member of the lower House of this Congress for 10 years and was a member of the Indian Affairs Committee of the House for 10 years. Senator THOMAS. What item do you desire to present to the committee? Mr. BURDICK. I just want to make two short observations. Mr. BURDICK. First, I want to thank this committee for their kindness and forbearance in listening to this small matter, speaking nationally, that has arisen in the vicinity of Williston. PURPOSE NOT TO ASK APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE TO CHANGE AUTHORIZATION The next point I desire to make is that we are not here for the purpose of trying to have an appropriation committee change an authori zation at all. When the authorization for this dam was passed, you recall that House Document 475 of the Seventy-eighth Congress estimated the number of acre-feet to be footed at 17,000,000 acre-feet. In Senate Document 191, there was no mention made of this dam whatever. That is called the Sloan plan. And in Senate Document 244, which was the agreement reached between the Bureau of Reclamation and the Army engineers, the same estimate appeared again, of 17,000,000 acre-feet. CORPS OF ENGINEERS INCREASED WATER CAPACITY OF RESERVOIRS Now, then, for some reason after the act was passed, the Army engineers on their own motion raised this water capacity 612 million feet. That was never consented to by the Bureau of Reclamation. It was never passed on by Congress. And it is that extra 62 million acrefeet of impounded water that causes all the trouble in this case. It means a water level of 1,850; if that were to prevail, it would cover 20,000 acres of irrigable land in the vicinity of Williston, 6,000 of which has already been designated. COST OF DIKES REQUIRED BY INCREASE IN RESERVOIR CAPACITY The cost of building the dikes which they say they will build to protect us, permitting us to live behind dikes to this extra 612 million acre-feet, that proposition will cost this Government $10,500,000. And they will build dikes around the irrigation plants that the Government has already built out there. SEEPAGE FROM DIKES SPOILS THE SOIL Mr. Chairman, I want to say to you that those men who live behind those proposed dikes or who will live behind them will not continue to farm, because they have experienced time after time in the valley trying to dike off meadows and pasture lands. It is the seepage that comes through the dikes that spoils the soil on the other side for productive purposes; not one, but every one, of all those men who inhabit those two projects, the Lewis and Clark and the Buford-Trenton, have all signed this statement, every last one of them, that they will not continue to operate if dikes are put in there and they are supposed to work behind those dikes. FLOODING OF INDIAN LANDS, FORT BERTHOLD RESERVATION Lastly, Mr. Chairman, I want to say that I do not want to see the Indian lands of the Fort Berthold Reservation flooded, until an area of land commensurate in natural resources and strategic value, and by that I mean timber, can be offered to these Indians. I am too familiar with the history of these Indians to want to do otherwise. I know that they once owned the entire area surrounding Williston where we live today. By treaty after treaty they gave up these lands for settlement, with the express promise on the part of the Government that they be paid for these lands. But I know, and you know, Mr. Chairman, that there is a suit still pending in this Government after a lapse of 50 years in which they are seeking to get payment for the lands they already gave up. At this time, we should make sure that if these lands are to be taken, equitable compensation will be forthcoming, and not compel these Indians to fight for their rights for the next 50 years. And, Mr. Chairman, please remember that this Government is the guardian and protector of these Indians, whom we have made our wards. And in the guardianship this Government is required, as in every other legal fiduciary capacity, to act in the utmost good faith. There ought to be some way that this legislation can be passed to give these Indians that protection. If the dam is built before a settlement has been made with these Indians, I trust this Government will not raise the point that these Indians have slept on their rights and permitted the Government to expend $200,000,000, and therefore they cannot protect themselves later. As a matter of justice, under the relationship of guardian and ward, these Indians ought not to be required to employ counsel and protect themselves in the courts, but this Government should, because of its fiduciary capacity, protect these Indians now as wards of the Govern ment. DEPTH TO REACH BOTTOM FOR DIKES Senator LANGER. One question, Mr. Burdick: How deep would they have to go in these dikes in order to get bottom? |