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on its projects. Begun in 1905 as hectographed sheets and distributed as a means of keeping the field employees of the Service informed of its operations, the Record, first printed in 1909, has had a steady growth in size, circulation and value. At present each issue usually occupies forty-eight pages and has a circulation of about 17,000.

CHAPTER III

ORGANIZATION

The plan of organization of the Reclamation Service is similar to that of the more highly developed construction companies. In working out the details preliminary to adopting this plan, studies were made of many existing corporations, and advice was had from experts and chartered accountants in public and private employment. The peculiar requirements of existing law and the limitations of governmental regulations necessitated some departure from ordinary business procedure, and the wide distribution of the field work, combined with seasonal variations and accidents of drought and flood, necessitated provision for a greater elasticity than is ordinarily found in government organizations.

The size of the force employed by the Service has varied widely in the several stages of its operations. The first year of its existence was consumed principally in planning work, which required a relatively small force. With the beginning of design and construction, however, the staff of the Service increased rapidly, mounting steadily from 1902, when it numbered but 20, to 1913, when no less than 8,000 employees, including day laborers, were on its rolls. Today, with most of the primary projects completed or near completion, the employees of the Service number approximately 4,000, including laborers.

As previously pointed out, the manner in which this large force of employees is organized is left by the Reclamation Act wholly to the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, nor have subsequent enactments in any way limited this discretion.

The sundry civil appropriation act for the fiscal year 1918, although making specific allotment for each of the projects controlled by the Service, makes specific provision for the title or salary of no single employee.

In one important respect the reclamation law and its amendments do indeed control the organization of the Service. They impose upon the Secretary himself the duty of determining various specific matters, such as the limit of area per entry on each project, the construction charges to be imposed, etc. In effect, therefore, these provisions make the Secretary of the Interior himself an integral part of the Reclamation Service, and he is here so considered.

Aside, however, from the functions specifically imposed by law upon the Secretary, the present organization of the Service is determined, as to its main features, by an order of the Secretary of the Interior issued on November 22, 1915. By this order, four chief divisions of administration are created, the Executive and Engineering Division, the Legal Division, the Fiscal Division and the office of the Supervisor of Irrigation; and the heads of the first three divisions are constituted a board with general supervisory power.

In the following, the functions exercised by the Secretary of the Interior will first be considered. This will be followed by a discussion of the Reclamation Commission and then of the four administrative divisions in the order above named.

The Secretary of the Interior. The functions specifically vested in the Secretary of the Interior by the Reclamation Act and its amendments may be listed as follows:

I.

I.

2.

Withdrawal of lands.

To withdraw from entry public lands required for irrigation works. To restore to public entry any of the lands so withdrawn when such lands are no longer required for such works. (Act of June 17, 1902, Sec. 3.)

To withdraw from entry, except under the homestead laws, any public lands believed to be susceptible of irri

gation from said works. (Act of June 17, 1902, Sec. 3.)

3. To withdraw from public entry any lands needed for town-site purposes in connection with irrigation projects, not exceeding 160 acres in each case. (Act of April 16, 1906, Sec. 1.)

4. To withdraw from other disposition and reserve for country parks, public playgrounds and community centers such tracts as he may deem advisable, not exceeding 20 acres in any one township in each reclamation project. (Act of October 5, 1914, Sec. 1.)

2. To acquire rights necessary for construction.

3.

I. To acquire any rights or property for the United States by purchase or by condemnation under judicial process. (Act of June 17, 1902, Sec. 7.)

2.

To make any arrangement or agreement in reference to the irrigation of irrigable lands included in allotments made to Indians. (Act of April 30, 1908, 35 Stat. L., 85.)

To prescribe conditions of settlement on projects. I. To determine the limit of area per entry.

2.

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To require the reclamation and cultivation of onefourth of the irrigable area within three full irrigation seasons, and of one-half the irrigable area within five full irrigation seasons. (Act of August 13, 1914, Sec. 8.)

3. To fix the construction charges to be imposed upon the lands reclaimed. (Act of June 17, 1902, Sec. 4.) 4. To fix the date when operation and maintenance charges shall become payable. (Act of August 13, 1914, Sec. 6.) 5. To designate the terms and the maximum price at which the owners of private lands within a project shall dispose of lands in excess of the area which he shall deem sufficient for the support of a family upon the lands in question. (Act of August 13, 1914, Sec. 12.)

6. To subdivide into town lots any lands withdrawn for town-site purposes, and to direct the appraisal and sale of such lots. (Act of April 16, 1906, Secs. I and 2.) 4. To regulate the use of water.

I. To furnish water upon projects prior to giving public notice of the construction charge. (Act of August 13, 1914, Sec. 11).

2. To make general rules and regulations governing the use of water. (Act of August 13, 1914, Sec. 8.) 3. To contract for the delivery of water supply with the proper authorities of towns established on town sites. reserved on reclamation projects, or of other towns or cities in the immediate vicinity of irrigation projects, which shall have a water-right from the same source as that of the project. (Act of April 16, 1906, Sec. 4.)

4.

To contract for the impounding, storage and carriage of excess water with irrigation systems operating under the Carey Act and with individuals, corporations, associations and irrigation districts organized for or engaged in furnishing or distributing water for irrigation. (Act of February 21, 1911, Sec. 1.)

5. To appoint fiscal agents.

I. To designate bonded fiscal agents. (Act of August 9, 1912, Sec. 4.)

2. To appoint a water users' association as fiscal agent. (Act of August 13, 1914, Sec. 7.)

6. To transfer to a legally organized water users' association or irrigation district at its request, the care, operation and maintenance of all or any part of the project works subject to such rules and regulations as he may prescribe. (Act of August 13, 1914, Sec. 5.) 7. To enter into contracts with an organization formed by the owners of the lands within a project or project unit, providing that the organization will maintain and use lands reserved for country parks, public playgrounds and community centers for the purposes prescribed. 8. To lease for a period not exceeding ten years, giving preference to municipal purposes, any surplus power or privilege which will not impair the efficiency of the irrigation project. (Act of April 16, 1906, Sec. 5.)

9. To perform any and all acts and make such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper for the purpose of carrying the provisions of the Reclamation Act into full force and effect. (Act of June 17, 1902, Sec. 10.)

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