EXCHANGE WITH SANTA FE RAILWAY COMPANY OF WATER FROM ELEPHANT BUTTE RESERVOIR FOR RIGHT OF WAY

An act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to acquire certain right of way near Engle, New Mexico. (Act July 8, 1916, ch. 227, 39 Stat. 351)

[Sec. 1. Conveyance of right of way by Santa Fe Railway Company to United States-Water to grantor-Delivery-Reversion on abandonment.]-That the Secretary of the Interior be, and is hereby, authorized to receive on behalf of the United States from the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company the conveyance of so much of said company's pipe-line right of way from a point near Engle, New Mexico, to the Rio Grande River as will be flooded by the Elephant Butte Dam; and as the consideration for such conveyance the railway company shall be permitted to take from the water impounded above Elephant Butte Dam now under construction by the Reclamation Service, and which will flood such right of way, such quantity of water as the Secretary of the Interior may find to be necessary for the operation of said company's railway, but not exceeding thirty million gallons of water per month: Provided, That the Secretary of the Interior shall at all times have authority to determine the times, place, and manner in which said Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway Company shall be permitted to take such water from said reservoir, and that all expense incident thereto shall be borne by said railway company; Provided further, That neither the United States nor its successors in interest shall be held liable for or obligated to supply the water hereinbefore described, but in the event that the United States or its successors in interest shall abandon the use of the land upon which the said the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway has its said right of way for a reservoir site as herein contemplated, said right of way, so far as the same may be conveyed to the United States hereunder, shall revert to the said railway company. (39 Stat. 351.)

ACCEPTANCE OF EXTENSION ACT

An act to amend section 14 of the reclamation extension act approved August 13, 1914. (Act July 26, 1916, ch. 257, 39 Stat. 390)

[Sec. 1. Acceptance of extension of payments to be made within six months-Upon showing, may be made later.]-That section fourteen of an act entitled "An act extending the period of payment under reclamation projects, and for other purposes," approved August thir teenth, nineteen hundred and fourteen, be amended so as to read as follows:

"SEC. 14. That any person whose land or entry has heretofore become subject to the reclamation law who desires to secure the benefits of the extension of the period of payments provided by this act shall, within six months after the issuance of the first public notice hereunder affecting his land or entry, notify the Secretary of the Interior in the manner to be prescribed by said Secretary, of his acceptance of all the terms and conditions of this act, and thereafter his lands or entry shall be subject to all of the provisions of this act: Provided, That upon sufficient showing the Secretary of the Interior may, in his discretion, permit notice of acceptance of all the terms and conditions of this act to be filed at any time after the time limit hereinbefore fixed for filing such acceptance shall have expired, conditioned, however, that where the applicant for such acceptance is in arrears on construction charges he shall at the time of acceptance pay such installments of the construction charge as he would have been required to pay had he accepted this act within the time limit hereinabove fixed plus the penalties that would have accrued had he so accepted, and such applicant shall thereafter be upon the same status that he would have been had he accepted the provisions of this act within the time limit hereinabove fixed, and thereafter the lands or entry of any such persons so filing such notice of acceptance shall be subject to all the provisions of this act." (39 Stat. 390.)

NOTES

Acceptances filed within six months from date of public notice.-Where pre vious water-right application, not under the extension act, has been recorded, the project manager will approve the acceptance and require the same to be placed of record. Where water-right application under the extension act has been approved no formal acceptance is necessary, as the execution of the application under the extension act is equivalent thereto. Upon approval by the project manager of such water-right application the same must be recorded if it covers private land or a reclamation homestead entry for which patent has issued. Where no water-right application has been filed an acceptance of the terms of the extension act may be approved by the project manager, but not recorded. In such a case the acceptor merely secures a right to make in the future a water-right application under the extension act. (Reclamation decisions, November 24, 1917, and February 4, 1918; C. L. 711, 735.)

Acceptances filed after six months from date of public notice.-Where previous water-right application, not under the extension act, has been recorded, a request for permission to accept the terms of the extension act under the act

of July 26, 1916, must be forwarded with a formal acceptance to the Washington office. Upon approval of the acceptance it will be forwarded for recording and subsequent filing in the project office. The request for permission to accept will be retained in the Washington office. Where waterright application is executed under the extension act no other acceptance is necessary, as the execution of such application is equivalent thereto. The request for permission to accept the terms of the extension act under the provision of the act of July 26, 1916, should be forwarded to the Washington office, and upon approval of the request to accept the terms of the act the project manager will be notified, and he will approve the water-right application, if otherwise acceptable, and will cause it to be recorded if it covers land in private ownership. The request for permission to accept will be retained in the Washington office. There can be no acceptance under the act of July 26, 1916, without the filing of a water-right application, as the payments required by said act must necessarily be based upon a water-right application. Where recordation is necessary, acceptances must be acknowledged, and the wife must join in the execution of the acceptance in case she holds under the laws of the State any interest in the land involved. All fees for recording acceptances must be paid by the applicants. (Reclamation decision, November 24, 1917; C. L. 711.)

Payment of accrued charges. In case public notice issues on or before June 1 and application for permission to accept the extension act and make waterright application thereunder is filed after December 1 of the same year, permission to accept the extension act will not be granted without payment of the charges which would have been required from the applicant had he accepted the act within the six-months period, plus accrued penalties. (Reclamation decision, February 4, 1918; C. L. 735.)

Miscellaneous.-Reclamation instructions, July 27, 1916 (45 L. D. 317); Reclamation circular letters, July 28, 1916, July 29, 1916, September 21, 1916 (No. 595), September 25, 1916 (No. 597), October 7, 1916 (No. 603), and January 24, 1917 (No. 629).

SALE OF BOISE AND ARROWROCK RAILROAD

An act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to cause to be appraised and to sell the Boise and Arrowrock Railroad, and for other purposes. (Act August 11, 1916, ch. 318, 39 Stat. 506)

[Sec. 1. When no longer needed, railroad may be appraised and sold at auction-Notice-Proceeds into reclamation fund-Bids may be rejected-Private sale-Sale subject to certain agreements.]—That whenever in the opinion of the Secretary of the Interior the Boise and Arrowrock Railroad, constructed by the Reclamation Service under the provisions of the act of Congress of June seventeenth, nineteen hundred and two (Thirty-second Statutes, page three hundred and eighty-eight), for use in connection with the construction of the Arrowrock Dam, Boise project, is no longer needed for said construction purpose, the said Secretary of the Interior may cause said railroad, together with the right of way on which the same is located, and such part of the equipment and appurtenances used in connection therewith as he shall deem most profitable or economical to sell in connection with said railroad, to be appraised by three disinterested persons, to be appointed by him, and thereafter to sell the same for not less than the appraised value, at public auction, to the highest bidder, after giving public notice of the time and place of sale by posting upon the premises and by publication once a week for not less than four weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the city of Boise, Idaho, and in three other publications such as may, in the judgment of the Secretary of the Interior, give adequate publicity to the proposals of the Government, the proceeds of such sale to be covered into the reclamation fund and credited to the Boise project, and such credit applied upon the features of said project against which the cost of the construction of said railroad was charged: Provided, That said Secretary may reject any or all bids: Provided further, That after said railroad has once been offered for sale at public auction and not sold the Secretary may, in his discretion, sell said railroad, together with the equipment and appurtenances aforesaid, at private sale on such terms and conditions, and at such price as he may deem to be to the best interest of the Government. Any sale hereunder shall be subject to the terms and conditions of two certain agreements, one dated March second, nineteen hundred and eleven, between the United States and the Barber Lumber Company, and the other dated November eighteenth, nineteen hundred and fifteen, between the Oregon Short Line Railroad Company and the United States. (39 Stat. 506.)

PUBLIC LANDS IN IRRIGATION DISTRICTS

An act to promote the reclamation of arid lands.1 (Act August 11, 1916, ch. 319, 39 Stat. 506)

[Sec. 1. Public lands within irrigation districts made subject to State laws Benefits of State laws to be extended to holders of public landsAct not applicable to districts with majority acreage of unentered lands.]—That when in any State of the United States under the irrigation district laws of said State there has heretofore been organized and created or shall hereafter be organized and created any irrigation district for the purpose of irrigating the lands situated within said irrigation district, and in which irrigation district so created or to be created there shall be included any of the public lands of the United States, such public lands so situated in said irrigation district, when subject to entry, and entered lands within said irrigation district, for which no final certificates have been issued, which may be designated by the Secretary of the Interior in the approval by him of the map and plat of an irrigation district as provided in section three, are hereby made and declared to be subject to all the provisions of the laws of the State in which such lands shall be situated relating to the organization, government, and regulation of irrigation districts for the reclamation and irrigation of arid lands for agricultural purposes, to the same extent and in the same manner in which the lands of a like character held under private ownership are or may be subject to said laws: Provided, That the United States and all persons legally holding unpatented lands under entry made under the public land laws of the United States are accorded all the rights, privileges, benefits, and exemptions given by said State laws to persons holding lands of a like character under private ownership, except as hereinafter otherwise provided: Provided further, That this act shall not apply to any irrigation district comprising a majority acreage of unentered land. (39 Stat. 506.)

499.

NOTES

Amendment. This act amended by act May 15, 1922 (42 Stat. 541), 49 L. D. Regulations. For General Land Office regulations under this act, see 46 L. D. 307-317.

Sec. 2. [Irrigation costs to be apportioned against all lands-Certain charges certified to land offices-No obligation against United StatesCharges made lien upon public lands-Lands may be sold therefor— Limitations Reclamation act.]-That the cost of constructing, acquiring, purchasing, or maintaining the canals, ditches, reservoirs, reservoir sites, water, water right, rights of way, or other property incurred in connection with any irrigation project under said irrigation district laws shall be equitably apportioned among lands held under

Popularly known as the Smith Act, being so named for Representative in Congress Addison T. Smith, of Idaho.