the reclamation fund and collected from the settlers and owners of the land benefited under the provisions of the reclamation Act approved June seventeenth, nineteen hundred and two, and Acts supplemental thereto or amendatory thereof.

Extract from "An Act Making appropriations for sundry civil expenses of the Government for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and eight, and for other purposes." (34 Stat. 1357.)

STATUTES OF THE TERRITORY OF NEW MEXICO.

Act January 7, 1852, Establishing Public Ditches or Acequias.

All rivers and streams of water in this State, known prior to January 7, 1852, as public ditches or acequias, are established and declared to be public ditches or acequias.

C. L. 1865, C. 1, Sec. 9.1

Act January 9, 1874.-Construction of Private or Common Acequias. Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of New Mexico:

SECTION 1. That all the inhabitants of the Territory of New Mexico, shall have the right to construct, either private or common acequias, and to take the water for said acequias, from wherever they can; with the distinct understanding, to pay the owner through whose land said acequias have to pass, a just compensation taxed for the land used.

SEC. 2. If the owner or owners of lands where a new ditch for an acequia is to be made, should ask an exorbitant price as a compensation therefor, which shall not be satisfactory to the owner or owners of such acequia, it shall be the duty of the probate judge of the county in which it may occur, to appoint three skillful men of well known honesty, to make an appraisement thereof and fix the compensation; which once done, shall be executory and without appeal from the judge trying the case.

SEC. 3. That section one of an act approved July 20th 1851, and section twenty three of the same act, of January seventh 1852, be and the same are hereby repealed.

SEC. 4. This act shall take effect from and after its passage.

"An Act amending in part, the law of acequias in this Territory."—(Chapter X, Laws of New Mexico, 1873-1874, p. 28.)

1 [It has been held by the Supreme Court of New Mexico that this section has no application to a stream like the Rio Grande. It refers to such ditches, acequias, or natural water courses used as acequias, as have become the subject of private or community ownership, and upon which labor is expended for the purpose of appropriating the water therefrom, and using the same to irrigate the lands of the persons so working thereon. Albuquerque Land & Irrigation Co. v. Gutierrez, 10 N. M. 177; 61 Pac. 357.— Agent's note.]

Act February 24, 1887, Authorizing Formation of Companies for Irrigation Purposes.

Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of New Mexico:

SECTION 1. Any five persons who may desire to form a company for the purpose of constructing and maintaining reservoirs and canals or ditches and pipe lines for the purpose of supplying water for the purpose of irrigation, mining, manufacturing, domestic and other public uses, including cities and towns, and for the purpose of colonization and the improvement of lands in connection therewith; for either or both of said objects, either jointly or separately, shall make and sign articles of incorporation which shall be acknowledged before the secretary of the territory, or some person authorized by law to take the acknowledgment of conveyances of real-estate, and when so acknowledged, such articles shall be filed with such secretary. SEC. 2. Such articles shall set forth:

1. The full names of the incorporators, and the corporate name of such company.

2. The purpose or purposes for which such company is formed; and if the object be to construct reservoirs and canals or ditches and pipe lines for any of the purposes herein specified; the beginning point and terminus of the main line of such canals and ditches and pipe lines; and the general course, direction and length thereof shall be stated.

3. The amount of the capital stock and the number of shares as definitely as practicable.

4. The term of existence of the company, which shall not exceed fifty years.

5. The number of directors, and the names of those who shall manage the business of the company for the first year.

6. The name of the city or town and county in which the principal place of business of the company is to be located.

SEC. 3. A duly certified copy of such articles, executed by the secretary of the territory shall be filed in the office of the probate clerk of each county through or into which any such canal or ditch or pipe line may run, or such reservoir may be established, or in which any such company may desire to transact business, and duly certified copies of such articles shall be given by said secretary, or said probate clerks, on the payment of the fees allowed by law, which copies shall be received as evidence in any of the courts of this territory.

SEC. 4. When articles of incorporation shall have been executed, acknowledged and filed, as herein required, the persons therein named shall, with their associates, and successors, be deemed a body politic and corporate, by the name stated in such articles, for and during the period named therein; and shall have power to sue and be sued,

in any court; to adopt and use a common seal and alter the same at pleasure; to purchase, acquire, hold, sell, mortgage and convey such real and personal estate as such corporation may require to successfully carry on and transact the objects for which it was formed; to appoint such officers, agents and servants as the business of the corporation may require, and exact of them such security as may be thought proper, and remove them at will; except, no director shall be removed from office unless by a two-third vote of the whole number of directors; and to adopt by-laws, not inconsistent with the laws of this territory for the organization of the company, the management of its business and property, the regulation of its affairs the transfer of its stock, and for carrying on all kinds of business within the objects and purposes of the corporation.

SEC. 5. The corporate powers of any corporation formed under this act shall be exercised by a board of not less than three directors, who shall be stockholders of the company and a majority of them citizens of the United States, and at least one-third of whom shall be residents of this territory. Such directors shall be elected annually after the expiration of the term of the directors named in the articles of incorporation, at such time and place and upon such notice and in such mode as the by-laws of the company may provide; but all such elections shall be by ballot, and each stockholder, either in person or by proxy, shall be entitled to as many votes as he owns shares of stock, and the persons receiving the greatest number of votes shall be declared elected. When a vacancy occurs in the office of director by death, resignation or otherwise, such vacancy shall be filled for the remainder of the year in such manner as the by-laws shall prescribe. Should there be no election of directors, on the day fixed in the by-laws for such election, such election may be held at such other time as the by-laws may designate, and the directors in office may continue to act until their successors are elected.

SEC. 8. The stock of the company shall be deemed personal estate and shall be transferable in such manner as shall be prescribed by the by-laws of the company; but no transfer shall be valid except between the parties thereto, until the same shall be so entered on the books of the company as to show the names of the parties, by and to whom transferred, the number and designation of the shares and the date of transfer.

SEC. 16. Corporations formed under this act shall have power to borrow such sums of money as may be necessary for the construction, completion or operation of their reservoirs, canals and ditches, or pipe lines, or the produce of any lands, water rights or other property necessary, in order to carry out the objects for which they were incorporated; and to issue and dispose of their bonds for any amount

so borrowed, and to mortgage their corporate property and franchises to secure the payment of any debt contracted for the purpose aforesaid: provided, that all such bonds shall be payable within twenty years and shall not bear interest at a greater rate than ten per cent per annum.

SEC. 17. Corporations formed under this act for the purpose of furnishing and supplying water for any of the purposes mentioned in section 1, shall have in addition to the powers hereinbefore mentioned, rights as follows:

1. To cause such examinations and surveys for their proposed reservoirs, canals, pipe-lines and ditches to be made, as may be necessary to the selection of the most eligible locations and advantageous routes, and for such purposes, by their officers, agents and servants, to enter upon the land or water of any person, or of this territory.

2. To take and hold such voluntary grant of real estate and other property, as shall be made to them in furtherance of the purposes of such corporation.

3. To construct their canals, pipe-lines or ditches upon or along any stream of water.

4. To take and divert from any stream, lake or spring the surplus water for the purpose of supplying the same to persons, to be used for the objects mentioned in section 1 of this act, but such corporations shall have no right to interfere with the rights of, or appropriate the property of any persons except upon the payment of the assessed value thereof, to be ascertained as in this act provided: and provided further: that no water shall be diverted, if it will interfere with the reasonable requirements of any person or persons using or requiring the same when so diverted.

5. To furnish water for the purposes mentioned in section 1, at such rates as the by-laws may prescribe; but equal rates shall be conceded to each class of consumers.

6. To enter upon and condemn and appropriate any lands, timber, stone, gravel or other material that may be necessary for the uses and purposes of said companies.

SEC. 19. Such corporations shall be authorized to construct such branch, lateral or side canals, pipe-lines or ditches, as may be necessary to successfully accomplish the objects and purposes for which they shall be organized, and shall have the same rights and powers as to the taking and appropriating of land and other property, to be used therefor, as is given and conferred by the next preceding section or other sections of this act.

SEC. 21. Corporations formed under this act for the purpose of furnishing or supplying water for any of the purposes mentioned in section 1, shall have the right and privilege of constructing their

reservoirs, canals, pipe-lines or ditches, on or over any of the lands now belonging to this territory, or which may hereafter become the property of the territory, and the right to use any timber, stone or other materials upon such lands, and along the line of such canals or ditches, or in the vicinity of such reservoirs as may be necessary in the construction thereof.

SEC. 25. That no incorporation of any company or companies to supply water for the purposes of irrigation and other purposes, shall have any right to divert the usual and natural flow of water of any stream which by the law of 18541 has been declared a public acequia, for any use whatever, between the 15th day of February and the 15th day of October of each year, unless it be with the unanimous consent of all and every person holding agricultural and cultivated lands under such stream or public acequia, and to be irrigated by the water furnished by said stream or public acequia, and that no incorporation of any company or companies shall interfere with the water rights of any individual or company, acquired prior to the passage

of this act.

SEC. 26. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval.

"An Act to authorize the formation of companies for the purpose of constructing irrigating and other canals and the colonization and improvement of lands." (Chapter 12, New Mexico Laws, 1886-1887, p. 29.)

Act February 26, 1891.-Method of Establishing Rights of Appropriation of Waters.

Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of New Mexico:

SECTION 1. That every person, association or corporation hereafter constructing or enlarging any ditch, canal or feeder for any reservoir, and taking water from any natural stream, shall within ninety days after the commencement of such construction, change or enlargement, file and cause to be recorded in the office of probate clerk of the county in which such ditch, canal or feeder be situated, a sworn statement in writing, showing the name of such ditch, canal, or of the reservoir supplied by such feeder, the point at which the head-gate thereof is situated, the size of the ditch, canal or feeder, both in width and depth, the carrying capacity in inches, the description of the line thereof, the time when the work was commenced, the name or names of the owners thereof together with a map showing the route thereof, the legal subdivisions of the land, if on surveyed lands, with proper corners and distances, and in case of an enlargement or change, the depth and width, also

1 (No statute was passed in 1854 on the subject referred to. The legislature evidently intended to refer to the act of 1852, quoted above, which was included in the Davenport compilation of Statutes published in 1854. See Albuquerque Land & Irrigation Co. v. Gutierrez, 10 N. M. 177; 61 Pac. 357, 365.-Agent's note.)