THE STONY CREEK WATER WARS - Affidavit of E.E. Smith

THE STONY CREEK WATER WARS
Glenn County - Tehama County - Colusa County , California.
(c) 2009, Mike Barkley
Affidavit of E.E. Smith

[A transcription of the document on file in the Angle Archives

Important because these affidavits were the first sworn response to Reclamation's suit, and Judge Van Fleet's ignoring them, as in not even reading them before issuing his injunction, set the tone for the rest of the litigation, as in the Court was there to support the government, not justice or equity.

In straight text without elaborate formatting. Any editorial comments by me are contained within brackets, "[]", which you may delete easily after downloading the "page source" to your own editing software if your browser allows source downloading. ]

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No. 30 Eq

In the District Court of the
United States in and for
the Northern division of the
Northern District of
California

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The United States of America
Plaintiff
vs
H.C. Angle, et al.
Defendant.
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Affidavit of E.E. Smith

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FILED
At ____ o'clock and ____ Min ____ M
JUN 11 1918
Walter B. Maling, Clerk
By /s/ Thomas J. Franklin
Deputy Clerk - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

CLAUDE F. PURKITT
Attorney for Defendants
[end of cover]

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES IN AND FOR THE

NORTHERN DIVISION OF THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA.

_______________________
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff,

vs.

H.C. ANGLE, A.M. ANDERSON, A.C. Bayley, L. Bedford, John Bedford, R.E. Blevins, I.L. Feightner, W.W. Gatliff, Ira Green, Aug. Gollnick, Leonard Gollnick, James Harmon, Reuben Hartman, Volney Hayton, C.A. Hineline, Chas. Jaeger, John Johannsen, John Johannsen, Jr., J.E. Knight, J.F. Mallon, G.W. Markham, Preston Morris, Wm. Niesen, James O'Brien, S.A. Ralston, Ray Shievely [sic], E.E. Smith, John H. Soeth, Geo. Soeth, Fred Strawn, A.J. Triplett, Abe L. Triplett, Frank Troxel, F.W. Troxel, Lloyd Troxrl [sic], I.E. True, J. Van Scyoc, A.P. Wakefield,

Defendants.

AFFIDAVIT OF
E.E. Smith
ON HEARING PRELIMINARY
INJUNCTION AND APPOINTMENT
AND AUTHORIZATON OF WATER
COMMISSIONER DURING PENDENCY
OF CAUSE.

_______________________

STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
County of Glenn ) ss

E.E. Smith, after being first duly sworn, deposes and says: He is the owner of 240 acres of land in fee simply [sic] adjacent to and riparian to Big Stoney Creek; that affiant has lived on said land Since 1884 and has applied water to about 10 acres of said land on the flat near the water’s edge of Big Stony Creek for the past 25 years, that originally affiant had installed in the main channel of Big Stoney Creek a water wheel and by means of said water wheel lifted the water about thirteen feet and applied the same on the land. That is to say the ten acres irrigated; that on said ten acres affiant has alfalfa,

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a family orchard and a family garden and depends entirely on the said ten acres thus irrigated for his hay, fruit and vegatables. That affiant used said water wheel for the purpose of irrigating the said land for about sixteen years and then put in, in place of said wheel, a pump. That said pump does not take out or raise any more water from the main channel of Stoney Crečk than was formerly used by said affiant by means of said water wheel. That affiant has only said ten acres that can be irrigated by that means and said lands will only use so much water. That affiant always used each year for said period of 25 years last past the same amount of water and is not now using one drop more of water than he used before the construction of plaintiff's said reservoir; that to grant said injunction prayed for by plaintiff's Bill of Complaint would work a great and irreparable injury upon this affiant for the reason that affiant's land, except said ten acres lie greatly above the water surface in said creek and said ten acres is a low little flat between the edge of the water and a higher or plateau flat and this affiant depends entirely upon said ten acres, so irrigated by means as aforesaid, for his vegetables, fruit and hay. That said land is of such a nature that it will produce absolutely nothing without constant application of water. That when water is put on it, it very shortly and immediately afterwards seeps through and percolates through the land and back into the main channel of Stoney Creek.

WHEREFORE affiant prays that said injunction be not granted nor a Water Commissioner appointed by this Court and affiant will ever pray.

/s/ E.E. Smith

Subscribed and sworn to before
me this 9th day of June, 1918

/s/ Elma Knock
Notary Public in and for Glenn County
California

[stationery imprinted:]
CLAUDE F. PURKITT
ATTORNEY AT LAW
WILLOWS, CALIFORNIA

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--Mike Barkley, 161 N. Sheridan Ave. #1, Manteca, CA 95336 (H) 209/823-4817
mjbarkl@inreach.com