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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE P. 0. Box 2229 Reno, Nevada. February 6, 1942. Mr. Leo A. McNamee, Attorney at Law, Las Vegas, Nevada. Re: United States v. Alpine Land & Reservoir Co. et als - U. S. District Court - Nevada. My dear Mr. McNamee: Your letter of January 30, 1942 in reference to the above case and the article by Clarence M. Hawkins in the California Bar Journal, addressed to Jack Halley, Deputy United States Attorney has been handed to me by Jack for reply. For your information, there has been no decision by the above Court in this case, which has not as yet been submitted for decision. The Government’s Opening Brief has been filed and served. It is a long animal in two volumes, copies of which I am forwarding to you under separate cover. The particular point in which you are interested appears on pages 1 to 60 inclusive. The decision of the Federal Court in the Truckee River Case referred to, which consists in part of a discussion of thesubject by former Judge Tal­bot who was Special Master in that case, was approved by the late Judge Farrington. Judge Talbot’s discussion of the point appears in Appendix 1 which you will find at the end of Volume 2 of the Brief. Personally I am quite interested in Point II also, which is discussed in Vol I of the Brief— commencing at page 61 regarding the effect of the State Act of 1903 vNev. Stat. 1903 p. IB). In connection with this discussion, pages 55-60, which immediately precede that discussion, should be read in connection therewith. I am sorry that Mr. Hawkins, in his article, leaves the impression that the United States claims that it is the owner of all the waters of innavigable streams in the arid western states. This is erroneous, as the Government can not, of course, claim ownership of water rights that were acauired