Wheatland Irr. Dist. v. Two Bar-Muleshoe Water Co.
| Decision Date | 06 September 1967 |
| Docket Number | No. 3574,BAR-MULESHOE,3574 |
| Citation | 431 P.2d 257 |
| Parties | WHEATLAND IRRIGATION DISTRICT, a Corporation, Appellant(Defendant below), v. TWOWATER COMPANY, Elbert L. Howe, William H. Beisner, Bernard R. McGuire, Arthur Burnett, Ellen Marle Burnett and Dora Burnett, Appellees(Plaintiffs below). |
| Court | Wyoming Supreme Court |
Wm. R. Jones, of Jones & Jones, Wheatland, Bard Ferrall, of Ferrall & Bloomfield, Cheyenne, for appellant.
John J. Rooney, of Rooney & Horiskey, Cheyenne, for appellees.
Before HARNSBERGER, C. J., and GRAY, McINTYRE, and PARKER, JJ.
This case involves a suit for specific performance of a contract entered into March 1, 1900 relative to the furnishing of irrigation water from a reservoir.
Under the contract The Swan Land and Cattle Company leased some 6,000 acres to Wyoming Development Company for such period as the lands 'may be used and occupied' as the site of a reservoir for the retention and storage of water for supplying the irrigation system of Wyoming Development Company. As consideration for the use of the land, Wyoming Development Company agreed that during the term of the lease Swan, its successors and assigns, would have 'the right to use throughout the irrigation season of each and every year * * * such quantity of water as may be carried and conveyed through and by means of' two particular irrigation ditches.
The two ditches referred to were the Mule Shoe Ditch and the Two Bar Ditch. The water, according to the contract, was to be taken into these two ditches from that portion of lessee's irrigation system known as Sybille Creek. In addition, Wyoming Development Company as lessee granted to lessor and its successors the right to use throughout the irrigation season of each year such quantity of water as might be necessary for the proper irrigation of some 300 acres of land. This additional water was to be furnished and received at such point on Sybille Creek, and to be used upon such tracts, as lessor might elect.
Since the date of the contract, the lands affected by the lease agreement have by mutual agreement been reduced to 3,321.86 acres. Title to the acreage still under the lease is now held by Two Bar-Mule-shoe Water Company, one of the plaintiffs in the action for performance. The individual plaintiffs are successors in interest of The Swan Land and Cattle Company, being the present owners of those lands entitled to water under the March 1, 1900 contract. These individual plaintiffs constitute all of the stockholders of Two Bar- Muleshoe Water Company.
Wheatland Irrigation District, the defendant, is successor in interest to Wyoming Development Company. As such, it uses the 3,321.86 acres under lease for storage of water of the Big Laramie River under Permit No. 1724.
The district court of Platte County found for plaintiffs and entered a purported judgment for specific performance against defendant. The issue of the amount of damages suffered by plaintiffs for past nonperformance of their contract has not been tried, the parties having stipulated the matter of damages would be decided later.
The lease agreement contained a description of the two ditches referred to and then provided it is 'distinctly' understood and agreed that the quantity of water to be furnished shall be that quantity which the ditches can carry 'with their present dimensions, as hereinabove stated.' Thus, an intention to fix in...
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