Bemidji Daily Pioneer Newspaper, January 23, 1909, Page 1

e THE BEMIDJI DAILY VOLUME 6. NUMBER 237. BEMIDJI, MINNE SOTA, SATURDAY EVENING, JANUARY 23, 1009. PIONEE FORTY CENTS PER MONTH PRESIDENT CALLS ON THE NATION TO SAVE ITSELF Massage States Need of Conserving Country’s Resources,— Comments in Vigorous Terms on Report of Na- tional Conservation Commission. President Roosevelt yesterday sent to congress a message trans- mitting the report of the national conservation commission. He pre- faces the report with his own com- ment, stating in vigorous terms his conviction that immediate action is needed if the rightfal heritage of posterity in natural recources is to be preserved. The message is as follows: — To the Senate and House of Repre- sentatives: 1 transmit herewith a report of the national conservation commission, to- gether with the accompanying papers. This report, which is the outgrowth of the conference of governors last May, was unanimously approved by the recent joint conference held in this city between the national conserva- tion commission and governors of states, state conservation commissions and conservation committees of great organizations of citizens. It is there- fore In a peculiar sense representative of the whole nation and all its parts. ‘With the statements and conclusions of this report I heartily concur, and I commend it to the thoughtful considera- tion both of the congress and of our people generally. It is one of the most fundamentally important documents ever laid before the Amerlcan people. It contalns the first inventory of its natural resources ever made by any nation. In condensed form it presents a statement of our available capital in material resources, which are the means of progress, and calls attention to the essential conditions upon which the perpetulty, safety and welfare of this nation now rest and must always continue to rest. It deserves and should bave the widest possible distribution among the people. The facts set forth in this report constitute an imperative call to action. The situation they disclose demands that we, neglecting for a time, if need be, smaller and less vital questlons, shall concentrate an effective part of our attention upon the great material foundations of natlonal existence, prog- ress and prosperity. Immediate Action Needed. This first Inventory of natural re- sources prepared by the national con- servation commission is undoubtedly but the beginning of a serles which will be Indispensable for dealing intel- ligently with what we have. It sup- plies as close an approximation to the actual facts as it was possible to pre- pare with the knowledge and time available. The progress of our knowl- edge of this country will continually lead to more accurate information and better use of the sources of national strength. But we cannot defer action until complete accuracy in the estl- mates can be reached, because before that time many of our resources will be practically gome. It is not neces- sary that this inventory should be ex- act In every minute detafl. It is essen- tial that it should correctly describe the general situation and that the present Inventory does. As it stands 1t s an irrefutable proof that the con- servation of our resources is the fun- damental question before this nation and that our first and greatest task is to set our house in order and begin to live within our means. The first of all considerations is the permanent welfare of our people, and true moral welfare, the highest form of welfare, cannot permanently exist save on a firm and lasting foundation of material well being. In this re- spect our situation is far from satis- factory. After every possible allow- ance has been made and when every hopeful indication has been glven its full welght the facts still give reason for grave concern. It would be un- worthy of our history and our intelll- gence and dlsastrous to our future to shut-our eyes to these facts or attempt to laugh them out of court. The peo- ple should and will rightly demand that the great fundamental questions shall be given attention by thelr repre- sentatives. I do not advise hasty or il considered actlon on disputed points, but I do urge, where the facts are known, where the public Interest 18 clear, that neither indifference and inertia nor adverse private interests shall be allowed to stand in the way f the public good. . Our Responsibility For the Future. | The great basic facts are already well known. We know that our popu- lation is now adding about one-fifth to its numbers In ten years gand that by the middle of the present century per- haps 150,000,000 Americans and by its end very many millions more must be fed and clothed from the products of our sofl. With (%2 steady growth in population and the still more rapid in- crease in consumption our people will hereafter make greater and not less demands per capita upon all the natu- ral resources for. their livelihood, com- fort and convenience. It {s high time to realize that our responsibility to the coming millions is like that of parents to their children and that in wasting our resources we are wronging our de- Bcendants, ‘We know now that our rivers can ~ gad whould be made to serve our peo- — Pl éffectively 1n “transportation, —bat that the vast expenditures for our wa- terways have not resulted in maintain- ing, much less in promoting, inland navigation. Therefore let us take im- mediate steps to ascertain the reasons and to prepare and adopt a” compre- hensive plan for inland waterway nav- igation that will result in giving the people the benefits for which they have paid, but which they have not yet re- celved. We know now that our forests are fast disappearing, that less than one-fifth of them are being conserved and that no good purpose can be met by falling to provide the relatively small sums needed for the protection, use and improvement of all forests still owned by the government and to enact laws to check the wasteful destruction of the forests in private hands. There are differences of opinion as to many public questions, but the American peo- ple stand nearly as a unit for water- way development and for forest pro- tection. We know now that our mineral re- sources, once exhausted, are gone for- ever and that the needless waste of them costs us hundreds of human lives and nearly §300,000,000 a year. There- fore let us undertake without delay the investigations necessary before our people will be in position through state action or otherwise to put an end to this huge loss and waste and conserve both our mineral resources and the lives of the men who take them from the earth. I desire to make grateful acknowl- edgment to the men both in and out of the government service who have pre- pared the first inventory of our natu- ral resources. They have made it pos- sible for this nation to take a great step forward. Thelr work is helping us to see that the greatest questions before us are not partisan questions, but questions ppon which men of all partles and all shades of opinfon may be united for the common good. Among such questions, on the material side, the conservation of natural resources stands first. It is the bottom round of the ladder on our upward progress to- ward a condition in which the nation as a whole and its citizens as individu- als will set national efficlepcy and the public welfare before personal profit. Industrial Democracy In Danger. The policy of conservation is per- haps the most typical example of the g:neml policles which this government s made peculiarly its own during the opening years of the present century. The function of our government is to insure to all its citizens now and here- after their rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. If we of this generation destroy the resources from which our children would otherwise derive thelr livelihood we reduce the capacity of our land to support a popu- lation and so elther degrade the stand- ard of llving or deprive the coming generations of their right to life on this continent. If we allow great in- dustrial organizations to exercise un- regulated control of the means of pro- duction and the necessarles of life we deprive the Americans of today and of the future of industrial liberty, a right no less precious and vital than polit- {cal freedom. Industrial liberty was a fruit of political liberty and in turn has become one of its chief supports, and exactly as we stand for political democracy so we must stand for indus- trial democracy. The rights to life and lberty are fundamental, and, like other funda- mental necessities, when once acquired they are little dwelt upon. The right to the pursult of happiness is the right whose presence or absence s most likely to be felt in daily life. In what- ever it has accomplished-or failed to accomplish the administration which 1s just drawing to a close has at least seen clearly the fundamental need of freedom of opportunity for every citi- zen. We have realized that the right of every man to live his own life, pro- vide for his family and endeavor, ac- cording to his abilitles, to secure for himself and for them a fair share of the good things of existence should be subject to one limitation and to no other. The freedom of the individual should be limited only by the present and future rights, interests and needs of the other individuals who make up the community. We should do all in our power to develop and protect indi- vidual liberty, individual initiative, but subject always to the need of preserv- ing and promoting the general good. ‘When necessary the private right must yleld, under due process of law and ‘with proper compensation, to the wel- fare of the commonwealth. The man who serves the community greatly should be greatly rewarded by the community. As there is great inequal- ity of service, so there must be great inequality of reward, but no man and no set of men should be dlowed to play the game of competition with loaded dice. i All this is simply good common sense. The underlying principle of conserva- tlon has been described as the appll- eation of common sense to common problems for the common good. If the description is correct, then conserva- tlon 1s the great fundamental basis for national efficlency. In this stage of be world’s history to be fearless, to be st t are tho_three great requirements of natlonal Tife: Administration’s Aims Defended. This administration has achieved some things. It has sought, but has not been able, to achieve others. It has doubtless made mistakes, but all It has done or attempted has been in the single, consistent effort to secure and enlarge the rights and opportuni- tles of the men and women of the United States. We are trying to con- serve what is good in our social sys- tem, and we are striving toward this end when we endeavor to do away with what is bad. Success may be made too hard for some if it is made too easy for others. The rewards of common industry and thrift may be too small if the rewards for other and on the whole less valuable qualities are made too large, and especially if the rewards for qualities which are really, from the public standpoint, un- desirable are permitted to become too large. The unchecked existence of monop- oly is incompatible with equality of opportunity. The reason for the exer- cise of government control over great monopolies is to equalize opportunity. We are fighting :gainst privilege. It ‘was made unlaw{ X for corporations to contribute money for clection expenses in order to abridge the power of spe- clal ‘brivilege at the polls. Railroad rate control is an attempt to secure an equality of opportunity for all men af- fected by rail transportation, and that means all of us. The great anthracite coal strike was settled and the press- Ing danger of a coal famine averted because we recognized that the con- trol of a public necessity involves a duty to the people and that public Intervention in the affairs of a public service corporation is neither to be resented as usurpation nor permitted as a privilege by the ~orporations, but, on the contrary, tosbe accepted as a duty and exercised as a right by the government in the interest of all the people. The efficlency of the army and the navy has been increased so that our people may follow in peace the great work of making this country a better place for Americans to live in, and our navy was sent round the world for the same ultimate purpose. All the acts taken by the government during the last seven years and all the poli- cles now being pursued by the govern- ment fit in as parts of a consistent ‘whole. — Measures For Country’s Good. Our public.land policy has for its aim the use of the public land so that it will promote local development by the settlement of homemakers. The pol- ey we champlon is to serve all the people legitimately and openly, instead of permitting the lands to be convert- ed, illegitimately and under cover, to the private benefit of a few. Our for- est policy was -establishel so that we might use the public forests for the permanent public - good, instead of merely for temporary private gain. The reclamation act, under which the desert parts of the public domain are converted to higher uses for the gen- eral benefit, was passed so that more Americans might have homes on the land. These policies were enacted into law and have justified thelr enactment. Others have failed so far to reach the point of action. Among such is the attempt to secure public control of the open range and thus to convert its benefits to the use of the small man, who is the homemaker, instead of al- lowing it to be controlled by a few great cattle and sheep.owners. The enactment of a pure food law ‘was a recognition of the fact that the public welfare outweighs the right to private gain and that no man may polson the people for his private profit. The employers’ Uability bill recognized the controlling fact that, while the employer usually has at stake no more than his profit, the stake of the employee is a llving for himself and bis family. For the Benefit of the People. ‘We are building the Panama canal and this means that we are enga in the glant engineering feat of all time. We are striving to add in all ways to the habitability and beauty of our country. We are striving-to hold in the public hands the remaining sup- ply of unappropriated coal for the pro- tection and benefit of all the people. ‘We have taken the first steps toward the conservation of our natural re- sources and the betterment of country life and the improvement of our wa- terways. We stand for the right of every child to a childhood free from grinding toil and to an education, for the civic responsibility and decency of every. citizen, for prudent foresight in public matters and for failr play in every relation of our national and eco- nomic life. In international matters ‘we apply a system of diplomacy which puts the obligations of international morality on a level with those that govern the actions of an honest gen- tleman in dealing with his fellow men. ‘Within our own border we stand for truth and honesty in public and in private life, and we war sternly against €ontinued on page two. A. D. Moe Buys Kerrick Stock. A. D. Moe, who has been a mer- chant tailor in this city for the past nine years, and who recently dis- posed of all his interests in the Be- midji Tailoring company, has pur- chas¢d the Thomas Kerrick tailor shop and stand on the corner of Fourtli’street and Beltrami avenue. Mr. Moe took possession yester- day and will be found in his new stand, where he will be pleased: to receive all his old customers as well as'the new ones. THE TIMBER WOLVES ARE KILLING OUR BIG GAME Carlos Avery Suggests nm Beltrami County Pay Additional Bounty On Wolves. — A. G. Rutledge of Bemidji has received a communication from Carlos Avery, executive agent of the State Gume and Fish commission, relative to the killing of game by wolves,-in which suggestion is made that Beltrami county might offer a small bounty for the destruction of wolves, in.addition to the bounty offered by the state. The financial condition. of Bel- trami county is such that it is hardly probable that any bounty could be offered on the part of the county for the destruction of wolves. The communication from Mr. Avery encloses a letter from Albert Smith of Otto on the shores of Red Lake, and is as follows: 2 *'St. Paul; Jan. 23. "A_. G. Rutledge, Esq., Bemidji, Minn. =t 3 “Friend Rutledge:—I take the liberty of enclosing you a copy of a very significent letter received this morning from Albert Smith, who resides on the east shore of Red Lake, and whom T think you know. This letter emphasizes the importance of more effort being made looking toward the destruction of wolves, “I believe that in many sections the wolves are more destructive on game than any other one agency, nd it would appear that if the matter were properly presented to your Board of County Commission- ers,” and the evidence laid before them, that in the interests of the game of your county and» gf your agricultural interests as.well,“ thata bounty would be provided for. . The state bounty is not sufficient to in- duce trappers to make a business of hunting wolves. “An effort will be made to get this state bounty increased, but it is impossible to state whether it can be done or not. “I believe that any effort which you may exert in this direction will be in the public interest and I am sure thatit will be thoroughly appreciated by all who are interested in the game of the ‘North Woods.’ “Very truly yours, “Carlos Avery, “Executive Agent.” MR. SMITH’S LETTER. “Otto, 15, 09 “State Game and Fish Commission, Saint Paul, Mina. “Gentlemen:—T have just returned from a cruise across the Big Bog ly- ing north of Upper Red Lake, where the caribou make their home, and I find that in T-155-32 there are 19 head of these animals, and in T-156- 32 there is a herd of about 15 or 16. Then aeain in T-156-33 there is a small herd of eight. - I saw this herd and counted them while I could only counted the others by their tracks. The snow-is about two feet deep here now, and the timber wolves are killing the moose off in large numbers on the Rapid River. I have been there for the past month looking over land, and I found several cases where the wolves were chasing moose and where the moose were dragging the wolves while they were cutting their ham strings. = Hunters and trappers do not try to kill them as this county, Beltrami, does not pay any bounty, and the state bounty is only $7.50, so it doesn’t pay to bother with them as they have to be taken so far in order to securea certificate, and thosz, wolves weigh about 125 pounds each and must be taken whole before a town clerk. But with this deep snow, and the prospects of more, I am afraid moose and caribou will be scarce before spring. I am going back up there next week, and shall kill some of them anywayto save the game as much as possible. But there should be a good' bounty on those timber wolves. : “Yours truly; “'Albert Smith.” Personal Property Tax. The Pioneer desires, at this ‘time, to call its readers attention " to: the’ fact that all'personal property taxes must be paid before the first day of March to avoid the penalty of 10 per cent which attaches™ that date. People who live convenient to the county seat or are residents of the city of Bemidji should assist the county treasurer in his work and accomodate those living at a dis- tance by making their payments as soon as possible, thereby avoiding the heavy rush of business which always accumulates in the treasurer’s office the latter part of February. Pay Loses Promptly. J. P. Lahr, clerk of the local camp, M. W. A. has received from the head camp a draft in the sum of $1,000.00 payable to Mrs. A. P. Henrionnet, that being the amount of insurance carried by Mr. Hen- rionnet, who died December 15, 1908, The prompt payment of their death claims by the M. W. A. isa good recommendation to any one seeking fraternal insurance. BEMIDJI HIGH SCHOOL WON FROM *‘BIG BEMIDG” In Fine Basketball Game Last Evening, The School Team Won By Score 231018. Amid the tremendous cheers of a large and enthusiastic audience at the Coliseum in this city last evex:- ing, the Bemidji High school basket- ball team defeated “‘Big Bemide” by a score of 23 to 18, thereby “even- ing up” with the big team for the loss of a game early in the season. “Big: Bemidg” lined up for the first half as follows: Geil, : forwards; Ho!ibr. center; Thornton and Reanér, guards; Hol- zer, Thornton and Renner being substituted 'in place of Star Mark- am, who was out of town, and Biddinger and Petterson, who were both not in condition to play. . The High School played in the following places during the first half: Gill and Stanton, forwards; Homdrum, center; Kruse and Gould, guards. 2 The game started off with a rush, “Big Bemidg” quickly securing a field basket which was followed by one for the “kids.” The older team soon placed the score at 7 to 2 but the school lads were playing with a vim which ran the standing up to 16 to 9 in the latter’s favor before the end of the half. With such a strong lead for their opoponents, Biddinger and Peterson were unable to remain out of the game in spite of their condition and the line-up of “Big Bemidg” was changed, Geil and Renner playing forward, Brown returning to his regular position of center and Peter- son and Biddinger becoming guards. Forward Stanton and Gould, guard, exchanged'plaoes on the school ‘team. At the beginning of the second half Kruse fouled and Geil missed the free throw. This was quickly followed by Gill’s making a splendid 30-foot field basket. The remainder of the half was speedy, the big team doubling their score and allowing the school to make only seven points during the second twenty minutes. But the lead was too large and the game ended 23 to 18. Dur.ing the entire game "Big Bemidg” committed 10 fouls and Brown ‘and the high school boys 8, Gould mak- ing three foul baskets and .Geil (contrary to -his usual excellent throwing and all expectations) only two. ‘“Big Bemidg” seemed to be playing in a streak of “bad luck” all through the game while the playing of the boys was extraordinarily good. The baskets made in thé game were distributed as follows: Brown 1, Geil 5 and 2 foul baskets, Holzer 1 and Renner 1; For the high school, Gill 7, Stanton 2, Homdrom ‘1, and Gould made 3 foul baskets. Each member of the school team played fine, the forwards playing - well together and the guards and center sticking to their men in fine shape. . It is confidently expected that a game will be arranged with the fast Grand Rapids team for next Thurs- day eveniog. - Grand Rapids, Jan. 22.—(Special to Pioneer.)—An adjournment was taken in the Riddell-Riley election contest this afternoon after three weeks of continuous sessions, night and day. : The case is being tried before Judge Cant of Puluth, and he left for his home this afternoon, announc- ing that he would return again Mon- day to resume the hearing of testi- mony. ? The case of the contestee has thus far dealt with only three precincts, ‘Sand Lake, Keewatin and Crooked Lake. In the Sand Lake and Keewatin precincts the showing of fraud had been made so strong that it has been virtually announced by the court that either candidate claiming any votes in these precincts will be required to prove his votes. The total vote for Riley in these two pre- cincts was 193 and for Riddell 21. It is conceded that the contestee will be unable to prove the votes received by him as~ in many instances the votes were qQast by lumber jacks or miners who are not now in this section of the country. The testimony as to the Sand Lake precinct showed fraudulent votes gast by members of the elec- tion board as well as others. ELECTION CONTEST CASE AT GRAND RAPIDS IS LONG ; i Fraud Shown in Two Voting Preeincts .in the Election of ‘ _SIlbriff.—Jndgo Cant of Duluth Adjourned the Case Until Monday. One of the judges of election at Keewatin admitted when on the stand that he had been an active Riley worker during all of election day and that none of the ballots which he marked had been for Riddell. It was also admitted by several members of the board of election in this precinct that througout the day the board was waiting for the arrival of a large crew of railroad men which was being sent into the precinct from work near Cass lake. The arrange- ments to vote this crew were made in part by members of the election board. The case has been the most pro- longed and most stubbornly contest- ed action which has ever been tried in Itasca County. - Frank F. Price and George H. Spear are appearing for the contestant and Martin Hughes of Hibbing, C. C. McCarthy and Thwing & Rossman for the con- testee. More than 50 witnesses it is estimated have already been examin- ed in the case. Mr. Riley is acting as sheriff at the present time and will continue to do so until the contest is finally dis- posed of. It is understood that an appeal is to be taken in the event of his defeat. ; : Women to- Hold Union. The women. of -the Methodist, Baptist and Presbyterian churches have arranged to district the city- and hold five Simultaneous prayer meetings each afternoon next week jat 1:30 o’clock. Let every christain woman plan to attend one of these. Go to the one nearest you. The places are the bomes of the follow- ing ladies: Mrs. Canute, Cor. 5th St. and Beltrami Ave.; Mrs. Taber, 1116 Beltrami Ave.; Mrs. Robert McLeod, 702, Thirteenth St.; Mrs. Chas. Knox, 517, Irvin Ave.; Miss Hultgren, Minnesota Ave., S. The subjects for the week are given as follows: Monday, At Ease in Zion, Isiah 32:9-11, Tuesday, The Revival at Sychar, John 4:1-41. Wednesday, The Alabaster Box, Matt. 26:6-13, Thursday, The One thing needful, Luke 10:28-42, Fri- day, The Power of Prayer, James 5:16-20., Saturday,” Faith and Works, James 2:14-26, Probate Court. Jan. 20. The estate of Edith M. Jones. . Certified copy- of foreign will together with certificate of .pro- bate of same filed. Hearing on peti- —eee executor issued. The estate of August P. Henrion- net. _Petition for probate of will filed - and citation for hearing- on petition set for February 23. Jan. 22. Estate of Minnie Major. Charles Major as administrator filed oath and bond of administration, Commissioners’ Proceedings. With _this issue of the Daily Pio- neer we publish the official pro- -.ceedings of the annual meeting, of the Board of County Commissioners. At the annual meeting the Be- midji Pioneer was designated as the official paper of Beltrami county for the year 1909,and all proceedings and legal notices of every descrip- tion will appear in the daily as well as the weekly. Change in Time. On account of thelack of electric power on Sundays the skating rink will be open on Sundays hereafter from 4 until 6 o’clock in order to use the night current. - as reflected by “The OId Investigation Every thinking citizen is now paying strict attention to public and local business conditions, and especially to the condition of local banks published statements. The light of this investigation has resulted in bringing to the front StroNeER THAN EvER, and your dollar _ doesits duty only when deposited with us on interest or subject to check. ,, The il First National Bank ~ of Bemidiji their frequently Reliable” MIRNESOTA HISTBRICAL « SOCIETY, tion for probate of foreignd had ™ and orders admitting o pro- bate and the appointmes William H.: Sanderson- of Rusk,‘ Wis,, as | | 1 |