Bemidji Daily Pioneer Newspaper, September 5, 1910, Page 2

‘ivate RAILROAD TIME GARDS TEDDY'S POLICY ~ OKD BY TAFT President Addresses National Conservation Congress. PROBLEMS OF IMPORTANGE. Chief Executive Makes Exhaustive Re- port on His Heritage From Last Ad- ministration and Says He Is Trying to Carry Out Work Already Started. St. Paul, Minn., Sept. 5.—Gentlemen of the National Conservation Congress —Conservation as an economic and po- litical term has come to mean the pres- ervation of our natural resources for economical use so as to secure the greatest good to the greatest number. In the develoment of this country, in the hardships of the pioneer, in the energy of the settler, in the anxiety of the investor for quick returns, there was very little time, opportunity or desire to prevent waste of those re- sources supplied by nature which could not be quickly transmitted into money, while the investment of capi- tal was so great a desideratum that the people as a community exercised little or no care to prevent the trans- fer of absolute ownership of many of ithe valuable natural resources to pri- individuals without retaining :some kind of control of their use. The impulse of the whole new com- ‘munity was to encourage the coming of population, the increase of settle- ment and the opening up of business. and he who demurred in the slightest degree to any step which promised ad- ditional development of the idle re- sources at hand was regarded as a traitor to his neighbors and an ob- structor to public progress. But now that the communities have become old, now that the flush of enthusiastic ex- pansion has died away, now that the would be pioneers have come to re- alize that all the richest lands in the country have been taken up, we have perceived the necessity for a change of policy in the disposition of our na- tional resources so as to prevent the continuance of the waste which has characterized our phenomenal growth in the past. Today we desire to restrict and re- tain under public control the acquisi- tion and use by the capitalist of our natural resources. A Roosevelt Heritage. Among scientific men and thoughtful observers, however, the danger has al- ways been present, but it needed some one to bring home the crying need for a reniedy of this evil so as to impress itself on the public mind and lead to the formation of public opinion and ac- tion by the representatives of the peo- ple. Theodore Roosevelt took up this task in the last two years of his sec- ond administration, and well did he perform it. As president of the United States I have, as it were, inherited this policy, and I rejoice in my heritage. I prize my high opportunity to do all that an executive can do to help a great people realize a great mnational ambition, for conservation is national. It affects every man of us, every woman, every child. What I can do in the cause I shall do, not as president of a party, but as president of the whole people. Conser- vation is not a question of politics or of factions or of persons. It is a ques- tion that affects the.vital welfare of all of us—of our children and our chil- dren’s children. 1 urge that no good can come from meetings of this sort unless we ascribe to those who take part in them and who are apparently striving worthily in the cause all prop- er motives and unless we judicially consider every measure or method pro- posed with a view to its effectiveness in achieving our common purpose and wholly without regard to who proposes it or who will claim the credit for its adoption. The problems are of very great diffi- culty and call for the calmest consider- ation and clearest foresight. Many of the questions presented have phases that are new in this country, and it is possible that in their solution we may have to attempt first one way and then another. What I wish to emphasize, however, is that a satisfactory conclusion can only be reached promptly if we avoid acrimony, imputations of bad faith and political controversy, The public domain of the govern- ment of the United States, including all the cessions from those of the thirteen states that made cessions to the United States and including Alas- ka, amounted in all to about 1,800,000, 000 acres. Of this there are left as purely government property outside of Alaska something like 700,000,000 of acres. Of this the national forest re- serves in the United States proper em- brace 144,000,000 acres. * The rest is largely mountain or arid country, offering some opportunity for agriculture by dry farming and by reclamation and containing metals as pvell as coal, phosphates, oils and nat- ural gas. Then the government owns many tracts of land lying along the margins of streams that have water power, the use of which is necessary in the conversion of the power into electricity and its transmission. Government Ownership. The present congress passed a bill of great importance, severing the own- i 4 et o e S, .ership of coal by the government in tion to market and to the greater facil- the ground from the surface and per- mitting bhomestead entries upon the surface .of the land, which, when per- fected, give the settler the right to farm the surface, while the coal be- neath the surface is retained in own- ership by the government-and may be disposed ‘of by it under other laws. There i8 no crying need for radical reform in the methods of disposing of what are really agricultural lands. The present- laws have worked well. The enlarged homestead law has’en- couraged the successful farming of lands in the semiarid regions. Of course the teachings of the agricul- tural departinent as to how these sub- arid lands may be treated and.-soil preserved for useful culture are of the very essence of conservation. Then conservation of agricultural lands is shown in the reclamation of arid lands by irrigation, and 1 should devote a few words to what the gov- ernment has done and is doing in this regard. By the reclamation act a fund has been created of the proceeds of the public lands of the United States with which to conétruct works for storing great bodies of water at proper alti- tudes, from which, by a suitable sys- tem of canals and ditches, the water is to be distributed over the arid and subarid lands of the government to be sold to settlers at a price sufficient to pay for the improvements. The total sum already accumulated in the reclamation fund is $60,273,- 258.22, and of that all but $6,491,955.34 has been expended. It became very clear to congress at its last sesion, from the statements made by experts, that these thirty projects could not be promptly completed with the balance remaining on hand or with the funds likely to accrue in the near future. It was found, moreover, that there are many settlers who have been led into taking up lands with the hope and understanding of having water fur- nished in a short time who are left in a most distressing situation. Draining Swamp Lands. Suggestions have been made that the United States ought to aid in the drainage of swamp lands belonging to the states or private owners, because if drained they would be exceedingly valuable for agriculture and contribute to the general welfare by extending the area of cultivation. 1 deprecate the agitation in favor of such legislation. It is inviting the general government into contribution from its treasury to- ward enterprises that should be con- ducted either by private capital or at the instance of the state. In these days there is a disposition to look too much to the federal government for everything. 1 am liberal in the construction of the constitution with reference to fed- eral power, but I am firmly con- vinced that the only safe course for us to pursue is to hold fast to the limita- tions of the constitution and to regard as sacred the powers of the states. We have made wonderful progress and at the same time have preserved with judicial exactness the restrictions of the constitution., There is an easy way in which the constitution can be vio- lated by congress without judicial in- hibition—to wit, by appropriations froem the national treasury for uncon- stitutional purposas. It will be a sorry day for this country if the time ever comes when our fundamental compact shall be habitually disregarded in this manner. Our Forest Lands. Nothing can be more important in the matter of conservation than the treatment of our forest lands. It was probably the ruthless destruction of forests In the older states that first called attention to a halt in the waste of our resources. This was recognized by congress by an act authorizing the executive to re- serve from entry and set aside pub- lic timberlands as national forests. Speaking generally, there has been reserved of the existing forests about 70 per cent of all the timberlands of the government. Within these forests (including 26,- 000,000 acres in two forests in Alas- ka) are 192,000,000 of acres, of which 166,000,000 of acres are in the United States proper and include within their boundaries something like 22,000,000 of acres that belong to the state or to private individuals. We have, then, excluding Alaska forests, a total of about 144,000,000 acres of forests be- longing to the government which is being treated in accord with the prin- { ciples of scientific forestry. The law now prohibits the reserva- tion of any more forests lands In Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Colorado and Wyoming, except by act of congress. I am informed by the de- partment of agriculture that the gov- ernment owns other tracts of timber- land in these states which should be included in the forest reserves. I expect to recommend to congress that -the limitation “herein imposed shall be repealed. In the present for- est reserve there are lands which are not properly forest land and which ought to ‘be subject to homestead en- try. This has caused some local irri- tation. We are carefully eliminating such lands from forest reserves or, where their elimination is not practicable, listing them for entry under the forest homestead act. Congress ought to trust the executive to use the power of reservation only’ with respect' to land covered by timber or which will be useful in the plan of reforestation. Another source of profit in the for- estry 18 the receipts for timber sold. This year they amounted to $1,043,000, an increase of $307.,000 over the re- ceipts of last year. This increase is due to the improvement in transporta- P el | T AT Sr e — ity with which the timber can be reached. Neglect of Timber. The government timber in this coun- try amounts to only one-fourth of all the timber, the rest being in private ownership. Only 3 per cent of that which is in private ownership is look- ed after properly and treated accord- ing.to modern rules of forestry. The usual destructive waste and neglect continue in the remainder of the for- ests owned by private persons and cor- porations. It is estimated that fire alone de- stroys $50.000,000 worth of timber a year. The management of forests not on public land is beyond the juris- diction of the federal government. If anything can be done by law it must be done by the state legislatures. 1 believe that it is within their con- stitutional power to require the en- forcement of regulations in the gen- eral public interest as to fire and oth- er.causes of waste in the management of forests owned by private individ- uals and corporations. When President Roosevelt became fully advised of the necessity for the change in our disposition of public lands, especially those containing coal, oil, gas, plhosphates or water power sites, he began the exercise of the power of withdrawal by executive or- der of lands subject by law to home- stead and the other methods of enter- ing for agricultural lands. The precedent he set in this mat- ter was followed by the present ad- ministration. Doubt had been express- ed in some quarters as to the power in the executive to make such withdraw- als. The confusion and injustice like- ly to arise if the courts were to deny the power led me to appeal to con- gress to give the president the express power. Congress has complied. The law as passed does not express- ly validate or confirm previous with- drawals, and therefore as soon as the new law was passed I myself con- firmed all the withdrawals which bhad therefore been made by both admin- istrations by making them over again. This power of withdrawal is a most useful one, and I do not think it is likely to be absurd. Coal Lands. The next subject and one most im- portant for our consideration is the disposition of the coal lands in the United States and in Alaska. First as to those in the United States. At the beginning of this administration there were classified coal lands amounting to 5,476,000 acres, and there were with- drawn from entry for purposes of classification 17,867,000 acres, Since that time there have been withdrawn by my order from entry for classifica- tion 77,648,000 acres, making a total withdrawal of 95,515,000 acres. Meantime of the acres thus with- drawn 11,371,000 have been classified and found not to contain coal and have Dbeen restored to agricultural entry, and 4,356,000 acres have been classified as coal lands, while 79,788,000 acres re- main withdrawn from entry and await classification. In addition 336,000 acres have been classified as coal lands without rrior withdrawal, thus in- creasing the classified coal lands to 10,168,000 acres. The present congress, as already szid, has separated the surface of coal lands, either classified or withdrawn for classification, from the coal be- neath, so as to permit at all times homestead entries upon the surface of lands useful for agriculture and to reserve the ownership in the coal to the government. To Adopt New Methods. The question which remains to be considered is whether the existing law for the sale of the coal in the ground should continue in force or be repealed and a new method of disposition adopt- ed. Under the present law the absolute title in the coal beneath the surface passes to the grantee of the govern- ment. The price fixed is upon an estimated amount of the tons of coal per acre beneath the surface, and the prices are fixed so that the earnings will only be a reasonable profit upon the amount paid and the investment necessary. But, of course, this is more or less guesswork, and the government parts with the ownership of the coal in the ground absolutely. Authorities of the geological survey estimate that in the United States to- day there is a supply of about three thousand billions of tons of coal and that of this one thousand billions are in the public domain. Of course the other two thousand billions are within private ownership and under no more control as to the use or the prices at which the coal may be sold than any other private property. If the government leases the coal lands and acts as any landlord would and imposes conditions in its leases like those which are now imposed by the owners in fee of coal mines in the various coal regions of the east, then it would retain over the disposition of the coal deposits a choice as to the as- signee of the lease, a power of resum- ing possession at the end of the term of the lease or of readjusting terms at fixed perfods of the lease, which might easily be framed to enable it to exer cise a limited but effective control in the disposition and sale of the coal to the public. ; It has been urged that the leasing System has never been adopted in thig country and that its adoption would largely interfere with the investment of capital and the proper development and opening up of the coal resources. I venture to differ entirely from this view. Australia’s Plan,’ I have looked with some care into a report made at the instance of Pres- ident Roosevelt upon the disposition of coal lands in Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand. These are peculiar- ly mining countries, and their experi- ence ought to be most valuable. In all these countries the method for the disposition and opening of coal mines originally owned by the government is by granting leasehold and not by granting an absolute title. The terms of the leases run all the way from twenty to fifty years, while the amount of land which may be leased to any individual there is from 320 acres to 2,000 acres. It appears that a full examination was made and the opinions of all the leading experts on the subject were solicited and giv- en and that with one accord they ap- proved in all respects the leasing sys- tem. Its success is abundantly shown. It Is possible that at first considerable latitude will have to be given to the executive in drafting these forms of lease, but as soon as experiment shall show which is the most workable and practicable its use should be provided for specifically by statute. The question as to how great an area ought to be included in a lease to one individual or corporation is not free from difficulty, but in view of the fact that the government retains con- trol as owner I think there might be some liberality in the amount leased and that 2500 acres would not be too great a maximum. Alaska Coal Lands. The investigations of the geological survey show that the coal properties in Alaska cover about 1,200 square miles and that there are known to be availuble about 15,000,000,000 tons. This is, however, an underestimate of the coal in Alaska, because further de- velopments will probably increase this amount many times, but we can say with considerable certainty that there are two fields on the Pacific slope which can be reached by railways at a reasonable cost from deep water—in one case of about fifty miles and in the other case of about 150 miles— which will afford certain 6,000,000,000 tons of coal, more than half of which is of a very high grade of bituminous and of anthracite, It is estimated to be worth in the ground one-half cent a ton, which makes its value per acre from $50 to $500. The coking coal lands of Penn- sylvania are worth from $800 to $2,000 an acre, while other Appalachian fields are worth from $10 to $386 an acre, and the fields in the central states from $10 to $2.000 an acre, and in the Rocky mountains $10 to $500 an acre. The demand for coal on the Pacific coast is for about 4.500,000 tons a year. It would encounter the competition of cheap fuel oil, of which the equivalent of 12,000,000 tons of coal a year are used there. It is estimated that the coal could be laid down at Seattle or San Francisco, a high grade OUB, & a ton and anthracite at $5 or $6 a ton. The price of coal on the Pacific slope va- ries greatly from time to time in the year and from year to year—from $4 to $12 a ton. With a regular coal sup- ply established, the expert of the geo- logical ‘survey, Mr. Brooks, who has made a report on the subject, does not think there would be an excessive profit in the Alaska coal mining, be- cause the price at which the coal cculd be sold would be considerably lowered by competition, from these fields and by the presence of crude fuel oil. The history of the laws affecting the dispo- sition of Alaska coal lands shows them to need amendment badly. The Cunningham Clzims. On Nov. 12, 1904, President Roose- velt Issued an executive order with- drawing all coal lands from location and eatry in Alaska. On May 16, 1907, he modified the order so as to permit valid locations made prior to the with- drawal on Nov. 12, 1906, to proceed to entry and patent. * Prior to that date some 900 claims had been filed, most of them said to be illegal hecause either made fraudu- lently by dummy entrymen in the in- terest of one individual or corporation or because of ugreements made prior to location berween the applicants to co-operate 11 developing the lands. There are thirty-three claims for 160 acres each, known as the *Cunning- ham claims.” wkich are claimed to be valid on the grouund that they were made by an attorney for thirty-three diferent and bona tide claimants, who. as alleged, paid their money and took the proper steps to locate their entries and protect them, The representatives of the govern- ment in the hearings before the land ofice have attacked the validity of ! these Cunningham claims on the ground that prior to their location there was an understanding between the claimants to pool their claims after they had Dbeen perfected and unite them im cne company. The trend of decision seems to that such an agreement would e the claims, although under the subsequent law of May 28, 1908, the consolidation of such claims W permitted, after location and entry, in tracts of 2,560 acres. It would be, of course, improper for me to intiizate what the result of the issue as to the Cunningham and other Alaska claims is likely to be, but it ought to be distinctly understood that no private claims for Alaska coal lands have as yet beer allowed or perfected and also that whatever the result as to pending claims the existing coal land laws of Alaska are most unsatisfac- tory and should be radically amended. Gil and Gas Lands. In the last administration there were withdrawn from agricultural entry 820,000 acres of supposed oil land in California. about 1.500.000 acres in Creat Northern No. 33 West Bound Leaves at 3:30 p. m No. 34 East Bound Leaves at 12:08 p. m No. 35 West Bound Leaves at 3:42 a. m No. 36 East Bound Leaves at 1:20 a. m No. 105 North Bound Arrivesat 7:40 p.m No. 106 South BoundLeaves at 7:00 a, m Freight West Bound Leaves at 9:00 a. m Freight East Bound Leaves at 3:30 p. m Minnesota & International No. 32 South Bound Leaves at 8:15 a. m No. 31 North Bound Leaves at 6:10 p. m No. 34 South Bound Leaves at 11:35 p.m No. 33 North Bound Leaves at 4:20 a. m | Freight South Bound Leaves at 7:30 a. m | Freight North Bound Leaves at 6:00 a. m Minn. Red Lake & Man. No. 1 North Bound Leaves at 3:35 p. m No 2 South Bound Arrives at 10:30 |a. m PROFESSIONAL CARDS ARTS HARRY MASTEN Piano Twmner ormerly of Radenbush & Co. of St. Paul Instructor of Violin, Piano, Mando- lin and Brass Instruments. 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