Los Angeles herald., 1892-05-09
A FOREST POLICY.
How 1t Regards the Community
at Large.
The Ways 1t Affects the Interests OF
This State.
The Necessity of a Lobby to Secure
Action-What u Forest Pol
icy Means = It's Inn
p0rtance.

tuc SoNcIuucuG 10 push AoAWoAN oAS
consideration of forest policy. 1t was
at the instance of this department. that
the government reserved certain live
oak groves in the south with view oi
perpetuating this valuable shipbuilding
timber. The department of the interior
ever since the time of Carl Schurz has
been in favor of a sensible forest policy,
and the power Of the department. es-
pecially of it's land commissioners, such
as Spark has been, exerted toward this
end. Secretary Noble is strong advo-
cate of forest policy. The state de-
partment under Secretary Bayard pro-
cured at my suggestion complete re-
port through our representative abroad
OF the forest systems in practice
in civilized countries. This report
may be found in the consular reports
as printed. The war department. has
made an exhaustive report favoring a
forest policy to which I have had the
honor of contributing. All our recent
presidents have favored forest policy.
Only the legislative branch lags. Bills
to start forestry system have been re-
peatedly introduced; an excellent one
10 now before congress, being senate bill
No. 2899. This bill was prepared by
Mr.. Fernow, the efficient and enthu-
slastic friend of forestry in Washington
and chief of the present division OF
forestry in the department of agricul-
ture. The first bill on forestry intro
duced in congress was by Col. III. IL.
Markham, now governor of California,
| The sc n covrv1 mi
He did good deal for the bill, and as
was it's author naturally feel that its
adoption 80 many years ago would have
done vast amount of good. The
reason all these bills and efforts come
to nothing is the total lack of any lobby
to push the bills to final passage. On
the other hand there have been lobby
agents against forestry bills. These
agents have acted for various monopolies
and corporations who were using the
government forest lands for their pri-
vate benefit without hindrAnce, and
driving poor men away, and who desired
to continue their robberies and usurpa-
tion without restriction.
The Importance of lobby in securing
or preventing congressional action is not
generally understood by the untitled
citizen. In the first place our system of
civil service throws an immense press
ure for places on the congressman of the
successful party. It is deemed essential
for them to 80 regulate the distribution
OF this patronage that they as individ-
uals and their party will maintain
dominant position over the people. This
business takes up great deal of time
and energy. Besides this q congress-
man is expected to be the private agent
for every claim OF the citizens Of his Dis
trict on the federal government. When
we add to this the average of
fifteen letters received and to be
answered by each congressman every
day OF the session on private pensions
and the cost of labor employed in at
tending to these matters we can under
stand.how little time aconscientious par
tizan congressman has left for really
public business. All these matters
should be regulated by general law and
no distribution OF minor federal Offices,
no private claim, no special pension
should occupy or bother congressman.
On top OF all this private business is the
semi-private and semi-public questions
OF the protective tariff, of bounties, land
grants and government help and guar
antees of private enterprises. These
large and varied interests which legsla-
tion go much affects render the protect
i've and bounty system maintained be-
tween them a grand lobby organization
in Washington. 1t is this lobby we'll
provided with funds and led by clever
men with generous and charming man
ners and thoroughly acquainted with
the way to stop as well as to advance
legislation that has dominated one
branch or another of congress since the
war. 1t is this lobby that is always in
sympathy with any private scheme to
derive profit form public property and
it is this lobby that has been quietly
hostile to honest legislation.
A forest policy means the protection
of California valleys from torrents and
floods; the maintenance of navigation
In our streams; the permanence of our
irrigation and domestic water supplies,
and with all this full use of all mineral
deposits and legitimate and honest
method of carrying on numbering and
for the exploitation of forest products.
No interest connected with our forests
will need bribery and perjury to make
it possible, as is now the case in lum-
bering and the obtaining of lumber
lands. No legitimate interest need fear
! forest policy. No interest needs the
waste and destruction now prevalent in
our forests.
Here is a great public property; a
great property in itself, but thousand
times greater and more valuable
in its relation to the necessary
conditions of existence in our
valley lands. Here is all this property
Of so much Importance without any
| management unmatched, pilfered,
/ robbed, wasted and burned, without
sign Of a guardian Of the property for
the people. Many of our products
would be impossible and large part of
our inhabited area would be without
life were the mountain forests entirely
removed. In such case what rains fell
would rush off at once in destructive
deluges, carrying sand, gravel and rocks
to cover the valley lands, while the rest
OF the time, springless and streamless,
the country would be dried into the
same fiery and arid wastes that we now
see on the Mojave and Colorado. We
do not have to guess al this result, for
the history of forest destruction is
history of country1d y1destruction, and that
is why eli civilized governments have
been forced to forest policy. There is
one phase of one industry that must be
modified and guarded if our forests
are not to be wasted and annihilated,
Strange as it may seem, the lumber
industry does comparatively little in
jury to our watersheds, even under its
present miserable methods. The great