The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-01-19

The movement to establish great national park and forest reserve in the region cover fhe attention of ali thinking people, and through Senator Pritchard of North Carolina and Representative. Browniow of Tennessee Is kept constantly before the law makers
 This region is the very dome Of the contl- ncnt east of the Mississippi, writes a core spondent to the Knoxville Journal and Te scientific men tell us that in fenote ages Mount Mitchell lowered like the Homalayas s After the gnawings of countless ages, IL IS stiil the highest land east of the great Rockies. It is expected to include all the region lying between the Blue Ridge and the Allegheny Mountains of North Carolina. It will lap over and include portion of all the ne, eastern eastern tier of counties in Tennessee IL VIII a,,e en'ehn in Geof gia It will include the northwest corner of South Carolina. IL will extend across Ihe marrow western portion of old Virginia into "A forest reserve established here. includ. Ing four millions of acres. more or less. VIII prove a feeder, natural reservoir TOT aii the streams of the South Atlantic coast and Will effect the flow of many falling into the Gulf of Mexico and the great Mississippi H. ] self
 Flowing to the Atlantic are such streams rams Earee Peedee, Cape Fear and others. Ted py such tributaries the Keeowee. Reedy, Paco- let. Broad, Catawba. the Yadkin and others: Flowing into the Ohio are the Big Sandy and the kanawha. The great Tennessee HiVer draws its very life waters n from ths ,,n resen Ma tauga, the Nola Chucky, the French Broad. the Big and Little Pigeon, the Little River ,,ta the wassee. Southward are the Coosa and others.
 .'The integrity of all these numerous streams, including their countless tributaries, as depends on the future status of this mountain region. If the old processes are to continue 1.-the process of wild and wanton destruction; of forest fires; of denudation; Of deforestatioh' of erosion: of over grazing of thoughtless dis count of the future for the misguided gain or the present; then all the region waterea oy st< xxl1 ha al affected generations to come. It will take centuries to repair the. damage that may grow out Of
 '.The movement is timely. not only as to its needs, but as to it's opportunities Each year of delay will increase the d'nicuitles pf the great enterprise. The Government can acquire the wild lands in this area now at a nominal figure. Ten years hence they may be double in value.
 .'The South has entered upon an era of man. ufacturing and her cheapest power Is found h the swift current of these same streams Secretary Wilson of the Agricultural Depart nent discussed this aspect of the matter Tn a recent talk with your correspondent He thinks that this source of wealth for the south Atlantic States is at this very moment in gravest peril. Book learning judge, counts for something after all, if it convinces those most interested, that the felling of a giant poplar on the headwaters of the Broad or the Catawba, directly affects the prosperity of the cotton spinner of the lowlands of South Carolina or Georgia. The Secretary, Is well known. heartily indorses this enterprise, and says that the question of it's establishment or
 
 pie themselves. If they are practically unit in demanding it. they will get fl; if they d. vides among themselves. they will fail
 Senator Bate said during the last session of Congress that he was opposed to tie enter prise on the ground that there is no precedent for the Government buying land for the pur- post of establishing national park and forest reserve on the large scale here contemplated
 It is true, as Senator Bate says. that all of the reservations heretofore set apart in the far West have been carved from the public domain. The nearest approarch to a precedent ,ftcf haNfa ia the ''Flathead Forest Reserve. established by proclamation of President Cleveland. Feb. 22 1897. It comprises and third mil Hons of acres and the east half of 1t was pur- chased from the Indians and immediately con Nerted to this use. We are a people who make precedents instead of allowing prece- dents to make The wisest man who ever e lived said that the Sabbath made for mar and moi man for the Sabbath.
 Theer was precedent for purchasing Lou fsiana; Thomas Jefferson made one. There was precedent for despoiling Mexico Poll the great expansionist, seized a mighty em rire. There was no precedent for joint oe cupancy with Great Britain of the far north
 The famousy ordinance of I737; the Missour compromise: the Drcd Scott decision the grea Civil Wal the electoral commission; the the at at tervenEion in Cuba; to say nothing of a hun aireds minor incidents of our. history; all thes baAs been without precedent.
 rFIt is safe to say that the enterprise ough not to. and will not fail for want of a prece dent. ..
 
 1he center of that portion of the country eas of the Mississippi and south of the Grea Lakes. The establishment of great publi park here involves vastly more than a mer economic question concerning the farmer am the cotton spinner of the Southern States. will become a place of both Summer and Win ter resort for thousands and thousands of ou people It lies days journey from NeN York: iess from Washington, Philadelphia Tsttsburg Louisville, Nashville, Memphis an dozens of other centers of population As health resort it is already famous and ha been for many years. A recent writer ha characterized the region as the very paradise 0 our native broad-leaved trees.
 Up to an elevation of 2.5oo feet are foun the oaks. the hickories. the gums. the maple the togwood. the sourwood the basswood. tn locust the chestnut, the birch the ash. tn yellow poplar, the cucumber In the neN thousand feet of elevation are found in per feetion yellow poplar. beech birch. hemlocb ash black walnut and wild cherry. Abov the elevation of 3. 500 feet the hard wood begin to dwarf. but there are found along tn steep and sterile slopes and spurs the chest