The Bourbon news., 1904-12-09

| problems have been solved and 1t now
remains to execute with care, economy
and tnoroughneSs the work which has
been laid out. All important details are
being carefully considered by boards of
consulting engineers, selected for their
| thorough knowledge and practical ex-
perience. Each project is taken up on
the ground by competent men and viewed
from the standpoint Of the creation of
prosperous homes, and of promptly re-
funding to the treasury the cost of con-
struction. The reclamation act has been
| found to be remarkably complete and eff
| fective. and so broad in it's provisions
that wide range of undertakings has
been possible under 1t. At the same
| time, economy is guaranteed by the fact
that the funds must ultimately be re-
turned to be used over again.
Forests.
1t is the cardinal principle Of the forest
| reserve policy of this administration that
the reserves are for use. Whatever in
terferes with the use of their resources
is to be avoided by every possible means.
But these resources must be used m such
| a way as to make them permanent.
The forest policy of the government is
just now a subject of vivid public inter-
est throughout the west and to the peo-
pie of the United States in general The
forest reserves themselves are of ex-
treme value to the present as well as to
the future welfare of all the western
pubuc-land states. They powerfully af-
feet the use and disposal of the public
lands. They are of special Importance
| because they preserve the water supply
and the supply of timber for domestic
purposes, and so promote settlement un-
der the reclamation act Indeed, they are
essential to the welfare of every one of
the great interests of the west.
Although the wisdom of creating for
est reserves is nearly everywhere heart
! recognized in fovu
there has been misunderstanding and
complaint. The following statement is
/ therefore desirable:
The forest-reserve policy can be sue
cessful only when it has the full support
of the people of the west 1t cannot
safely, and should not in any case be
| imposed upon them against their will.
| But neither can we accept the views of
those whose only interest IN the forest is
| temporary; who are anxious to reap what
they have not sown and then move away
leaving deSolation behind them. On the
contrary, it is everywhere and always
the interest of the permanent settler and
the permanent business man. the man
with stake in the country, which must
be considered and which must decide
| have repeatedly called attention to
the confusion which exists in govern
ment forest matters because the work is
scattered among three Independent or
| ganizarions. The United States Is the
| only one of the great nations in which
| the forest work of the government is not
concentrated under one department. in
! consonance with the plainest dictates of
| good administration and common sense.
! The present arrangement is bad from
| every point of view. Merely to mention
! it is to prove that it should be terminat-
ed at once. AS 1 have repeatedly recon-
! mended, all the forest work of the gov
| ernment should be concentrated in the
| department Of agriculture, where the
1 larger part of that work is already done,
| where practically all of the trained for
| esters of the government are employed,
: where chiefly in Washington there is
comprehensive first-hand knowledge of
| the problems of the reserves acquired
| on the ground, where all problems relat-
| ing to growth from the soil are already
! gathered, and where all the sciences
auxiliary to forestry are at hand for
| prompt and effective cooperation.
! The Postal Service.
| In the post office department the service
! has increased in efficiency, and conditions
! as to revenue and expenditure continue sat-
isfactory. The increase OF revenue during
the year was se,35S, ,1S1.10, or SO per cent,
| the total receipts amounting to S14S, 1882, =
| 624.34 The expenditures were $152, 362 116. 20
an increase of about nine per cent. over the
| previous year being thus IS, ,979, ,492 Sc in cx-
! cess of the current revenue. Included in
| IACSC expenditures WAS a COldl apprODrla-
/ tion of $12 $50, ,6S7 80 for the continuation and
extension of the rural free delivery service.
| which was an increase Of 81 902 237. 80 over
| the amount expended for this purpose in
| the preceding fiscal year. Large as this
! expenditure has been, the benefcent results
attained in extending the free distribution
| or mails to the residents of rural districts
have justified the wisdom of the outlay
Statistics brought down to the 1st of Octo-
Der, l9O4, show that on that date there were
! 27,1SS rural routes established serving ap-
proximately 1900 900 of people in rural dis
| tr1cts remote from post offices, and that
| there were pending at that time 1883 petit
tions for the establishment of new rural
routes. Unquestionably some part Of the
general increase in receipts is due to the
| increased postal facilities which the rural
service has afforded. The revenues have
also been aided greatly by amendments in
| the classification of mail matter and the
| curtailment of abuses of the second-class
mailing privilege. The average increase In
| the volume of mail matter for the period
| beginning with 1902 and ending June 1905
| Chat portion for 1905 being estimated), is
| 40 AZ per cent, as compared with 25.4S per
| cent. for the period Immediately preced-
ing, and 1892 for the four-year period i'm
mediately preceding that
National Quarantine Law.
1t is desirable to enact proper national
II quarantine law. 1t is most undesirable
that state should on its own initiative
enforce quarantine regulations which are
/ in effect restriction upon interstate and
, international commerce The question
should properly be assumed by the govern
ment alone. The surgeon general of the
national public health and marine hospital
service has repeatedly and convincingIy
set forth the need for such legislation
Currency.
The attention of the congress should be
! especially given to the currency question.
/ and that the standing committees on the
matter in the two houses charged with the
duty, take up the matter Of our currency
and see whether 1t is not possible to secure
an agreement in the business world for
bettering the system; the committees
should consider the question Of the retire
ment of the greenbacks and the problem
of securing in our currency such elasticity
as is consistent with safety. Every silver
dollar should be made by law redeemable
in gold at the option Of the holder.
Merchant Marine.
| I especially commend to your immediate
attention the encouragement of our mer-
chant marioe by appropriate legislation.