New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-03-28
TART LETTER FROM BROWN
MIDDLETON DEPENDED.
Ex-senator Resigns from 4ssocia-
ton for Protection of 4dirondacks.
GBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIsUNE.l

9
made public a bitter letter of resignation from
the Association for the Protection of the Adiron-
dacks. in which he accused the majority of the
leading men in this organization of being en-
gagged in denuding large tracts of Adirondack
forest lands vigorously defended the official acts
of Commissioner Middleton, justified the sale Of
burnt timber, and pronounced obnoxious the in
depreciation of the forest law, under which Gov
ernor Higgins and Attorney General Mayer are
now proceeding. Bad faith on the part of the
association is charged, and 1t is characterized
a ''self-perpetuating clique"
The text of the communication, which is adj
dressed to Henry S. Harper. secretary of the
| Association for the. Protection of the Adiron-
dacks, is as follows:
l hereby resign my membership in your as
ISOLATION. The immediate occasion of my doing
sioner Middleton. Mr. Middleton had oeen the
sole commissioner since April, 1901, ana IL ne
has been suffering trespassers to denude the
Adirondack during his term OF office, you nave
performed your duties very badly in keeping
silent about them until just before the explra-
ton of his term of office 1t is less than sixty
days since you entertained him as a guest or
honor at a dinner at the University club of New
York, when the policy of the state as TO the
Adirondacks was the matter under consldera-
ton and no mention was made OF any ctlti-
cism of this opportunity given to con-
slider thesfacts that do exist.
You knew then, you know now, that never
in the history of the Forest Commission has there
been period for four years when so little live
timber State lands has been destroyed by
trespassers as during his term; that every such
trespass has been checked at the earliest prac-
ticable moment, and that all such trespasses
during his term of office have been inconsidera-
bic and even trif1tng i'm amount. AS to the re
moval of burned timber, which you endeavor in
your circulars TO confuse with live timber, the
only possible reason for permitting 1t to go 10
waste is the fear that permission to remove 1t
may afford an opportunity for depredatlons on
live timber, and an Interpretation or eXlstihs
law, which requires that 1t go TO waste rather
than be added to peoples stock of useful
and necessary things, is so obnoxious TO reason
as to have caused repeated appeals to the At
torney General and the legislature for change
in Interpretation enactment.
If the Commissioner has asserted the law by
compelling payment into the States forest fund
of compensation for burned timber removed,
rather than by seizure of the timber itself, with
out further compensation, ana mas done this
to exc out the scanty appropriations for this
great interest, it i'll becomes you to attack his
policy the basis of a technical violation of
law rather than inquiry as to whether harm
has been done the forests In the legislative ses
sion OF 1904 the Senate Committee on Forests at
the request of your association. conveyed
through John G. Agar, one of your vice-presi-
dents introduced and pushed through both
houses bill of which the following is a copy:
The Forest, Fish end Game Commission is
hereby authorized, empowered and directed
through officers and employees of the State, but
not by contract remove dead timber on
burned areas which the property of the
State in the forest preserve. to sell and dis
pose of the same at the highest price obtainable.
and to the proceeds of such sales into the
treasury of the State. where the same SHAH be
held fund for the further purchase of lands
of the State in the Adirondack Park and the
Catskill Park"
The bill failed to receive the Governors sig
nature because another bill passed permit
ting an agreed to be submitted by the At
torney General and the Forest Commission for
the purpose of securing the final and 4uthorita-
tive decision of the Court of Appeals as to the
power of the commission and of the legislature
over burned timber. But the course you
pursuing now is only the occasion, and not the
reason, of my withdrawal l have for several
years during my service in the Senate felt that
your influence. on the whole, was detrimental
to the Adironda cks. Acting upon the assump-
ton that no one but Yourself has honorable in
tentions toward these forests. you have opposed
every attempt to build them up by scientific for
estry, while the great majority of the leading
men in your organization are themselves en-
gagged in denuding large tracts of Adirondack
forest lands.
Recognizing as you have often professed to
do, the great necessity of introducing a system
of forestry, you have opposed every step sug-
gested on the cowardly plea that no
national service is filed with competent men
doing efficient forestry work drawn to
siderable extent from New-York State and
even from the Forestry Department of New
York State. If your present charges against
Commissioner Middleton have any basis in fact.
it will have to be conceded that you could not
be relied upon to point out derelictions Of adj
ministration in any forestry that was under
taken oftener than once in four years.
favorite means of assault your part is a
condemnation of political methods and of poll
ticians, while I know of no other organization
in the State more given over to a self-perbetu-
ating clique; you collecting dues from sew
eral thousand members who never have and who
cannot get any opportunity to share in direct
ing your policy. and who have thus far had only
the privilege Of subscribing to a sentiment with
out regard to the wisdom or folly of your way
of expressing it, have on at least a half dozen
occasions during my service in the Senate sug-
geSted to your officers the propriety of having
a meeting of your association for the purpose
OF taking up and discussing forestry problems
with view to agreeing upon policy. but I
have never been able to discover that there
was likely to he any such opportunity. With the
funds of your society you employ one or two
men TO carry out the views the within of man
ayers who really never submit themselves to
the judgment of your members. by publishing
lampoons from time to time the Governor
or the state or other public officials and bv
ganizing a paid bureau at times reaching most
Of the public press Of the city of New-York &c
do not approve of the policies which you have
sGpp6rtea 1, and do not believe in the methods
which you employ. you will see that membership
In your association will longer be either a
matter of pleasure profit to me
It was asserted good authority tonight
that Commissioner Middleton would not he re-
appointed, and this report is generally accented
as true, although Governor Higgins recently de-
clared that he believed the Commissioner had
been perfectly honorable in his relation to the
burnt timber scandals.
One Of the officials Of the Association for the
Protection Of the Adirondacks said last night
wish fully consider ex-senator
Browns letter and accusations before making anv
has been tryinr to get bils passed aox YEARS ne
cutting OF timber on the State reservations He
timber but II this timber allowed to he cut
not only would quantity of green timber be sto.
for the sake Of securing the burnt wood. Ex-Sen-
ator Brown Is the counsel for the pulp mills. which
greahy surprised when he joined our association.
lie tn uo-l-,