New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-06-11
PRESIDENT TO EDITORS.
Aduocates- PROGRESSIVE Inheritance
and Income I'dr.

day. They are members of the National Edi-
torial Association, which is holding its annual
convention here. The chief feature to-day was
the address Of President Roosevelt, who spoke
as follows:
1t is Of course a mere truism to say that no
other body of our cOuntrymen WELD as extern
slVe an influence as those who write for the
daily press and for the periodicals. 1t is also
a truism to say that such power implies the
SraNest responsibility, and the man exercising it
should hold himself accountable, and should be
held by others accountable, precisely as if he
occupied any other position of public trust.
do not intend to dwell upon your duties to-
day. however save that l shall permit myself
to point out one matter where il seems to me
that the need of our people is vital 1t is es-
sentiaI that the man in public life and the man
who writes in the public press shall both of
them, If they are really good servants of the
people, be prompt to assail wTongdOing and
wickedness. But in thus assailing wrongdOng
and wickedness there are two conditions to be
fulfilled, because if unfulfilled harm and not
good VIII result In the first place be sure of
your facts and avoid everything like hysteria
OF exaggeratiOn; for to assail decent man for
something of which he is innocent is To give
ala and comfort TO every scouHdrel, while in
diligence in hysterical exaggeratlon serves to-
weaken, not strengthen, the statement of truth.
IN the second place. be sure that you base your
Judgment on conduct and not the social
economic position of the individual with whom
you are dealing. There are good and bad men
in every walk of life, and their being good or bad
does not depend upon whether they have or do
not have large bank accounts. Yet this ele
ileHlaI iaCl THIS TACT winch we ali accept as
self-evident, when we think each Of US of the
people whom he himself knows in his business
and social relations is often completely ignored
by certain public men and certain public writer's.
The mon who thus ignore IL and who attack
wic6edness only when found in a particular
class are always unsafe, and are sometimes very
dangerous, leaders. Dstrust equally the man
who is never able to discover any vices Of rich
men to attack and the who confines himself
to attacking the sins and shortcomings OF rich
men. 1t is a sure sign Of moral and mental dis
honesty in any man If IN his public assaults
upon iniuuity he is never able to see any in
iQuity save that of a particular class and this
whether he Is able TO the crimes OF AFRO
Gance and oppression in the rich the crimes
OF envy and violence in the poor. He is no
true American if he Is a respeCter of persons
where right and wrong concerned and If he
fails to denOunce the demagogue no less than
Iie Corrupuohlst 10 dehounce allke crimes OF
organized greed and crimes Of brutal violence.
There is equal need 10 denounCe the wealthy
man who swindles investors or buys legislatures
or Expresses wage workers and the needy man
who inflames class hatred or pcites mob vio-
lence. We need TO hold the scales of justice
even. and to weigh them down on one side Is as
bad as 10 weigh them down on the other.
REsHAPING TAXATION SYSTEM.
So much for what have to say to you In your
capacity of moulders and guides Of public.
thought. In addition. I want TO speak To you
on two great movements in our public life which
l feel must necessarily occupy no iuConsderable
part Of the time of our public men In the near
future. one OF these Is the question Of in GER
tain ways. reshaping our system Of taxation so
as TO mako II bear most heavily those most
capable Of supporting the strain. The other IS
the question Of utilizing the natural resources OF
the nation in the way that VIII be Of most benefit
10 the nation as a whole
In utilizing and conserving the natural re-
sources OF the nation the one characteristic more
essential than any other is foresight. Unfortu-
nately foresight IS not usually characteristic OF
a young and vigorous people. and 1t is obviously
not q marked characteristic or US IN the United
states. Yet assuTcdly II should be the growing
nation with future which takes the long look
ahead: and no other nation is growing so rapldlv
as q I'm 90 fyrl1 - An,
other nation enjoys wonderful a measure OF
present prosperity which can OF right be- treated
are the rewards Of foresight so great. certain
and 50 easily fOretoId. Yet hitherto as a natloa
we have tended TO live with eye single TO the
present ana nave permitted the reckless waste
and destruction Of much Of natural wealth.
The conservation OF our natural resources and
uelf proper use constitute the fundamental
problem which undeTlIes almost every other
problem OF our national life. Unless we maintain
an adequate material basis for our civilization
wo cannot maintain the institutions IN which VS.
take so great and so just a pride; and to waste
and destroy our natural resources means to
dcrmne this material basis. During the last
five years efforts have been made in several new
directions IN the government service to get
to substitute planned and orderly development
OF our resources I'm the place OF haphazard
striving for immediate profit The effort has
been made through several agencies
In 1902 the Reclamation Service began 20 de-
Nelop the larger opportunities OF the western
half of our country for irrigation. The work
includes all the states from the Great Plains
through the Rocky Mountains TO the Pacific
Slope. It has been conducted with the clear and
definite purpose Of using the valuable water re-
sources OF the public land for the greatest good
for the greatest number in the long run: In
other words, for the purpose OF putting upon the
land permanent home makers who VIII use and
develop II for themselves and for their children
and chdrens children. There has been opposl-
ton. OF course, TO this work Of the Reclamation
Service. for we have been obliged TO antagOnize
certain men whose interest II was to exhaust for
their own temporary personal profit natural re-
sources which ought to be deVeOped Of
use. so as TO be conserved for the permanent
common advantage Of the people as n whole
But there will be halt in the work OF preserv-
Ing the waters which head In the Rocky Noun
tain region to make them Of most use to
the people a whole for the policy is essential
TO our national welfare.
USE OF THE PUBLIC LANDS.
The public lands Of the United States should
BIO utilized in similar fashion. Our present pub
lie land laws were passed when there was a vast
surplus of vacant public land. The chief desire
was TO secure settlers thereon, and Compara-
lively slight attention paid as to exactly
how tho lands We're disposed of in detail. In
consequence, lax execution Of the laws became
the rule both I'm the land office and I'm the public
mind, and land frauds common and little
noted. This was especially true when a system
originally designed for the fertile and we'll
watered regions OF tho Middle West was an
piled to the dryer regions of the great plains
and to the mountains and the Pacific Coast In
these regions the system lent itself To fraud
and much land passed out OF the hands OF the
government without passing into the hands OF
the home maker. The Department of the In
terror and the Department of Justice Joined In
prosecuting the offenders against the law; bu.
both the law and its administration were defec-
tive and needed to be changed. Three wears
ago a Public Lands Commission was auDointad
to scrutinize the law and the facts and to rec
ommend remedy. Their examination specih-
cally showed the existence of great frauds upon
the public domain and their recommendations
Tor changes In the law made with the de-
sign or conserving the natural resources of every