The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-06-11
Between sis%5sssan ana sfsss'nsr

great plains through the Rocky noun tains 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 geratest number in the long run; in other words, for the purpose of putting upon the land permanent home makers who will use and develop 1t for themselves and for their children and children's children There has been op- position of course to this work of the reclamation service; for we have been obliged to antagoniz9 certain men whose interest it was to exhaust for their own temporary personal profit natural re- sources which ought to be developed through use, so as to be conserved for the permanent common advantage of the peo- pie as a whole. But there will be no halt in the work of preserving the wate,s which head the Rocky mountain region so as 10 make them of most use to the peo- pie as a whole for the policy is essential 10 our national welfare.
 Public Lands.
 The public lands of the United States should be utilized in similar fashion. our present public land laws were pasesd when there was n vast surplus of vacant public land. The chief desire was to secure settlers thereon. and comparative ly slight attention was paid as to- exact ly how the lands were disposed of in detail. In consequence, lax execution of the laws became the rule both in the land office and in the public mind and land frauds were common and little noted. This was especially true when q system originally designed for the fertile and well-wa tered regions of the middle west was applied to the dryer regions of the great plains and to the mountains and the Pacific coast In these regions ths system lent itself to fraud, and much land passed out of the hands of the gov ernment without passing Into the hands of the home maker. The department of the interior and the department of justice joined in prosecuting the offenders against the law; btu both the law and it's admin istraton were defective and needed to be changed. Three years ago public lands commission was appointed to scruti- nize the law and the facts and to recom- mend a remedy. Their examination spe- officially showed the existence of great frauds upon the public domain. and their recommendations for changes in the law were made with the design of conserving the natural resources of every part of the public land by putting it to it's best use. Attention was especially called to the prevention of settlement by the passage of great areas of public lands into th9 hands of Q few men and to the enormous waste caused by unrestricted grazing on the open range; a system of using the natural forage on the public domain which amoutns 10 putting a premium on its destruction. The recommendations Of the public lands commission were sound, for they were especially in the interest of the actual home maker; and where the small home maker could not utilize the land, it was provided that the govern ment should keep control of 1t so that t could not be monopolized by few wealthy men. Congress has not yet acted upon these accommodations, except for the repeal of the iniquitous lieu-land law. But the recommendations are so just and proper, so essential to our national well fare, that I believe they will surely ulti- mately be adopted.
 National Forests.
 In 1891 Congress authorized the Presl- dent to create national forests in the public domain. These forest reserves re- mained for long time in charge of the general land office, which had no men properly trained in forestry. But another department, that of agriculture. possessed the trained men. In other words. the government forests were without forest