The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-02-14


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would be unable to compete with these
corporations, and therefore that the fuel
deposits still belonging to the government
should also be allowed to pass into pri-
vate ownership presumably into the hand;
of the same or other large corporations.
1t is also claimed that reservation Of the
fuel supplies still belonging to the gov
eminent would raise the price Of coal in
the west and, as an argument in favor
of this contention, it is claimed that the
reservation of the natural forests is rails
ing the price of lumber in the west.
ut should be remembered that the best
and most accessible bodies of timber In
the west passed into private holdings,
before the forest reserves were estab-
lished; that while the price of timber
has advanced in the west 1t has advanced
still more in the east. where there are
no forest reserves; that supplies of timber
are today being shipped from the west
| to the markets Of the Mississippi valley
and even to foreign countries. To Sc
cure cheapness of timber and fuel for
own children would surely be a suicidal
policy
Advantages Of System.
1T may be fairly claimed among the
advantages of the leasing system that;
81. It will facilitate the working, under
| favorable conditions, of coal deposits for
local markets by miners without large
| capital. as no land purchase that money
| would be required and the small royalty
charges would be paid out of the earn
ings.
80 1t will facilitate larger operations.
as the leases could be made sufficiently
liberal in the matter of time, area and
other conditions, to induce healthy COM
petition and meet all real demands, and
mat IN
OF the government could be such as
"3. To prevent waste in the extraction
and handling OF these fuels.
~ The syseem can be operaed in such
a manner as to prevent the evils OF
| monopolistic control.
IS. 1t will permit the government to re-
serve from general use fuels especially
suitable for metalurgcal and other spe-
| clal industries; and
s. 1t will enable the government to
protect the public against unreasonable
and discriminating charges for fuel sup
piles.
Already probably one-half of the total
area of the high grade Goals in the west
has passed under private control. In
GLIDING both the Ignite and the coal
areas, these private holdings probably ag-
gregate not less than 100000 acres of
coal fields With the remainder of the
lands containing mineral fuels reserved
and leased by the government there will
be ample opportunity to determine, in
the near future, which of the two sys-
tems-private ownership, or the leasing
system with general government super
| vislon-will best protect the interests Of
| the people and thus promote the perman-
ent development OF the west.
Question of Revenue.
"In planning such leasing system by
the government. the question of revenue,
how ,.1 A1.s.f fl 10 nv
penses of administration and exploration
need not be seriously considered. The
| spirit of generosity which the country as
a whole has shown in connection with
| the disposal of its public lands and the
use of the proceeds from the sale of these
| lands for the further development of the
west through the reclamation services and
! in other ways is of itself sufficient
guarantee that in the administration Of
both the coal reserves and the national
forests this generous policy will be con-
| tinued. 1t Is safe to believe also that
federal supervision of both the coal lands
| and the forests will be reduced to mini
mum, and that in the future even more
than in the past this supervision will be
limited to that necessary to carry out
the policy of conserving these natural re-
sources in such manner as will best pro-
mote the permanent interests OF the peo-
people, and above all of the western peo-
pie or the people in the neighborhood of
the mines and the forests, which we seek
to preserve for the public use.
Necessity Of Cars.
1.-The necessity of cars for the future
| management of these fuel supplies is fur
| Their illustrated by the rapid rate at
which the use of such fuels is increasing
| in the United States. cannot too en-
phatlcally say that all laws which mere
| ly seek to prevent monopoly or the mis-
| haO of Ia fArhiddinR
| blnations are certain to fail of their
| purpose. Our experience with the inter-
| state commerce and antitrust laws
| shows that what Is needed is not pro-
| hibition of all combinations, but such
| supervision and control over combina-
| lions, and over corporations entering into
| Them as will prevent the evils, while
giving to the public the advantages of
| combination.
LET me also again urge that legisla-
| ton be passed to provide for govern
ment control of the public pasture lands
| OF the west on the same general prin-
ciples which now apply in the govern
| ment control of the forests. The local
control of the ranke should be in the
hands of western men familiar with
stock raising and there should be full
local participation in the management OF
the range. There is no need at pres
ent that the government should get a
net revenue from grazing on the public
range, but only enough to pay for adj
ministration and improvement, and it
may be wise to provide that any surplus
shall go to the states and territories
on which the fees are collected.
Urges Appropriation.
Let me urge that Congress provide
$4,000 in addition to the present esti-
mates to be Immediately appropriated
to the clearing OF arrears of business
in the general land office as regards
the detection and prevention of fraud in
disposing of applications for patents to
the public lands.
Il wish to express my utter and COM
plete dissent from the statements that
have been made as to there being a
minimum of fraud in the actual working
of ourp resent land laws. I am exceed
ingly anxious to protect the interests
of bona iide settlers and to prevent hard
ships being inflicted upon them But
surely we are working In their interests
when we try to prevent the land which
should be reserved for them and for
these like them from being taken pos
session of for speculative purposes or
obtained in any fraudulent fashion
The President says the present force
of special agents is utterly insufficient
to conduct the proper field examinations,
but adds that in six months, ending De-
cember 81 last. they secured indictments