The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1908-01-27
BLIND MOUTHS"
Some of the Perils Threatening Our
Forest Supply West and East.

literature is full Of trenchant express
sions of the recklessness of greed, such
as AFTER us, the deluge!" "Devll-may-
care and "Out of sight, out Of mind
but none of them ompares with the
ll~ghtning-like revelation of selfshness
Conveying, as they do, the sense of an
all-consumlng appetite, the very NAV
Of darkness. they would seem to have come
from the poets imperative prose rathec
than from the flowing elegy of the gentle
what has posterlty ever done for us
that We should do anything for poster
ity?" is a saying as striking for the
falsity Of It's suggestion as for the edge
of its wit. The most obvious material and
natural reasons impel us TO- work for
in procuring the happiness of our children
and our grandchildren, whose happiness in
turn will consist in the happiness of their
children and grandchildren. However at
tenuated this altruistic sentiment may be-
come with further extension, 1t is enough
for practical purposes II i shall reach for
ward four generations. We bless our an
eestors for the building of roads and the
planting of trees, and 1t is what posterity
will do for us in the way of benediction
that rightly animates anyone above, the
beasts. Indeed, It is hardly too much to
say that civilization itself lies In the TACT
and to the eXtent-that "out Of sight Is
not "out Of mind"
We are mo yed TO these reflections, says
N11 ['h'N " NHN ' - 49, -
the Interstate Land convention held Ut
Denver In June-a body of men evidently
called together to protest against RresI-
dent Roosevelt's policy for the admins
tration of the national forests and the ma
tionHl range-a policy which 10 the light of
the Use Book" Of the forest service it
would be easier to prove too liberal toward
the settler than too harsh. While this con-
~vention was in session it would have been
a fiction to have CALLED 1t a dellberatiVe
body, but the amount of thinking that its
members have since done will do them
credit, as il does credit TO the thought
awakening letter Of the President aud to
the brave and patriotic speeches Of Secre-
tarY Garfield and Mr.. Pinchot, forester OF
the Agricultural Department, who turned
the tide Of criticism with their good
natured and persuasive rensonahleness : " =
That what has been gained must be
'vigilantly and vigorously defended is evil
dent from the scheme to draw the future
water supply OF San francisco from the
region of the Sierra. This was Inevitable,
and against the general idea there can he
no argument. The observation-disclosures of
the plan suggested is that, with a large
choice of streams for the supply, the
source selected has been the wonderful
Tuolumne River, both the upper reaches
near the beautiful Meadows and the lower
stretches n the Hetch-Hetchy Valley,
which in impresslvencss is second only to
the Yosemite itself. The fact that the
to the north are availa bic for the purpose
implies some ~disingenuous aspect of this
wanton invasion Of the great Yosemite
National Park. II Is much 10 be hoped
tn. the administration will not consent to
this needless diversion of the park from its
proper objects-a project which, by the
way, is strongly opposed by no less prac-
teal an authority on the Sierra han Call
fornia's great naturalist. John Muir. Onc
let "ommercialism into the park. and there
is no knowing what cavages It will com
NIT In the holy name of franchise.
The same problems and porils are al
ready confronting the East. Here, TOO. aye
blind mouths" The walnut and white
pine Of the lake states are virtually ex-
hausted: the Gather trust is everywhere
decimating the hemlock for tanbark, while
the soft woods, saplings as well ms larger
growth. are being unfortunately lie
Voured by the pulp mills. Meanwhile the
senseless tariff on lumber tempts the rich
companies to further depletion Of our re-
sources, rattle than permit the builder to
buy in the cheaper and inexharstible mar
ket of Canada. Could folly further go?
What is to be done? We have already
proposed in these pages that "A systematic
effort should be made to procure coopera-
toward 4 reservation of the higher att
tudes of the whole Appalachian range.
such as has been made by executive order
in tho Sierra. The President, whose public
service in this cause entities him 10 the
gratitude of the whole country and particu-
larry of the West, might well ;akc the
initiative in such a movement ly inviting
n conference Of the Governors Of the
States concerned. We believe that at Ioa-r
one-Governor Hughes, Of Now York
could be relied upon TO forward the plan,
and we believe all would respond favor
ably. The time for such action IS before
it. has become the interest Of large comb
nations to prevent s~alutary legislation.
Unless something is done quirkly. the
ravages which are going on In New Hamp-
shire and West Virginia viii become the
rule-to Ahe vast injury of the West as
well as of the East.
Reversing. the wittieism, lot us ask
What has p%osterity ever done TO ms that
we should do such things 10 posteritY?