Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1908-05-13
TALKS TO
MAMMOTH
CONGRESS
OF FPUBLICOFFICIALS
JUSTICE BEAN OREGON REPRE-
SENTATIVE POINTS OUT DAM
GER OF EXHAUSTION OF RE-
sOURCES-aUGGESTs REMEDY.
(UnIted Press Leased wire.J

Washington, ID. c., May 1S.--Tho
great conference OF governors and
prominent men and other state OFF,
ciaIs called by the President to con-
sIder tho natural resources OF the
entire nation, and the preservation of
the water, coal, timber and mineral
wealth, is In session here. Chief JUS
tlcs II. 8. Bean 10 attending as the
sole official from Oregon.
President Roosevelt addressed the
mammoth meeting as follows
Roosevelt's Speech.
Governors OF the several state;
and gentlemen:
l Welcome you to this conference
at the White House. You have come
hither at my request so that we may
join together to consider the ques-
tion of the conservation and use of
the great fundamental sources of
wealth OF this nation. so vital Is
this question. that for the first time
In our history the chief executive
officers OF the states separately. and
OF the states together forming the
nation. havo met TO consider II.
with tho governors come men
from each state chosen for their
special Acquaintance with the terms
OF the problem that Is before us.
Among them are exports In natural
resources and representatives of ma
tlon all organizations concerned In
the development and use OF these re-
sources; the senators and represen-
tatives In congress; the supreme
court. tho cabinet, and the Inland
Waterways commission have like
wise boon invited to the conference,
which IL therefore national In n pc
euliar sense.
Biggest Problem.
This conference on the, conserva-
tlon OF natural resources is In effect
a meeting of the representatives OF
all the people of the United States
called to consider tho weightiest
problem now before the nation: and
tho occasion for tho meeting lies In
the fact that tho natural resources of
our country are In danger of exhans-
tIon II we permit the old wasteful
methods OF exploiting them longer
TO continue
With the rise of peoples from saw
agery to civilization, and with the
eonsequNn growth in the extent and
variety OF the needs OF the average
man, there comes a steadily inereas-
ing growth OF the amount demanded
by this average man from the actual
resources OF the country. Yet, rath-
or curiously, at the same time the
average man Is apt TO lose his re-
alization of this dependence upon
nature.
Savages. and very primitive peo-
plies generally, concern themselves
only with supertioial natural re-
sources; with those which they OBJ
tain from the actual surface of the
ground As people b come a little
less primitive their Industries. al
though In rude manner. are ex-
tended TO resources below the sur
face: then. with what we call civil
lization aud the extension OF know
ledge, more resources come into use,
Industries are multiplied, ana fore
sight begins to become necessary
and prominent factor In life. Crops
are cultivated; animals are domesti-
Gated; and metals are mastered
Every step OF the progress of man
kind Is marked by the discovery ani
use OF natural resources previously
unused. without such progressive
knowledge and utilization OF natural
resources population could not grow,
nor industries multiply, nor the hid
den wealth Of tue earth be developed
for ahe benefit OF mankind.
From tho first beginnings of civil
iization. on the banks OF the Nile
and the Buphrates. the industrial
progress OF the world has gone on
slowly. with occasional setbaeks,
but ON the whole steadily, through
tens OF centuries to the present day,
But of late the rapidItv OF the pro-
cess has increased at such rate that