The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-08
Senator Teller Makes Attack Upon Forestry Department
 and It's Methods
SENATOR DEPEW DEFENDS
 MONEY APPROPRIATIONS
Millions of Acres of Land Have Been Added to the Forest Reservations For the Protection of the
 Running Streams.

Washington, May Tn reply to Senator Heyburn's attack upon the forestry policy of the administration, Senator Depew of New York today in the Senate spoke in defense of the forestry reserves and the reforestration of the denuded lands. Only the other day New York state re- ceved 100000 trees from Germany for use in reforesting the Adirondacks. He commended the action of President Cleve- land in inaugurating the system of forest reserves by setting aside 2OO00,0O0 acres which was increased to 40000,00O under President Mckinley and is now 1500OO,00o acres. The damage, he said done by cutting off the forests of the Adiron- dacks was enormous and every spring the newspapers tell of disastrous floods in six states whose streams are fed from that watershed The damage done to the streams by deforestation, he said, to a great extent had offset the good ae- complished by river and harbor improve ments.
 MT. Teller of Colorado said the work of New York state in reforestration was the kind he approved. He objected to having the general government go into that business. He objected to the voting of a lump sum of $500.000 for the forestry division.
 Mir Aldrch interrupted to say that the last agricultural appropriation bill called for "Classifed and detailed estimates' for the forestry division. q have not" he said, 'been able to discover that any such estimates have been submitted to Congress. They are not in the book of estimates"
 Mr. Warren explained that the appro- priations committee of the House had in formation of what would be done with the appropriations for the forestry divi- sion He favored having detailed esti- mates.
 Teller Is Radical.
 MT. Teller declared that the forestry reservations were curse and not a blessing" Reading from memorandum of expenditures of the division he said s259O0O was spent in a lump sum. Con- gress he added had nothing to do with fixing the salaries included in that amount.
 MT Money interrupted to say that forest reservations cover an area as large as Maine. New Hampshire, Yer mont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island New York, Pennsylvania. Ned Jersey. Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia and Virginia. Tt is larger" he said by 50,000 square miles than any empire in Europe"
 MT Teller declared that he knew that the forestry division spends thousands and thousands of dollars in d propa- ganda in the interest of reservations.
 "They employ people in the colleges he said. "and l can see no service they can render except to influence opinion in favor of the forestry service"
 Did. the senator say" inquired MT. Culberson. they pay professors and school teachers for their influence?"
 q said that was my inference" re- sponded MT. Teller. The department had a propa ganda-men all over the country advocating forest reservations and in my judgment they were on the roll for that purpose"
 Millions of Acres Added.
 MT. Teller, referring to the law of last year prohibiting the President from including land in Colorado. Mon tana, Idaho, Washington oregon and Wyoming in forest reserves, said
 bfIpTt the 1TtSlutHl SlS1ed l1dI law and after it had passed Congress- he did make some additions to these reservations"
 Mir. Hepburn interposed to say the amount of such additions was 20.00O,- 900 acres.
 Does the senator mean to say that was done after Congress had passed the law?" inquired MT. Bacon.
 "1t was done,' MT. Teller replied, after the bill left the House and Sen ate and pending the Presidents sigma ture to the bill"
 Extended discussion of the expend- lures of the forestry bureau for pub licity work of various kinds called for vigorous denial by MT. Shoot that a forester had attended a convention and charged his expenses to the hay and grain account"
 Asked by Senator Foraker what he proposed to do about the bill, MT. Tel Ter said he hoped to defeat the lump appropriation of $5OO,oOO for the for estry service.
 MT Lodge, reading from official records, quoted the lump sum appro- priations for other bureaus of the ag- ricultural department and said that what was done in the forestry division was similar to the practice in other bureaus.
 The bill was still under consideration when the Senate adjourned.
 
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