The Glenwood post., 1908-05-16

The opening address of Fresl-
dent Roosevelt and Of other lead
ing participants occupied the
greater part of the initial session:
No set prgram has been prepared
for the subsequent session OF the
conference. which will continue
over Thursday and Friday. 1t is
to be a conference in the truest
sense of the word. with the single
purpose of getting down to a
practical working basis at once.
To that end there will be an alb
sence of set papers, though in or
der to open the discussions, few
recognized authorities will pre-
sent brief descriptions of existing
facts and conditions. 1t is hoped
that plans may be so formulated
that there will be immediate and
concerted action on the part OF
the different states towards the
conservation of natural resour-
ces. the fundamentally vital prob
lem. according to the president,
before the people of the United
States today.
The conference will deal with
problems upon which the contin-
ued prosperity of the nation vitally
depends. For this reason its de-
liberations are more fundamental
ly important and far-reaching
than any since the birth of the
Republic. Never before have the
chief executives of all the states
met in one body presided over by
the chief executive of the nation.
and never before has there been a
subject bigger or broader to cause
such a meeting.
The range of subjects to be dis
cussed covers the entire program
of national conservation. Preser-
walton if existing forests and re-
forestation of lands at present
producing nothing, storage of sur
plus water, inland waterways, ir-
rigation, conservation of minerals
and the prevention of waste in
mining, relation of waterways to
transportation and the relation of
! railways to water lines of carri-
age, prevention of floods and their
consequent destruction of life and
property, care of the range lands
of the West, their regrassing and
proper utilization-these are a
few of the grand divisions of the
questions to be exhaustively dis
cussed by the conference.
The keynote of the conference
will be the necessity for co-opera
tion in conserving the country's
natural resources. 1t will first
face the transportation question.
After a paper by James J. Hill,
president of the Great Northern
railroad, the delegates will discuss
the relation between rail and wa
ter transportation. A particular
ly important part of this discus
sion will relate to terminals. The
railroads have at many points
gained control of shore line which
is of strategic Importance in the
developing of inland waterways.
Facts will be presented among
the present water transportation
systems, and figures to show the
modern decline of transportation
upon the inland waterways. The
delegates will consider how the
rivers can be utilized for naviga-
ton. power, community supply
and irrigation and how theirprop-
err development for navigation can
be cor-ordinated with their use
for those other purpses.
Turning to land resources, the
delegates will be shown how soil
is being impoverished by improp-
er cultivation, and especially by
erosion. This matter of ersion
will be gone into very deeply.
Not only will the direct losses to
agriculture be explained, but the
delegates will consider the indi-
rect losses due to the securing Of