Los Angeles herald., 1909-08-12

the arid and semi-arid lands of the
west is of first importance in the de-
velopment of the nations resources.
Every acre of irrgable land will be
needed in the nations economy"
BalIinger Does Not Answer
Mr.. Ballnger then sat down and
would not be disturbed by questions.
There is a little note following each
notation on the published program in
viting the delegates to ask questions
and enter into a discussion with the
speakers.
Mr.. Ballinger was not aware of this.
Up rose Judge John Fairweather Of
California with a question. The secre-
tary answered it and then left the
platform.
The next speaker was A. c. Campbell.
who discussed the legal aspects Of
property rights in irrigation
That the irrigation congress seems
intent upon warfare against feathers
for women's hats is evidenced by the
number of resolutions introduced seek
ing the protection of birds of plumage
This afternoon a resolution was intro
duced asking the condemnation of the
destruction of birds. This was fol-
lowed by a request that the women in
the audience who would agree to wear
nothing but the plumage of the "os-
trich and the barnyard fowl" to rise. A
number arose.
George Otis Smith. director of the
United States geological survey, spoke
on the classification of the public
lands. He said in part:
Survey Director Speaks
George Otis Smith director of the
federal geological survey, then dis
cussed the classification of public lands.
He said in part;
"The necessity for classifying the
public lands is not a recent discovery.
The earliest land legislation in this
country both contemplated differences
in the quality and character of the
public lands and planned for descrip-
tions based on field examination. Yet
even the honest administration of the
land laws has ever been subject to
criticism arising from the fact that no
adequate provision was made for land
classification.
civilization is the keynote of the
present public land policy and by util-
ization I mean not that kind of local
development that is promoted by the
land skinner but rather a develop
ment whose plan weighs national needs
and calculates future demands and
whose accomplishments will serve our
countrys development in the next GEN.
tury as we'll as i'm the present decade.
Utilization is opposed to both non-use
and waste.
Determines Relative Worth
"Hydrographic and topographic sur
veys which are now in progress under
instructions of the secretary of the in
terror have as their purpose the col
lection Of information that may be pre-
scented to congress in aid of legisla-
ton looking toward the best utili2a-
ton Of the water powers on the public
domain. Reports on the mineral or
non mineral character Of coal, oil and
phosphate lands of which the survey
has made actual field examination are
now being transmitted to the general
land office. Another line of activity
is the segregation Of non-irrgable
lands under the terms of the en-
largcd homestead act of the present
year. The existence Of survey data
the passage of this law the secretary
of the interior has been able to desig
nate 162 600 900 acres, is In itself a
forceful argument for an adequate land
classification,
"A principle that is winning in
creased recognition in land legislation
Is that OF relative worth. The present
coal land law expresses this principle
by giving gold, silver and copper de-
posits priority over the coal and the
coal in turn preference over agriCul-
tural values These distinctions neces-
state land. classification based on ad-
eauate field examination. Wherever
the different values can be separated
that separation by appropriate legis-
Ia ton is at once the easiest and best
solution of the problem, and the first
step i'm this direction was taken in
March Of this year i'm the passage Of
tho Mondcll act. whereby the home
seeker may secure all for which he
makes entry-all that he swears he is
getting while the coal beneath his
tilable land is reserved to the nation
for future disposal.
"The ideal land classification is that
based on field examination. scientific