East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1909-08-10

|
Conservation commission, the speech
of Forester Pinchot was received with
great enthusiasm at the irrigation
congress this morning. Following is
the address delivered by Mr.. Pin
chot:
Home Building for the Nation.
The most valuable citizen of this
or any other country is the man who
owns the land from which he makes
his living. No other man has such
stake in the country. No other
man lends such steadiness and stabil-
! ty to our national life Therefore,
no other question concerns us more
intimately than the question of
homes. Permanent homes for our
selves our children, and our nation
this is the central problem. The
policy of national irrigation is of VAL
ue to the United States in very many
ways, but the greatest of all is this,
| that national irrigation multiplies the
men who own the land from which
they make their living. The old say
ing, "Who ever heard of a man shoul-
dering a gun to fight for his board
ing house" reflects this great truth,
that no man is so ready to defend his
country, not only with arms, but with
his vote, and his contribution to pub
lie opinion as the man with a per-
manent stake in it, as the man who
owns the land from which he makes
his living.
Our country began as a nation of
farmers. During the periods that
gave it its character when our inde-
pendence was won and when our
union was preserved, we were pre-
eminently a nation of farmers. We
can not, and We ought not, to con-
tinue exclusively or even chiefly, an
agricultural country, because one
man can raise food enough for many.
But the farmer who owns his land
is still the backbone of this nation;
and one of the things we want most
is more of him.
The man on the farm is valuable
to the nation, like any other citizen,
just in proportion to his intelligence,
character ability, and patriotism.
but unlike the other citizens, also in
proportion to his steadiness, his SAN
ity his simplicity and directness, and
many of his other desirable qualities.
He is the first of homemakers.
Object of Conservation.
The nation that will lead the world
will be a nation Of homes The OBJ
ject of the great conservation move
ment is just this, to make our coun-
try a permanent and prosperous
home for ourselves and for our chill
dren, and for our children's children,
and it is task that is worth the best
thought and effort of any and all of
u.s.
To achieve this or any other great
result straight thinking and strong
action are necessary and the straight
thinking comes first. To make this
country what we need to have it, we
must think clearly and directly about
our problems, and above all we must
understand what the real problems
are. The great things are few and
simple, but they are too often hidden
by false issues, and conventional, un-
real thinking. The easiest way to
hide a real issue always has been and
always will be, to replace it with a
false one.
Equality of Opportunity.
The first thing we need in this
country, as President Roosevelt so
well set forth in that great message
which told what ne had been trying
to do for the American people, is
equality and opportunity for every
citizen. No man should have less,
and no man ought to ask for more.
Equality of opportunity is the real
object of our laws and institutions.
Our institutions and our laws are not
valuable in themselves. They are
valuable only because they secure
equality of opportunity for happiness
and welfare for our citizens. An in
stitution or a law is a means, not an
end. a means to be used for the pub
lie good, to be modified for the pub
lie good, and to be interpreted for the
public good. One Of the great rea-
sons why President Roosevelts ad-
ministration was of such enormous
value to the plain American was that
he understood what st. Paul meant
when he said: 1.-THE letter killeth,
but the spirit giveth life" To fol-
low blindly the letter of the law, or
the form of an institution without
intelligent regard both for its spirit
and for the public welfare, is very
nearly as dangerous as to disregard
the law altogether. What we need is
the use of the law for the public
good and the construction of it for
the public welfare.
Law and the Trusts.
II goes without saying that the law
is supreme and must be obeyed. our
civilization rests on obedience to law
But the law is not absolute. 1t re-
ouires to be construed. Rigid con-
structon Of the law works, and must
work. in the vast majority Of cases,
for the benefit of the men who can
hire the best lawyers and who have
the sources Of influence in lawmak-
ing at their command. Strict con-
struction necessarily favors the great |
interests as against the people, and |
IN the long run can not do otherwise. |
Wise execution Of the law must con-
slider what the law ought to accom-
plish for the general good. The great
oppressive trusts exist because Of
lawmakers and adroit le-