The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1909-12-29

IL IS time to take business out of
politics, and keep it outline for the
political activity OF this nation to be
aimed sQuarely at the welfare of all Of
us, and squarely away from the ex-
cessive profits OF few of us.
A man is not bad because he is rich
nor good because he is poor. There is
no monopoly of virtue. l hold no brief
Tor the poor against the rich nor for the
wage Garner against the capitalist. Ex-
ceptional capacity In business. as in
any other line of life, should meet with
exceptional reward. Rich men have
served this country greatly. Washing
ton was a rich man. But 1t is very
clear that excessive profits from the
control Of natural resources, monopo-
lied by few, are not worth 10 this
nation the tremendous price they cost
us.
I'VE have allowed the great corpora
tons to occupy with their own men
the strategic points in business, in So
cial and in political life. 1t is our fault
more than theirs. We have allowed
1t when we could have stopped it. Too
often we have seemed to forget that a
man in public life can no more serve
both the special interests and the peo-
pie than he can serve God and Mann
mon
There is no reason why the Ameri-
can people should not take into their
hands again the full political power
which Is theirs by right, and which
they exercised before the special in
terests began to nullify the will of the
majority. There are many men who
believe, and who will always believe,
in the divine right of money to rule
With such men argument, compromise
or Cancellation is useless or worse. The
only thing to do with them is to fight
them and beat them. Ii has been done.
and 1t can be done again.
cit is the honorable distinction of the
forest service that 1t has been more
constantly, more violently and more
bitterly attacked by the representatives
of the special interests in recent years
than any other government bureau.
These attacks have increased in VOL
ence and bitterness just in proper
ton as the service has offered effective
opposition TO predatory wealth The
more successful we have been in pre-
venting land grabbing and the Absorb
ton Of water power by the special in
tersts, the more ingenious the more
devious, and the more dangerous these
attacks have become. A favorite one Is
to assert that the forest service. in it's
zeal for the public welfare. has played
ducks and brakes with the acts of con-
gress. The fact Is, on the contrary,
that the service has had warrant Of
law for everything it has done.
Not once since it was created has
any charge Of illegality, despite the
most searching investigation and the
bitterest attack, ever led to reversal or
reproof by either house of congress or
by any congressional committee Not
once has the forest service been defeat
ed or reversed as to any vital legal
principle underlying it's work in any
court or administrative tribunal Of last
resort.
1--WE hold 1t to be the first duty of
public officer to obey the law. But we
hold it to be his second duty, and a
close second, to do everything the law
will let him do for the public good, and
not merely what the law directs or
compels him to do. Unless the public
service is alive enough to serve the
people with enthusiasm, there is very
little to be said for it.
Another, and usually plausible. form
of attack, is to demand chat all land
not now bearing trees shall be thrown
out of the national forests. For CEN
turtles forest fires have burned through
the western mountains, and much land
thus deforested is scattered throughout
the national forests awaiting reforesta-
ton. This land is not valuable for
agriculture, and win contribute more
to the general welfare under forest
than in any other way. To exclude 1t
from the national forests would be no
more reasonable than 1t would be in a
city to remove from taxation and mum
icipal control every building lot not
now covered by a house.
at would be no more reasonable than
to condemn and take away from our
farmers every acre of land that did not
bear crop last year, or TO conflscate
a mans winter overcoat because he
was not wearing 1t in July. A genera
ton in the life of nation is no longer
than a season in the life OF a man.
With a fair chance we can and will
reclothe these denuded mountains with
forests, and we ask for that chance.
Publicity ls Necessary.
"Still another attack, nearly success
full two years ago. was an attempt to
prevent the forest service from telling
the people, through the press, what it
Is accomplishing for them, and how
much this nation needs the forest. If
we cannot tell what we are doing, the
time will come when there will be
nothing to tell. 1t is just as necessary
for the people to know what is being
done to help them as to know what
Is being done to hurt them. Publicity
is the essential and Indispensable con-
dition Of clean and effective public SER
vice,
Since the forest service called pub
lie attention to the rapid absorption Of
the water power sites and the threat
ening growth OF great water power
monopoly, the attacks upon 1t have in
creased with marked rapidity. / an
ticipate that they viii continue to do So
Still greater opposition is promised in
the near future. There is but one pro-
tection-an awakened and determined
public opinion. That is why / give
you the facts"
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