The Whitefish pilot. [volume] (Whitefish, Mont.) 1904-current, 1910-08-11

pull oooo /CdAAOI, Ill my Judgment.
serve the most valuable economic;
ends. Such lands as are more valu--
able for agriculture than for refor-
estation should be open to settlement.
IF the large volume of lands in for
est reserves in Montana were opened
and cultivated, they would produces
equal to that which can be produced
not less than fifty years when devoted
to forests.
Devote to Best Use.
"The practical thought wish to |
convey is, that lands should be used
for the purposes which would bring
out their highest productive qualities.
This, l think, would be a practical
| conservation of forests
eve realize that the growth of tim
Der is important. The better idea
| would be to sell off the timber from
these productive agricultural lands,
which are now in forest reserves, and
to use the money in purchasing for
forestry purposes lands in those Sec
tons where agricultural production
would not be so great.
"This would serve the double pur-
pose of using the lands less valuable
| as agricultural ground for a more val
liable purpose and Of using the vaIua-
BILE agricultural lands Of Montana for
a purpose that would yield greater re-
turns.
I'VE also have in Montana an i'm
mense amount of water power that
can be developed at a reasonable ex
pense. Water flowing in streams in
Western States belongs to the state in
| r., eli CIT
when situated en- government lands,
belong to the federal government.
Water and power sites should be
united in a common ownership.
"My judoment is that the govern
ment should convey it's sites to the
states, but under such conditions as to
furnish guaranty that the states
: could not fritter away their rights to
private interests without adequate
consideration. Even then the states
should reserve the right to regulate
the prices charged to consumers for
water.
/ "The Montana idea is that the states
) should own, dispose of and regulate
, the disposal Of natural resources sit
uated in the state and that the state
can dispose of these resources more
; wisely than the federal government
: can or will. The experience of the
. last few years has demonstrated that
= the states have frittered away fewer
Y CT their resources than has the federal
: government.
Personally, I am strict conserva-
!, tio-i-t and believe that the states and
not the federal government should
own, ccntl.1 Ind @,Spose of all nat
ural resources. l have every SYN
rathy with those who have urged con
seryation and differ from them rather
| in methods.
II have no patience with certain con
servationists who would withdraw oul
resources from reasonable present de
. velOpment and use. We owe much tC
Il future generations, but we owe more
to the present ones.
"Take, but do not destroy; use, but
do not waste-this should govern II
the disposition of our natural re
sources.
81 cannot agree that natural re
sources are national resources, a.
some Of those living in the East seen
! to hold. They have eaten their cak.
v and now want some Of ours.
II In his usual keen and forceful man
II ner, James j. Hill prOphesied a won
II derful future for Montana. you have
. here in Montana" said Mr.. Hill, "a1
IS arabic area equal to that of Iowa OF
IS illinois, two of the foremost agricul
Q tural states in the Union from thu
u standpoint of available acreage anl
l. fertility of the soil.'
% I'm addition to this you have mil
- lions of acres of grazing land, grea
forests OF merchantable timber ant
h untold mineral wealth in the mines
If But it is your tillable soil that you
e greatest wealth lies"
You have some wonderfully fertil,
IT fruit valleys, in fact the finest apple!
r. | ever ate came from the Kootena
It Valley. Land is worth what it will
d produce and no one can fix the rea
It value of land except on this basis"
g II know man who paid 500, 900 fol
II forty acres Of Wenatchee orchard
L. land-$2,5O0 an acre-thirty of which
was planted to fruit trees. From thi.
thirty acres he sold $4,000 worth O
- apples and sold them right on the
n trees, the buyer paying the expense O
+ picking, packing and boxing"
n Where in the world, said this man
S could | more safely or profitably in
vest 100000? l was then shown 8
7 tract of one acre that had netted its
! owner $4,000 from apples which were
- sold to a Portland firm"
e This proves what good apple land
e is worth and I consider the land in
/. the Kootenai Valley equal to that OF
e Wenatchee. All it needs is intelli
gent development"
J. Congressman Stevens spoke alone
: the lines of conserving our individual
d initiative and effort and not to sacri
|, flee 1t to paternalism in trying to safe
: guard the peoples rights.
Mr. Patterson made a few remarks
: In reference to the approaching Con
servation Congress and the satisfac
n tory way in which recognition for the