Crittenden record-press. [volume] (Marion, Ky.) 1909-191?, 1910-11-03
all that It brings. Some Of our farming

All tnet II brings Bone OF our farming
communities in the Mississippi valley and
In the middle west have made marvellous
progress. yet even the best of them. like
communities Of every other kind, are not
beyond Improvement, while much needs
to be done In some other sections to i'm
prove country life. AS yet we know com
paratlvely little OF the basic facts of rural
civilization. The means for better farm
ing we have studied with care. but to bet
ter living on the farm and to better bust
ness on the farm the farmers themselves
nave given scant attention. One of the
most urgent needs of our civilization Is
that the farmers themselves should un-
dertake to get for themselves better
knowledge along these lines, and then to
apply 1t. Sir Horace Plunkett, for many
years n wyoming cattleman, and now de-
voting himself In Ireland to tho country
life problem there, has suggested In his
recent book on the Country Life Prob
lem in America" the creation Of a Coun-
try Life institute as a center where the
work and knowledge Of the whole world
concerning country life may be brought
together for the use Of every nation. 1
am strongly in sympathy with this idea,
and hope to see II carried out with the
cooperation and assistance of our own
people. Last spring. while visiting the
capital ~ Hungary. Buda-Pesth, was
Immensely impressed by the Museum OF
Country Life. containing an extraordinary
series OF studies in agriculture, In stock
raising I'm forestry. In mining; the eX-
hiblts were of the utmost practical i'm
portance and were also Intensely Inter-
esting and instructive.
As people we have not yet learned TO
economic. One of the virtues we Ameri-
cans most need is thrift. 1t Is mere
trulsm to say that luxury and extrava-
enncc are not good for a Nation. so far
as they affect character. the loss they
cause may he beyond computation. But
in the material sense there Is loss
greater than is caused by both extrava-
gance and luxury put together / mean
tho needless. useless. and excessive loss
to our people from premature death and
avoda bio diseases. Wholly apart from
the grief. the suffering and the wretched-
ness which they cause the material loss
each year has been calculated at nearly
twice what II costs 10 run the Federal
government. In addition to the state and
city health officers and organizations,
there is urgently needed a Federal bu-
reau Of health. to act. so far as the Ma
tioral government properly may, to re-
lieve our people from this dreadful bur
den.
National Conservation Commission.
One Of the most important meetings In
our recent history was that OF the gov
ernors IN the white house In May 1908,
TO consider the conservation question. Rv
the advice Of the governors the meeting
was followed by the appointment OF
National conservation commission. The
meeting of the governors directed the
atttnitNn of the country TO conservation
as nothinE else could have done, while
the work of the commission gave the
movement defniteness and supplied "
with practical program. But at the
moment when the commission was ready
he For o.
gram into effect an amendment TO the
Sundry civil service bill was introduced
by a congressman from Minnesota with
the purpose Of putting Il stop 70 the work
so admirably begun. Congress passed the
amendment It's object was TO put an
end TO the work NJ a number " commits
sions which had been appointed by the
president and whose contribution to the
public welfare had been simply incalcu"
liable Among thesc were the commission
Tor reorganizing the business methods 81
the government. the public lands COM
mission, the country life commission,
and the National conservation commits
sion itself When signed the Sundry
civil service hill containing this amend
ment 7 transmitted with II my last
oficial act a memorandum declaring that
the amendment was void. because II was
an unconstitutional interference with the
rights OF the executive. and that II were
TO remain president ] would pay to II no
attention whatever
The National conservation commission
thereupon became dorm am. ''he suspen-
zion OF its work came Mt n most unfor-
| tunate time, and there was serious dam
ger tina. the progress already made would
be lost. a. this critical moment We NJ
tional conserva ton association was or
ran,zed II took M ;he work which 9th
! Srwise would not have been done. rnd II
exercised a most usS;'il influence N pre-
| venting hsS les'7lsion, in securing the
| Introduction Of better conservation meas
ur,s M me past session OF congress ara
! IN promoting the passage OF wise laws II
| dsycvyes the confidence and sur port ~
| every citizen Interested IN the "'S, de-
Vehement and pre9e~vaton of our nat
ural resources and In preventing them
| from RAISING into t"e hands nj uncon-
t-oIled monopolies. II Joins with the Ma
| .innsl conservation congress In holding
| this meeting am here by the Joint In
vitation OF both.
Pan-Ameriean Construction.
When the government Of the United
| States awoke 10 the idea Of conservation
| and saw that II was good. II lost no time
| In communicating the advantages OF the
| new point Of view to its immediate neigh
| bors among the nations. A North Ameri-
| can conservation conference was held In
| Washington, and the cooperation OF
Car0da ana Mexico IN the great problem
| ~ developing the resources Of the CONT
nent for the benefit of Its people was
! asked and promised The nations upon
| our rorthern and southern boundaries
| wisely realized that their opportunity to
| conserve the natural resources was better
| than ours. because with them destruction
| and monopolization had not gone so FAR
| a. they had with us. So II is with the
| republics Of Central and South America.
| Obviously they are on the verge of
| period OF great material progress. The
1 development CT their natural resources
| their forests. their mines, their water.
| and their soiis-will create enormous
| wealth 1t r. TO the mutual interest OF
| the United States and our sister Amerf-
| can republics that this development
| should he wisely done. Our manufactur-
| ing Industries offer market for moro
| and more OF their natural wealth and
| raw material, while they will increasingly
| desire to meet that demand In CONNER
| cial exchange. The more we buy from
| them, the moro shall sell 10 them.
| Their prosperity IL inseparably involved
with our own. Thank heaven. we OF this
| ccrfine n are now beginning TO realize