The searchlight. [volume] (Culbertson, Mont.) 1902-current, 1910-09-09

PaoBteSS. yet even tI0 pe8t OF tEeus uR0
communities Of every other kind. are not
beyond Improvement. while much needs
to be done In some other sections to Inn
prove country life. Az yet we know COM
parativeiy 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
have given scant attention. One OF the
most urgent needs Of our civilization u
that the farmers themselves should I'M
dertake to get for themselves Q better
knowledge along these lines, and then to
apply II. Sir Horace Piunkett. for many
years Wyoming cattien:an. and now de-
voting himself In Ireland to the country
life problem there. has suggested In his
recent book on the Country Life Prob
lem In America" the creation Of q Coun-
try Life institute a. Q center where the
work and knowledge OF the whole world
concerning country life may BE- brought
together for the use OF every nation. I
and I hope to see II carried out with the
cooperation and assistance Of our own
people. Last spring. while visiting the
capital OF Hungary, Buda-Pesth. was
immensely impressed by the Museum OF
Country Life. containing an extraordinary
raising. In forestry. In mining: the ex-
hibits were Of the utmost practical i'm
portance and were nlso intensely inter-
esting and Instructive.
As people We have not yet learned TO
economize. One Of the virtues We Ameri-
cans most need II thrift. It u a mere
truism to say that luxury and extrava-
Ranco are not good for Nation. So far
as they affect character. tho loss they
cause may be beyond computation. But
In the material sense there II loss
greater than Is caused by both extrava-
gance and luxury put together. I moan
the necdiess, useless. and excessive loss
to our people from premature death and
avoidabio diseases. Wholly apart from
tho grief. the suffering. and the wretched-
ness which they cause. the material loss
each year has been calculated at nearly
twice what II costs 70 run the Federal
government. In addition to the state and
city health officers and organizations,
there Is urgently needed q Federal bu-
reau Of health. to act. 30 far as the Ma
floral government properly may. to re-
lteve 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 TIE white house in May. 1909.
to consider the conservation question. BY
the advice of the governors the meeting
was followed by the appointment OF a
meeting OF the governors directed tho
attention OF the country TO conservation
as nothing else could have done. while
the work Of the commission gave the
movement defn'teness and supplied II
with a practical program. But at tho
moment when the commission was ready
to begin the campaign for putting Its pro-
gram into effect an amendment to tho
Sundry civil service bill was introduced
by q congressman from Minnesota with
tho purpose of putting a stop TO the work
so admirably begun. Congress passed tho
amendment. It's object was TO put an
end TO the work Of 4 number 81 commits
sions, which had been appointed by the
prrsident. and WHOSE contribution TO tho
public welfare Ind bssn simply incaicu-
liable. Among these were the commission
for reorganizing the business methods of
the government. the public lands COM
mission. tho country life commission,
sion itself. When I signed the Sundry
civil service bill containing this amend
ment. I transmitted with II rs my last
Official act n 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 I would pay to II no
| attention whatever.
Tho National conservation commission
| thereupon became dornan-. "'he susnen-
| zion OF It's work came Mt n most unfnr-
| tunate time. and Their. was serious dan
| ger that the progress already made would
| be lost A. this critical moment ,hc NJ
tinnal conservation association w-s or
| ganixed. II took up N. work which 9TH
erw,se would not have been dna-, rna II
| exercised n most .sSsii Influence ~ pre-
| venting hsa Legislation. In securing the
| Introduction Of better conservation meas
| ures Mt she past session OF congress and
/ 20 ,,.g.. Il.
| ts.c-ves the confidence and sur port ~
| every citizen Interested IN the ~,rs de-
| velnp-sent and preservation OF our nat
urai resources. and In preventing them
| from rsssing into -. hands nj uncon-
t-ollcd monopoiies. II joins with tho Ma
this meeting. am here by the Joint in
vitation OF both.
| Pan-Ameriean Construction.
States awoke to the idea OF conservation
| and saw that II was good. II lost no time
| In communicating the advantages of tho
| new point OF view to Its immediate neigh
| bors among the nations. A North Ameri-
can conservation conference was held n
Washington. ana the cooperation OF
Canada and Mexico In the great problem
OF developing the resources of the conti-
| men. for the benefit OF It's people was
| asked and promised. The nations upon
| our northern 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
as 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. Tho
development Of their natural resources
| their forests. their mines, their water.
| and their soiis-wili create enormous
| wealth. II In TO the mutual interest Of
| the United States and our sister Ameri-
can republics that this development
should be wisely done. Our manufacture
| Ing Industries offer a market for more
| and more Of their natural wealth and
raw material. while they viii increasingly
desire to meet that demand In CONNER
eial exchange. Tho more we buy from
| them. the more We shall sell to them.
Their prosperity Il inseparabiy involved
with eur own. Thank heaven. we OF this
continent are now beginning to realize.
what In the end the whole world viii
| realize. that normally II Il q good thing
| for a nation to have its neighbor nations
prosper. We Of the United States are