The Elbert County tribune., 1910-09-02
Believes Government Should Gen.
orally Be Leader in Con-
servation.
SAD EXPERIENCE IN EAST
Addressing Public Meeting In Denver,
Ex-PresIdent Discusses Water Pow
or, Coal Lands, Ranges and Forests
Powerful Plea for Conservation.

Roosevelt arrived in Denver from
Cheyenne this morning. and after q
parade in which representatives of the
state and city, the Live Stock asso
citation and the Spanish War Veterans
took part, was the guest of the Den
yer Press club at cowboy luncheon
at Overland park. In the afternoon
he delivered a public address at the
Auditorium and later spoke to the
Spanish War Veterans, and then he
was the guest Of honor at round
up" dinner at Eljebel Temple.
Talks on Conservation.
Mr. Roosevelt's main address was
on conservation, and was as follows:
This country has shown definite signs
pf waking up to tho absolute necessity of
handling It's natural resources with fore
sight and common sense. The conserva-
lion question has three sides. In the first
place, the needless waste of the natural
resources must be stopped. 1t Is rapidly
becoming a well-settled policy Of this peo-
pie that we of this generation hold the
land In part for the next generation. and
not exclusively for our own selfish enjoy
ment. Just as the farmer is a good cfti-
ten II he leaves his farm improved and not
impaired for his children. and a bad citi-
interest. so the Nation behaves well II 1t
treats the natural resources as assets
which II must turn over to this next gen.
sration Increased and not impaired in
value. and behaves badly IL It leaves the
land poorer to those who come after us.
In the second place, the natural re-
sources must be developed promptly.
completely, and in orderly fashion. 1t is
not conservation to leave the natural re-
sources undeveloped. Development is an
Indispensable part of the conservation
plan. The forests, the mines, the water
powers. and the land itself. must all be
put to use. Those who assert that con-
servation proposes to tie them up. depriv-
ing this generation OF their benefits in
order to hand them on untouched to the
next miss the whole point of the con-
tervation idea. Conservation does not
mean depriving the men of today OF their
natural rights in the natural resources of
the land. All II means is that we of this
generation shall SO use our rights as not
to deprive those who come after us of
their natural rights in their turn.
In the third place, 80 far MS possible
these resources must be kept for the
whole people and not handed over for
exploitation to single individuals. We do
not intend to discourage Individual enter
prise by unwisely diminishing the reward
for that enterprise. On the contrary, we
believe that the men of exceptional abili-
ties should have exceptional rewards up
10 point where the reward becomes dis
proportionate to the service, UP to the
point where the abilities are used to the
detriment of the people as a whole. We
are for the liberty of the Individual up to
and not beyond the point where 1t be-
comes Inconsistent with the welfare OF
The community. Thus our consistent aim
II to favor the actual scttlerAthe man
who takes as much of the public domain
as he himself can cultivate. and there
rrtu lrA &c.. Ii
who come after him: but we nre against
the man. no matter what his ability who
tries to monopolize large masses OF public
land.
State and Federal Control.
Now, to preserve the general welfare.
TO see to II that the rights of the public
are protected. and the liberty of the indi-
vidual secured and encouraged MS long as
consistent with this welfare and curbed
when 1t becomes inconsistent Herewith It
is necessary to invoke the aid of the
government. There are points in which
this governmental nid can best be rem
dered by the states that Is, where the
exercise of states rights helps to secure
popular rights. and rs to these / believe
in states rights. But there are large
classes of cases where only authority
OF the National government will secure
the rights of the people and where this is
the case am convinced and a thor
nugh-going believer in the rights of the
National government. Big business for
instance. lis no longer an affair of any one
state; big business hns become national
ICED. and the only effective way of CON
trolling and directing It, and preventing
abuses In connection with II, Is by having
the penple nationalize this control in ordeY
TO Prevent their being exploited by the In
dividuals who have nationalized the busi-
ness. All commerce on scale sufficient
" large to warrant any control over II by
fI.c I...-
foreign commerce. and until this fact is
heartily acknowledged and acted upon by
both courts and Legislative bodies. Ma
tlonal and state alike. the interest of the
people Will suffer.
In the matter of conservation. I heart
lily approve OF state action where under
our form OF government the state. and the
state only. has the power to act I cor
daily Join with those who desire to see
the state. within Its own sphere take the
most advanced position In regard to the
whole matter of conservation. have
taken exactly this attitude in my own
state of New York. Where the state alone
had power to act. have done all I could
TO get IL to act In the most advanced
manner: and where the Nation could act
have done all I could to get National
action in the same direction. Unfortun-
ately. in the east we have In this matter
paid the penalty of not having our forest
land under National control: and the pen
atty has been severe. Most of the states
although they are old states-have not
protected their forests each falling to
act by itself because the action was real
ly the common concern OF all: and where
action is the common concern of ALL ex-
perience has shown that II can only be
profitably undertaken by the National
government
As result of the impossibility of get
ting such wise action by the several state
governments in the east. we are doing
our best to get National legislation under
which the National government. at the
expense OF millions OF dollars shall under
take to do as regards the Appalachians
and White Mountains of the east what Il
Is now doing in the Rock Mountains here
out weg. II would oe both a calamity
and an absurdity for the National govern
ment now to do in the west the very