Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1911-05-02
Reserve
Wins IN COURT
SUPREME BODY Is UNANIMOUS
As TO CONSTITUTIONALVTY.
UPH0LDS CONSERVATION
Special Permits Must BE Secured by
the Grazcrs of Iicrds--llistory
Of the Trouble.

WI lit AIounlt'
by Associated Press.
Washington May 1.-The legal
battle against the forest reserve OF the
west in particular and conservation
by the federal government Of natural
resources in general was lost today in
the Supreme Court Of the United
States That tribunal not only up
held the constituuonality OF the es-
tnhlishmeut of the reserves Of any ma
tional and public purpose, but 1t set
tied once for all that the federal gov
ernment and not the state may say
how the reserves shall be used.
The immediate results OF the con-
clusion of the court are that Fred
Light, a Colorado cattle man, viii re-
main enjoined To allow his cattle to
Craze on the Holy Cross reserve and
Perez Gremaud, *. =. Carajous and
Antonio India California sheep men,
must answer to the indictment charg-
ing them with grazing sheep upon
the Sierra forest reserve without u
permit
The subject was dealt with in two
opinions delivered by Justice Lamar.
The entire court concurred. The ba-
sic principle upon which it proceeded
was that the nation Is an owner and
has made progress the principal
agent to dispose of its property"
THE United States can prohibit abso.
lutely and fix the terms upon which
its property may be used. IL is true
that the United States does not and
cannot hold property as monarch
may for private and personal pur-
poses, but that does not lead TO the
conclusion that it is without right in
Cident to ownership"
The contlsi tionality Of the vast for
est reservations of the West and the
validity Of the modern conservation
! policy, were raised early In this case in
the Circuit Court Of the United States
for the Dist let OF Colorado.
The United States government had
brought suit to enjoin Fred Light,
prominent Colorado cattle man, from
causing or permitting his olttle to
trespass upon the Holy Cross Forest
Reserve in Colorado. A stubborn con-
test arose and among the other de-
lenses put forth by Light, was the one
that the formation OF the Holy Cross
Reserve. without the contest of the
state of Colorado. was demonstrations
al. As the other vast reserves in tho
West had been formed by IA similar
process of federal action In withdraw
ing public land from entry, the argu-
ment applied by analogy to them. The
injunction was granted. and an ap-
peal to the Supreme Court OF the
United SUITES.
throughout the contest. the federal
government claimed that when Light
turned his cattle onto his ranch. ad-
Joining tho Z torest Reserve. they fol-
lowed well defined cattle trails. In
order to ge. grass and water. directly
10 the reserve where there existed
superior grlss and water supply. Such
a practice, the government contended.
was tantamount In law to Light driy-
Ing the cattle ontc the reserve
The defense met tho government
with several arguments. In the first
place, 1t was pointed out that the re-
serve had not been fenced by the gov
crnmcnt and Colorado law provided
that no person should recover damages
for trespass unless the Ian In question
was fenced
Therefore Llsht pointed to this law
.as barring the government from relief.
Tho government rctored that the fence
law applied only TO individuals, and
not to the state Of Colorado or to tho
United states. II II was meant 10
apply Co the United States Il was
argued by the government that the
law was unconstitutional one Of the
sharp issues of the case was conferred
on this point.
So widepread was the interest IN tho
case and so vital the questions involved
thot the State OF Colorado itself. into
the contest Attorney General Bar
nett was authorized TO assist Light IN
fighting the federal governments Ho
did 20.
The attorney general emphasized
the argument before the Supreme
Court that no provision of the constl.
tuition empowered tho fodcrl gov
ornment TO conserve the national ne.
sources by rrovillug for continuing
timber supply regulating the flow n
streams and preserving power sites,
from being mouopolwel Ha urged
chat the Withdrawal of such largo
tracts of and said 90 boz one fIrth of
the entire area Oft Colorado, was tho
dcunl % equality with the Older
states which had hcyn allowed 90 cXcr-
cisr domination over All thp territory