East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1911-01-09
LOWELL TALKS
ON CONSERVATION
THINKS TOO MUCH
LAND is WITHDRAWN
Nearly 3OO,OOO,00O Acres Included
Within National Forests-Pendleton
Judge Favors Idea But Criticizes
Methods.

Judge stephen A. Lowell of this city !
was scheduled to address the conpen- |
tion OF National Woolgrowers' at
Portland last week but was unable to
attend owing to the illness of his
mother. However, the able paper pre-
pared by him on Forests and Flock
masters" was read to the convention
by DR.. S. w. Mcclure, northwest
chief of the federal bureal of animal
industry with headquarters in this
city. In part Judge Lowel's paper
read:
II hold no retainer from any inter-
ests or any individual. and for the
views which / here express neither
your organization nor any other Is
responsible. | speak as an advocate
of the seasonable preservation of both
state and national resources, and my
interest in the questions here discuss
ed is that of a citizen only. The brief
which l hold is for the public, for this
generation, and the next. and for
those to follow. Conservation, how
ever, as the nation now interprets It,
must be regarded as manifestation
of the natural protest of society
against long continued lawlessness.
The desire on the part of the people
to terminate the domination of male
factors in the public lands has caused
the pendulum of public sentiment to
swing so far the other way that hon
esty is obscured and retardation tri-
umphant
"The movement has resulted, ac-
cording to the figures of the general
land office. in closing to homeseek-
ers nearly 500, 100000 acres of the ma
tional domain, an area more than
twice as great as is comprised in the
German empire, or nearly four times
as large as the whole expanse of
Great Britain. 1t is true that all this
territory is not included within the
national forests, but II Is included
within reserves of various kinds, and
the forests themselves cover approxi-
mately one-half Of the total acreage.
Country WnI Need Every Acre.
such a situation menaces the de-
velopment OF the western states and
withholds from settlement lands which
are needed to assure a symmetrical
growth of the country. We are now
a nation of more than 10000, 600 Of
people, and If the increase of popula-
tion shall continue relatively anoth-
er generation will witness upon Am
erican soil 50,000.000 OF people and
II we escape the curse of the unnat-
ural and dangerous growth of the cit
les, every available acre OF public
lands must be open to the home build
er. 1t is urged, OF course, that there
are vast tracts withdrawn which are
incapable of settlement and cultiva-
ton, but except in the case Of high
mountains, river brakes and unwat-
cred deserts 1t is safe to predict that
II will be ultimately found that sub
stantially all the lands now withheld
from settlement will yield crops In
greater variety and abundance than
the hill farms of New England pro-
duced in their palmiest days.
THE patriotic and unselfish senti-
ment of the western country, as well
as that of the east is behind the con-
servation idea so far as ii is reason
able. We desire to see the coal. oil
and gas lands withheld from exploit
alton, and the scientific splendors Of
nature preserved in the natural parks
We shall welcome the time when the
selfish grasp of great corporations
upon the national resources shall be
broken. and when the unearned land
grants of the transportation compan-
les shall be returned to the general
government. We believe implicitly in
the idea that the remaining water
power upon the public domain should
be retained for the people and. If
necessary, developed by the govern
90, tln L..
favor the maintenance of the national
forests, not for the purposes for
which they have apparently been cre-
ated, or because we accept all the
theories which causd their creation,
but rather that the timber areas may
not pass into the hands of monopo-
listic interests, but may be used by
the common people and may be pre-
served for coming generations.
East's Conservation idea.
"The west differs from the east up
on this momentous question only upon
the problem presented by administra-
tion towit: the east demands a pro-
tected wilderness. The west would
encourage immediate use and occupa-
tion OF all these reservations so far as
they can be used and occupied the
east would enclose them in a fence
Of unconscionable regulations and dis
courage both use and settlement.
"The sentiment of the older portions
OF the country seems to be based up
on a belief that the population of the
western states is composed largely OF
land grabbers and timber thieves. and
the idea there obtaining seems to be
to withhold the public lands until
some vague, uncertain, tenuous time
in the distant future when all men
become honest.
1.-THE men Of the west who have
been brought in contact with the ac-
tual conditions know better than any
one else can know that abundant
fraud has colored public land affairs
for n generation. 1t Is misfortune
for the western country, especially a!
touching the promise of its future
that the statute of limitations ha.
thrown its protective arm over mer
who ought to be in the penitentiary
and that the doctrine of innocent pur
chasers guarantees to present owners
title to Illegal land entries, but sucl