Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1912-01-29

900 acres of arid and semiarid land
which could be irrigated IL the water
In the tributaries of the navigable
rivers was stored at flood time and
distributed during seasons Of bought;
these would produce at least $50 an
acre, or $1,050,000 900. The annual
loss from forest fires, soil erosion,
etc., is approximately 100000, 900.
This makes the grand total Of $4,000
100000 that would be saved annually
~ the Newlands bill is passed and its
provisions carried into effect And
this does not take into account the
benefit to the public health, the in.
creased transportation facilities due
to river navigation, and the added
manufacturing industries that such a
vast increase in agricultural produc.
tiveness would support.
Edmund T. Perkins of Chicago, vice
president and acting president of the
National Drainage Congress, who was
the engineer of the Reclamation Ser
ice for several years. is an ardent
supporter of the Newlands bill. 1T
is such a splendid constructive meas
ure and with such far reaching bene-
fetal effects to the entire country
that it ought to be passed immedi-
ately" he said, it is all that the irri-
cation advocates could want, all that
the drainage enthusiasts could wish
for, all that the forest men could de-
sire. it provides for the conservation
of the water, forest and soil resources
Of the whole country"
George H. Maxwell, director Of the
Pittsburgh Flood Commission is more
enthusiastic even than Mr.. Perkins.
Mr.. Maxwell is a member Of the exec
utive committee from Pennsylvania,
of the National Drainage Congress.
"The Newlands BILL" says Mr..
Maxwell, "unites every aspect of the
conservation in comprehensive plan
that can be carried out by the federal
government, for the benefit of the
whole nation; and does it in what |
consider the only constitutional way
such a work can be done-under the
policy Of aiding interstate navigation
and controlling. regulating and stand
ardizing the flow of navigable rivers
Fragmentary Attempts.
Senator Newland spoke against the
passage of the White Mountain and
Appalachian forest reserve bill. He
explained that he did so, not because
he was opposed to the objects Of the
measure, but because he considered
it an addition to the "fragmentary
legislation in which congress has thus
far INDUCED regarding the develop
ment of our rivers" Commenting
his measure, Senator Newlands said:
Zone difficulty about the waterway
propaganda has been that 1t has been
almost impossible to bring together
in one scheme of legislation the var
ious people and sections that were in
terested in different branches of the
propaganda.
II do not doubt the power of the
nation to acquire property or to dc
the work that either directly or In
directly accomplishes the regulation
of stream flow in navigable rivers OF
their tributaries, and I do not douD'
The mower of the nation to do this
either in one comprehensive measure
or piecemeal, taking up forests, irrl
cation, drainage, water storage. bani
protection and dredging, each by II
! self, But do contend that the peace
meal way is very injudicious metn
cd of approaching the suestion; IN
| judicious, because broad and compre
hensive plans. requiring the dovetai
Ing of these various acquisitions an
work with each other, are absolutel:
necessary in order to secure econom!
of expenditure and efficiency Of de
velopment.
II feel that the apportionment o
q waterway fund as between section
would secure contemporaneous Worl
in all of them, and by this step w
abandon the spoils system the piece
meal system and the fragmentary lee
islation of the past.
Prom this time forth we must real
ize that the country needs and VII
demand from congress legislation tina
will include the full regulation an
development of all the waterways o
the United States.
crux Of the Problems.
| "What does the development OF tn
waterways as efficient machines TO
transportation require? 1t requires
primarily the regulation of river flow
How can that stream flow be regu
lated and controlled? BY the pre-
vention OF floods. And how are floods
prevented? We can make use OF th'
natural reservoirs which nature ha
offered for the absorption of the wat
res that fall from the heavens, ant
we can create artificial reservoirs TO
the storage of flood waters.
"Now what are the natural reser
voirs? Clearly they are the forest
and the agricultural lands which ab
slbnb the rainfall and the melting
SHOWS. Our aim should be to every
where increase the porosity and alb
sorbent properties Of the soil so tina
it will prevent the pricipitate run-off:
which swell our streams and navig
able rivers into great floods, hurting
destruction along their pathways ant
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