The Vinita daily chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1902-1913, 1912-02-22
vinita, Okla. Thursday, February 22.

Spokane, Wash. Feb. 22-Charging
political conseryationists with so
grossly misrepresenting the facts re-
garding the country's natural resources
that a credulous public has come TO
believe there should be a reversal Of
the governments theory and policy;
that title to water powers. coal, oil
and phosphate lands should be held
in perpetuity by the government, and
that the right to exploit them through
leases, John G. Ralston. formerly city
engineer of Spokane and member of
the American Society Of Civil Engi-
neers, said in the address at the north
west mining convention in Spokane
that the policy Of Withholding the
power sites constitutes a peryersion Of
national conservation and develop
ment.
Mr. Ralston said that of the S7,00O.-
900 horse power minimum available in
the United States not more than =
100000 is developed while of the 20,-
100000 horse power minimum avail
able in the rivers west OF the CONT
mental divide not more than per cent
is developed II these water powers
we're in use there would be a saving
of coal and oil annually amounting to
S4,721 ,040, ,450 The minimum water
power available in the Columbia river
basin alone equals one-third of that
of the United States The state OF
Washington contains the largest
amount of available water power of any
state in the Union 1t totals 4,000,000
Of which less than 6 per cent is de
yeloped If in use this would repre-
sent the equivalent of l0S,000,000 tons
of coal every year,
"With the water power sites with
drawn or their development restricted
by the federal government" Mr. Raj
ston continued, "t needs no fanciful
Imagination to understand how effec
lively and malicously the theory OF
encouragement and national develop
ment is being prevented. More start
ling, this perversion Of our dearest
tradition, this theory of discourage
ment and strangulation is the first ap
pallng evident of national decadence
1T must be evident to those who are
familiar with conditions, that whereas
by virtue of a benign and fostering
policy on the part of the federal gov
ernment, wherein the boundless west
leaped from infancy to adolescence
under the theory Of encouragement
and national development, it now finds
itself struggling for life under the
antithesis of that theory which is ex
pressed by discouragement and strang
ulation.
while it is too often customary il
these days of bureaucratic nostrum:
to condemn without offering recon
struction material, desire to submit
for consideration as a substitute fol
the present form of power agreement
now enforced by the forestry service o
the United States the following
The government should make grants
to responsible parties on an indeter
inmate franchise similar to that adopt
ed by the state of Wisconsin for fran
chises for public utility companies
This would be a grant practically dur
ing good behavior, this question to b,
subject to review by the courts only
The government should retain TIL,
right to regulate service and rates il
case the state in which the propert
lies negleets TO provide for such regp
lation. Probably where the propert,
lies within more than one state, o
where the business served is inter
state business, the government shoult
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