The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1912-04-02
Col Roosevelt Talks of the Aims
of Campaign in Which He
Is Engaged.
APPEALS TO ALL THE PEOPLE
Object Is to Restore and Secure Con-
troll of the Government to Those
to Whom II Rightly Belongs
The Welfare of the
Farmer.

spoke as follows:
The purpose of the progressives in
this campaign is to restore and secure
to the plain people that position OF
control in the government OF their own
country which in the working of our
institutions is being insidiously wrest
ed from thea. We make our appeal
alike to business man and profession
al man, to wage-worker and farmer.
In this speech propose to deal chiefly
with the needs of the farmer; for there
is nobody of whose economic liberties
and opportunities we progressives
more earnestly desire to conserve and
enlarge Speaking to the farmers, and
to all others who have insight to
grasp the essential dependence of the
nation on the producers of it's food, !
shall briefly discuss two great public
questions of vital and far-reachirg i'm.
portance; the conservation of natural
resources and the betterment of coun-
try life
ut is one of the chief duties-and it
is the highest priYilege-of President
of the United States to be the active
leader and exponent of policies which
will help the people to obtain such
legislative and administrative reforms
as are required to meet any reasonable
popular demand which makes for the
common good. While was president
! had found that in the first matter
the conservation of the nations re-
sources-the national conscience had
been moved, and that in the second
the condition and outlook of rural pop
ulation-there was a widespread feel
ing that things were wrong. Conse-
quently / took definite action In the
hope and belief that adequate rene
dies would De provided. and ! now
stand for the revival and development
of the policies thus initiated.
upon conservation | can be brief,
for, in its broad outlines at least, the
subject is generally understood. What
first called attention to the gravity of
the question was the destruction of
the national forests. 1t happened for
tunately that this important asset of
the national wealth came, during my
administration. under the charge of
Clifford Pinchot, to whom, more than
to any other man, Is due the credit for
having this national peril brought
prominently to public notice. He was
the first man to realize that the waste
of the nations supply of timber with
the incidental injury alike to irriga-
ton, water power and navigation in
our big rivers) was only typical of a
wrong attitude of mind in the nation
at large towards our heritage and our
duty to the generations which are to
come after US.
Policy of Conservation.
p 1.-THE conservation idea caught the
popular imagination and the conser-
walton policy rapidly took shape In
the spring of 1908 ! called the govern
ors of all the states and territories
to meet at a conference in the nation
al capitol There 1t was unanimously
resolved that the great prosperity of
our country rests upon the abundant
resources of the land chosen by our
forefathers for their homes" that
these resources are "a heritage to be
made use of in establishing and pro-
noting the comfort, prosperity and
happiness of the American people, but
not to be wasted, deteriorated, or
needlessly destroyed, and that this ma
terial basis is threatened with exhaus-
ton" that conservation of our nat
scendent Importance, which should en-.
gage unremittingly the attention of the
nation, the states and the people in
earnest cooperation; and that this
cooperation should find expression in
suitable action by congress and by the
legislatures of the several states"
Il followed this up by the appoint
ment of the National Conservation
commission which made the first in
ventory of natural resources ever pre-
pared for any country. 1t had begun
Investigations as the necessary first
Re steps to enable congress and the legis-
latures of the several states to make
intelligent and effective application of
the unanimous announcement by the
chief executives Of the states and ter
ritories With this unanimous pro-
nouncement by the chief executives of
the states and territories in support OF
the conservation idea, 1t was clearly a
case where the President of the United
States should formulate and lead a
conservation policy. This was done.
Unfortunately the policy thus begun
was completely reversed. by the ap.
pointment Of Mr. Ballinger and the dis
missal of Clifford Pinchot
Object OF Forest Protection.
The long fight to protect the for.
ests OF the United States has not been
to keep them out of use, but on the
contrary to encourage the utilization
Of them to the fullest extent consis
tent with preserving their power ol
service to the people for all time. Con
servation IL not keeping out OF us&
but Ia putting things to the best use