The Colorado statesman., 1913-01-18
western Newspaper Union News Service.


Denver.-Governo Z. NJ. Ammons
delivered bis inaugural address to the
Nineteenth General Assembly of Colo
rado on Tuesday, the 14th. In part,
the governor said:
To the Members of the Nineteenth
General Assembly of the State OF
Colorado:
Greeting: You are here as the rep
resentatives of the people of the state,
not to make partisan politics, but to
enact laws for the benefit of all the
citizens OF our commonwealth. You
must bear in mind that this is a state
OF great variety of Industrial and bus
mess conditions; that there will be
seeming conflict of interests to ad-
Just. The field of legislation must be
entered with wisdom and tolerance. i
believe every member is inspired by
the best motives, and | expect to see
splendid results.
Roads and Parks.
Perhaps the most urgent necessity
upon us at the present. time for the
advancement of farming, mining and
all kinds of industrial pursuits is the
construction of q systematic network
of highways throughout the state. We
have many sections OF good road, but
in very few places are they properly
connected. In order to carry out a
harmonious plan we must first build
the main arteries reaching all sections
of the state and make connections
with every locality easy. To bring
about such a result the work must be
under the supervision of some eff
cient centralized body. Such a system
would not only enable us to reach
settle up and develop every portion
OF our state. but it would also furnish
the best possible means to market our
farm and other products and to secure
the tourist travel now looking for an
opportunity to visit the Rocky Noun
tains Even with our present discon-
nected system of highways. automo-
bile tourists are visiting most portions
of the state and advertising to the
world our wonderful variety of scenic
beauty. We are especially favored with
natural attractions and all we need to
secure the lions share OF this travel is
the construction of good roads. In
1915 the transcontinental highways
will be lined with automobiles, headed
toward the Panama eNpositions on the
Pacific coast. and unless we complete
the main arteries of our system by
that time we can hope for but little
OF this trade. If we have our highways
in good condition, we may reasonably
hope for most OF IL, because in no
other place within the same amount
of territory can so many scenic at
fractions will be found.
Transportation and Marketing Condi-
tions.
Inquiry has shown that we are an
nually importing into this state for
our own use livestock and agricultural
products to the amount of $40 per cap
ita or about $S2,000.000 year. This
is counting only those products we
should produce ourselves. Neverthe-
less this year we had an immense
quantity of fruit and other farm crops
for which there was no available mar
ket or no transportation facilities
through which they could be sold at
Il profit Thousands of tons of the
best fruit ever produced in the state
went to waste. Much of this was per-
ishable and if moved at all had to be
shipped within Il very limited time
Had there been ample manufacturing
facilities much of this crop could have
been put in condition to hold over for
use in years of scant production.
State Forestry System.
The Eighteenth General Assembly
authorized the appointment of a state
iOltolNl uuutI lle OIL ABTlCul"
ture and enacted legislation to put
into effect most salutary laws in be-
half of forestry in this state. The APP
preparation did not become available
until year later ana then only a part
of 1t. Enough was secured, however
TO effect the organization of the serv-
ice. The Agricultural College has es-
tablished course of study in forestry
Its purpose is to teach the growing of
trees, to make experiments looking to
the discovery of more valuable woods
than are now grown in this state, and
It has secured the permission of Con
gress to purchase 1,60O acres of eN-
perimental plots in the several alti-
tudes at which timber Will grow in
this state.
Tho General Assembly should make
the appropriation of $4,000 necessary
TO secure this valuable land | mad
hoped, inasmuch as we were educating
the youth of the state to handle the
forestry problem of both state and
federal lands. that the government
would give to us from its more than
100000 acres of forest reserves in
Colorado the small amount of 1,6O0
acres. We failed, however, to secure
the consent of the forest service and
Congress required us to pay for it.
irrigation.
The development of our irrigation
system is the most important factor
in our agricultural growth. Expert
ence has taught us that by storing
and holding within the state a large
portion OF the natural water supply
that comes to us in the way of snow
and rainfall. We will, during the course
OF time. add almost indefinitely to the
amount of land we may irrigate.
Public Defense.
To extend our irrigated territory as
we should. the state must defend its
title to the streams which rise within
st. BY congressional enactment we
were given these waters nearly a half