The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-03-06
sHAFRoTH's PROTEST.

SENATOR sHAFRoTH's PROTEST,
Senator John +. Shafroth of Colo
rado entered upon his term with n
vigorous protest against the ultra
conservation policies of the Clifford
Pinchot tribe. Pinchot, by the way,
has been terribly shaken by reason of
triumphant opposition to his ideas and
fads, and has been writing pleading
letters for support that fails. The
action of the u. S. Senate adverse to
| the Connecticut river dam tax levy,
which involved the proposition of pay
| ing to the Government for the power
developed in streams navigable or
otherwise, was body blow to the prin-
ciples embodied Ill the distinctively
known Pinchot policies. Senator
Shafrotb is dctermincdly opposed TO
all those fads, He objects to the
programme Of all the conservationIsts
from Clifford Pinchot down.
His protest is directed especially TO
the proposed royalties on minerals
and lumber on the public lands. He
points out the policies that have
prevailed in this country heretofore
with regard TO all these matters, and
shows that it is the only policy that
will bring development, enterprise, and
the utilization and settlement Of the
public domain. There has been moth
ing heretofore in the history Of the
country in the way Of requiring royal
ties Of this kind. There is precise
ly the same reason and principle in
c1acting n royalty from homesteaders
or other settlers on the public domain
from their agricultural operations that
there is for demanding royalty or
leasing charge upon mineral lands,
timber lands, or coal or oil lands. If
the government is going to oppress
settlers and those who occupy the pub
lie lands for any purpose by requiring
royalties, there is no reason why the
royalty should not be exacted on all
kinds of public lands as we'll as on
merely few.
1t is all well enough TO talk about
the great fortunes that men make in
mining and in the cutting OF timber
But, as has been justly urged from the
very first of the discussion Of these
questions, thousands fail to get any
thing important in mining where one
succeeds, but take the average cost OF
finding and opening the mines. includ-
ing even moderate pay for all pros
pectors that fail as well as those
who succeed, and balance this cost
against the production of all the
mines, taking into account the most
profitable of them, it would be found
that every dollar of net money would
be taken to pay the whole cost Of
all those engaged in prospecting for
and opening mines.
1t is true that a few arc fortunate
and make money. But 1T is also true
there arc thousands who make moth
ing, and who pass their lives without
any reward, save only the hope in
their breasts that some day they Will
'strike it rich, and so they keep on
prospecting for all the years that they
are able to go into the hills. finally
passing away with no reward. The
hope in their breasts. however, has
been alive ali the years of their efforts,
and at 10 time would they have been
willing to give up the quest.
Still, as an economic question, when
considering it all, the cost has beeu
as much, probably more, than the
profit, and except for this prospecting,
which, for the most parG, results in
nothing, even the great mines might
never have been discovered. The prop.
ostion that the Government must
now step in when presumably the
cream of all the great mining opera
tions has been skinned off, and under
take TO get something from the
'skimrnel milk, - is a prepostefous no.
ton altogether.
The same, in a modified way. may
be said of the proposition to lease-tax
timber lands and coal lands Unless
The riches and resources OF the coun.
try are open to exploration and de-
yelopment, this exploration and de.
velopment will not be made.
We are glad to see that the Western
opposition to these Pinchot fads is
being heard and fairly considered in
the country at large, so that in the
II, 5. Senate it is possible to outvote
che conservation faddists. For mum
ber of years it was impossible to get
any consideration for the sensible and
legal side OF this question. 1t was as.
sumed by everybody that the people of
the country at large had some vital,
4 rich and comnpI1ino i,tnraet 80, -