Evening journal., 1913-11-01

general welfare by the improvement
OF the public health.
1T defines tho rules by which these
great works are to be constructed,
vests the necessary authority in the
secretary Of the interior to do the
work, leaves in the hands of congress
questions of policy and appropria-
uons, and safeguards the financial in
terests Of the United States.
The bill is designed TO give the
secretary full power without attempt
Ing to be too specific and definite as
to the manner IN which the work
shall be done. II gives him authority
to employ competent engineers and ex-
perts to work out systematic plans for
broad, comprehensive projects that
shall embrace all the lands in each
basin as a unit Such a policy will
enable the secretary to establish a de-
finite plan of food protection, drain
age and reclamation work for the
entire country and thus avoid waste
OF money and effort through the con-
struction of local works in unrelated
units.
THE bill is not confiscatory, neither
does it infringe upon state or private
rights. II does not give the secretary
of the interior the right to reclaim in
dividual or state lands without the
consent Of the owners, but only upon
petition of these owners.
"The bill recognizes that the re-
clamation of our overfiowed and
swamp lands is one vast problem and
the most momentous the people Of the
! United States have yet to solve, and
that its solution, in order to be com
plete and successful, must proceed
along the broadest possible lines in
each locality of every state, without
unnecessary delay. II recognizes that
the government of the United States is
charged under the constitution with
certain duties in the way of protecting
its citizens and preserving their be-
longings, and that the performance OF
| these duties should be no longer de-
layed
THE economic loss to our country
every year, due to the prevalence of
malaria and other diseases that are
caused by the presence of undrained
swamps and lowlands, amounts to
Sl62.000, 900, according to DR.. William
a. Evans. former health commissioner
Of Chicago
"The property loss every year due
to floods FRANCES from s10O,OO0,OOO to
S35O,OOO.000
"The swamp and overflow area un-
RECLAIMED is nearly S0.O00000 acres,
an area as large as Maine, Ohio, lndi-
ana and Illinois combined.
I'm addition there are 150,000,00O
acres of cultivated lands which pro-
duce only so per cent of what they
should yield, because they are too
wet
"The United States government,
Through the Reclamation Service. has
reclaimed and is reclaiming arid lands
in the West by means of irrigation
lproiects, which are entirely in private
Ownership, and assessing the cost OF
the work against the land. The drain
age bill provides for the same thing,
the collection of the assessments to
/ be made by the State authorities or
by the duly organized State drainage
or levee districts.
"The Constitution gives the United
States the right to act in matters
touching two or more States, upon
petition of the States Every great
1 flood which devastates the country is
an interstate problem whose solution
requires correlated and co-ordinated
work among several States. There can
he no questioning of the statement
that the flood problem, and the drain
age and reclamation problem, and the
lproblem OF navigation and interstate
commerce waterways, are so inter
woven that no one can tell exactl,
where one ends and the other strts.
The most powerful, most destruc
tive, most d. serous, most persistent
and nearest enemies of the people arr
internal enemies-forces of nature
These forces kill more persons eacl
year than were slain in battle an,
died from gunshot wounds on botl
lsides during our terrible civil war
and the property destroyed each yea
lis worth more than the cost of ou
war with Spain.
"The passage of H. R. S1S9 viii
start the successful opposition to ant
bring about the eradication of thes
internal enemies; floods, diseases re