Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1922-01-06
WHAT WISCONSIN MUST DO To
DEVELOP THE SUMNER TOUR
IST BUSINESS
BY F. \, Cannon, Secretary, Wiscoa.

BY +. \. Cannon, Secretary, Wiscoa-
sin Lakes and Parks Association.
\ few years before his death, I'resi-
dent Chan les r. Van Hise Of the Uni
versity of Wisconsin, in an address on
conservation made a prediction which
is becoming more and more significant
every day. He discussed the fact that
Just as parks are an imperative neces-
sity to large communities. when the
state becomes more denscly populated,
state parks will become Il necessity.
At that time he said Il large part of
the area Of Wisconsin was practically
a free territory used by the people as
they desired, and continued
AS the state becomes inhabited 10
its full capacity this condition will
pass away ANA practically the only
land which will be available for such
purposes viii be the land owned by
the state. Therefore while lands are
still cheap the state should acquire in
its various parts a number of parks
which will be perpetually the breath
ing grounds to be used by the people
of the state"
Recent developments make that
statement almost prophetic. The beau
ty spots of Wisconsin are either being
destroyed by the hand Of man or fast
failing into private ownerships. This
is especially true of our lake and for
est areas In lower Wisconsin the lake
frontage is private property, fenced
in with the warming sign, Private
Property OFF, Most OF our
beautiful forests have been cut, es-
pecially on the water fronts.
The state of Wisconsin is today in
the same position as our large cities
were fifty or sixty years ago. The
Illinois Central railroad occupies the
lake front in Chicago and the city of
Chicago is now spending millions Of
dollars building new lake front Que
side of the railroad tracks The city
Of Milwaukee is somewhat similarly
situated and spending hundreds Of
thousands of dollars building new
Northwestern railroad tracks. 1t must
be remembered that on the inland lakes
new lake frontage cannot be Duilt.
Once lost it is practically. lost forever.
There are many beauty spots in Wis
consin. Normally the tendency of tour
lists is and will be to HE themselves to
the lake and forest region of the north
Their journey through Wisconsin viii
benefit all parts of the state In the
north however, lake shore frontage is
rapidly falling into the hands of pri-
vate owners and the sign Private
Property Keep or is even now ap-
pearing.
The tremendous increase in the num-
ber of motor vehicles, there are 32J, 200
in Wisconsin, and 100000 in Illinois,
and the improved highways, has i'll
creased the number of tourists by leaps
and bounds Within ten years it is
safe to predict that practically all the
upper Wisconsin lake frontage will he
private holdings and the general public
will be barred If we wish TO save the
conserve some of the beauty spots of
the state especially those in upper
Wisconsin which will soon be lost.
Lakes and forests are what lure most
of the tourists. We have no state park
in the lake and forest region. Of our
seven state parks. two were chosen be-
cause of historic interest. three of them
are odd and beautiful geological form
ations. and one overlooks the blue W.T.
ters of Lake Michigan
The impelling motiEe which led to
the organization of the Wisconsin
Lakes and Parks Association were the
facts cited abOve-t0 conserve WiscOn-
sins beauty spots before too late. Its
first effort will be to put on "a cam
paign to raise fund to purchase the
Northern Lakes Park on the boundary
of Price and Sawyer counties to pre-
sent to the state for park purposes.
The virgin forest i'll the park is in dam
ger of immediate destruction as the
ring Of the Woodlands axe is heard ut
its border. and the logging railroad has
been laid into the park. Ii is a beau