The Newark journal., 1922-03-16

that he had protested to President
 Harding against the circulation of
 vicious propaganda emanating from
 the Department of Agriculture" The
 battle, in brief, is over legislation,
 pending and prospective, which would
 transfer the forest service from the
 Agriculture department to the Interior
 department and practically turn over
 the development of the natural re
 sources of Alaska to the Interior de
 partment, with responsibility to the
 President. This battle is not q petty
 quarrel between two departments. It
 is real battle between two cabinet
 members. Some of the old-timers take
 if so seriously as to predict the resig-
 nation Of one or the other of the
 secretaries. Moreover, the battle is
 significant IS indicating the difficult ties that lie in the way of the proposed
 reorganization of all the executive
 departments.
 Until 1905 the Interior department controlled all the public lands. The national forests were then created for the application of scientific lumber ing and grazing and the forest service was established to administer them. The Interior department retained con trol of the remaining public lands and the ten national parks, established for recreational purposes. In the national forests the Interior department is charged with the execution of all laws relating to surveying prospect ing. locating, appropriating, entering, reconyeying or patenting of public lands and to the granting of rights of way amounting to easements The national forests now number 16S in 2l states and territories and contain about 242, 200 square miles. The na- tional parks now number 19 and con tain 10s59 square miles.
 The national park service was ere 1 ated in 1916 to administer the national parks under the secretary of the in- terior. The Agricultural department then began campaign in print, and from the platform, for the transfer of
 the national park service to the Agri-
 cultural department. IL also set up
 the national forests as recreatIonal
 rivals of the national parks.
 Then came the proposed reorgani-
 zation of the executive departments,
 approved by the President Under
 this reorganization, the Interior de
 partment would become practically q
 public works department. One cen
 templated transfer is that of the for
 est service from the Agricultural de
 partment.
 On top of this came the concern
 about the plight Of Alaska, which Is not prospering. "Too much bureau cratic government" was one cry that was raised. It is now proposed tC take Alaska out of the hands of the many bureaus and hand it over 10 the Interior department for admnistra- ' ton and development. The secretary Is already building the government
 Alaskan railroad and controls the oi , and mineral deposits in the nationa forests The two big national for. ests i'll Alaska are the Tongass anC , Chugae, containing 220.000 acres. Sec retary Fall approves this disposition of Alaska It has been announced ' that President Harding will visit Alas } ka this summer to get frst-hand infor nation. It was planned that Secre tary Fall should be in the presidential
 party.
 Naturally the Department of Agricul : ture is not pleased with thls program ? The American Forestry association [ has sent out much "literatuae" pro ! testing against ii. Some of It is pret l ty strong. The gist of it is that th, ? transfer of the national forests mean $ their exploitation by private inter l ests" Anyway, Secretary Fall say : he is being held up to "execration 1 public abuse and pirate caiumny." Q THE United States has formally de
 \ clined the invitation of the allie [ powers to participate in the European ' financial and economic coAferenc 7 which is now set for April 10 at GenGa E The dcclination runs from Secretar E of State Hughes to the Italian amhas z sador Senator Rieci. The documen l is q gem of purest ray serene. Tn |, language is friendly, the statement Q are plain. the meaning unmsrakablt 2 In diplomatic terms he says that th r conference is not primarily economi
 but is rather conference of po!iti
 cal character in which the Unite T. States cannot helnfuliy participate [ Nothing doing See you later. Wish 1 Ing you good luck. remain. etc. 7 k about the way II would read in tt . vernaeRiar of course Europe Is als ! =. ned. Il is g.ge-a''y ada-.t;e