Evening star., 1924-06-01
BY HAROLD n. PHILIPS.

| BY HAROLD II. PHILIPS.
HERE was gathered at Get
| tysburg during the past week
an earnest group of men and
women who travelled to the
historic little Pennsylvania city from
every part of the United States to
discuss measures for averting a crisis
that is stealthiIy coming upon the
nation without the average citizen
of it's omnipresence.
1t was the fourth national conference
on state parks, and the outstanding
note that dominated each Of the ses-
sions that were held morning, noon
and night for three days was the
pressing need for averting the ever
increasing danger Of a tree famine.
From everywhere delegates brought
the same message of commercial de-
forestation without any visible effort
Of replacement.
| To the average. casual observer, the
| idea of a tree famine in the United
| States appears. perchance, too ridicu-
lous for words. Trees seem to abound
everywhere. Even within a mile or
two of the National Capital itself
nature seems to have supplied man
| with far more than he might need,
and when the dense forests of noun
| tain ranges within a short automo-
bile ride of Washington are consid-
ered the thought of tree shortage
apparently becomes little short of
madness.
Approaching Famine.
| d.. .ba fao@ rap,oipS 10 ono NAV
believe men and women who have
devoted their lives to study of the
situation, that the United States,
with all of its sparsley built areas
and it's empire of natural domain, is
rapidly approaching the crisis of
tree famine Forests capable of sup
plying the commercial needs for
| wood-lumber and timber-are rap
idly being stripped by the trees two
| worst enemies-the axe and the fire
| demon.
If there are two things that state
| and national parks can and VIII DO
| for the citizens of America they are
l-preserve the forests from wanton
and unnecessary destruction. and
provide the tired men and women of
the nation place where they may
| find real recreation, a playground in
which nature will give back to them
the vigorous health and peace that
the swirling business world has TAX
en- from them.
So. TO further this idea, to bring
their needs more and more to the at
tention of state and national authorl-
ties. the fourth national conference
on state parks convened for three
day session within the sacred pre-
cincts of one of the nations most
halIowed national parks-the battle
field of Gettysburg. In many ways IL
was one of the strangest. one OF the
most impressive conferences tnat mas
ever been held.
There were no rich organizations
to pay the expenses of the delegates
to the conference, no powerful corpo-
rations ready to lend their influence.
realized the need of their mission,
and each paid his or her own eXpen-
ses. gave of their time freely and
then contributed as much money as
they could toward fund Tor the
financing of similar conference, at a
place to be named later, next year.
Purposes Set Forth.
Judge John Barton Payne was the
chairman of the conference, and by
unanimous vote he will again have
charge of the meeting next year.
Judge Payne summed up the reasons
words on the opening day, when he
declared it to be a convention of
friends of the state parks. convened
to enable them to exchange views,
| take new ideas home from each other
and keep alive the ever-growing de-
| mand for state and national reser-
vations for the use of the people and
the protection of posterity.
The idea of such conference orig
| mated somewhat more than four
years ago. although the Gettysburg
! meeting was only the fourth. The
first was held at Turkey Run, Ind.
the second at Bear Mountain. in the
/ midst of Interstate Park. and the
| one previous to Gettysburg at Des
Moines, Iowa. The middle west is
! making strong bid for the next
one and it seems likely to win out.
| although Washington has appealed
northwest next spring in order to
help that states campaign for a
| state park bond issue, which will
| then be in full swing.
| At the present time just twenty
| six states have one or more state
parks There were at the Gettysburg
| conference representatives from every
| state. in the Union-the first time
| since the conference began that the
| whole nation has manifested an in
l
cry of the conference leaders is: "A
| state park in every state" And if
| the interest manifested by dele
gates at the last conference may be
| accepted as a harbinger, that ideal
will be achieved within few years.
Purposes of Parks.
| Although the functions of state and
national parks are more or less cor
LOT iri,,
National parks have the special func-
tion of representing some site of
outstanding historic value to the
whole nation, are representative of
the natural development of whole
section or are set aside because of
the marvellous scenic beauties that
are to be found in their confines.
| State parks serve the purpose of
supplementing the national parks.
There are scores of areas that should
be set aside for the use of the citi
| zens but can not be taken over by
the National Parks Service because
they would simply duplicate features
Ialready abundantly represented in ex.
listing national parks 1t is such
areas that the states could maintain
for the particular benefit of its own
citizens, and to this end the national
parks service is doing all it can to
further the idea of establishing state
parks in every commonwealth.
| stephen T. Mather, director OF the
national park service. gave some idea
is available for state parks when he
| said that there had been introduced
in the first session alone of the pres
ent Congress, twenty bills which
if they were enacted into law. Most
| of them, he said, covered areas that