The Colorado statesman., 1924-05-17

nothing more than establish peace ana co-opera'
ton between the Interior and Agricultural depart
ments, it will accomplish much. tor ten years
the Agricultural department has staged the aS.
tonishng spectacle of a campaign both open ana
secret to wrest from the Interior department the
control of the national parks 1t has set up the ma
tiOnal forests-established for the purely CONNER
cial purposes of numbering, grazing and forest pro-
tectiOn-as competitors of the national parks In
outdoor recreation. 1t has spent hundreds OF thou
sands of dollars in building roads and establishing
centers for purely recreation purposes The
charge Is made that 1t opposes the creation of ma
tional parks-because national parks are usually
taken from national forests. 1t would transfer
the national service bodily from the Interior de-
partment to the Agricultural department. There
strong intimations in the tentative program
that this warfare between the two departments
will be stopped and the question settled. There
is also the further intimation that there may be
established class of recreation reservations,
possibly under control of a new kind Of admins
trative body.
The discriminating render has doubtless noted
that the pictures herewith something entirely
new-photographs of national park scenery from
arplanes. Such photography Is exceedingly diff
fcult and dangerous because of air conditions
among the high peaks. The Tetons (about $4,000
feet) are in western Wyoming, famous land
marks and included in the proposed addition
to Yellowstone National park. Mount Whitney
Q45O1 feet) is the highest mountain in continental
United States 1t is in California and is included
in the proposed Roosevelt -Sequoia National park
The photograph of Haleakala Q1,000 feeD in the
Hawaiian National park shows the grea, cvater full
to the rim of bowing clouds.
But the million and more visitors to the nation
nj marks and monuments must still go in by
and new roads continuously being made for
them A small picture shows construction work
on the wind River Canyon highway near Their
monolis Wyo., to be opened this The
road is pnrt of the Yellowstone highway and the
National Parkto-Park highway. 1t is 13 miles
long 90 per cent of Its grading is solid granite
and the cost Is over $50OOOO.
1t would take pages instead of columns TO give
all the national park news. There are thirteen
bills in congress for the establishment of new na-
tionn parks The fitness of Bryce canyon In Utah
has been officially established Secretary Work
has appointed a committee to make an exploratory
survey of the Southern Appalachian mountains.
Visitors to the national parks in 1923 numbered
12SO $50 and to the national monuments 212,32e
"a considerable Increase Rocky Mountain, as
usual led with 21S.0OO. Yellowstone second
with l3S352 Private automobiles numbered 271,
49, Rocky Mountain had two mouths of winter
sports in February and March ana many visitors.
The famous Fall River road C1797 feet) over
the Roof of the World' will be cleared of snow
and open for travel June 10
The national park revenues for the fiscal year
of 1923 were S5l3477. Senator Shortridge of Cal
fornia has introduced a bill providing for their
use in the parks; they now go into the treasury.
Congress has just passed a bill authorizing the
making of a road budget in the nationa! parks and
monuments which calls for S7,5OO,0oO ~ be spread
over three-Jear period.