River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1925-08-20
Wisconsin A Pioneer
In Reform Legislation
Many Movements of National I'm
portance Initiate in Badger State

Editors Note.-Not only in agri-
culture and industry is Wisconsin
watched by other states but the work
Of her Government has been of deep
interest to statesmen and students Of
political history in all parts of the
world For her political reforms,
the state has won an enviable repu
tation, and every true Badger hopes
that Wisconsin will continue to lead
in movement that mean better
state.
The same motive which impelled
the University of Wisconsin to de-
velop an institution which is of SER
vice to all the people operated in
placing Wisconsin in a position of
leadership in developing advanced
legislation on many public questions
The Wisconsin, Tax Commission,
which exercises general supervision
over the valuation or property for
tax purposes in the state, is one OF
the pioneers in this country. The
Wisconsin Industrial Commission
was established contemporaneously
with similar commissions in Califor-
MIA and Ohio, but it covers much
broader field than most such COM
missions, including not only work
mems compensation but health and
sanitation, safety, employment Of
fees, and other elements tending to
conserve the well-being of the work
ing classes of Wisconsin. Like
wise the state was one of the pion-
GERS in establishing Railroad Com
mission and giving supervision not
onlyover steam railroads but over
all public utilities.
Shouts Call to the Tourist
With the growth in the number of
automobiles and an increase of motor
touring, Wisconsin has set out to
make provisions for tourists. The
state is now known as the Play
ground of the Middle West. Geo.
graphically, it is located in the midst
Of group of rich and prosperous
states which are not gifted with the
scenic beauty-the lakes and forests
which the tourists seek. Topo-
graphically, as the brief description
of the state in this article indicates,
ii was fashioned by Nature to be a
playground in which thousands of
people might spend part of the heat
ed months under the wide open sky
or IN the shaded woodland. With
shore of 500 miles on two of the
Great Lakes, girdled on the west by
the Mississippi river, with thousands
Of lakeG, large area of forest coun-
try, interlnced by broad streams and
small rivers, with diversified topo-
graphy, from prairie land to rolling
Hill and abrupt crags and heights,
there is wide variety of scenery for
the tourist.
hunters ENJOY open WOOdS
The Wisconsin Conservation Com
mission was organized with view to
conserving the states fish and game
and. to supervise several state parks,
spots of unusual beauty which had
been set aside by the state. There
are several fish hatcheries devoted to
the propagation of different species
of game fish. The lakes of Wiscon-
sin are the habitat of the small
mouth black bass and other species,
the muskellunge, pike and pickerel,
while hundreds of small streams are
the home of the much sought brook
trout. Thousands of hunters go to
the northern woods every fall to
hunt deer. In the hunting season of
1919, $4,000 deer were secured by
these hunters. 1t is estimated that
a million wild ducks are bagged in
the state every year. In 1920, 1885,
600 hunting licenses were issued.
State Maintains Parks
There are eight state parks in
Wisconsin. Peninsula Park is in the
Door County Peninsula, north of
Green Bay. 1t contains 1000 acres,
a wooded area along the Green Bay
shore with striking scenery in the
form of limestone bluffs as the
shoreline. Interstate Park is tract
Of $50 acres, a portion of which lies
in the state of Minnesota, and in
cludes the rugged scenery along the
Dells of the St. Croix. Twelve miles
south of Superior is Pattison State
Park, 660 acres, within which is the
highest waterfall in the state, drop
Of 100 feet.
Perrot Park includes Trempealeau
Mountain, the most striking piece Of
rugged scenery on the Upper Mis-
sissippi river and the spot where
Nicholas Perrot, the French explorer,