| OCR Text |
Show CONSERVATION KEY OF PINCHOTS SONG Former Chief Forester Makes Strong Report to National Conservation Association. WANTS ORGANIZATION TO PUSH LEGISLATION Has Some Fault to Find, but Claims to Be Fair in Criticism. W'ASHJNGTOX. Feb. 7. -"Conservation the necessity for the passage at tho present session of congress of good laws for tho protection or tho natural resources re-sources of the United States" is the keynote key-note of a report just made to the National Na-tional Conservation association by Glf-ford Glf-ford Pinchol. recently chosen president of the association. Mr. Pinchot lakes up. in what ho calls "a spirit of constructive critic-tain" nlno bills relating to the conservation of natural nat-ural resources, introduced Into congress January IS. on behalf of the secretary of the interior, one of which" bus been reporter! re-porter! from the public lands committee, the other eight being still in the hands of the committee. Need for Activity. Mr. Pinchot calls upon tho members of tho association to put forth strong efforts ef-forts to have enacted into law tho bill on the withdrawal of public lands, which has boon reported in amended form from the comniltt'f by Senator N'elson, following follow-ing conferences between the committee and ortlo.ers of the conservation association. associa-tion. This hill. Mr. Pinchot thlnhs. should have tho ,,unqimHllcd support of tho members of Iho association." Of tUc other elsht bills, be believes that some merely require amendment, while others must, be recast. The coal bill and the phosphate, oil, asphaltum and natural gas bills, he reports, arc funda-monlally funda-monlally found in principle, but need some amendment. They wisely separate, he said, the surface sur-face of the land from the underlying minerals hh1 provide for tho disposal of tho minerals by lease and not by sale. But tb coal hill, he n-soeris. "contains no sufficient anti-monopoly clause. Tho clause that purposes to regulate rates to-be to-be charged tho public Is so framed that II mav be ovaded with case." 1 Another clause of the, bills, he adds, "mav- reduce the slanda.i'd of mining to Ihc wasteful level of tho prevailing commercial com-mercial practice." Other Faults Found. In regard to the hill for survey or railroad rail-road land grants, ho expresses the opinion opin-ion Hint it will enable the railroads prop-er prop-er Iv to perfect titles lo their lands, "but it overlookr. the long-penning undcrstnnd-n- between certain of the roads and the forest service for the return of railroad a vis within tho national forests .to .the niiled States. In return for Urn right to cut In one body an amount of limber crual to that, on tho lands returned. Tills "understanding. 1 says, requires onlv loKislatlon to make it effective. Spenklng of the waier power bil Mr. Pinchot. declared that 'It repeals In si-eneo si-eneo Um existing water powe.r law and curtails the already ample power now o--crciscd. with the approval o( a former attorney general, by tno department of ',STb"Vrovlslon in the bill for compensation compensa-tion to the government by the companies. l,CW-Sr "power sites should b- protected from private appropriation under the land laws- he says, and it should bo made no"flinlj to Issue to the companies permit per-mit m good for. and definitely terminating ac the end of flfiy year. Not Yet Satisfied. Tho fault found by Mr. I'inchot with the reclamation bill Is that it opens reelaimed re-elaimed lands to absent oo landlords and 'bad'feature of the bill for the sale of timber and timber minis, he. declares. Is that It replaces the. objectionable feit-nres feit-nres or the timber and stone act. which wa' the inducement to speculation In K,.vcrnmcnt timbers, with provisions that nipmote speculation and retard the de. velonnvnt of agricultural ami mineral la mis far mora than did the act It rc- ''Tnrailhig to separate the surface from the underlying miiK.rals. the biil for the classification of public lauds Is Inconsistent Incon-sistent with the coal bill, he llnds. "The withdrawal bill, as amended and reported by Senator Nelson, makes easy." said Mr. Pinchot. "the protection of all natural resources on tho public domain until good laws can be passed." The whole Influence- of tin; conservation association, ho declare, should be thrown bcniud the bill. |
