Show THE PUBLIC 0 0 ima A I 1 N president taft in message to congress points out needs of various sections ALASKA TOO LONG urgent need of legislation that shall develop the resources resource of the territory and afford protection to settlers would have government build and own a trunk line ra railroad it waterway improvements improvement washington feb 2 president tatt taft sent the following message to congress today to the senate and house of representatives senta tives I 1 there Is no branch of the federal luris jurisdiction diction which calls more imperatively t ive I 1 Y for immediate legislation than that which concerns the public d domain and especially the part of that domain blomain which Is in alaska the progress pro groBa under the reclamation ilet has bag made clear the detects defects of its limitations which should be remedied the rules governing the acquisition of homesteads of land that la Is not arid or semiarid semi arid aro are not well fell adapted to the perfecting of title to land made arable by government reclamation work with the secretary of at the th interior in hla his recommendation that after entry Is made upon land being reclaimed actual occupation as n homestead of the tha same bo be rot not re quiren until two years atter after entry but that cultivation of tho the same name shall be required and that the present pro virdon under which the land la is to be paid for in ten annual installments bleill be so modified modi lied as aa to allow a patent issue for the land at the end of ivo years cultivation and three years oc with a reservation of it 11 government lien for the amount of the purchase money this leniency to the reclamation homesteader Bt mill relieve him from rom occupation at a time when the alie condition of the land ginakes it most moat burdensome and difficult and at the end of five yeatis will furnish him with a title tiann upon which he can borrow money and continue the improvement of hla his holding balso I 1 also concur in the recommendation of the secretary ot of the interior th hatt atall domains bould it thai each class all should be disposed of or administered tn in the manner most appropriate to that particular class leasing of government lands land tho the chief cli change ango however which ought to be made and which I 1 have already recommended in previous messages and communications to congress Is that by which government coal land and phosphate and other mineral lands containing nonmetal non metal li ferous minerals shall be ba leased by the government restrictions as to size and lime resembling those which now obtain throughout the country between the owners in fee and the lessees lessels who work the mines and in leases like those which have hav been most successful la in australia new zealand and nova scotta ahe the made by investigations into the successful working ot of the leasing system leaves kayes no doubt as aa to ftp wisdom ond and practical utility requirements as ag to the tha w working of the mine min during tho the term may be so BO trained framed as an to prevent any holding of largo large mining properties merely tor for speculation a white while the royalties loa i may ay bo be made low not unduly to increase the coltof cost of the coal mined and nt at the same sama time sufficient to furnish n r reasonable income for the use of the public in tho the community where the tb mining roes on in alaska there la Is no reason why a substantial income should not thus be raised for such public works na as may be deemed necessary or useful would build trunk una line railroad I 1 am not in favor of government ownership where the samo same certainty nd and of service can be had by private enterprise but I 1 think the conditions presented in alaska are of such a tha character as to warrant tho the government tor for the purpose of en cou raging the tha development of that vast and remark remarkable ablo territory to build and own a trunk una line railroad which it bmw an lease on terms which may be ba varied and changed to meet the growing prosperity and development of the territory I 1 have already recommended to congress the tha establishment ot of a form of cominis commission slon government for alaska the teI territory tory to is too extended its needs are ara too varied and its distance rom washington too remote to enable congress to keep up with its ita necessities in the th mutter matter of legislation ot of it a ocal local character tho the governor of alaska in his report points put out certain laws that ought to be adopted and emphasizes what I 1 have hare said as to the immediate need nead for a government of much wider wide powers than now exists there it if it can be aad said to have bare my any government att at all ail lower colorado river there to la transmitted herewith a tetter letter from the secretary of the interior setting betting out the work done under joint resolution approved june 28 25 1910 authorizing the expenditure of or so BO much thereof as might be necessary nece aary to be expended by the president for the purpose 0 of protecting lands and property in the imperial valley and elsewhere along tho the colorado river in arizona the money was expended and the protective works erected but the disturbances in mexico so delayed the work and the floods in the colorado river were so extensive that a part of the works have been carried away and the need for further action and expenditure pend iture tura of money exists water power sites in previous communications to congress I 1 have pointed out two methods by which the water power sites on non streams may be controlled as between the state and the national government it has seemed wise that the control should be concentrated cent cont rated in one government or the other as the active participant in supervising its use by private enters enter prise the secretary of the interior bm suggested another method by which the water power site shall be leased leaned directly by the government to those thos w who ho exercise a public franchise under provisions imposing a rental toy for the water power to create a fund to bo be expended expanded by bt the general gai govern ment for the improvement ol of aho stream and the benefit of tho the local community where the power site it Is and permitting the state to regulate reg ulato the rates at which the converted 10 power la Is sold the latter method sug our by the secretary Is a mote more direct method for federal control and in view of tho the probable union and systematic organization and welding together of the power derived from water within a radius of or miles I 1 think it better that tho the power of control should remain in the national government than that it should be turned over to the states under such a system tho the federal government would have such direct su ou siou of the whole matter that any honest administration could easily prevent the abuses which a monopoly of absolute ownership in private persons or companies would malm mako possible por for some borne years past the high and steadily increasing cost coat of living has been a matter ot of such grave public concern that I 1 deem it ot of great public interest that an international confer center leuce be propped prop oed athis ti time metor or th aba a purpose ot of preparing plans to be submitted to the various vallous governments for an international inquiry into the high coat of living its extent causes effects and possible remedies 1 I there tore fore recommend that to enable the president to invite foreign gov governments ern to such a coi conference ference to be hold held at washington or elsewhere the con press provide an appropriation not to exceed to defray the expenses I 1 ot of preparation nod and ot of participation b by the united states commission Comm leilon on industrial relations relation the extraordinary growth of industry in the past two decades and its revolutionary changes have raised new and vital questions as to the relations between employers and wage earners which have become matters of pressing public concern industrial relations concern the public tor for a double reason wo we are directly interested in the maintenance of peaceful and stable indus industrial conditions for the sake ot 0 our own comfort and well being but society to la equally interested in its lt effectively civic capacity in seeing that our institutions are effectively maintaining justice and fair dealing bot berwein any classes of citizens ghorm economic interests may seem to clash the magn magnitude iture and complexity of modern industrial disputes have put upon some same of our atut tb utes and our presen mechanism for adjusting such where wo we can he be said to have any mechanism at all alla a strain they w aure era lavoi never intended to bear and tot ter which they the aro are unsuited what la Is urgently needed to day Is a ro elaml misbranding goods my atten attention has been called to the Id injustice justice which A 18 dono done in this country by the sale of article in the trade purporting to bo be made in ireland when they are not so BO mado made and it la ili suggested that the justice ot 0 the enact mont ment of 0 a law which so far as an the jurisdiction is of the federal government can go would prevent a continuance of this misrepresentation to the he pub llo and fraud upon those who are an entitled to use the statement in the sale of their goods I 1 think it to bo be greatly in the interest of fair dealing which ought always to be encouraged by law for congress to enact a law making it it a misdemeanor punishable by fine or imprisonment to use the matla mails or to put into interstate commerce any articles ot merchandise wb hh h bear upon their face a statement that they have been manufactured in some particular country who when I the fact Is otherwise |