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Show PRESIDENT SENDS STRONG MESSAGE ACCOMPANYING REPORTS OF THE CONSERVATION CONGRESS URGES NEEDED LEGISLATION Document in a Measure Is a Defense De-fense of the Retiring Administration Duty of the Present Generation to Its Descendants Pointed Out Obligations Obli-gations of Citizenship Urgent Need or the Development of the Ccun-iry's Ccun-iry's Water Power. Washington. With the transmission of the report of the national conservation commission and accompanying papers, President Roosevelt also sent a message to congress. The following is a comprehensive com-prehensive synopsis of the document: The president declares his entire concurrence con-currence with the statements and conclusions con-clusions of the report and proceeds: "It is one of the most fundamentally Important documents ever laid before the American people. It contains the first inventory in-ventory of its natural resources ever made by any nation. In condensed form It presents a statement of our available capital in material resources, which are the means of progress, and calls attention atten-tion to the essential conditions upon which the perpetuity, safety snd welfare of this nation now rest and must always continue to rest. "The facts set forth in this report constitute con-stitute an imperative call to action. The situation they disclose demands that we, V' - ' mm I. '; fi f i ;Vv Jl h m i i I able equality of opportunity the dls- trihution of rewards will take care of Itself. "The unchecked existence of monopoly monop-oly Is incompatible with equality of mm opportunity. The reason for the exercise ex-ercise of government control over great monopolies is to equalize opportunity. Wc are fighting against privilege. It was made unlawful for corporations to contribute money for election expenses ex-penses in order to abridge the power of special privilege at the polls. Railroad Rail-road rate control is an attempt to secure se-cure an equality of opportunity for all men affected by rail transportation; and that means all of us. The great anthracite coal strike was settled, and the pressing danger of a coal famine averted, because we recognized that the control of a public necessity involves in-volves a duty to the people, and that public intervention in the affairs of m public service corporation is neither to be resented as usurpation nor permitted per-mitted as a privilege by the corporations, corpora-tions, but on the contrary to be ao-ceptcd ao-ceptcd as a duty and exercised as a right by the government in the Interest In-terest of ail the people. The efficiency effi-ciency of the army and the navy baa been increased so that our people may follow in peace the great work of making this country a better place for Americans to live in, snd our navy was sent round the world for the samel ultimate purpose. All the acts taken by the government during the last seven years, and all the policies now being pursued by the Government, lit in as parts of a consistent whole. "The enactment of a pure food law was a recognition of the fact that the) public welfare outweighs the right to private gain, and that no man may poison the people for his private profit. The employers' liability bill recognized recog-nized the controlling fact that while the employer usually has at stake no more than his profit, the stake of the employe is a living for himself and his family. "We are building the Panama oanal; and this means that we are engaged in the giant engineering feat of all time. We are striving to add in all ways to the habitability and beauty of our country. We are striving to hold in the public lands the remaining supply of unappropriated coal, for the protection and benefit of all the people. We have taken the first steps toward the conservation of our natural rer sources, and the betterment of country coun-try life, and the improvement of our waterways. We stand for the right of every child to a childhood free from grinding toil, and to an education; for the civic responsibility and decency of every citizen; for prudent foresight fore-sight in public matters, and for fair play in every relation of our national and economic life. In international matters we apply a system of diplomacy diplo-macy which puts the obligations of international morality on a level with those that govern the actions of an honest gentleman in dealing with hie fellow-men. Within our own border we stand for truth and honesty in publio and in private life; and we war sternly stern-ly against wrongdoers of every grade. All these efforts are integral parts of the same attempt, the attempt to enthrone justice and righteousness, to secure freedom of opportunity to all of our citizens, now and hereafter, and to set the ultimate interest of all of us above the temporary interest of any individual, class, or group. "The nation, its government, and its resources exist, first of all. for the American citizen, whatever his creed, race, or birthplace, whether he be rich or poor, educated or ig-norant, provided pro-vided only that he is a good citizen, recognizing his obligations to the nation na-tion for the rights and opportunities which he owes to the nation. "The obligations, and not the rights, of citizenship increase in proportion to the increase of a man's wealth or power. The time is coming when ai man will be Judged, not by what he has succeeded in getting for himself from the common store, but by how well he has done his duty as a citizen, and by what the ordinary citizen has gained in freedom of opportunity because be-cause of his service for the common-good. common-good. The highest value we know is that of the individual citizen, and the highest justice Is to give him fair play in the effort to realize the best there is in him. "The tasks this nation has to do are great tasks. They can only be done at all by our citizens acting together, to-gether, and they can be done best of all by the direct and simple application applica-tion of homely common sense. The application of common sense to common problems for the common good, under the guidance of the principles upon which this republic was based, and by virtue of which it exists, spells perpetuity per-petuity for the nation, civil and industrial indus-trial liberty for Its citizens. and freedom of opportunity In the pursuit of happiness for the plain American, for whom this nation was founth d, by whom it was preserved, and through 4 whom alone it can be "j . -1-1 1 1 -. -1 1 . i -""C Upon this platform larger than any party differences, higher than .'lass prejudice, broader than any question of profit and loss there is room for every American who realizes that the common good stands first." Accompanying the message are explanations ex-planations and recommendations of work to be done for the future good of j the country. The president says:s"lt it especially Important Hint the development develop-ment of -atr power should be guarded guard-ed with the utmost care both by thk national government and by the stales In order to protect the people agalnM the upgrowth of monopoly and to insure in-sure to them a fair shore In the bine-fits bine-fits which will follow the development of this gnat asset which belongs lo the people and should lie controlled by them. "I urge that provision be made for both protection and more rapid devcU opment of the national forests, Dtltep wise, either the increasing use of (1 forests by the people must bo oho, ?;,.,! or their protection against tire must be dangerously weakened. If We compare the actual tire damage cm similar sim-ilar areas on private and natloin I. forest for-est lands during the past year, the government fire patrol saved commercial commer-cial timber worth as much as the total cost of caring for all na' forests at the present rate for 5 ten years. "I especially commend to congress"-, the facts presented by the commie-slon commie-slon as to the relation between Tfff'- . ests and stream flow In Its inr M upon the Importance of ifie 44 or est U lands in national ownerrfiip. Jwilh-out Jwilh-out on understanding of I his Tttimale relation the conservation of boo, these natural resources must largely fall. ' "The time has fully arrivej for recognizing rec-ognizing In the law the responsibility to the community, the state. And the nation which rests upon, the private ownership of private lan-Jjs, '.The own-crship own-crship of forest land Is a'publlc trust. The man who would handle his forest as to cause erosion and to lnjur stream flow must be nntmly educated, but he must be orit rolled.'" " In conclusion the president urge - ? " upon congress th desirability of maintaining a natloli.il. commission on the conservation oC fhc- resources of the country. He adds; ; "1 would also ndvlse that an appropriation of at least t'0.000 be mifde to cover the expenses ex-penses of the national conservation commission for neoes.sary rent, assistance assist-ance and traveling- exnenses. This Is a very small sum. ' I know of no other way ln which the appropriation of so small a su,rn would result in "so large a benefit. to the whole nsjfloa,' President Roosevelt. neglecting for a time, if need be, smaller and- ".ess vital questions, shall concentrate an effective part of our attention upon the great material foundations of national na-tional existence, progress, and prosperity. "The first of all considerations is the permanent welfare of our people; and true moral welfare, the highest form of welfare, can not permanently exist save on a firm and lasting foundation of material mate-rial well-being. In this respect our situation situ-ation is far from satisfactory. After every possible allowance has been made, and when every hopeful indication has been given its full weight, the facts still give reason for grave concern. It would be unworthy of our history and our intelligence, in-telligence, and disastrous to our future, to shut our eyes to these facts or attempt at-tempt to laugh them out of court. The people should and will rightly demand that the great fundamental questions shall be given attention by their representatives. rep-resentatives. I do not advise hasty or ill-considered ill-considered action on disputed points, but I do urge, where the facts are known, where the public interest is clear, that neither indifference and inertia, nor adverse ad-verse private interests, shall be allowed to stand In the way of the public good. "The great basic facts are already well known. We know that our population is now adding about one-fifth to its numbers In ten years, and that by the middle of the present century perhaps 150,000.000 Americans, and by its end very many millions more, must be fed and clothed from the products of our soil. "We know now that our rivers can and should be made to serve our people effectively ef-fectively in transportation, but that the vast expenditures for our waterways have not resulted In maintaining, much less in promoting, inland navigation. Therefore; let us take immediate steps to ascertain the reasons and to prepare and adopt a comprehensive plan for inland-waterway inland-waterway navigation that will result in giving the people the benefits for which they have paid but which they have not yet received. We know now that our forests for-ests are fast disappearing, that less than one-fifth of them are being conserved, and that no good purpose can be met by failing to provide the relatively small sums needed for the protection, use. and Improvement of all forests still owned by the government, and to enaet laws to check the wasteful destruction of the forests for-ests In private hands. There are differences differ-ences of opinion as to manv public questions: ques-tions: but the American people stand nearly as a unit for waterway development develop-ment and for forest protection. "We know now that our mineral resources re-sources once exhausted are gone forever, for-ever, and that the needless waste of tl.em costs us hundreds of human lives and nearlv IW'O.OOO a year. Therefore, let i is undertake without delay the Investigations In-vestigations necessary before our people will be In position, through state aefion or otherwise, to put an end to this huge loss and waste, and conserve' both our mineral resources and the lives of the men who tahe them from the earth. "This administration has achieved some thine-s: it has sought, hut has not been able, to achieve, others; it has doubtless made mistakes: but all It has done or attempted has been In the single, consistent effort to secure se-cure and enlarge the rights and opportunities oppor-tunities of the men and women of the T'nited States. We are trying to conserve con-serve what is good in our social system, sys-tem, and we are striving toward this end when we endeavor to do away with what is bad. Pur-cess may be made too hard for some if it is made too easy for others. The rewards of eommon industry and thrift may be too small If the rewards for others, and on the whole less valuable, -qualities. are made too large, anil especially if the rewards for qualities which are really, from the public Standpoint, undesirable, undesir-able, are permitted to become too large. Our aim is so far as possible to provide such conditions that there shall be equality of opportunity where there is equality of energy, fidelity and intelligence; when there Is a reason- |