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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 1910)
THE BEE: OMAHA, SATURDAY, JANUARY 13, 1010. r J IAFT FOR LAND AND WATER Liwi How on Books Hot Ample to ' . " Trotect Public MONEY FOB RECLAMATION WOBK Corrn Hhoall Intemrtlately Take fceeessary Mepa to Conserve la terest ( Fabllo fa Wood ill Mtreame. (Continued from First Page ) the public that character ol control which will prevent a monopoly or misuse of the land or their product. The power of the secretary of the Interior to withdraw from the operation of existing rtatute tracts of land, the disposition of which under auoh tatutee would be detrimental to the pub llo interest la not cleat- or Sfitlnfactory. This power haa heen ererclwd In, the In- tercet of the public, lih the hope that congress might affirm the action of the , executive by law adapted to the new con- dltlona. I'nfortilnaHly cfnre has not thus far fully acted on the recommend tiona of Mm executive, and the question as what the executive I to do la, under i... the circumstances, full of difficulty. It seems to m that It Is the duty of con jrreea now, by a statute, to validate th withdrawal which have- been made by " the secretary of the Interior and the prest- . dent and to authorise the secretary of the Interior temporarily to withdraw lands pending submission to congress of recom menditluns as to legislation to meet con , dltlons or emergencies aa they arise. ' One of the most pressing needs In the .matter of public land reform Is that lands should be classified according to their principal value or use. This ought to be done by that department whose force Is best adupted to that work. It should be done by - the Interior department through the geological survey. Much of the ioti f union, fraud tnd contention .which has existed in the past has arlaon from the t lank of an official and determinative classi fication of the publlo lands and' their con ten la. ' What to Withheld. t It Is now proposed to dispose of agricul . tural lands as such and at the same time - to reserve for other disposition the treas ure of coal, oil, aHphnKuiii, imlurii gas ' and phosphate contained therein. This may ' be b-K accomplished - by- separating the right to mine from the title to the surface, giving the necessary use of so much of the latter as may be- required for the ex ' traction of the deposits. The surface might be dlsposd of as agricultural land under the general agricultural statutes, while the coal or other mineral could be ' disposed of by lease on a royalty basis, with provisions requiring a oertaln amount of development each year, and In order to prevent the use and cession of such lands with others of similar character so aa to . constitute a monopoly forbidden; by law the lease should contain suitable provision subjecting to f orefeiture the Interest of , person participating 1n - such monopoly. Such law should apply to Alaska aa well ; as to the United States. It Is exceedingly difficult to framo a statute to retain government control over property to be developed by private . capital In such manner as to secure the governmental purpose and at the same time not frighten away the Investment of the ' necessary capital. Hence, It may be neces- sary by laws that are really only, expert , mental to determine from their practical operation what Is the best method of e- curing the result aimed 'at.- ; rhosabato and. PvbUe Povrerv . r The-eitttjnt or value of phosphate is hardly v' realized, and with the heed that there will be for It as the years roll on and the neces- ; slty for fertilising the land shall become more acute, this Will be a product whfch will probably attract the greed of monopo lists. With respect to the publlo land whloh lies along the streams offering opportunity to convert water power Into transmtssable electricity, another Important phase of the publlo land question Is presented. There are valuable water power sites through all the. public land states. The opinion Is held that the transfer of sovereignty from the How Much Must I Spend? - V ' Last spring a man spent total of $16,000 advertis ing a new fabric. In ninety days he had secured 700 new accounts, sold 1 ,250,000 yards more than ' he had expected,' at an average net advance .of 3c. per yard. And, during the same year, another advertiser in a kindred line, who has been in our columns corw tinually for nineteen years, spent $80,000 in our publications. Success in merchandize Ing of fabrics depends not so much on the size of the appropriation as upon the intelligence and thorough ness of method. As the foremost women's pubiication.THtt Ladies Hcmib Journal, . would naturally be the first medium in a fabric merchandizing campaign. And yet "Method," rather than pace tailing, is what we would first like to discuss with you. ' The Curtis Publishing Company Philadelphia - Maw Tor Cbicaga Tha clreulatioa f TH LADIES' HOMB JOURNAL U mare the i.(as.oa copies, each aaeath. The Mm forte whtaa have uMd THB- JOURNAL'S iaue circula tion have, at the eama time, anada H aa ad vertising maiMuai ef anieue sewer. federal government to the territorial gov ernments as they become states. Included the water power In the rivers except so far a that owned by riparian proprietors. I do not think It necessary to go Into a dis cussion of this somewhat mooted question of law. It seems to me sufficient to say that the man who owns and controls the land along the stream from which the power Is to be converted and transmitted, owns land -which is Indispensable to tb conver sion and use of that power. I cannot con ceive how the power In streams flowing through public lands can be made avail able at all except by using the land Itself as the site for the construction of the plant by which the power Is generated and con verted and securing a right-of-way there over for transmission lines. Under these conditions, If the ' government owns the adjacent land Indeed,, If the government IS the riparian owner It may control the use of the water power by Imposing proper conditions on the disposition of the land necessary in the creation and Utilisation of the water power. To Avoid Monopoly. The development In electrical appliances for tho conversion of water power Into electricity to be transmitted long distance has progressed so far that It Is no longer problematical, but It Is a certain Inference that In the future the power of the water falling) In the streams to a large extent will take the place of natural fuels. In the disposition of the domain already granted, many water power ' site have com under absolute ownership, and may drift Into one ownership, so that all the water power under private ownerahlp shall be a monopoly. If, however, the water power sites now owned by the gov ernmentand there are enough of them hall be disposed of to private persons for the investment of their capital In such a way as to prevent their union for purposes of monopoly with other water power sites, and under conditions that shall limit the right of use to not exceeding fifty years with proper means for determining a rea sonable graduated rental, and with some equitable provision for fixing terms of re newal, It would seem entirely possible to prevent the absorption of these most useful lands by a power monopoly. As long as the government retains control and can prevent their improper union with other plant competition must be main tained and prices kept reasonable. Saving tb oil. In considering the conservation of the natural resources of the country, the fea ture that transcends all others. Including woods, waters, minerals, la the soil of the country. It Is Incumbent upon the govern ment to foster by all available means the resource of tho country that produce the food of the people. T thi end the con ervatlon of the soils of the eountry should be cared for with all means at the govern ment's disposal. Their productive power should have the attention of our scientists that we may conserve the new soils. Im prove the old soils, drain wet soils, ditch swamp soils, levee river overflow soils, grow trees on thin soils, pasture hillside soils, rotate crop on 1 all soils, discover method for cropping dry land soils, find trasses and legume for all soils, feed grain and mill feeds on the farms where they originate, that the soli from which they come to be enriched. A work of utmost importance to Inform and Instruct the publlo on this chief branch of the conservation of our resources is be ing carried on successfully in the De partment of Agriculture, but It ought not to escape publlo attention that state action In addition to that of the Department of Agriculture (as for instance hi the drain age of swamp, lands) is essential to the best treatment of tb sou In the manner above Indicated. The act by which. In semi-arid parta of the publlo domain,, the area of the home stead has been enlarged from 180 to 820 acre and ha resulted -most beneficially in tho extension of "dry farming" and In the demembration which has been made ot the possibility, through a . variation In the Character and mode of, culture, of raising Substantial erops without the nres,ice of uoh supply of water as has been hereto fore thought to be necessary' for agricul ture. Money tor Reclamation. But there are million of acres of com pletely arid land In the public domain which, by the establishment of reservoirs for the storing of water and the Irrigation of the lands, may be made much more fruit ful and productive than the best lands In a climate where the moisture comes from the clouds. Congress recognised the Im portance of this method of artificial dis tribution of water on the arid lands by the passage of the reclamation act. The pro ceed of the public land create a fund to build tho work needed to store and furnish the necessary water and It was left to the secretary of the Interior to determinate what projects should be selected among those suggested, and to direct the reclama tion service, with the funds at hand and through the engineer In Its employ, to construct the work. No one can visit the far west and the country of arid and seml-arld lands with out being convinced that this Is one of the mcst .Important methods of the conserva tion of our natural resource that the g.iv ernment has entered uponT It would ap pear that over thirty projects have be-?n undertaken, and that a few of them aro likely to be unsuccessful because of the lack of water or for other rensons, hut geneially the work which has been doro has been well done and many Important ei.glneeiing problems have been met and solved. One of the difficult lea which has arisen Is that too many prolects in view of the available funds have been set on foot. The funds available under the reclamation statute are inadequate to complete these projects, within a reasonable time. And yet the projects have been begun; settlers have been Invited to take tip and, In many Instances, have taken tip, the public land within the projects, relying nnon their prompt completion. The failure to c.im plote the projects for their benefit Is, In effeot, a breach of fslth arid leaves them In a most dlstresRed condition. I urge that the nation ought to afford the means to lift them out of the very desperate condi tion In which they now are. Thla condition does not Indicate any excessive waste or any corruption on the part of the reclama tion service. It only Indicates n over realous desire to extend the benefit of reclamation to as many acrea and as many states as possible. I reooromrud therefore, that authority be given to issue, not ex ceeding $30,000,000 of bonds, from time to time, as the secretary of the Interior shall find it necessary, the proceeds to be ap plied to the Completion of the. projects al ready begun and their proper extension, and the bonds running ten years or more, to be taken up by the proceeds of returns to the reclamation fund, which returns, as the years go on, will Inert asa rapidly in amount. ' There Is no doubt at all that If these bonds were to be allowed to run ten years, the proceeds from the publlo lands, to gether with the rentals for water murnlshed through the completed enterprises, would quickly create a sinking fund large enough to retire the bonds within the time speci fied. I hope that, while the statute shall Piovlde that these bonds are to be paid out ot the reclamation fund. It will be drawn In uch a way a to secure Interest at tha lowest rate and that the credit of the United State will be pledged for their redemption. 1 urge consideration of the recommends- rmmsassxsMi CORRECT DRESS FOR MEN AND BOYS J1 JiirW(Dl stayrs Look for the best their money can buy. They recognize the economy of buying the best made most Fashionable and most Perfect Fitting Clothes and a great number have learned that THE BERG CLOTHING CO. are the leading and largest sellers of correct clothes for men and young men in Omaha and in buying these clothes you get more for your money than any other store in Omaha can give and that means at the original price. But NOW at HALF there's nothing to it but money in your pocket for on the cheapest huh we sell you, which is $5 you save $5 on a $12 garment you save $6 and on a $15 garment you save $7.50 and so on up to $40 you save $20.- Then smart snappy styles for the chap that wants td be IT or quiet refined stylish. clothes for the man of affairs. The Money Savei The shrewd investor is welcome. Our Boys' Suits and Overcoats Divided into three great lots for Saturday $1.45. $2.9.5. $3.95 A- I weatcrs The turtle neck styles, for hunting and other outdoor comfort; our whole assortment, qualities and colors worth to $5.00; all go at Special in Neckwear All our grand assortments of Holiday Neckwear that sold at $1.00- ff C2. nnH tWn's h nmnsr nmmmt nf atiirrlinruM alonff with the HUU '1ouf ai one Pnc now- styles in the make of these garments. As we never deal in All our 50c and 75c Neckwear, 35c; three for trash. At either price we have named you are positive of a genuine bargain at half pric and even less. : ...... VF-C $1,00 A Shirt Sale Worth While All of our $1.50 and $1.75 Shirts 17c at. 25o 30c and 35c qualities, at Three pairs for 50c. Men here'sa chance to get busy. Fine cotton, lisle at and mercerized hose. ' . Underwear Broken lines and odd suits of men's winter plain and fancy, that sold up to $3:50 a garment NOW, a garment. ........ All of our $2.00 and $2.50 Shirts- c Patterns to suit most tastes some gay and sporty others plain,.and the right fitting kind, too. Stars, Excellos and E. & Ws. none better that we have knowledge, of. WVXT. 11 JJrXVT Hen's Sweater Coats - With pockets all the vari ety of colors and combina tions, worth up to Ti 85 $3.00-now r ; ' ' " 11 . ...... , -. , - , ' ' v . 25 discount . on all Union .Underwear, including "Vasar" and "Superior." t - ;In attractive patterns find : worth up to $5.00, (T 185 for 41- tlons of the secretary of the interior In his annual report for amendments of the recla mation act, proposing other relief for set tlers oh these projects. Forester Uwi. Respecting the comparatively small tim. bered areas on the public domain not in cluded in national forests because of their isolation or their special value for agri culture or mineral purposes, It is apparent from the evils resulting by virtue of the Imperfections of existing laws for thedls posltlon of timber tends that the acts of June i. 1878. should be repealed and a law enacted for the removal of the timber to be subject to appropriation under the agricul ture or mineral lands laws. What I have said is really an epitome of the recom mendations of the secretary of the Interior In respect 'to the future conservation ot the public domain In his present annual report. He has given close attention to the problem of disposition ot these lands under such conditions as to Invite the private capital necessary to their development on the one hand and the maintenance of the restrictions necessary to prevent monopoly and abure from absolute ownership on the other. These recommendations are incor porated In bills he has prepared, and they are at the disposition of the congress. 1 earnestly recommend that all the sugges tions whloh he has made with respect to these lands Shall be embodied in statutes, and especially, that the withdrawals al ready made shall . be validated so far as necessary and that the authority of the secretary of the Interior to withdraw lands for the purpose of Kubmltttng recommendations aa to future disposition of them where new legislation is needed shall be made complete and unquestioned. The forest reserves ot the United States, some 190,090,000 acres In extent, are under the control of the Department of Agricul ture, with authority adequate to preserve them and to extend their growth so far that may Ba practicable. The Importance of maintenance of our forest cannot- be exaggerated. The possibility of a scientific treament ot forests in order that they shall be made to yield a large return in timber without really reducing the supply has bee i demonstrated In other countries, and we should work toward the standard Set by them, a far aa their method arv applicable to our conditions. Privately Ovraed Timber. Upwards of 400,000,000 acres of forest Isnd In this country are In private ownership, but only three per cent of It Is being treated scientifically and with a view to the maintenance of the forests. The part played by the forests In the equalisation of the supply of water on water aheds Is a matter of discussion and dispute, but the general benefit to be derived by the p-lbllo from the extension of forest lands on watersheds and the promotion- of the growth of trees In places that are now denuded and that once had great flourishing' forests, goes without saying. The control to be exercised over private owners In their treatment of the foreets which they own Is a matter for state and not national regulation, because there I nothing in the constitution that authorise the federal government to exerrte any control over forests within a state, unlees the forests are owned In a proprietary way by the federal government. It haa been proposed and a bill for the purpose passed the lower house In the last congress, that ihe national government ap propriate a certain amount each year out of the receipts from the forestry business of the government to Institute reforesta tion at .the 'sources of 'certain navigable streams, to be selected by the geological I survey, with a view to determining the practicability of thus Improving and pro tecting the streams oV federal purposes. 1 think a moderate expenditure tor each year for this, purpose, for a period of five or ten years, would be of the utmost bene fit in the development of our forestry sys tem. ' Waterway Improvement., - 1 come now to the improvement of the inland waterways. He would be blind, in deed, who did not realize that the people of the entire west, and especially those ot the Mississippi valley, have been aroused to the need there to for the Improvement of our Inland waterways. The Mississippi river, with the Missouri on the one hand and the Ohio on the other,, would seem to offer a great natural mean of Interstate transportation and traffic How far, It properly Improved, they would relieve th railroad or supplement them In- respect to the bulkier and cheaper commodities. Is a matter of conjecture. No enterprise ought to be undertaken the cost of which Is not definitely ascertained and the bene fit and advantage ot which are not known and assured by competent engineer and other authority. When, however, a pro ject of a definite character for the Im provement of waterways has been de veloped ao that the plana have been drawn, the cost definitely estimated, and the traffic which will be accommodated is reasonably probable, I think It Is the duty of congress to undertake the project and make the provision therefor In the proper appropriation bill. One ot the projects which answer the description I have given is that nf Intro, drxlng dams Into the Ohio river - from nttsburg to Cairo, so as to matntatn at all Seasons of the vesr. by slack water, a depth of nine feet. Cpwards of seven of ' these dams have already been constructed and six are under ronrtructlon, while the total required Is fifty-four. The remaining coat Is known as K3, 000, 000. , Irirsrjr la Apparent. It seems to me that In the development ot our Inland waterways It would be wise to begin with this particular project and carry It through as rapidly as may be. I assume from reliable Information that It can be constructed economically In twelve years. What has been said ot the Ohio river Is true In a less complete way ot the Improve ment of the upper Mississippi from 8t. Paul to St. Louis to a constsnt depth ot six feet, and of the Missouri from Kansas City to si. haul to 1" constant depth of six feet, and from tit. IjduIi to Cairo of a depth of eight feet. These project bave been pronounced praotioal by competent boards of army engineers, their cost ha beeu estimated and there 1 business which will follow th Improvement. I recommend, therefore, that the present congress In the river and harbor bill make provision for continuing contracts to com plete these 'Improvement. , Aa these Improvement are being made and the traffic encouraged by thain shows Itself of sufficient importance, th Improve ment of the Mississippi beyond Cairo down to tha gulf, which 1 now going on with th maintenance of a depth of nine feet everywhere, may be changed to another and I greater depth tt the necessity for It shall appear to arise out of the trafflo which can be delivered on the river at Cairo. I am Informed that the Investigation by the Waterways commission In Europe that the existence ot a waterway by no means assure traffic unless there Is traffic adapted to water carriage at chenp rate at one end or the other of the streams. It also appears In Europe that the depth ot. .the non-tidal streams Is rarely more than six feet and never more than ten. But It Is certain that enormous amount of merchandise are transported ovor the rivers and canals In Germany and France and England, and it Is also certain that the existence of such methods of traffic materially affects the tates which the railroads charge, and It Is the best regulator of those rate that we have, not even excepting the governmental regulation Ihroigh the Interstate Com. merce commission. For this reason, I hope that this congress will take such steps that It may be called the lnangurator of the new system of Inland waterways. For reasons which It Is not necessary to state, congress has seen fit to order an Investigation of the Interior department and the forest service of -he .Agriculture department. The results of tho Investiga tion are not needed to determine the value of, and the necessity for, the new leglaln tion which I have rqcommendfd in respect to tho publlo lands and In respect to re clamation. 1 earnestly urge that the meas ures recommended bo taken up and dis posed of promptly, without awaiting tha Investigation which has been determined upon. WILLIAM H. TA FT. The White House, January 14, 1910. Children like Chamberlain Cough Rem edy. It Is pleasant to take. Advcntists May Build College Biennial Convention Considering: Con struction of New School at St.' Joseph. ST. JOSEPH, Mo., Jan. 14.-(Sp.c al.) Seventh Day Advcnt.'sts of five stales are In session here In the fourth biennial meet ing of the central union conference. The meeting will continue ten days. About sixty delegates, one representing eaoli church in the conference, are here and the headquarters have been established at the Young Men's Christian association Among the business matters to be dis cussed at the biennial Is the proposed con struction ot a $76,000 college In 8L Joseph. This, If the plan materializes, Is to be built and supported by funds provided by the central union conference. Yesterday's sessions were principally de voted to the recaption ' and enrollment of delegates. President Rufsell of Lincoln. Neb., In the afternoon addressed tho dele gutes, speaking of "The Principles of the Adventiut's Religion." In the evening K R. Falmer of Washington, D. C, ds'l ered a lecture Illustrated by stcreoptlo,: views. , . An elaborate set of scenery to Illustrate numerous prophecies of th Old Testament has been installed In the stage of the music hall of th Toung Men's Christian asso ciation, where the' session are held and figure Of beast, 'angel and men are me- chanlcally operated to" carry out th Mu. slons. One of the principles of th Poventh Day Adventlst Is the prohibition of the use of liquor and tobacco In anv form and tlt majority of members of the faith' do not drink tea.ar coffee. In explanation of this a delegate said that, these article contain poison and the Advehtlgts consider !t slnrui to injure the body glVeh by tha Omnipotent. Tho officers of the conference are: Elder E. T. Russell, Lincoln, Neb., presi dent. . . re?ar& Hurfman' Polle View, Nt . aeo- J. Wlghtman. tfonsas City,' Mo.', sec retary of religious liberty bureau.-,'- C. a. Uellah. Poplar IJluff. Mo., general missionary secretary. . B. M. Emerson. Lincoln. Neb., treasurer. J?r?l ? Pi, ,iwl". College View, Neb., preeulent of Union college. . pf;.N- Miller, College View, editor, of Christian Record, the denomination offi cial publication. The union conference Includes the con ferences of ncrthern Missouri, southern Missouri, eastern Colorado, western Co'o- ratio, Wyoming, Nebraska and Kansas, and it Is a component part of the general con ference of the International organisation . Storm-on 0Ur.sard Anniversary. ' HURON. 8. D., Jan. 14.-(8peclal.)-In 'Utbration of the 'twenty-second annlver ry of the great bllsxard thst prevailed jver South Dakota January li, ISSS, . a ;t,ivy nowUorm prevailed here and hroughout this seH'on . all day Wednes "ayr The storm created apprehension lent . fuel famine result. ' The supply of coal in this city and Immediate vicinity I very 'limited. Skirt. Skirt. Skirts. Skirt. -.On. sale Saturday at half price at th Parisian Cloak Co., 11) Bo. 16th St.- if - - - - -- - - '"- r ...z:.;".'."".- "3L l "N - .... iiiim , i MOW' fPM I siiBURN-cnosEtrca I i