TEE MISSISSIPPI'S SOURCE. 321 



assembling and shipping by rail. They have worked their way grad- 

 ually up the Mississippi until in 1901 they were within a dozen miles 

 (direct) of its source, ready at the first opportunity to attack that. 



As to the effect of such an invasion one who has made a special 

 study of the subject says : ' ' As soon as the timber shall have been cut 

 . . . the whole tract will become a burned, black and denuded waste, 

 the streams and lakes will dry up and partially disappear and the 

 reservoir dam necessary to drive the logs through and out of Itasca 

 and Elk Lakes into the Mississippi Eiver will drown out every tree 

 and shrub standing upon the shores of said lakes." Another writes: 

 "The reservoir system on the upper Mississippi has already seriously 

 injured and in some cases destroyed the beauty of some of the finest 

 combinations of lake and forest on the continent. It is to be feared 

 that ere long the greed of speculators and the avarice of the lumber- 

 men will finish the work of desecration and desolation. ' ' To the truth 

 of these views the bare hillsides along the streams of northern Minne- 

 sota and the broad belt of dead, gray timber that encircles the great 

 reservoir of Lake Winnibigoshish — a sort of forest cemetery — bear 

 dumb but eloquent witness. 



About 1890 the progress of this work of destruction began to alarm 

 some of the thoughtful men of the state, and through their efforts the 

 legislature in 1891 was induced to pass an act establishing and creating 

 the 'Itasca State Park,' a reservation five by seven miles in extent and 

 including the whole Itasca basin. Much of the land within this area 

 had become private property by homesteading or otherwise, and some 

 was included also in the government grant to the Northern Pacific Kail- 

 road. By purchase or condemnation the state soon secured control of 

 the larger part, and since then appropriations have been made from 

 time to time for the completion of such ownership. Some of the land 

 still belongs to private owners and is not yet safe from saw and axe; 

 but the good work is going on, and it is confidently hoped that very 

 soon the last obstacle to the complete success of the plan will disappear. 



In the management of the state park it is proposed to follow in 

 general the policy adopted by the national government in regard to 

 the Yellowstone region. Strict laws have been enacted for the pro- 

 tection of trees and game within its limits. Fishing is permitted (rod 

 in hand), but hunting is absolutely prohibited. It is hoped that in 

 time bear, deer and other large animals will come to recognize this 

 reservation, like the Yellowstone Park, as a place of refuge, and that 

 thus some rare species may be saved from extinction. For the enforce- 

 ment of the laws a commissioner is resident on the grounds, vested 

 with police powers. He is domiciled in a neat and comfortable cot- 

 tage, built by the state and commonly known as the 'State House.' 

 Our party, by the way, found in the clean beds and excellent fare of 



VOL. LXV. — 21. 



