304 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



before the Secretary of the Interior on 

 the eighteenth of May. In the meantime, 

 on the strength of the report of gov- 

 ernment engineers, Secretary Balhnger 

 has reviewed the action of his prede- 

 cessor, and may perhaps, it is thought, 

 reverse it. 



It is not our purpose to discuss the 

 evidence in this case, or to present the 

 facts in detail, but only to call atten- 

 tion to the issue which is presented. If 

 the city of San Francisco were depend- 

 ent upon the Hetch-Hetchy Valley for 

 a pure water supply there would be no 

 question but that it would be the duty 

 of the nation to sacrifice this valley, 

 which it is preserving as a monument 

 of beauty and a pleasure ground for 

 the people, to the practical need of the 

 great city which lies near it. But if, on 

 the other hand, there are other sources 

 available for the San Francisco water 

 supply, even if they will cost the city 

 more money than it would cost to ob- 

 tain the Hetch-Hetchy from the na- 

 tional government, the issue is an en- 

 tirely different one. Then it becomes 

 not a question of the need of San Fran- 

 cisco, but a question between the rights 

 of the people and especially of the rest 

 of the state of California, and an op- 

 portunity for San Francisco to obtain 

 a water supply at a bargain through 

 the sacrifice of one of the remarkable 

 beauty spots in which California takes 

 such just pride. 



It is the testimony of many engineers, 

 including those detailed by the Interior 

 Department to examine into the merits 

 of the case, that there are other water 

 supplies equally available for the city. 

 It is, indeed, claimed that no large city 

 in the world has so many opportunities 

 of this kind around it, and something 

 like a score have been enumerated. If 

 this is true — and this is a question of 

 iact which can easily be determined by 

 the engineering testimony — there is no 

 possible excuse for the invasion of a 

 national park. California has been glad 

 to have the Yosemite country secured 

 for all time under the safeguard of na- 

 tional control ; it has sought for national 

 aid in preserving its big trees from the 

 lumberman ; but such action is a m.ere 



farce if the territory included in these 

 parks can be resumed at any time when 

 It suits the desires and the economies 

 of an individual, a municipality, or a 

 state. 



This, then, is the issue that is put 

 plainly before the country by the case 

 of the Hetch-Hetchy Valley : Whether 

 the integrity of the national park system 

 shall be preserved or not. If it was 

 worth while to establish the system, and 

 to secure for the permanent enjoyment 

 of our people under the protection of 

 the national government our noteworthy 

 bits of natural scenery, it is certainly 

 worth while that the guarantee so given 

 should be maintained in its integrity. 

 The only possible excuse for its viola- 

 tion is the necessity of the people, and 

 it has not been proved in this case that 

 such necessity exists. 



Hi U? ^ 



Let Us Err on the Safe Side 



COL. EDWARD BURR is quoted 

 as authority for the statement that 

 it would require observation for a pe- 

 riod of not less than sixty years to de- 

 termine the effect, favorable or unfa- 

 vorable, of deforestation on stream- 

 flow\ If this is the case, which is fairlv 

 open to question in the face of the 

 world's experience, and since even the 

 engineers who do not believe that 

 forests are beneficial in this connec- 

 tion, admit that the question is in 

 doubt, is it not wise to spend some 

 money now to save such protective for- 

 ests as we have and to put ourselves 

 on the safe side, rather than to risk 

 the heavy expense and serious loss that 

 may come in the future if, perchance, 

 the belief of a large part of the civilized 

 world and the engineering profession 

 is right and there is something in the 

 protective- forest theory? 



Every one of these engineers who be- 

 lieve that forests do not affect the navi- 

 gability of streams believes in maintain- 

 ing forests for other reasons — which are 

 sufficient in themselves. Many other 

 authorities equally good believe that 

 forests aid in maintaining good stream 

 conditions. 



