1908 



IRRIGATION NEEDS FORESTS 



-13 



]iis astonishment and consternation, he 

 found it empty. 



So with our friends, the irrigation- 

 ists. Unless they awaken in time to 

 the fact that if they ignore the protec- 

 tion of the sources of their water sup- 

 ply,their cUtches will be empty, they 

 will, like my friend who owned the 

 auto, suddenly discover that they have 

 paid too little attention to the most es- 

 sential requirement. An empty gaso- 

 line tank will not furnish power to 



cured forty millions. 



I am aware that I do not voice the 

 unanimous sentiment of all citizens of 

 our country, and particularly not that 

 a few non-resident owners of timber 

 lands in California. These persons 

 have been particularly active of late, 

 both in the halls of Congress and in 

 so-called land conventions, as well as 

 elsewhere, in endeavoring to create a 

 sentiment antagonistic to the present 

 National Forest policy, so ably con- 



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Hillside two miles west of Fredalba, San Bernardino County, California — 

 Nearly all the timber cut away — Erosion begun — Nothing to hold the 

 water 



propel a motor, neither will empty 

 ■ditches promote the growth of alfalfa. 

 Our present executive, far seeing, 

 and knowing the protection needed, 

 has wisely set aside tracts of timbered 

 lands at the sources of our water sup- 

 plies. National Forests have been so 

 extended under the administration of 

 Theodore Roosevelt that to-day we 

 have in California over 20,000,000 

 acres of timbered lands in forest re- 

 serves, and it is my personal regret 

 that the President could not have se- 



ducted under the direction of Gifford 

 Pinchot. 



They say the lands should be 

 thrown open for settlement by the 

 people. What great solicitude the per- 

 sons who are fathering this movement 

 are exhibiting for the poor people! 

 Let me say that their scheme is too 

 transparent. We have had too many 

 demonstrations of fine bodies of tim- 

 bered land which have been acquired 

 by the people, only to be transferred 

 to the control of the timber grabbers. 



