478 CONFERENCE ON NATURAL BEAUTY 



Through actions of the Congress and other groups and individuals up 

 and down the line, public opinion will gradually clarify. In the 

 process, this will determine the relative importance of natural beauty 

 in competition with other domestic and foreign issues of the day, such 

 as education, defense, poverty, and space exploration. 



At the moment, not only the meaning of natural beauty, but also 

 its priority in the national scheme of things, await clarification. 



Mr. GREELEY. This panel is talking about the countryside and 

 we are talking about programs and activities that are going to be 

 going on for a long time. 



My remarks are pointed to possible courses of action, about the 

 resources of the countryside, based very largely on existing programs. 



We need to remember, and it is axiomatic, in fact, that the people 

 of this country are the stewards of its resources. 



For more than a century, the Department of Agriculture has been 

 working with these stewards. Today, the department has some 

 program responsibility for four of every five acres of land in the 48 

 contiguous States. 



This 100-year relationship with people and with resources has 

 led us to basic understanding of natural beauty. 



In large measure, natural beauty is a living resource composed of 

 soils, plants, grasses, trees, and water. 



A part of this living resource is that man's impact would be 

 blended in an aesthetically pleasing way. 



Natural beauty is also dependent upon the state of mind of people. 

 It is a corollary of their economic and social condition. 



We all desire beauty in our lives, and this tremendous White 

 House conference was called to emphasize this desire. 



Those of us participating in this conference must never forget that 

 natural beauty is of secondary importance to people without jobs 

 or without enough to eat, or without enough income to meet basic 

 family needs. 



So the things that are discussed here concerning beauty in the 

 American landscape must supplement the present efforts to improve 

 economic and social conditions in rural America. 



Within this department, these include the Rural Areas Develop- 

 ment Program, Rural Renewal, Resource Conservation and Devel- 

 opment projects, as well as the Job Corps and basic department 

 programs for rural people, agricultural improvement, and natural 

 resource management. 



