has been swept away at the rate in some places of 3 to 6 

 inches in a single season. 



In his ruthless exploitation of land and water resources 

 Man has violated basic arrangements in a manner which 

 Nature will not tolerate. 



Through countless centuries there has been built up a 

 balanced, fruitful relationship among waters, soils, grasses, 

 and forests. Each dependent on and helpful to the others, 

 they have learned to work together, through physical, 

 chemical, and biological processes, to create and maintain a 

 continent of abundant, useful resources for the habitation 

 and sustenance of Man. 



Then came the settlers vigorous, keen, and intelligent 

 with respect to matters of the moment, but unforseeing and 

 destructive with respect to matters of the future. Un- 

 wittingly, for present gains they sacrificed the birthright 

 they believed they were actually increasing for their de- 

 scendants. 



Blindly and ruthlessly they shattered that balance of 

 Nature's forces which created and maintained the land and 

 water resources that they assumed would last forever. 



Impoverishment of these resources, in part by unwise 

 selection for use, in part by improper methods of use, has 

 become a real danger. 



This danger is a vital concern of everyone. It is as signifi- 

 cant to merchant, manufacturer, and banker as to those who 

 work immediately on the land. Nature's gifts are the basis of 

 all economic life. All conversion and interchange of goods 

 rest on the application of human activity to the earth's 

 materials. This is the basic reality. 



Progress or decadence of a people is determined by the 

 manner in which it accepts and utilizes these gifts of Nature. 

 Soils and waters may be so used as to remain permanent assets 

 yielding a perpetual income. On the other hand they may 

 be destroyed as sources of income; may even be so used as to 

 make them essentially self-destructive. A people must choose. 



It is with these things that this report is concerned : The 

 balance of forces which through centuries has been patiently 



