22 FOREST LANDS FOR THE PROTECTION OF WATERSHEDS. 



authority, under eminent domain or some power of condemnation, 

 to compel the owner of it* to part with it ? 



Doctor VAN HISE. I answer yes to that, unqualifiedly. 



Mr. STANLEY. Excuse me, Doctor, do you proceed upon the theory 

 that the Federal Government would have the same right and has the 

 same jurisdiction to take the land by a process of eminent domain, 

 belonging to private individuals, on account of its better adaptability 

 to forestry than to farming, that a state government would have ? 



Doctor VAN HISE. If necessary to protect the equable flow in the 

 waterways, and therefore to protect navigation effectively and 

 cheaply, and if necessary in order that the harbors shall not be filled 

 up, if necessary for watershed for that purpose, then I say yes. 



Mr. WEEKS. You speak of the State of Wisconsin purchasing land 

 and setting it aside for forest purposes. Has the State expended any 

 money for this purpose which has not been obtained from the sale of 

 state lands ? 



Doctor VAN HISE. No large amount. We have a small appropria- 

 tion which we can use for that purpose and can invest in tax lands, 

 but we are going to ask a much larger amount for that purpose, and 

 we have every reason to suppose we shall secure a larger amount, but 

 our start was on the basis of the state lands going to the commission, 

 with the power to sell and to buy, using the money which we obtained 

 from selling to purchase. 



Mr. WEEKS. Has there been a criticism of that process of procedure ? 



Doctor VAN HISE. Substantially none, because we have been ex- 

 tremely careful to dispose of the lands, which really are agricultural. 

 We have tried to interpret that feature of the act fairlv. If it was a 

 very reasonably clear case that the land was really agricultural land, 

 and a man said, " I want that land for agricultural purposes," and our 

 experts showed it was really adapted to agriculture, we would adver- 

 tise and sell it to him, even if it involved a special advertisement and 

 sale. 



(Thereupon, at 11.50 o'clock a. m., the committee took a recess until 

 1.30 o'clock p. m.) 



COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, 



HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 

 Wednesday, December 9, 1908. 



The committee met at 1.30 o'clock p. m., Hon. Charles F. Scott 

 (chairman) presiding. 



The CHAIRMAN. All the members of the committee are not here, 

 but, as the record is printed, they will have access to it, and I do not 

 wish to delay the hearing any longer. May we ask to have Doctor 

 Van Hise take the stand again for a few moments only? 



Governor GUILD. Possibly, to save a little time and answer some of 

 the questions that have been put forward, it may be frankly admitted 

 at once that the acquisition of forest reserves would dispossess some 

 mountain farmers of their farms, but thereby not only is the infi- 

 nitely greater number of farms lower down on the river, which 

 would otherwise be sterile, rendered fertile by water, but thousands 

 of times the number of people can be supported in cotton mills run 

 by the water power thereby obtained than could be supported on the 

 few farms which it might be necessary to have taken. 



