FOREST LANDS FOR THE PROTECTION OF WATERSHEDS. 35 



Mr. POLLARD. The terms of this bill provide that in such cases he 

 \vill be reimbursed. 



Governor PARDEE. Then the Government purchases the land. [Ap- 

 plause.] I have no quarrel at all with the proposition that the Gov- 

 ernment can, under the case decided by the supreme court of Maine, 

 regulate the use of land that is forested and in good condition, and 

 it is not taking the land away from the owner. I am no lawyer, by 

 the way, and I sympathize with you heartily on that. The owner 

 may still, under the supervision of the State or the Government, use 

 the land for the purpose for which it is intended that is, forestry 

 and for which he is using it, but he may not denude that land. 



Mr. POLLARD. That is true. 



Governor PARDEE. This land down in the Appalachians, a good 

 deal of it, as I am told I have never been there, but I am so told, 

 and I believe that is admitted is already denuded of its forests; 

 that land is not primarily agricultural land of the best kind and 

 quality, and that it has been so used, and that it has not only been 

 denuded of its forests and vegetation, but is now being, and a great 

 deal of it has been, denuded of its soil. Now, to say to those people 

 who have denuded it of its forests for agricultural purposes, and be- 

 cause of the agricultural use of the land it is being denuded of its 

 soil, that they shall not use that land for agricultural purposes, is, 

 with due deference, confiscation, and the only thing left for the 

 Government is to step in and buy the land. 



Mr. POLLARD. Granting that to be true, and I am inclined to agree 

 with you, would it not be just as well to have a general system of 

 supervision, which you admit, as I understand, would apply to most 

 cases excepting instances such as you have just described? Then we 

 would not purchase any of the land, would exercise supervision over 

 all that where it is only partially, say, removed partially denuded, I 

 should say and the Government then would only purchase, by con- 

 demnation proceedings, as you have described, those tracts that are 

 wholly denuded and ought to be brought back into forest condition. 



Governor PARDEE. Except those slopes of the forest land, and I am 

 told that very large tracts of such exist, where any cutting of the 

 timber would lead to its denudation, not only of the vegetation of the 

 forest growing upon it, but also of the soil itself, there the Govern- 

 ment, in justice to the owners of it, must go in and buy in order to 

 preserve the status quo. Otherwise we simply say to the man that he 

 may own the land and derive no benefits from it ; must pay taxes on 

 it, but can not use it for the purposes for which he bought it. There- 

 fore, to my notion, there is a manner given for the Government to act 

 under those circumstances the government of either the State or the 

 nation to buy that land and use it for the purpose for which nature 

 designed it to be used, and for which the Government of the United 

 States desires it to be used, as a protection for the rivers, the streams, 

 the harbors. 



Mr. POLLARD. Under a plan where the Government went in there 

 under supervision and prevented the cutting of anything but matured 

 timber? 



Governor PARDEE. I am told that there are some places there where 

 even the cutting of the matured timber would make trouble. I am 

 also told that a great area of that country has already been cut and 

 is being cut at a very rapid rate. 



