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THE IBBIGATION AGE. 



Governor Deneen of Illinois has appoint- 

 Delegates ed a list of delegates from this state to the 

 Appointed. Seventeenth National Irrigation Con- 

 gress, which is to be held at Spokane, 

 Washington, August 9 to 14 of this year. It is the hope 

 of those interested in the matter that all of the dele- 

 gates appointed may be able to attend, as it will give 

 them an opportunity of studying conditions through- 

 out the western country and gaining knowledge of the 

 development under irrigation not otherwise obtainable. 



We are informed that Mayor Busse of the City of 

 Chicago has also appointed a list of delegates, and, 

 with those appointed by the various commercial bodies 

 of the State of Illinois and mayors of other cities, it is 

 to be expected that a very large attendance will be reg- 

 istered from this state. 



From the valley of the Sacramento comes 

 Conspire a weird report, calculated in its innuendo 

 Against and its intimations to fright the public 



Lying into a close grasp upon its purse string 



Land Agents, when the seductive land agent presents 



his printed encomium on the fruitfulness 

 and beauty of the valley as an abiding place for the 

 genus homo. 



Libels have gone forth. Either the land vender 

 dealing in Sacramento valley tracts has seen double 

 when he viewed the crops or he has maliciously misrep- 

 resented the beauties and favors to be found in this land 

 of promises. And forthwith must he subside. 



In council assembled the Sacramento Valley De- 

 velopment Association has declared that there has been 

 deception, fraud and truth-destroying methods used in 

 the sale of Sacramento lands, and that, moreover, the 

 victims, carrying away the wrathful thoughts of the 

 gold-brick purchaser, are active and pernicious in dis- 

 couraging their friends from wandering toward the 

 shores of the Sacramento. 



The association proposes, through its own investi- 

 gations and researches, to effect a cure by giving ap- 

 proval to those land agents who conduct their business 

 along honest, legitimate lines. Furthermore, it pro- 

 poses to ostracise and condemn the bad, untruthful, 

 unprincipled fellows who cause the trouble. 



More consummate boy-play from a body of intelli- 

 gent American citizens cannot be imagined. The plan 

 smacks strongly of favoritism. As yet the national and 

 state governments retain the prerogative in deciding 

 as to the legitimacy of a citizen's business or social acts. 



The action of the Sacramento Valley Association 

 may spring from commendable motives, but the method 

 by which they hope to reach the end reflects no credit 

 upon the mentality or astuteness of its members. 



Mr. Giftord Pinchot has made the state- 

 Peculiar ment through his advertising press bu- 

 Advertising reau that President Taft is heartily in 

 Methods. sympathy with his policy, and he says in 



so many words that he will have as free 

 n hand under this administration as was granted him 

 under the Roosevelt regime. 



This, it seems, is rather premature on the part of 

 Mr. Pinchot. We believe that if President Taft fully 

 understands this gentleman's method of advertising his 

 forestry affairs he will call a halt. It may not be gen- 

 erally known that the Forestry Bureau contracted with 

 and paid money to an editorial exploitation bureau, who 

 saw to it that all of its matter was published in the 

 daily press throughout the country, either as paid stuff 

 or inserted by careless and thoughtless editors without 

 pay. 



This bureau was instructed to see that this matter 

 was placed in various publications throughout the coun- 

 try, particularly the daily papers, and to pay for the 

 space where necessary or to push it through on a free 

 base if possible. The individuals conducting this bu- 

 reau are high-minded and honorable gentlemen who 

 are in good standing in the newspaper world, and mat- 

 ter which they send out is frequently accepted by pub- 

 lishers of the middle or smaller class dailies without 

 question. The larger dailies, however, are acquainted 

 with the plan and must be paid something for the space 

 occupied. The matter sent out by this bureau is usu- 

 ally high grade, and were it not for the fact that con- 

 ditions connected with the Forestry Bureau and its work 

 put out through this medium are not clear, and that 

 there is a sort of a secrecy maintained concerning the 

 work, it would, perhaps, not be worth while calling 

 attention to it. We would suggest, however, that the 

 small country publisher who receives matter of this kind 

 should demand pay for the space occupied, the same a 

 the publishers of the larger dailies. 



One feature about this class of exploitation or pub- 

 licity is that Mr. Pinchot and the Forestry Bureau are 

 apparently in the background and are not known as in 

 any way connected with the distribution of matter con- 

 cerning their work, this press or publicity bureau being 

 an institution distinct from any bureau supported by 

 funds from the Federal chest. It is barely possible that 

 Mr. Pinchot is paying this money from his private 

 funds. 



When the press of the United States is made ac- 

 quainted generally with the fact that almost all of this 

 matter which has been sent out concerning conservation 

 and forestry has emanated directly from the office of 

 Gifford Pinchot it is our impression that the publish- 

 ers of the country will not be so keen to clip it out of 

 proof sheets and "swallow it whole." Taken all in all, 

 Gifford Pinchot is one of the best advertisers of himself 



