T( )RIAL 



393 



ing the forestry policy of tin- ( iovern- 

 ment. The resolution^ were published 

 next day in the papers. \ vigor- 

 ous protest from the anti-forestry 

 people folloued. A hearing was next 

 given to the opponents by the Forestry 

 Committee of the Chamber of Com- 

 merce. Their leading objections were 

 published on April 25 in a Denver farm 

 paper. Their catch-words are "great 

 feudal estate-." "paternalism," "bu- 

 reaucracy." and "landlordism." 



With these gentlemen, a National 

 Forest is a "great feudal estate.'' The 

 most elementary knowledge of feudal- 

 ism will dispose of this objection. 

 What is a feudal estate? An area of 

 territory, larger or smaller, practically 

 i >wned and absolutely controlled by an 

 individual in his own interest. What is 

 a National Forest? An area of terri- 

 tory, larger or smaller, absolutely 

 < -wiied and controlled by the whole peo- 

 ple of the United States and adminis- 

 tered in their own interest. The West- 

 ern analogy to the feudal estate is the 

 Scully estate. This is privately owned 

 and privately administered against the 

 interests of the tenants and in the in- 

 terest of the owner. National Forest 

 critics, however, seem to be finding no 

 fault with such estates. Instead, they 

 seem to prefer them to those publicly 

 owned and administered. Ergo, in- 

 stead of opposing "feudalism" they 

 seem to be defending its modern ana- 



ne. 



The term "paternalism" is equally 

 unhappy. It comes from "pater," 

 father. It represent- a one-man form 

 qf government; originally that of the 

 patriarch (pater, father; arch, ruler); 

 later, of the king, who succeeded him. 

 About 177'' the king was put out of 

 business on this side of the water. A 

 new government followed, described 

 by Lincoln as "of the people, for the 

 people, and by the people." 



\ people's government is the exact 

 opjxDsite of a paternal government. The 

 National Fore-t- are governed by the 

 people'- government. To describe their 

 rule as "paternalistic" i- to employ a 

 contradiction of terms; it is to make 

 words meaningless. 



The "modern instance" of paternal- 

 ism is government by the plutocrat; by 

 the Scully, Rockefeller. Harriman, or 

 other "undesirable citi/cn" of that type. 

 The time has come when we must 

 choose between government by the ] 

 pie and government by the- plutocrat. 

 The Denver objectors prefer, seeming- 

 ly. government by the latter ; the people 

 will probably continue to prefer gov- 

 ernment b themselves. 



" Bureaucracy " 



AS TO "bureaucracy," or government 

 by bureaus. The type of such 

 government is that of France, under 

 Louis XIV,, and Russia, under Czar 

 Nicholas. In other words, autocracy 

 and bureaucracy are twins. The less 

 popular, the more bureaucratic the gov- 

 ernment, and conversely. 



Winter sometimes lingers in the lap 

 of spring; similarly, old institutions 

 sometimes linger under new forms. 

 A measure of bureaucracy may survive 

 in a democracy. The remedy, however. 

 is not the substitution of autocracy. If 

 the United States Post-office is bureau- 

 cratic, to turn it over to a private cor- 

 poration would be to jump out of the 

 frying pan into the fire. The remedy 

 lies in increasing rather than diminish- 

 ing control by the people. 



If critics can point to bureaucratic 

 survivals in the Agricultural Depart- 

 ment or its sub-divisions, let them insist 

 upon more, rather than less, p.pular 

 government. 



And ]>opular government, be it re- 

 membered. is constitutional govern- 

 ment: government by law. not by the 

 mob. Let the critic- propose laws that 

 will enlarge the power of the people 

 Over their forests and make the admin- 

 istration .f these more con-, .nant with 

 the popular will and interest. Until 

 such legislation be proposed, the nat- 

 ural inference will be that the present 

 administration of these great public 

 estates represents not too slightly, but 

 ton completely, the interests of the 

 whole American pi-op!- ' 



