A CHAPTER OF CONSERVATION 



HISTORY 



By THOMAS ELMER WILL 



THERE are subjects upon which it is 

 necessary to "write with a quiet 

 pen ;" one of these is the brief his- 

 tory of the conservation movement in the 

 United States. The facts in this his- 

 tory should be before the readers o-f 

 CONSERVATION; in stating them the 

 writer prefers to confine himself, w r here 

 possible, to records and official utter- 

 ances. 



Among the resolutions adopted by 

 the White House Conference is the fol- 

 lowing : 



We agree that further action is advisable 

 to ascertain the present condition of our nat- 

 ural resources and to promote the conserva- 

 tion of the same; and to that end we recom- 

 mend the appointment by each state of a 

 commission on the conservation of natural 

 resources, to cooperate with each other and 

 with any similar commission of the Federal 

 Government. Proceedings of the Conference 

 of Governors, page 194. 



On June 8, 1908, the National Con- 

 servation Commission was created by 

 President Roosevelt. 



On December 8, 9, and 10, there met 

 in Washington the Joint Conservation 

 Conference composed of the governors 

 of the various states, their advisers, 

 members of the National Conservation 

 Commission, representatives of state 

 and national organization, and others. 



Among the resolutions adopted by the 

 Conference was the following: 



We also especially urge on the Congress 

 of the Llnited States the high desirability of 

 maintaining a national commission on the 

 conservation of the resources of the coun- 

 try, empowered to cooperate with state com- 

 missions to the end that every sovereign 

 commonwealth and every section of the 

 country may attain the high degree of pros- 

 perity and the sureness of perpetuity natu- 

 rally arising in the abundant resources and 

 the vigor, intelligence, and patriotism of 



our people. CONSERVATION, February, 1909, 

 page 97. 



In his special message of January 

 22, 1909, to Congress, transmitting 

 the report of the National Conservation 

 Commission, President Roosevelt quotes 

 the above resolution and says : 



In this recommendation I most heartily 

 concur, and I urge that an appropriation of 

 at least $50,000 be made to cover the expenses 

 of the National Conservation Commission 

 for necessary rent, assistance, and traveling 

 expenses. This is a very small sum. I know 

 of no other way in which the appropriation 

 of so small a sum would result in so large 

 a benefit to the whole Nation. 



No action was taken by Congress to- 

 ward placing the National Conservation 

 Commission on a permanent basis, nor 

 was a dollar of money appropriated for 

 its work. Instead, however, there was 

 attached to the Sundry Civil Bill, which 

 became a law on March 4, 1909, the fol- 

 lowing amendment : 



Section 9 That hereafter no part of the 

 public moneys, or any appropriation hereto- 

 fore or hereafter made by Congress, shall 

 be used for the payment of compensation or 

 expense of any commission, council, board 

 or other similar body., or any members 

 thereof, or for expenses in connection with 

 any work or the results of any work or ac 

 tion of any commission, council, board or 

 other similar body, unless the creation of the 

 same shall be or shall have been authorized 

 by law ; nor shall there be employed by detail, 

 hereafter or heretofore made, or otherwise 

 personal services from any Executive De- 

 partment or other Government establishment 

 in connection with any such commission, 

 council, board or other similar body. 



This amendment is known as the 

 "Tawney amendment." Of it the Joint 

 Committee on Conservation says : 



This amendment prohibts the N.ational 

 Conservation Commission from going on 



495 



