THE PROGRESS OF FORESTRY IN NEW ENGLAND 375 



such measures when they have been advocated in the various 

 legislative bodies. 



One incident of the forestry history of New England which 

 should not be overlooked, and perhaps the only incident that 

 has thus far affected all the New England States, was a con- 

 ference held in Boston in November, 1908. This meeting which 

 was called by Gov. Curtis Guild, for several years president of 

 the American Forestry Association, and now American Ambas- 

 sador to Russia, took the form of a two days' Conservation Con- 

 gress for the discussion of such subjects as forestry, fruit growing, 

 good roads, the shell-fish industries, etc. There were present 

 the governors and governors-elect of the various New England 

 States, the members of Congress from New England and a large 

 number of experts and delegates appointed by the various gov- 

 ernors. The results of this meeting along forestry lines have 

 been much more far reaching than could have been anticipated 

 or even hoped at the time. 



Throughout the decade since 1901, while the states have been 

 formulating and developing their several forestry policies, a 

 movement quite apart from these influences has been steadily 

 making headway. This movement, with headquarters at Boston, 

 had for its object the acquisition by the federal government of 

 large tracts of forest lands in the White Mountains. Political 

 expediency soon led to the joining of interests on the part of 

 these people with those who were striving for similar national 

 forests in the Southern Appalachians. Several times the ap- 

 propriation bill providing for these purchases passed one house 

 of Congress but failed in the other. It was from start to finish 

 bitterly opposed by Speaker Cannon and was finally held by its 

 enemies to be unconstitutional. Its friends decided, whether 

 wisely or not we cannot say, that such purchases could only be 

 made under the clause in the Constitution which gives Congress 

 the right to regulate interstate commerce. The bill was, there- 

 fore, drafted to provide for the purchase of such forests as have 

 an effect upon the run-ofif of navigable streams. After a number 

 of years of agitation and many discouraging episodes, the friends 



