INTRODUCTORY. 9 



waste unnecessarily. That this conception is not 

 absurd, and may be practically realized without any 

 strain in our conceptions of government functions, 

 is proved by the fact that it has been carried out in 

 practice in several cases, in our country as well as 

 in others, without opposition. 



Absurdly enough we have begun such action with 

 reference to our resources where it is perhaps of 

 least consequence, as, for instance, when, by the 

 estabUshment of hunting and fishing seasons and 

 by other restrictions, we seek to prevent the exhaus- 

 tion of the fish and game resources. This is a 

 good illustration of the fact that emotion rather 

 than reason, sentiment rather than argument, are 

 the prime movers of society. It was only partially 

 fear for the exhaustion of this readily restorable 

 resource or economic reasons which led to this pro- 

 tection of our fisheries and game, but love of sport 

 gave the incentive. And again, it needed the love 

 of sport to set on foot the movement for the im- 

 provement of the roads in the United States, which 

 the realization of true economy had not the power 

 to bring about. 



While we do not prevent single individuals from 

 ruining themselves financially and hazarding the 

 future of their families, we do prevent associated 

 portions of the community, — corporations, towns, 

 and cities, — from jeopardizing their future by pre- 

 venting them from extravagant expenditures and 

 contracting of debts. This, too, is perhaps less 



