Hart. — Pollution of Inland Streams. 169 



oil. Furthermore, it is useless for us to discuss this pollution matter unless 

 we take into our confidence or into our conferences the business men and 

 those whose interests would be afifected by any legislation that might have 

 the effect of hampering or wiping out certain industries. We know that 

 you cannot combat big business when it is established three or four miles on 

 each side of a river. It is of no use for us to think that we can put that 

 business out of the way for the sake of a few fish; it simply cannot be done, 

 and it would not be good judgment to try it. But as Mr. Hart says, there 

 are many streams that have not been encroached upon and which we 

 could control or hold forever for the use of the angler. 



Mr. HarT: When we were presenting that pollution bill, fashioned 

 closely after the New York and New Jersey laws, at the last session of the 

 state legislature, we sent for Mr. J. W. Titcomb; we anglers and sports- 

 men thought that his testimony before the committee would be such that we 

 would not have much trouble getting the bill through. Mr. Titcomb is a fair 

 and square man; he told the legislative committee considering the bill that 

 neither the State of New York, the State of New Jersey nor any of the 

 other states, were enforcing their pollution laws strictly, for the simple 

 reason that they had too much business sense to put industrial enterprises 

 out of business. I would like Mr. Titcomb to tell us what he said down 

 there. 



Mr. J. W. Titcomb, Hartford, Conn.: I explained the general effects 

 of pollution — its destructiveness to oxygen and its effect on the growtk 

 of vegetation, and all that sort of thing that everybody is familiar with. I am 

 not a pollution expert, but I made some general remarks along that line 

 to help Mr. Hart with his bill. I told Mr. Hart beforehand I was sorry 

 that they had introduced a bill which it would be impossible to enforce 

 without killing industry. When I finished, members of the committee 

 questioned me, asking if there was any solution for the problems presented 

 b^ certain pollutions such as the discharge from dye factories, from sulphide 

 pulp plants, and so on; and I had to confess that we had no solution. It 

 seems to me that all our work in connection with the purification of our 

 waters must be devoted to a study of the problems involved and of methods 

 of taking care of the wastes which cause pollution. 



Mr. Hart: I do not want you gentlemen to think that I oppose in any 

 way the development of processes to take care of pollutions. I understand 

 that Germany has made more progress in this line than most other coun- 

 tries; and I hope our scientists and experimenters will continue that work. 

 I do not doubt that from the economic standpoint you have streams that 

 it would be better to turn over to your industrial enterprises; on the other 

 hand, I do believe that the anglers of the state have some rights. We have 

 started out on a proposition now looking to the establishment of public shoot- 

 ing grounds. Why are we doing that? Because practically all the land has 

 been taken up and the hunter who does not belong to a club has been shut 

 off. Well, if you do not take steps to protect your watercourses, or some 

 of them, for the anglers, you will find yourselves in a situation similar to 



