Mabch 26, 1909] 



SCIENCE 



491 



the press, and will be issued within a few 

 days in a volume of vii + 703 pages. The 

 bulk of the edition will be distributed by 

 senators and representatives; a limited 

 number of copies being held for the use of 

 experts. 



Pursuant to the Joint Conference in De- 

 cember, President Roosevelt invited Can- 

 ada and Mexico to join the United States 

 in a joint movement for taking stock of the 

 natural resources of the North American 

 continent. The neighboring nations ac- 

 cepted with alacrity, and each designated 

 three commissioners to meet in Washing- 

 ton with a like number of American com- 

 missioners on February 18 ; and at the in- 

 stance of the British Ambassador the colony 

 of Newfoundland was also represented. 

 This "North American Conservation Con- 

 ference" was signally harmonious, and 

 constructive ideas prevailed throughout 

 the deliberations. These continued until 

 February 23, and resulted in the appended 

 Declaration of Principles. 



A specially noteworthy feature is the 

 unanimous opinion that the time has come 

 for rendering the conservation movement 

 world-wide in scope. When this opinion 

 was submitted to President Roosevelt, he 

 promptly responded by addressing invi- 

 tations to all civilized nations to join in a 

 conference devoted to consideration of the 

 world's natural resources, to be held at 

 The Hague at such date as may be found 

 generally convenient — if practicable, about 

 September next. Replies (without excep- 

 tion favorable) are arriving in due course; 

 the French government has already taken 

 formal action, and several other nations 

 have announced that action is under way. 



During the closing days of the Sixtieth 

 Congress the following amehdment was 

 added to the Sundry Civil Bill : 



Sec. 9. That hereafter no part of the public 

 moneys, or of any appropriation heretofore or 

 hereafter made by Congress, shall be used for the 



payment of compensation or expenses of any com- 

 mission, council, board, or other similar body, or 

 any members thereof, or for expenses in connec- 

 tion with any work or the results of any work or 

 action 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 hereto- 

 fore made, or otherwise personal services from 

 any executive department or other government 

 establishment in connection with any such com- 

 mission, council, board or other similar body. 



When the bill was enacted and submitted 

 to the President for signature, he disap- 

 proved this item in a memorandum at- 

 tached to and forming a part of the Act 

 (and which has received wide attention 

 through the press), as follows: 



I have hesitated long before aflBxing my signa- 

 ture to this bill, and if it were earlier in the 

 session, or if the bill contained a less number of 

 important propositions of benefit to the country, 

 I should certainly not sign it. Moreover, if sec- 

 tion 9 of the bill, to which I subsequently refer, 

 were operative according to its evident intent, I 

 should be forced to veto the bill anyhow. But I 

 have concluded that this section is not operative 

 to the extent that its framers evidently hoped, 

 and that the mischief it will cause, though appre- 

 ciable, can be suificiently remedied by the action 

 of the Executive to warrant my permitting the 

 bill to become a law, in view of all the considera- 

 tions surrounding the case. 



Section 9 of the act contains a provision far 

 more damaging to the interests of the public. 

 This attempts to prohibit the use of any govern- 

 ment funds or the detail of any government clerks 

 to help the work of any commission, council or 

 board, unless the same is specifically authorized 

 by previous congressional action. This could cer- 

 tainly only result in hampering efficient govern- 

 ment work. But as the purpose of the attempt 

 in its entirety is clearly an invasion of executive 

 prerogative, and unconstitutional and void, it is 

 only very partially successful. The provision is 

 obviously aimed at such commissions or boards as, 

 for instance, the Conservation Commission, the 

 Country Life Commission, the Council of Fine 

 Arts, the General Board of the Navy and the 

 Joint Board of the Army and Navy, not to speak 

 of such boards as the National Advisory Board 

 on Structural Material, the board of reference in 



