122 OUR FEDERAL LANDS 



were given rights in the National Forests, were reg- 

 ulated in the use of those rights. In short, the pub- 

 lic resources in charge of the Forest Service were 

 handled frankly and openly for the public welfare 

 under the clear cut and clearly set forth principle 

 that the public rights come first and private interest 

 second. 



"The natural result of this new attitude was 

 the assertion in every form by the representatives 

 of special interests that the Forest Service was ex- 

 ceeding its legal powers and thwarting the intention 

 of Congress. Suits were begun wherever the chance 

 arose. It is worth recording that, in spite of the 

 novelty and complexity of the legal questions it had 

 to face, no court of last resort has ever decided 

 against the Forest Service." 



Since Mr. Roosevelt penned these words in 

 1913, his expectation that his arbitrary water-power 

 policy would be enacted into law has been more than 

 fulfilled in the Federal Power Act of 1920. His 

 theory of public stewardship, which as President he 

 sometimes effected without Congressional authority 

 and against the most violent opposition, has been 

 written into many laws. His expectation that the 

 Forest Service would survive many assaults has been 

 amply verified. Under Gifford Pinchot's able and 

 public-spirited successors, Henry S. Graves, William 

 B. Greeley, and Robert Y. Stuart, it has won the in- 

 creasing confidence of the people. 



During the Roosevelt regime public sentiment 



