THE NATIONAL PARKS SYSTEM 273 



system development in 1915, the press suddenly dis- 

 covered that such a system existed, and embarked 

 upon a period of exploitation of the country's un- 

 realized scenic supremacy that lasted several years. 

 No doubt the new public keenness for long distance 

 motor touring helped maintain publicity at fever 

 heat. From newspapers the chorus spread to mag- 

 azines, especially those devoted to motoring, and to 

 the lecture platform. 



With every publicity medium in the country 

 suddenly sounding the System's praises, and motion 

 pictures displaying park scenes and explorations 

 nightly the country over, it is not surprising that we 

 in the Service then thought park popularity the 

 cause of western motor touring. For several years 

 this idea was general East and West and of fre- 

 quent comment in the newspapers. Now we know 

 it was the other way about, that the day of touring 

 had arrived concurrently with park advertisement, 

 and that other western country was concurrently 

 over-run, as it still is, in far greater measure even 

 than our parks. No doubt much western travel was 

 hastened, in those first years, by public desire to see 

 much-praised scenery. No doubt the parks centred 

 and colored to some extent eastern desire for the 

 West, hastening visitation by both rail and motor. 

 Advertising so spontaneous, so laudatory, so persis- 

 tent, could not but produce prompt results. National 

 Parks became the "national craze" in the fullest 

 sense of the word, and remained so at full tide as 



