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duty to stop it, and we have stopped it except in isolated cas^s here 

 and there; the great stealing is done away with; one thing that we. 

 had to do was to stop, as far as it was possible, forest fires; in that we 

 have been most particularly'successful; we have given a great deal of 

 time and attention to it; in fact there are resolutions that are not 

 entirely carried out, although somewhat; we felt so deeply interested 

 in the subject of forest fires that we passed resolutions that every 

 forest fire should be thoroughly noticed in a book, that we should 

 keep, a book in which should be entered the cause of the fire, its 

 extent, the damage done, the reason why, when it was stopped, and 

 all that; that has not been done, I am sorry to say, but the fact is that 

 the fires have ceased to a very great extent, almost entirely stopped; 

 we have stopped the forest fires, and we have stopped the trespassing 

 to a very great extent; our duty was to do this, and I think 

 we have done it; then I might go on to say that it should be our 

 duty to encourage the Legislature in granting us appropriations; 

 that is one of our duties; I made it a point to go before the Legislature 

 and to ask them to give us appropriations; to be sure Mr. Connelly 

 might say, " Why didn't you spend the $25,000 ? " We have not yet, 

 but we are going to; I tried three years ago to get money appro- 

 priated to buy lands wheri"we could have bought them a great deal 

 cheaper; I thought it was very wise that we should do it; I have 

 recommended the establishment of a park for a long time; our duty 

 has been to educate the public up to knowing the value of the Adi- 

 rondacks and the Catskill preserve, and really get the Legislature to 

 take an interest in it; I know I have addressed a great many com- 

 mittees upon that subject, and very kindly a very great many of them 

 have listened to me; when first I was commissioner we didn't have 

 any money and were not going to have any appropriation, and I went 

 before one of the eminent gentlemen of the , Legislature who had 

 charge of that department at that time and asked him to see that our 

 appropriation was granted; the reply I got was this: "I don't favor 

 any appropriation; I don't think that the State ought to expend 

 any money that way; I don't think the people of the State ought to 

 be taxed to take care of trees; trees can take care of themselves; I 

 see trees and they don't want any help, they don't want any money to 

 protect them; " I said, " Suppose a man comes in with an ax and cuts 

 them down and carries them away, what then ? " he said, " I haven't 

 thought of that; " when we took hold of this thing it was new; it 

 hadn't been thought of hardly except shortly before the commission 

 was formed, and I think the interest that is taken in the Adirondacks 

 by all of you gentlemen — every member ofHhe Legislature seems to 



