26 
ADDRESS  BY  HON.  F.  H.  NEWELL, 
Director,  U.  S.  Reclamation  Service, 
Before  the  Territorial  Conservation  Commission  of  Hawaii, 
October  20th,  1908. 
The  problem  of  conservation  is  not  merely  Territorial  but  is 
of  national  importance.  The  Hawaiian  Islands  being-  a terri- 
tory of  the  United  States,  the  citizens  of  the  whole  country 
should  be  brought  to  a better  appreciation  of  their  possibilities 
for  development,  and  should  give  a substantial  backing  to  your 
efforts. 
SOIL  CONSERVATION. 
After  a six-week  trip  around  the  islands  the  thing  that  most 
impresses  me  is  the  need  of  conservation  of  the  soil.  I am  very 
greatly  impressed  with  the  rate  at  which  the  land  in  some  places 
is  being  washed  or  blown  away.  Forest  and  water  supplies  can 
be  renewed  by  various  methods,  but  the  soil  supply  cannot.  Ka- 
hoolawe  illustrates  this  in  the  extreme  degree.  There  the  soil 
has  been  literally  carried  away  to  sea — soil  that  might  have  been 
kept  as  a valuable  asset.  At  present  there  is  practically  nothing 
over  a large  part  of  the  island  but  bare  rock  and  no  possibility  of 
getting  anything  there.  This,  of  course,  is  an  extreme  case,  but 
it  shows  what  is  liable  to  happen  elsewhere. 
The  first  thing  to  do  in  conservation  work  is  to  arouse  public 
sentiment  along  the  line  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  state  to  protect 
its  soil.  Possibly  it  may  be  found  wise  and  practicable  to  enact 
regulations  to  the  effect  that  a man  will  not  be  permitted  to 
handle  his  land  in  such  a wav  that  he  will  destroy  his  soil.  Here 
in  Hawaii  you  have  examples  of  the  most  extreme  condition 
where  neglect  has  caused  soil  to  actually  disappear  and  to  be  lost 
forever. 
WATER  CONSERVATION. 
Watef  conservation  has  been  begun  in  Kohala  and  Hamakua 
and  other  places  and  excellent  work  done,  showing  what  can  be 
accomplished  on  a larger  scale.  Apparently  much  more  can  be 
done.  There  appears  to  be  a considerable  area  of  public  land 
in  Hawaii  that  can  be  reclaimed  in  a manner  similar  to  what  has 
been  done  on  the  Mainland.  There,  after  reclaiming  the  land, 
the  Government  divides  it  into  portions  or  farm  units  of  10,  20 
or  40  acres  or  more,  and  then  distributes  it  to  the  men  who  will 
actually  live  on  it  and  improve  it  for  the  support  of  themselves 
and  their  families.  This  law  authorizing  Federal  reclamation 
work  does  not  apply  to  the  Territory  of  Hawaii,  but  I have  hopes 
that  it  can  be  made  to  apply.  Congress  is  beginning  to  recognize 
there  is  such  a place  as  Hawaii ! Even  if  action  bv  Congress  is 
delayed,  in  the  meantime  you  can  take  advantage  of  the  experi- 
ence you  have  had  and  do  much  locally. 
