85 
the  women,  giving  Hawaii  marked  prominence  in  his  delight- 
ful and  instructive  remarks. 
Governor  Frear  was  invited  to  give  an  address,  but  urgent 
demands  upon  his  time  at  the  Capitol  prevented  his  respond- 
ing. His  influence,  however,  was  felt  in  the  sessions,  even  if 
he  could  not  be  there  in  person. 
On  Thursday  evening,  December  io,  there  was  held  a joint 
meeting  of  the  National  Rivers  and  Harbors  Congress  and  of 
the  Women’s  National  Rivers  and  Harbors  Congress. 
Mrs.  Hoyle  Tomkies,  President  of  the  Woman’s  Congress, 
addressed  this  large  convention  and  as  she  stood  on  the  plat- 
form among  some  of  the  foremost  men  of  the  nation,  she  was 
the  personification  of  feminine  beauty  and  daintiness,  and  at 
the  same  time  expressing  masculine  strength  in  her  deep  in- 
sight into  the  country’s  need,  in  her  firm  purpose  and  un- 
daunted courage. 
After  Mrs.  Tomkies  had  so  ably  represented  the  women, 
President  Ransdell  expressed  his  great  faith  in  the  power  of 
women  to  educate  the  public  mind  to  the  necessity  of  carrying 
on  this  great  work,  predicting  that  with  their  organized  co- 
operation from  Maine  to  Hawaii,  the  time  would  come  more 
quickly  when  Congress  would  listen  to  the  demands  of  the 
people  and  appropriate  $50,000,000.00  annually  for  the  next 
ten  years  for  the  sake  of  preserving,  conserving  and  improv- 
ing the  nation’s  natural  resources. 
The  platform  adopted  by  the  Woman’s  National  Rivers  and 
Harbors  Congress  is  as  follows: 
PLATFORM. 
“The  Woman’s  National  Rivers  and  Harbors  Congress  ad- 
vocates a policy  and  not  a project. 
“It  will  stand  for  a broad  and  liberal  policy  by  the  National 
Government  for  the  development  of  our  inland  waterways  and 
harbors  and  the  extension  of  our  forests,  as  one  problem. 
Rivers  and  forests  are  interdependent.  Nature  has  indissolubly 
linked  these  two  greatest  physical  resources.  'Their  improve- 
ment should  be  vigorously  met,  together,  and  at  once.’ 
“We- believe  that  our  natural  resources  should  be  conserved 
and  developed  in  a national  way,  and  that  such  development 
is  only  possible  by  a national  agency,  whose  policy  it  would 
be  to  secure  for  the  entire  country,  irrespective  of  section, 
division  or  State,  the  greatest  benefits  at  the  least  expense. 
“We  believe  that  the  United  States  has  reached  the  critical 
stage  from  the  wanton  waste  and  neglect  of  its  natural  re- 
sources, that  the  people — everywhere — of  all  classes  and  con- 
ditions, must  pause  and  take  counsel  for  the  best  methods  of 
conservation,  and  that  immediate  action  is  necessary  to  save 
these  basal  factors  of  civilization. 
