373 
enterprise,  because  of  their  rapid  accumulation  pf  wealth  through 
the  exploitation  of  forests,  coal,  oil  and  gas,  phosphates  or  water 
resources,  now  to  their  great  bewilderment,  find  themselves  looked 
upon  with  serious  suspicion.  It  is  no  longer  regarded  as  good 
citizenship  to  sacrifice  ruthlessly  the  interests  of  future  genera- 
tions, in  order  that  wealth  may  be  accumulated  in  this.  The 
manager  of  a great  coal  or  lumber  corripany,  who  has  taken  pride 
in  creating  an  industry,  building  up  a community  and  accumu- 
lating wealth  for  himself  and  his  associates  and  too  much  en- 
grossed or  too  careless  to  watch  the  trend  of  public  opinion  is 
shocked  some  day  into  an  amazed  and  resentful  consciousness  of 
the  changed  public  attitude  toward  himself  and  his  enterprise. 
Is  not  the  coal  or  the  lumber  to  use  he  says?  Is  it  not  perfectly 
legitimate  to  create  wealth  by  an  exploitation  of  these  resources, 
in  the  possession  of  which  the  nation  is  so  fortunate?  Suppose 
he  does  leave  a path  of  destruction  behind  him.  Future  genera- 
tions can  take  care  of  themselves,  as  this  generation  must.  Is  he 
not  reaping  but  the  legitimate  reward  of  his  foresight  and  enter- 
prise in  acquiring  these  great  bodies  of  coal  and  oil,  timber  and 
phosphate?  Are  they  not  his  own?  Whose  business  is  it  any- 
how how  he  mines  or  how  he  cuts  his  lumber?  Of  course  he 
does  it  in  the  way  that  yields  the  largest  returns.  That’s  what 
he  is  in  business  for.  Fifty  per  cent,  of  the  coal  wasted?  All 
the  young  undergrowth  killed?  Well,  that’s  because  it  doesn’t 
pay  to  save  it.  You  don’t  expect  him  to  waste  his  own  and  his 
stockholders’  money  in  outlays  that  bring  no  return  do  you?  So 
he  refuses  and  fumes.  He  has  not  changed,  but  his  standing  in 
his  community  has.  It  is  irritating  beyond  understanding.  He 
may  even  be  threatened  with  indictment  because  it  is  found  that 
he  has  acquired  his  large  holdings  of  coal  or  of  timber  in  the 
usual  way  by  using  dummy  entrymen.  He,  the  most  prominent 
man  in  the  community  a criminal ! Inconceivable.  Who  is  this 
man  Pinchot  anyhow?  What  is  conservation?  A fool  and  his 
fad.  A dreamer  and  his  dream.  Away  with  them.  Let  us 
have  a business  administration. 
This  type  of  man  has  been  passed  in  the  evolution  of  public 
opinion.  A few  years  ago  he  represented  the  normal,  usual  atti- 
tude toward  his  business.  But  the  public  conscience  has  developed 
and  n6w  he  represents  only  an  irritated  and  decreasing  minority. 
But  he  has  rights  that  must  be  respected.  He  is  not  criminal  in 
intent.  He  deserves  and  will  receive  a hearing  and  time  to  com- 
prehend the  change  that  is  coming  about  and  to  adjust  it. 
There  is  much  discussion  of  and  much  interest  in,  the  attitude 
of  the  present  national  administration  toward  the  conservation 
policies.  The  ultra-conservationists  profess  to  fear  a complete  re- 
action, while  the  enemies  of  the  movement  seem  to  be  afraid  that 
after  all  President  Taft  in  his  quiet  but  effective  way  will  prove 
as  strong  a friend  of  the  doctrine  as  Mr.  Roosevelt  himself. 
So  far  as  we  can  judge  by  the  public  utterances  of  the  Presi- 
