12 T HE? AUD UsB O° NG Bal 2 eae 
Conservation News and Notes 
By Dr. R. M. STRONG 
LAND-GRABBING BILLS. The subject of land-grabbing was discussed in this 
column in the December, 1952 number of the Audubon Bulletin. Since then, 
two identical bills have been introduced in the Senate and the House of 
Representatives, which are designed to benefit certain Western stockmen. 
S. 1491 was introduced by Senators Hugh Butler of Nebraska and Frank A. 
Barrett of Wyoming. Both men can be expected to push the bill vigorously. 
Senator Butler is chairman of the Senate Committee on Interior and In- 
sular Affairs. Senator Barrett is notorious for various activities objection- 
able to conservationists, notably the Jackson Hole Monument struggle. H.R. 
4023, the companion bill, was introduced by Rep. Wesley A. D’Ewart of 
Montana. 
Some of the objectionable features of these bills are: Section 3 says that 
the legislation would apply to national forests and the public domain in 
Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, 
North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. 
These are the states which have suffered most from land-grabbing and 
other invasion of the public domain. 
Section 5 would authorize boards of local stockmen to set “base property 
standards” (i.e. lands, water or range improvements used for the support 
of livestock), on which grazing permits would be computed. The Secretary 
of Agriculture would have virtually nothing to say about such standards. 
They would be for the benefit of the cattle barons who care little for the 
public interest and who have been guilty of much overgrazing, with con- 
sequent destruction of land by erosion. 
Sections 6 and 7 would freeze existing permits in present hands forever, 
unless the rancher should choose to sell his holding. Section 8 would 
authorize a study to establish new fees for grazing permits. The fees are 
already very low by comparison with rentals of privately-owned pasture 
lands in our Western states. 
Of course, not all cattle raisers favor the bill. However, the supporters of 
the bill are powerful politically, and well organized. They were clever 
enough to get a plank into the Republican party platform last summer 
which favors such legislation, and a small number of Congressmen can 
put over bad legislation by the old system of vote trading. Readers are 
urged to send letters to the senators from Illinois and to members of the 
House, opposing this legislation. Letters to Senator Hugh Butler, chairman 
of the Senate Committee, and Rep. A. L. Millar of Nebraska, chairman of 
the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, would also be in 
order. Act now if you would prevent further. destruction of Western lands. 
POLITICS IN THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR. The Secretary of the 
Interior has replaced the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, Mr. 
Albert Day, by a press agent for a paper company. This is the first time 
that this position has not been occupied by a biologist, except for Ding 
Darling who is a distinguished conservationist. This action appears to be 
