Interior, he should not protect first of all the homesteader, the sheep-grazer, the lumberman, the miner, and the Indian.

If Mr. Lane's only problem, however, were a general one of keeping hands off, his task would be comparatively easy. But that part has already been done. The Government has fenced in the forests, locked up the coal lands in Alaska, withdrawn the water-power sites, sequestered the oil wells, the phosphate beds, and the other stores of national capital. This was a splendid and necessary piece of work. But it was merely preliminary to conservation; it was not conservation itself. It was comparatively easy to collect this enormous wealth and mark it "reserved." But Mr. Lane has the really difficult task. He has to open again. I asked him what he proposed to do about this great problem.

it up

"The first thing I would like," he said, "is a liberal appropriation from Congress with which to buy a large supply of scissors. They would be useful in cutting redtape."

"Oh yes, the problem is a great one," Mr. Lane continued, "but it is nothing to despair about. Everything is not conservation that is so-called. There are no questions involved that cannot be solved by the application of common sense. If I could get together all the people most interested, sit down at a table and quietly talk things over, I am sure we could settle everything amicably and satisfactorily to all concerned. We need to

and fenced in by red-tape. They exist to be used. My interest in them is human, not geological. They will serve a valuable purpose only if they make the people happier, more prosperous, and contented. We need to develop them so that we shall have room for another 100,000,000 people. It goes without saying that they are not to be monopolized. A monopoly of any kind is the most perfect instrument of oppression and unrighteousness known, whether a monopoly in railroads, in manufacturing, or in land. Unquestionably men have become so audacious in recent years their imaginations have been so inflamed by the

gigantic scale upon which modern industrialism is based-that they have actually dreamed of concentrating the control over enormous areas - whole states, perhaps a territory as large as Alaska. But this is only a dream-they will not succeed. My ambition will be to encourage settlement and development in the real sense of the term."

That an organized effort is now being made to break down the conservation policy of the last seven years is clear. It

crops out everywhere. There are those in Washington who are making it their business to disseminate "information" on this great question. This hostility assumes several phases. The main cry is that the "conservation cranks" have "locked up" and otherwise set aside our national resources. Timber is rotting in the forests, we are told, and lumbermen are crying aloud for wood; water is running to waste down our streams while cities are going unlighted and mill wheels are standing unturned. What is the use of phosphate beds if we cannot use them for fertilizer? What

good are oil wells that are untapped or coal lands that are unmined? These objectors make so much noise that the public is in danger of seriously believing that "conservation" really means "bottling up."

The truth is that for seven years the Roosevelt conservationists have been attempting to reopen the public domain. The opposition has come from those who are now making such a great lamentation. Bills in endless number are presented to every Congress providing for the de

of course, merely the restoration of the old conditions: if the states obtain these lands, they will unquestionably soon find their way into private ownership. "Conservation" would quickly end.

Many Western newspapers acclaimed Mr. Lane's appointment as an endorsement of this "states' rights" idea. As a Westerner it was assumed that he would sympathize with it. There are plenty of Californians who think that California should control the Government lands within that state.

"How about states' rights?" I asked Mr. Lane.

velopment of Alaska and all our public land. But these bills do not pass. The reason is that they carefully safeguard the public interest. They do not open the public domain to the exploitation that prevailed in the good old grab-bag days. Powerful interests, in Congress and out, regularly defeat them. At present the opposition takes the form of clamoring for "states' rights." The Federal Government, according to this policy, should turn over all its forests, mines, water-powers, and other resources into the hands of the states in which they are. This means,

"It is not to be discussed. The Federal Government must control its own property, of course." And he passed at once to a more pertinent subject. "Alaska," he said, "tremendously appeals

to my imagination. It is the future home of many million Americans and of several new states. It contains 60,000,000 acres of arable land. Its reindeer -they live on mountain moss, which no other animal will eat - will some day supply the Pacific Coast with meat. And we know all

about its coal mines." "But how are you going to get to them?" "Build railroads, of course," Mr. Lane answered. "If private capital won't do it, the Government should. In fact, I am in favor of the immediate construction of an Alaskan railroad by the Govern

It cannot get to work too quickly to please me. I shall make this recommendation to Congress. This is the kind of paternalism I believe in."

Mr. Lane has already given an illustration of what he means by applying common sense to his problems - of "sit

ting around a table and talking things over." Immediately on taking office he found a "situation" in the Reclamation Service. In many ways this is one of the most splendid activities of the Government. For ten years the United States has been engaging in the business of reclaiming arid soil. It has advanced the money for these projects - derived from the sale of public lands; built storage reservoirs which, such as the Roosevelt and the Shoshone dams, are among the

MR. LANE AS A SAILOR
YACHTING IS HIS FAVORITE RECREATION

world's most magnificent engineering feats. According to the financial scheme laid down by Congress, actual settlers on the reclaimed lands are to pay back the cost of these improvements in a series of annual instalments. So far the Reclamation Service has spent $70,000,000 on these works; settlers have moved upon them in large numbers; and the time has arrived to begin paying back the money. But all kinds of trouble has been brewing among the settlers. A committee of

Congress has investigated the Reclamation Service, and submitted a report of 700 pages, containing a large assortment of serious charges. It has been extravagant, its work badly done, the interests of settlers have been ignored in favor of land speculators — so run the accusations. When Mr. Lane took office, he found his desk piled high with letters, telegrams, petitions, and newspaper clippings - all ostensibly appeals from water-users for decent treatment. "Guess this is one of the things we will have to talk over," said Mr. Lane. He sent letters to the complainants inviting them to come to Washington for consultation. Representatives from all the reclamation projects in the United States presently swept down upon the Secretary. Mr. Lane held hearings all the afternoons and evenings for three weeks. Though the atmosphere was at high tension - people in debt $70,000,000 to the Government are inclined to take life seriously- Mr. Lane simply radiated benevolence. When he had finished he probably knew as much about all phases of reclamation as anyone in the United States.

"It's the old trouble," says Mr. Lane. "Our Reclamation Service contains great engineers, but they have failed on the human side. They did not realize that, primarily, these lands were being reclaimed for human occupation. They were interested chiefly in making wonderful dams and reservoirs - not in making the people industrious and contented. These things will have to be straightened out; what we need to do is to keep our tempers and use a little common sense. There may have been some extravagance - who can tell? But there has been no graft, and, on the whole, the Service has done a really inspiring piece of work. This Reclamation Service is the kind of thing I like to see the Government do. It is paternalistic in the best sense of the term; socialistic, if you will; an intelligent extension of governmental powers, I should call it. It is only one of the many things that the Government can do better than the people. There are those who think that the Federal Government cannot undertake business enterprises of this sort - I think it can.