The people of the South, while their soil is extremely fertile, or was in the beginning, have allowed the rain to wash it down in the valleys, and it has washed into the sea. They had thousands and thousands of acres of land that would produce anywhere from 25 to 100 bushels of corn per acre, and from one to four bales of cotton per acre, if it was simply cared for in a proper way. I have visited the spot which holds the record for the greatest cotton yield on earth, which produced four bales per acre. In the beginning it was the poorest, reddest soil you ever saw in your life. It was taken over by a man who knew his business, and in the course of three or four years he had it up to a point where it produced almost anything. And there is another thing, Mr. Chairman, we have a section there that will produce almost anything under the sun in the way of crops. There is only one other state in the union that can compare with Georgia in that respect, and that is California, and, as the gentleman has just stated, they have not water. Our sections, from blue grass to oranges, will produce all of the various things in between.

Mr. Chairman, we of the South have got the biggest problem on earth to solve, as I see the problem. The problem of conservation of soil fertility, the conservation of agricultural resources in general, are undoubtedly among the important questions confronting this Congress, but we have the biggest part of that problem. Why? It is because of the much discussed negro problem of the South. There are a thousand and one solutions of this offered, but the question remains unsolved, and will pass on to future generations. . As long as we have the negro we are deprived of having other classes of labor, which you have here in the North. (Applause) Because of his presence, we, of the South, are dependent on the negro, and he knows it. We have got to get along in the very best way we can, but we need a better class of labor. I don't know what we are going to do. That is the reason that this is such a grave matter to the people of the South. Mr. Chairman, I see I am taking up too much time here, but I do want to get back to Georgia, and the part she is playing in conservation. (Cries of Go Go on)

on.

Since the Congress met one year ago, at St. Paul, the South has had a conservation congress, and I think I can say that it was a success. There are a number of speakers on this program that were there, and noted the interest that was manifest in this meeting. Following that meeting the Georgia Conservation Association was organized, and it is taking up a number of these problems which we are so anxious to solve. The president is a distinguished man in Georgia, Judge John C. Hart. He is a man who went before the Supreme Court of the United States and presented on behalf of the State of Georgia one of the most famous cases in its history. The State of Georgia filed an injunction against an immense copper plant in the northern part of the state, which was responsible for a great deal of destruction of prop

erty, of vegetation in general. This company had, at an expense of millions of dollars, put in this plant, and I understand it is the largest of its kind in the world. At that time copper was the plant's main output and the state filed an injunction requiring these people to consume the fumes that were destroying vegetation. The case was carried to the Supreme court, and the injunction sustained, and at a cost of five millions of dollars the Ducktown copper plant put in a consumer from which they produced sulphuric acid, and, today, it is one of the largest sulphuric acid plants in the world. There is one of the solutions to the problem which your able president presented this morning in the fact that you have, throughout the West, as well as the South, to fertilize. Georgia, as a result of that injunction, saved two million dollars. last year in its fertilizer bill. The representative of the State of Georgia Conservation Association framed a bill creating a state conservation board, not a commission, but a board that was to be created by special act, taking up all lines of conservation. This bill was unanimously passed by the senate, and unanimously recommended by the committee of the house, and will come up for passage at the next session of the legislature.

We passed a bill protecting bird life, and wild life generally in the state, a very strict law, which we have needed for many years. The state, as a result of the conservation work, has enacted a drainage bill, which, I think, will result in great good to the people in the southeastern part, in the drainage of swamp lands, which will make perhaps the greatest agricultural land on earth.

Mr. Chairman, I cannot go into details on any of these problems. Other states in the union, every state in the union has agencies working for conservation. In the first plant, the United States Department of Agriculture is working wonderful results in the different states along lines of agriculture. The state colleges of agriculture are doing great work the experiment stations are doing great work; the various state departments of agriculture are doing great work, but there is a certain. class of work which these agencies cannot do. There is a great work for the independent organizations, such as the State Conservation Association in the different states, and I would urge each state that has not organized to get busy at once, and begin to take up these problems. (Applause)

Chairman HADLEY-Instead of a statement of the resources and developments in the various states, I would suggest that this call of the roll is particularly designed to accomplish a statement of what is being done by public or official organizations in dealing with the question of conservation in the several states. I think it is a very satisfactory indication of the modern trend of conservation that this work is now being done by the people of the several states instead of the national government. It is an indication that the people do not intend

that their state governments shall sink to a lower level of efficiency. They intend to exercise every power which they possess under the federal constitution.

Recording Secretary GIPE-Idaho.

Chairman HADLEY-I have the pleasure to introduce to you Mrs. Holland C. Day, who will speak for and represent Idaho.

[Mrs. Day's paper will be found in Supplementary Proceedings.] Chairman HADLEY-I am very glad indeed in listening to the interesting speech of Mrs. Day to note what a serious attraction a state might have for a woman by reason of having woman suffrage and caused her to transfer her allegiance to the Governor of Idaho. I would suggest, however, that she should not, in her enthusiasm for the horticultural possibilities of the State of Idaho, forget that she still belongs to a state that is distinguished as the state of the "Big Red Apple.”

MRS. DAY-I will also say that the female suffrage movement is going right straight along in Missouri. (Applause)

Chairman HADLEY-I do not want to start a discussion right now. This, being a conservation congress, is a peace conference. I will now call on Col. Isham Randolph, who will speak for the State of Illinois.

[Col. Randolph's speech will be found in Supplementary Proceedings.]

Chairman HADLEY—I am certain that every person interested in the general question of Conservation, and particularly the state ownership of its water power, is interested in Colonel Randolph's statement as to what they are doing in the State of Illinois. And I know that all of you, and all other friends of Conservation, will be glad to have Colonel Randolph convey to Governor Deneen the best wishes of the Congress. I would suggest that on account of the fact that there are a number of speakers, and Judge Lindsay, whom you are all anxious to hear, that the speakers will please confine their statements to the official activities of their various states in dealing with this question of Conservation.

Recording Secretary GIPE-Indiana.

Chairman HADLEY-Mr. Harry Everitt Barnard, chemist Indiana state board of health and state food commissioner, will speak for Indiana. I now have the pleasure of introducing to you Mr. Barnard.

[Mr. Barnard's speech will be found in Supplementary Proceedings.]

Recording Secretary GIPE-I have a telegram from the Mexican Ambassador:

"Washington, D. C.-Accept sincere thanks for kind invitation. Regret exceedingly that official duties here prevent me from accepting hospitality; would thank you greatly for minutes of meeting. Gilberto Crespo, Mexican Ambassador."

The next state is Iowa.

Chairman HADLEY-I would suggest that the representatives of the several states yet to be called come up on the platform.

I have the pleasure of introducing to you Mr. Thomas H. MacBride, who will speak for the state of Iowa. Mr. MacBride. (Applause)

[Mr. MacBride's paper is to be found in Supplementary Proceedings.]

Chairman HADLEY-I am certain that the representatives of all of the states present appreciate Mr. MacBride's not speaking of the resources of the state he represents; although he did plead guilty to having a legislature up there, which practically all the representatives of the other states have to plead guilty to.

Recording Secretary GIPE-Kansas.

A. W. STUBBS (Kansas City, Kansas)-Missouri has elected from our state, a native of our state as its mayor, and has also elected a native of our state as its governor, and Kansas has therefore as its representative, to speak for it, a most distinguished educator, formerly of Missouri, now president of the state agricultural college. Kansas has elected today Professor Waters as representative of that delegation, as president. And we would like to hear from him.

Chairman HADLEY-During the sessions of this convention you will have the pleasure of listening at length to a paper by Dr. Waters, but at this time, on the call of the roll of the states, Kansas has selected him to speak for her, and I am advised that during his short residence of a little over one year in that state he has learned to speak the Kansas language. (Applause)

[Dean Water's paper will be found in Supplementary Proceedings.]

Chairman HADLEY-I am glad to see that Dean Waters with a few slight and one noticeable amendments is able to effectively use the speech he used to use about the State of Missouri when he lived here, and spoke to the State of Kansas.

Recording Secretary GIPE-Kentucky.

Chairman HADLEY-I have the pleasure to introduce to you Col. M. H. Crump, of Bowling Green, Kentucky.

COL. CRUMP-Mr. Chairman. I am simply here this evening to say that the president of the University of Kentucky is not here. He

will be here tonight, and I will state that he will tell you tomorrow what we are attempting to do in Kentucky. We started the conservation movement there some thirty years ago with Professor Shaler of Harvard, when he was state geologist. He wrote the first paper I know of in attempting to take care of forestry. It is found in his report of 1873, about the time I came to the state. We are, through the university, through the state colleges, and through the geological survey, making some efforts along that line, and we are doing all the state can do in that way. But there is a subject there that we think is too large for the state to undertake. I picked up a circular when I came in here, which says that an effort is being made to take care of and preserve the forests, and the soil at the head of the Green river. This paper states that some 32,000 acres of timber land, 2,000 of which is virgin forest, the last of a great forest which once covered the Green river, and in the center of which is Mamoth Cave, we ask that the Nation come forward and help to take care of that, because it is too large for Kentucky, and heretofore nothing has been too large for Kentucky to do. (Applause) That is all I have to say. (Applause)

Recording Secretary GIPE-Louisiana.

Chairman HADLEY-Mr. Fred J. Grace will speak for Louisiana. [Mr. Grace's paper is to be found in Supplementary Proceedings.] Chairman HADLEY-I know that all true conservationists will be glad to know that Louisiana is looking after the conservation of her shrimps and oysters, and we will all be glad to hear whether Mary, land is interested in her terrapin and canvas backs.

Secretary GIPE-The next state is Maryland.

Chairman HADLEY-I have the pleasure of introducing Hon. Bernard N. Baker, president of the first Conservation Congress. (Applause)

MR. BAKER-Fellow delegates. I will only detain you a few minutes. I know you are all waiting to hear Judge Lindsay. The governor limited us to what we were doing to preserve the oyster. Maryland is doing her duty in that respect, and if you will do your part, we shall all enjoy them in using the oyster when it is opened. I know you want to hear Judge Lindsay, and I am going to only speak a word. I thank you for this, and we will wait for Judge Lindsay.

FRED J. BREEZE of Indiana-I move that the report on the call of the states be laid over until tomorrow.

The motion was duly seconded.

Chairman HADLEY-I think the Chair will declare that motion carried, and on tomorrow morning where there is an order on the program for the response of chairmen of organizations concerned in conservation there will be statements of the representatives of the several