The scope of a
modern government in what it can and ought to accomplish for its
people has been widened far beyond the principles laid down by the
old "laissez faire" school of political writers, and this widening
has met popular approval.
In the Department of Agriculture the use of scientific experiments
on a large scale and the spread of information derived from them
for the improvement of general agriculture must go on.
The importance of supervising business of great railways and
industrial combinations and the necessary investigation and
prosecution of unlawful business methods are another necessary tax
upon Government which did not exist half a century ago.
The putting into force of laws which shall secure the conservation
of our resources, so far as they may be within the jurisdiction of
the Federal Government, including the most important work of
saving and restoring our forests and the great improvement of
waterways, are all proper government functions which must involve
large expenditure if properly performed. While some of them, like
the reclamation of arid lands, are made to pay for themselves,
others are of such an indirect benefit that this cannot be
expected of them. A permanent improvement, like the Panama Canal,
should be treated as a distinct enterprise, and should be paid for
by the proceeds of bonds, the issue of which will distribute its
cost between the present and future generations in accordance with
the benefits derived.
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