areas and a number of national monuments to National Park Service administration in 1933; and the passage of the Historic Sites Act in 1936, with the resultant establishment of a group of national historic sites greatly enlarged the scope of the Service beyond what it was when established in 1916; the Park, Parkway and Recreational Area Study Act of 1936; the conduct of cooperative recreational studies for the Bureau of Reclamation and the Corps of Engineers; and, within the past year, the placing on the Service of responsibility for the administration of recreational facilities at Lake Texoma, in Texas and Oklahoma, and at Shasta and Friant Dams in California, have all meant expanded activities and more complicated organization. The National Park Service is performing these new functions to the best of its ability. Yet there remains a primary responsibility for the integrity of the National Park System, and the Service is determined that no spreading of effort shall detract from the performance of its original duties. The National Park System is an entity which has distinct meaning to millions of Americans. It is important that its identity be maintained; that the basic distinctions in purpose and policy between the system and those other areas which are not a part of it be clearly established and made plain to the public. The work of the Service is being organized with this in view. OTHER NATIONS SHOW INTEREST Broadened horizons in appreciation of conservation were recognized in the participation by delegates of many nations to the United Nations Conference for International Organization in memorial cermonies in honor of the late President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. These cermonies were suggested by the Save-the-Redwoods League. Under the majestic redwoods of Cathedral Grove in Muir Woods National Monument, Calif., delegates assembled on May 19 to pay tribute to a great leader, during whose administration not only national park projects but many other conservation objectives were realized. Conference delegates also made pilgrimages to Yosemite, Sequoia, Grand Canyon, and other national parks of the West. They were impressed both with the grandeur of these places and with the governmental policy that assures their preservation for enjoyment. At the termination of the United Nations Conference, seeds of the giant sequoia, the General Sherman Tree, were made available to delegates who desired to take them to their native lands for planting. President Truman, en route to the Conference, spent part of June 22 at Mount Rainier National Park. Efforts were continued by the National Park Service to stimulate action by the Government of Mexico toward the reserving of an area across the Rio Grande from Big Bend National Park, which would make this an international park. The regional director of region three visited several Mexican national parks in the spring of 1945 and conferred with Mexican officials regarding the Big Bend International Park and the Coronado International Memorial projects. Correspondence was carried on with officials at work on surveys and organization plans for national parks and national park authorities for England, Scotland, and Wales; with those of Kruger National Park of South Africa; and with park officials of Brazil. PUBLIC NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT POLICIES The National Park Service looks upon itself as the guardian of perhaps the greatest living and testamentary trust ever established. The concept of conservation of a small portion of our land, not for consumption of its natural resources, but for its preservation to minister to the human mind and spirit, because of surpassing grandeur or other special and profound significance, is one almost unique to the United States of America. It is steadily gaining in interest and favor among other nations. Members of our staff returning from service abroad tell us that, even during the war, there has been much thinking and planning along these lines, particularly in Great Britain. Visitors from Latin-American countries report similar interest there. To meet the responsibilities of its trusteeship satisfactorily, the Service is dependent on congressional support which, in the final analysis, must stem from public support. Both depend primarily upon satisfactory performance of its job and upon evidence that it is meeting the needs of the visiting public. But public approval rests not only on accomplishment but also upon understanding of Service objectives and upon satisfaction with their soundness and with progress toward attaining them. The Service has been so occupied with carrying out the responsibilities placed on it by law, that it has had scant opportunity to keep the public informed about its fundamental policies. The millions of owners of the system are entitled to authentic information about their estate; why it exists, what it contains, where the units are situated; what principles of management are applied to it and the reasons for them. As travel to the national park system areas increases during the coming years, and more and more Americans enjoy the parks, it is the hope of the National Park Service that it can keep abreast of its obligations to tell the people of the value and the meaning of this great estate. |