Upon the recommendation of this department, the President on August 18, 1922, addressed Congress asking for legislation to enable the Federal Government to cooperate in a more practical and effective way with the States to control distribution and prices. The prospect of relief in itself created an effective buying strike, and prices greatly receded.

On September 22 the coal legislation was enacted by Congress, creating the office of Fuel Distributor, and conferring some measure of authority upon the Interstate Commerce Commission in restraint of unreasonable prices in interstate trade. It was impossible constitutionally to extend Federal control to the prosecution of profiteering or the control of speculation in coal produced and distributed within State boundaries, or upon resales of coal imported into a State. The responsibility for such action rested upon the State authorities, and in some cases was effectually cared for.

Upon my recommendation Mr. Conrad E. Spens, vice president of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, was appointed Federal Fuel Distributor, and continued in office until the crisis was passed some four months later.

The results of these activities may be summed up in the fact that the price of spot bituminous coal at the mines during the entire period from April 1, 1922, to January 1, 1923, averaged $4.13 as against $6.66 in the same months of 1920, when very much less of an actual shortage existed.

Radio.

In March of this year the second National Radio Conference was held at this department. The principal commercial, public, scientific, and Government organizations interested in broadcasting were represented. The purpose of the conference was to endeavor to work out proposals for administrative action which might in some degree reduce the great amount of interference then existing, in the absence of enactment by Congress of the new legislation to cope with the situation recommended by the first conference held at the department during the previous fiscal year. The result was a recommendation for a reallocation of frequencies among the broadcasting stations, a band from 1,350 to 550 kilocycles (wave lengths 222 to 545 meters) being suggested for that service, and for new allocations for amateur, exclusive Government, exclusive commercial, and marine telephone use.

The recommendations were adopted by the department practically in their entirety, and have been put into operation with the result that interference has been greatly reduced.

The Interdepartment Advisory Committee on governmental radio broadcasting, which was an outgrowth of the First National Radio Conference, and the chairman of which is an official of this department, has during the year extended its scope to include questions pertaining to Government radio communication in general, and is now known as the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee. It is performing an important function as a coordinating agency and advisory body to all of the participating Government departments and establishments in their use of radio communication, and particularly to this department in its administration of radio law.

Facilities for the enforcement of the present law are wholly inadequate. There are some 25,000 stations now sending radio messages within our country or along our coasts. The law requires the inspection of all these stations, and if this inspection is to be sufficiently efficient to accomplish results in the character of equipment and prevention of interference it must be performed with reasonable frequency. To inspect these 25,000 stations the department now has a total force of 29 men, all that can be employed within the limit of the appropriation. Manifestly, under such a condition, effective inspection is impossible.

Mention is made in Part IV of this report of the need for new legislation suited to the tremendous growth in the radio art.

Fisheries.

As was anticipated, very satisfactory results have been apparent during this the first year in the operation of the fisheries reservations already established in Alaskan waters. Effective control of the situation has become possible, and a furtherance of the principle and practice will result not only in continuing the salmon fisheries in perpetuity but also in their rehabilitation and development upon a scale heretofore attained only in the peak years.

In administering the reservations the policy has been adopted of imposing definite restrictions upon the number of operators, fishing methods, the maximum amount of apparatus to be used, length of season, and maximum pack. Due consideration has been given the resources of each district, the fisheries concerned, fishermen already established, previous output, and the economic operation of the plants.

These general principles have been kept in view at all times in the preparation of regulations and the issuance of permits. In a district which could not safely support further expansion of the salmon fishery, new plants and additional fishermen

have not been permitted. If fishing operations were already conducted upon too extensive a scale, restrictions have been imposed that bear with equal weight on all concerned. The department has issued to each packer, large or small, fisherman, fox farmer, or native of Alaska already operating within the reservation, permits to continue fishery operations under certain prescribed conditions. Permits for the more extensive operations have been issued in Washington; but in the case of many local operators, agents of the department on the ground and able to judge of conditions have been authorized to act. These agents, who travel throughout the Territory, have been able to handle cases in inaccessible districts with infrequent mail service, and thus to carry out the department's desire to perform its duties with as little inconvenience as possible to the persons with whom it must deal.

A recommendation of legislative action to prevent further depletion of the fisheries is contained in Part IV of this report. Russian Relief.

The relief work in Russia of the American Relief Administration, of which I am chairman, has been completed. This work, which was undertaken with the approval of President Harding and in cooperation with this department, was supported by congressional appropriations amounting to $24,000,000 and by funds from charitable and other sources of over $45,000,000. Although the famine was broken in the summer of 1922, when the American program reached its peak, relief on a reduced scale was continued into the summer of 1923 to meet the after-famine problems of destitute children and disease.

In the course of the 23 months of operations, several billion. rations were distributed through more than 28,000 feeding points established in 20,000 towns and villages, which were scattered over an area of about 1,000,000 square miles. At the period of most intense famine over 11,000,000 people were fed. Through the food and clothing package delivery system and through the medical relief work, which were not confined to famine areas, American relief penetrated every section of European Russia. Over a million and a quarter ten-dollar food packages and over 41,000 twenty-dollar clothing packages (purchased from the American Relief Administration by persons in America and in other countries for the benefit of relatives in Russia) were delivered in the course of the relief operations. Medical relief was afforded to 15,000 institutions serving an area with a population of 80,000,000. Other areas with a population of 25,000,000

were supplied from sanitary trains. All these varied operations were carried on wholly under the direction of Americans, who at the high point numbered about 200. Internal transportation in Russia and other internal expenses, including payment of the Russian staff, were met by the Soviet Government. All overhead expenses were covered by the margin earned from the food package operation, which also yielded a substantial sum for general relief. The relief organization, furthermore, was instrumental in establishing the citizenship and effecting the repatriation of nearly 600 Americans in Russia who desired to return to this country.

All contracts and agreements between the American Relief Administration and the Soviet Government were liquidated on June 15, 1923, when all claims and accounts arising from the activities of the American Relief Administration in Russia were settled. This great and practical demonstration of the friendship of America for the people of Russia did much more than defeat the greatest famine in the history of that country. The magnitude of the American relief program, the opportunities for public service which that program offered, the demands which it made on Russian official departments and services, created an impetus to productivity where stagnation existed. The timely aid from a far country gave new courage to a shaken people.

Colorado River Commission.

The Colorado River Commission, on which I represented the Federal Government under appointment by President Harding and acted as chairman, held its final sessions at Santa Fe, N. Mex., from November 9 to November 24, 1922. On the latter date the Colorado River Compact was signed by the representatives of the seven States (Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) and approved by me as the representative of the Federal Government.

The major purposes of the compact are to provide for the equitable division and apportionment of the use of the waters of the Colorado River; to establish the relative importance of different beneficial uses of water; to promote interstate comity; to remove causes of present and future controversies; and to secure the expeditious agricultural and industrial development of the Colorado River Basin, the storage of its waters, and the protection of life and property from floods. To these ends the Colorado River Basin is divided into two basins, and an apportionment of the use of part of the water of the river is made 68596-23- -3

to each of them with the provision that further equitable apportionments may be made.

The compact provides a basis for the carrying out of one of the greatest of our national developments. The land under irrigation in 1920 from the river and its tributaries amounted to about 2,464,000 acres in the United States. It is estimated that the irrigated land can be increased to over 5,000,000 acres. Development of 5 million horsepower is a possibility. With long-distance transmission all of this can probably be brought into national use. One of the largest problems is the constant threat of the lower river to break through its banks and to flood the Imperial Valley, destroying prosperous communities with property values of many millions of dollars. Such a break occurred a few years ago and several million dollars were expended before the river was restored to its normal channel.

The successful negotiation of an interstate compact in settlement of so important and complex a problem is significant in that it marks the first time that so large a number of States have been able to settle fundamental interstate rights by process of treaty. The compact becomes effective when approved by the legislatures of each of the signatory States and by the Congress of the United States. The legislatures of six of the seven States have now ratified it, only Arizona having failed to take final action. Congressional action will doubtless await the approval of all of the seven States.

Conferences with Commerce and Industry.

In connection with the services outlined above, and many others, a total of 335 conferences were held during the fiscal year by the Secretary and members of the department with committees of various branches of commerce and industry. Practically all were held at the request of these bodies. Of these conferences 48 were on matters of transportation and fuel distribution; 101 on questions of foreign trade; 93 on specifications, standardization, and simplification; 17 on housing and construction; 24 on statistical questions; 7 on merchant marine and fisheries; and 45 on various general and special problems.