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Univ. oF
ToRoNTO
LIBRARY

FACULTY OF FORESTRY

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO

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Col PROCEEDINGS
OF THE

A VERE TC AN

FORESTRY CONGRESS.

AT ITS SESSIONS HELD AT

CINCINNATI, OHIO, IN APRIL, 1882,

AND AT

MONTREAL, CANADA, IN AUGUST, 1882.

Veh oF
WITH A NOTICE OF TH# ORGANIZATION OF THE AMERICAN
FORESTRY ASSOCIATION UNITED WITH IT
AT THE MONTREAL SESSION.

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PUBLISHED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

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PROCEHEDINGS

OF THE

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS,

FOR THE YEAR 1882.

PRELIMINARY PROCEEDINGS AT CINCINNATI, OHIO.

Among the guests invited by the Government of the United
States, to participate in the Centennial Anniversary, of the
Surrender of Lord Cornwaltis, at Yorktown, Va., in the autumn
of 1881, were six officers of the Prussian Army, bearing the
name of Von Steuben, representing the family of Baron Steu-
ben, of the American Revolution; and a seventh, Richard
Baron Von Steuben, bearing the rank of ‘‘Oberforster,” in the
Prussian Forest Service.

After the celebration at Yorktown, the Von Steubens visited
many places in the United States, and among others, Cincinnati,
where a public reception was given—most of the prominent
citizens of that place participating therein. In a conversation
between the Forest Official and Judge Warren Higley and
others, the waste and neglect of our American forests was
particularly mentioned as a subject deserving of public notice.

This suggestion was followed up by further discussion, and
in-January, Col. William L. DeBeck and others, began to agi-
tate the question of arousing the public attention to this sub-
ject, by holding a convention in that city. A meeting was
soon after held at the Gibson House, under a call through the
‘papers, at which a number of prominent citizens took a promi-
nent part. This resulted in the appointment of the following
officers for preliminary proceedings:

President: Hon. John Simpkinson.

Vice-Presidents: Hon. Wm. 8. Groesbeck, Judge Alphonso
Taft, Reuben R. Springer, Esq.; Murat Halstead, Esq.; Richard
Smith, Esg.; Ex-Governor R. M. Bishop, Ex-Governor J. D.
Cox, Hon. George H. Pendleton, U. 8. Senator; Washington
McLean, Esq.; Hon’ Fred Hassaurek, and Rev. Dr. I. W. Wiley,
Bishop Methodist Episcopal Church.

Secretary: Col. W. L. DeBeck.

Advisory Board: Hon. Judge Warren Higley, Hon. Judye
J. W. Fitzgerald, Prof. John B. Peaslee, Superintendent Public
Schools; Ex-Governor E. F. Noyes, Rev. Dr. Max Lilienthal,
and President and Secretary of Association.

ScrENTIFIC BRANCH COMMITTEE.

Chairman: Hon. Judge Warren Higley.
Secretary: Alfred A. Springer, M. D.

Members: Dr. John A. Warder, Prof. F. W. Clarke, Prof.
Adolph Leué, Prof. John B. Peaslee, Superintendent Public
Schools Rev. Dr. Max Lilienthal, August Leué, Esq.

A county association was formed with representatives in
various townships, which interested many persons living in
them, and resulted in plans for the adornment of streets and
highways by tree planting, and the prominence given to the
subject through the press, tended still further to increase this
interest. In these publications Col. DeBeck, who was connected,
with the press, took a most active part. )

It was decided to appoint a National Convention of those in-
terested in the subject of Forestry, to meet at Cincinnati on the
25th of April, 1882, and to continue five days; and applications
were made to Congress and to the State Legislatures for aid in
meeting the expenses. These efforts met with some encourage-
ment, but did not finally succeed. In the meantime, invitations
were sent out to persons throughout the United States and
Canada, urging their attendance and co-operation, and Goy-
ernor Foster, in pursuance of a law passed for the purpose, ap-

pointed the 27th day of April, as “Arbor Day.”

- This day in Cincinnati was to be observed in a particular
manner, by the planting of “Memorial Trees,” in honor of
many distinguished persons living and deceased in Eden Park.
For this occasion extensive and well arranged preparations were
made, and afterwards carried out with precision and success.
The business meetings of the Convention were appointed to be
beld at the Gibson House, and the public meetings at Springer
Music Hall. In these arrangements, especially as relating to
the ceremonies at Eden Park, and at the Hall, the ladies of
Cincinnati took an active part. Banners bearing in green the
device of an oak leaf, and the words, “Welcome Foresters,”
were displayed by thousands, as the appointed day arrived,
and committees had prepared a programme of the proceedings
and made various arrangements for the occassion.

First Days’ SESSION OF THE AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS,
Music Hat, Crncrnatti, OHIO,
Tuesday, April 25, 1882.

In accordance with a general publication, and the previous
arrangements of the Local Committee, the First Session of the
American Forestry Congress, met in Springer Music Hall, at
10 a. M., this 25th day of April, 1882.

On motion of Prot. J. B. Peaslee, Gen. EK. F. Noyes, was
elected temporary Chairman, and Dr. A. A. Springer, tempo-
rary Secretary of the Congress.

On motion of Chairman Noyes, the following centlemen were
appointed a committee for permanent organization: Dr. F, B.
Hough, Dr. John A. Warder, Dr. Geo. B. Loring, Gen. C. C,
Andrews, Mr. John H. McMacken, Hon. Warren Higley, Dr.
J. M. Walden, Prof. Wm. Saunders, Gen. Dubin Ward, and
Dr. A. A. Springer. The Congress thereupon took a recess
until 8 o'clock, P. M.
: EVENING SESSION.

The Congress convened at 8 o'clock, Gov. Noyes presiding,
who introduced Gen. Dubin Ward, who in the absence of
Mayor Means, welcomed the delegates and other strangers to
the city,

Gov. Charles Foster followed Gen. Ward, welcoming the vis-
itors to the hospitalities of Ohio.

The Committee on Permanent Organization, then reported
the following Constitution and By-Laws, and permanent officers
for the present year.

First CONSTITUTION.

ArticLE I. This Association shall be known as the AMERI-
cAN Forestry CONGRESS.

ArtIcLE II. The object of this Congress shall be to encourage
the protection and planting of forest and ornamental trees, and
to promote forest culture.

ARTICLE III. Any person may become a member of this
Congress on the payment of two dollars. The annual assess-
ment on each member shall be one dollar.

ArTICLE IV. The officers of the Congress shall be a Presi-
dent, a Vice-President from each State and Territory in the
United States, and for each Province in Canada; a Recording
Secretary, a Corresponding Secretary, a Treasurer, an Hxecu-
tive Committees, District Committee, Committee on Annual
Meeting, Local Committee.

ARTICLE V. There shall be an annual meeting, which shall
be held at such time and place as the Congress may deter-
mine.

ArticLE VI. Section 1. All officers of this Congress, except
as hereinafter provided, shall be elected annually, at the annual

meeting, and shall hold office for one year, and until their suc- _

cessors shall be elected.

Sec. 2. The Presidents of the several State, Territorial and
Provincial Associations, shall be the Vice-Presidents of the
Congress after the current year.

Sec. 3. The Executive Committee shall be composed of the
President, Recording and Corresponding Secretaries of this
Congress, one District Delegate from each of the districts here-
inafter named, to be appointed by the President and ratified by
the Congress, together with the Corresponding Secretary of
each State, Territorial and Provincial Association.

Sec. 4. The Corresponding Secretaries of the State, Terri-
torial and Provincial Associations, within each district, shall be
a District Committee, of which the respective District Delegate
shall be a member, and the Chairman thereof.

ArticL® VII. Section 1. The President shall preside at all
meetings of the Congress, and deliver an annual address.

See. 2. The Recording Secretary shall keep a record of the
proceedings of the Congress, and shall be the custodian of all
papers and documents ordered to be preserved, which shall be
arranged, for convenience of reference.

Sec. 3. The Corresponding Secretary shall conduct the cor-
respondence of the Congress.

Sec. 4. The Treasurer shall have charge of all funds, and pay
out the same on the direction of the Congress, on orders signed
by the President and Recording Secretary.

ArticteE VIII. The following groups of States, Territories,
and Provinces, shall comprise the several districts:

lst District: The New England States, and the State of New
York.

2d District: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland,
District of Columbia, Virginia, and West Virginia.

3d District : Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

4th District: North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Ala-
bama, and Florida.

5th District: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Dakota, Wyoming, and
Moniana.

6th District: llinois, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas.

7th District: Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, and In-
dian Territory. d

8th Disirict: Colorado, Mexico, Utah and Arizona.

9th District ; California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington Terri-
tory, and Idaho.

10th District: Quebec and Maritime Provinces.

ilth District: Ontario and Western Provinces. e

ArticLe IX. Section 1. The Committee on Annual Meet-
ing, shall be composed of the President and Corresponding and
Recording Secretaries of the Congress, and the District Com-
mittee within whose district the annual meeting of the Con-
gress shall be held, whose duty it shall be to prepare a pro-
gramme of exercises, and assign to their proper divisions all
essays or papers prepared for the Congress.

Sec. 2. The Local Committee shall be appointed by the Presi-
dent at each annual meeting, subject to the ratification of the
Congress, and a majority of the members of such Committee,
shall reside in the vicinity of the place where the next succeed-
ing annual meeting of the Congress shall be held, whose duty it
shall be to make all necessary arrangements for the meeting of
the Congress, and the accommodation of the Delegates.

ARTICLE X. The Congress may appoint Delegates to kindred

Associations, and between the annual meetings the President,
Corresponding and Recording Secretaries, shall be a Committee,
with power to appoint such Delagates.

ArticLe XI. This Constitution may be amended by a ma-
jority vote of the members present, (and voting,) at any annual
meeting.

The above Constitution was the adopted, section by section,
an article at a time, and affirmatively adopted as a whole. The
following officers were then unanimously elected to serve dur-
ing the ensuing year:

President: George B. Loring, Salem, Mass.

Vice-Presidents: First District—Maine, George Sawyer,
(Wiscasset ;) New Hampshire, George W. Riddle, (Manchester;)
Vermont, M. C. Buckham, (President Vermont University,
(Burlington;) Massachusetts, N. H. Egleston, (Williamstown ;)
Rhode Island, H. G. Russell, (East Greenwich ;) Connecticut,
Prof. B. G. Northrop, (Clinton;) New York, Horatio Seymour,
(Utica.)

Second District—New Jersey, Prof. George H. Cook, (New
Brunswick;) Pennsylvania, Thomas Meehan, (Germantown;)
Delaware, Wm. H. Purnell, (Newark ;) Maryland, Gov. W. H.
Hamilton ; District of Columbia, John Saul, (Washington ;) Vir-
ginia, W. H. Wickham, (Richmond;) West Virginia, Hon.
Henry G. Davis, (Piedmont.)

Third District—Ohio, John Simpkinson, (Cincinnati;) Indi-
ana, Prof. Ingersoll, (Lafayette;) Michigan, Prof. W. J. Beal,
(Lansing;) Kentucky, Cassius M. Clay, (Whitehall ;) Tennessee,
Prof. J. M. Safford, (Nashville.)

Fourth District—North Carolina, 8. D. Kelsey, (Highlands;)
South Carolina, Hon. D. Wyatt Aiken, (Cokesbury ;) Georgia,
Richard Peters, (Atlanta;) Alabama, Dr. Charles Mohr, (Mobile;)
Florida, J. G. Knapp, (Limona.)

Fifth District—Wisconsin, W. E. Smith, (Madison;) Min-
nesota, George L. Becker, (St. Paul;) Dakota, H. M. Thomp-
son, (Lake Preston;) Wyoming, John W. Hoyt, (Cheyenne;)
Montana, C. W. Lumbard, (Missoula.)

Sixth District—Illinois, Arthur Bryant, Sr., (Princeton ;)

Missouri, 8. M. Tracy, (Columbia;) Iowa, Charles E. Whiting,
(Whiting;) Nebraska, R. W. Furnas, (Brownville;) Kansas,
George C. Brackett, (Lawrence.)

Severth District—Louisiana, ; Arkansas, Prof. F. L.
Harvey, (Fayetteville;) Texas, G. G. Georgeson, (College Sta-
tion;) Indian Territory, J. Forman, (Muskogee.)

Eighth District—Colorado, Prof. E. E. Edwards, (Ft. Col-
lins;) Mew Mexico, ( ;) Arizona, ( ;) Utah, J. EB.
Johnson, (St. George.)

Ninth District—California, Robert E. C. Stearns, (Berkeley ;)
Nevada, ( ;) Oregon, J. B. Dufur ; Washington Territory,
( ;) Idaho, ( a)

Tenth District—Quebec, Wm. Little, (Montreal.)

Eleventh District—Ontario, D. W. Beadle, (St. Catherines.)

Recording Secretary: W. L. DeBeck, Cincinnati, Ohio.

Corresponding Secretary: D. D. Thompson, Cincinnati, Ohio.

Treasurer: John A. Gano, Cincinnati, Ohio.

The following gentlemen were then elected Presidents o. the
different Sections:

Section A—‘‘Uses of Forests,” Dr. FRANKLIN B. HoucH.

Section B—‘Conservations and Practical Forestry,” Dr.
JOHN A. WARDER.

Section C—‘‘Beneficial and Injurious Influences of Forestry,”
Prof. WILLIAM SAUNDERS.

Section D—‘‘Education,’ Mr. N. H. EGiEston.

Each President was requested to appoint a Secretary to his

own Section, and the following were thus designated, viz:

In Section “A,” Mr. Wiix1am Litre; in Section “B,” Mr.
S. W. Emery; in Section ‘“C,” Prof. Ropert B. WARDER; and
in Section “D,” Prof. ADoLPH J.rnvé.

The President, George B. Loring, then assumed his position
and delivered quite a lengthy address.

Adjourned to the same piace.

Srconp Days’ Srssron, Music Hatt,
CINCINNATI, OHIO,

Wednesday, April 26, 1882.

In general session, Gov. Charles Foster and others spoke, and
announcements were made as to the arrangements for the day,
upon which the meeting adjourned for meeting in Sections, in
various rooms assigned for this use in Music Hall. The titles
of papers offered for reading and discussion, having been pre-
viously printed by direction of the Local Committee, were as-
signed to the various Sections, as follows:

Papers assigned to Section “A.”

. The Forestry of the Future—Franxuin B. Hoven, Chief

of Forestry Divison, Department of Agriculture.

. The Southern Pine—Dr. Cuartes Mour, Mobile, Ala.
. The Walnut Tree—Wittiam H. Racan Clayton, Ind.
. Distribution of Canadian Trees—A. T. DrumMonp, Mont-

real, Canada.

. Flora of the Black Hills—Rozpert Dovucuas, Waukegan,

T)linois.

. Pine Forests of Canada—Jameés Lirrin, Montreal, Canada.
. Arboreal Flora of Arkansas—Prof. F. L. Harvey, Fayette-

ville, Arkansas.

. Pofitable Trees for Florida—Hon. J. G. Knapp, Limona,

Florida.

. Forests of Michigan—Prof. V. M. Spatpine, Ann Arbor,

Michigan.

. Forest Reserves at the Head Waters of the Ohio—M. C.

ReaD, Hudson, Ohio.

. Roadside Planting for Utility —-CHarLes GARFIELD, Grand

Rapids, Michigan.

. Trees of Texas—T. V. Munson, Denison, Texas.
. Suggestions Regarding Government Assistance—Prof. Wo.

Brown, Guelph, Ontario.

. Historical Sketches of the Development of the Forest Pol-

icy in Germany—BERNHARD E. FERNow, Lehigh’s Fur-
nace, Slatington, Pa.

15.

Preservation of Timber—Prof. F. W. CLarkE, Cincinnati,
Ohio.

Papers assigned to Section “B.”

. The Work of Western Nurserymen, Present and Prospec-

tive—S. W. Emery, Lake City, Michigan.

. Culture and Management of Our Native Forests—H. W.

S. CLEVELAND, Chicago, Illinois.

. Three-Motion Plan of Planting—Rosperr Doveras, Way-

kegan, Illinois.

. The Wild Cherry Tree—Hon. Horatio Srymovr, Utica,

New York.

. Useful Trees of Michigan—Prof. W. J. Brat, Lansing,

Michigan.

21. The Catalpas—J. C. Teas, Carthage, Missouri.

22. Cheap Hardy Trees for the Prairies—J. T. ALLAN, Omaha,

Y 30.

Nebraska.

. Woody Plants of Ohio—D. L. and Jos. F. Jamss, and Dr.

WARDER.

Papers assigned to Section “C.”

. Forests and Health—Dr. DanteEL Mi~titKrn—Hamilton,

Ohio.

. Climatology and Forestry—Dr. Grorce L. Anprew, La-

porte, Indiana.

. Forestry and Rainfallsk—A. Saunpers Pratt, Mackoheok,

Ohio.

. Torrents and Torrential Floods—D. D. THompson, Cincin-

nati, Ohio.

. Evils of Woods Pasture—Dr. J. A. WArprErR, North Bend,

Ohio.

. Droughts, Famines and Floods in China—Davin H. Batty,

Late Consul! General of the United States in China.
Forest and Rainfall in Ontario—Prof. Wm. Brown, Guelph,
Ontario.

31.

32.

33.

34.

35.

36.
37.

38.

39.

40.

Papers assigned to Section ‘“D,"

The Necessity for a School of Forestry in the United States,
Gen. C. C. ANDREws, St. Paul, Minnesota.

What is a Forest-Tree in the Eye of the Law ?—GrorcGE
C. Brackett, Lawrence, Kansas.

Management and Culture of the Locust—Watpo F.
Brown, Oxford, Ohio.

Measures of Locust Trees—Dr. J. A. Wanper, North
Bend, Ohio.

Culture of the Locust on Long Island—Joun S. Hicks,
Roslyn, Long Island.

Educational Afeahe Us, O. M. DrBeck, Cincinnati, Ohio.

A Suggestion from the Schools of Bavaria—Prof. R. B.
WarbDeER, North Bend, Ohio.

Forest Administration in Germany—RoBpert KUEHNERT,
Cincinnati, Ohio.

Lessons from Australia and Scotland—Prof. W1LLiam
Brown, Guelph, Ontario.

Suggestions Respecting a Text Book on Forestry—Prof.
WiLt1amM Brown.

Papers not classified, and some of them read only by Titles,

41.

46,

an General Session:

Advantages resulting from the Preservation of Forests—
Baron RICHARD ‘Vox Sreusen, Forester, German Em-

pir e.

. Forestry in America—Isaac Sucker, Newark, Ohio.
. Forests and Trees of Northern Georgia—H. OC. FREEMAN,

C. E., Blijay, Georgia.

4. Woods of Indian Territory—J. Foreman, Muscogee, In-

dian Territory.

: Growth and Destruction of Forests—Dr. A. C. Hum-

PHREYS, G Galesburg, Illinois.
Climatology and Porestey Pot Cc. S. Txankege Lafay-
ette, Indiana.

. Trees of Southern California—Ww. HEAveEr, Los Angles,

California.

. Complaint of Diana—Poem—Horace J. Surru, Nordhoff,

California.

. Why Should we Plant Trees?—Dr. A. Epy, Seringville,

Ontario.

. The Poplars and Cottonwoods—Prof. SERENO Watson,

Cambridge, Mass.

. Tree Planting—Srtmeon Hpy, Lancaster, Pa.
. Wind-Breaks on the Prairies—Hon. C.. EK. Wurrrnc, Whi-

ting, Iowa.

. Beneficial Effects of Wind-Breaks—L. B. Winc, Newark,

Ohio.

. State Commissioners and State Arboreta—Prof. W. R.

Lazensy, Columbus, Ohio.

. Timbers in Illinois—G. W. Minter, Minier Illinois.
. Trees growing upon the Plains of Colorado, how Influenced

by Climate, Attitude and Irrigations—D. 8. Grimes,
Denver, Colorado.

. Nature’s Plan for Reproduction—LeEo Wextz, Wilmington,

Ohio.

. “Natur Verjungung”—Prof. Apotex LeEvs, Cincinnati, O.
. Colorado Hardy Conifers in Cultivation—TuHos. DoucLas,

Waukegan, Ill. |

. Colorado Conifers in Kastern Nebraska—J. Masters, Ne-

braska City, Neb.

. Experiments in Planting on Cape Cod—James 8S. Fay,

Boston, Mass.

. “Wald Verwuestung, Wald Erhaltung, Kuntsliche Be-

waldung’—K. Lupuorr, Milwaukee, Wis.

. Wind-Breaks on the Prairies--SurL Foster, Muscatine,

Towa.

. Pines of New England—J OHN Rosinson, Salem, Mass.
. Grouping in Forestry—Dr. J. A. Warper, North Bend,

Ohio.

. Sylva and Plantations of Nebraska—HEx-Gov. R. W.

Furnas, Brownville, Neb.

. Nurse-Plants in Forests—Dr. J. A. Warper, North Bend,

Chio.

. Evergreens on the Prairies-—-SAMUEL Epwarps, Mendota,

Illinois.

. Planting by Railroads—Rozgarr Dovucias, Waukegan, III.
. Iowa’s Work in Tree Planting—Prof. J. L. Bupp, Ames,

Towa.

. Cheap Trees as a Shelter for Better Kinds—Dr. J. A.

Warper, North Bend, Ohio.
Mixed Plantations—Dr. J. A. Warprer, North Bend, Ohio.
Native Stock for Prairie-Planting—Grorcre H. Wnricut,
Sioux City, Iowa.

. Anti-Miasmatic Influences—F. L. Otmsteap, Brookline,

Mass.

. Lessons to be learned from the Forests of Western Asia—

Prof. H. 8. Osporn, LL. D., Oxford, Ohio.

. Injurious Insects—Prof. C. V. Rizey, Washington, D. C.
77. Forest Insects——-Prof. W. SaunpgErs, London, Ontario.

78. Arnold Arboretum—Joun Ropinson, Salem, Mass.

. Experimental Forest Stations—Prof. A. Leus, Cincinnati,

Ohio.

. Trees of Worship among the Ancient Greeks—Prof. Ep-
oO

WARD NortH, Clinton, N. Y.

. Romance of Forests—Gen. DurBin WARD, Cincinnati, Ohio.
. Distribution of Conifers in the United States—Dr. GEoRGE

Vasey, Washington, D. C.

. The Cultivation of the White Mulberry—S. R. Lowery,

Huntsville, Ala.

. Profits of Durable Trees—Dr. A. Furnas, Danville, Ind.
. Forests and Waters-Supply—VeErrLanck CoLvin, Super-

intendent Adirondack Survey, Albany, N. Y.

. Forest-Tree Culture in California—Rosert E. C. STEARNS,

Ph. D., Berkeley, Cal.

7. On the Growth of certain California Forest Trees, and the

Meteorological Inferences suggested thereby—RoBERT
K. C. Stearns, Ph. D., Berkeley, Cal.

In the afternoon an address was delivered in Garfield Place,
by Hon. H. L. Morey, M.C., after which memorial trees were
planted.

. Tutrp Day’s SESSION.

Music Haut, Cincinnati, OHIO,
Thursday, April 27, 1882.

The Sections met and continued the reading of papers until
the hour arrived for the commencement of ‘proceedings ap-
pointed for Arbor Day, arrangements having been made at
Eden Park, and the day having been designated as a holiday
by proclamation of the Governor, under authority of law. After
the planting, addresses were delivered by Dr. Gro. B. Lorine,
Hon. Cassius M. Cray, and others.

In the evening a reception was given by the ladies of
Cincinnati at Music Hall, at which addresses were delivered
by Gen. Casstus M. Cray, Gov. E. F. Noyes, and others. The
meeting then adjourned till 10 a. mu. the next day.

Fourta Day’s SESSION.

Music Hat, Crncrnnati, OI,
Friday, April 28, 1882.
The Congress met in Sections at 10 o'clock, a. M., Vice-
President JouN Srmpxrinson presiding. The morning was
spent in the reading of papers and in discussions upon Forestry
subjects. In the afternoon trees were planted in Washington
Park, and addresses delivered by Gen. A. TareL, Judge WaR-
REN Hicuey, and others. A portion of the members met at
Music Hall and continued the reading and discussion of papers.

FirtH Day’s SESSION.

Music Hatz, Cincinnati, OHIO,
Saturday, April 29, 1882.
The session was continued, and the time and place of the
next meeting were fixed. The Congress agreed to meet at the

city of Montreal, Canada, on the 21st and 22d days of August,
next.

Mr. Wiuu1Am Litre was appointed as Vice-President, and
requested to make such arrangements as might be necessary
for the occasion. The following committees were appointed :

1. To report upon Forest Experimental Stations.—Prof. A.
Leue, Mr. V. Colvin, Dr. F. B. Hough, Dr. Charles Mohr,
Mr. D. W. Beadle, Dr. J. A. Warder, and Prof. Wm. Saunders.

2. To memorialize State Legislatures upon the establishment of
State Forestry Commissions.—Dr. F. B. Hough, Prof. Wm. R.
Lazenby, Prof. C. 8. Sargent, Dr. J. A. Warder, Prof. Wm. J.
Beal, Hon. Cassius M. Clay, and Prof. J. M. Safford.

3. To report upon Forest Fires and the Injuries to Forests
by Cattle—Dr. Charles Mohr, Mr. N. H. Egleston, Mr. Henry
C. Sigles, Prof. R. C. Kedzic, Hon. Horace Wilson, Mr. V.
Colvin, Hon. H. G. Joly, and Prof. Wm. Brown.

4. To report upon Best Methods of Planting.—Mr. A. W.
Butler, Mr. J. Jenkins, Hon. L. B. Hodges, Dr. A. Furnas,
and Mr. Thomas Douglas.

5. To report upon Forestry Education.-—Gen. 0. C, Andrews,
Prof. A. Leue, Prof. V. M. Spalding, Mr. B. E. Fernow, and
Prof. R. B. Warder.

After various resolutions of thanks to the citizens of Cincin-
nati for the satisfactory manner in which they had originated
this meeting, and contributed to its interests, the Congress ad-
journed, to meet at Montreal on the 21st day of August, next.

MONTREAL MEETING.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE First Day.

MontTREAL, CANADA,
August 21, 1882.
Pursuant to adjournment, at the close of its first meeting at
Cincinnati, (April 29, 1882,) the American Forestry Congress

met at Montreal, at No. 132 St. James street, in rooms pro-

vided by Mr. Wituram LittLez, Vice-President, and designated
as ‘Forestry Chambers.”

Besides a large number who met for the occasion, including
many who had joinec the society at its first meeting, the follow-
ing persons attended as representatives of the Ontario Govern-
ment, viz; Mr. JamMEs Mitts, Prof. W1nt1am SauNDERS, Mr.
P. C. Dempsey, Mr. D. W. BEapiLz, and Mr. THomas BEALL.

The Department of Crown Lands of Ontario was specially
represented by Mr. G. B. Couprr, Superintendent of Woods
and Forests for the Province.

The Hon. ALFRED Pare, Superintendent of Woods and For-
ests of the Province of Quebec, by letter dated August 19,
1882, informed the Committee of Arrangements that E. E.
TacHeE, Esq., Assistant Commissioner of Crown Lands; A. J.
RusseLu. Esq., Crown Timber Agent, Ottawa; CHarLes E.
BELLE, Esq., Crown Timber Agent, Montreal; and EuGENE
RENAULT, Esq., Crown Timber Agent, Montmaguey, had been
named as the representatives of the Government of that Prov-
ince at the Forestry Congress.

The hot of meeting being agreed upon as at 2 o'clock, P. M.,
and the President being absent, the Congress was called to order
by Dr. FRANKLIN B. Houau, and the Hon. H. G. Jozy, of Que-—
bec, was chosen temporary President.

The Secretaries elected at the first meeting not attending,
and both having resigned, Dr. Franxiin B. Houau, of Low-
ville, N. Y., was chosen temporary Secretary.

The Treasurer elected at the first meeting having resigned,
Dr. CHarLes Mour, of Mobile, Ala., was chosen temporary
Treasurer.

The temporary President briefly announced the plan of or-
ganization, and the distribution of subjects for discussion in
Sections.

Upon motion, the following members of the Congress were
appointed a committee to confer with a committee of the
American Forestry Association upon the question of consoli-
dation of the two organizations, viz: Dr. CHARLES Monr, Mr.
BERNHARD HE. Fernow, and Prof. Winttam SAuUNDERs.
The general session then adjourned until 10 o’clock to-morrow
morning, and the meeting resolved itself into Sections.

A programme had been prepared before the session com-
menced, bearing the following list of papers, which had been
entered for reading. In several instances in which the authors
were absent, they were read by the Secretaries.

Papers ENTERED FOR READING.

woe

. Forest F'ires—Josepu 8. Fay, Wood’s Holl, Mass.

2. The Distribution of Hard-Wood Trees in the Gulf Region
of the Southern States—Dr. Cuas. Mour, Mobile, Ala,

3. Tree Planting by Railroad Companies—F. B. Hoven, Ph.

D., Lowville, N. Y.

4. The Rational Method of Tree Planting—N. H. Ecissron,
Wiliamstown, Mass.

5. The Russian Mulbery—D. C. Burson, Topeka, Kan.

6. The Larix Europea, (European Larch,) its Quick Growth,
Adaptability, Propagation and Culture—Davip Nico1,
Cataraqui, Ont. :

7. The Coppice for the Village and Town—M. C. Reap, Hud-
son, Ohio.

8. Forest Trees most suitable for Strects, Lawns and Groves—

J. BEAurort Huripurt, Ottawa, Ont.
. The Destruction of Forests and Tree-Planting—Joun Dov-
GALL, Editor of New York Witness.

wo)

i's,

. The Introduction of Trees and Shrubs at the Ontario Ex-

perimental Farm—Prof. W1LL1Am Brown, Guelph, Ont.

. A few Thoughts on the Necessity for a Certain Portion of

each Farm being left in Forest—J. Beaurort Hurt-
BurRT, LL. D., Ottawa, Ont.

. Forest Economy of Canada—Stewart THAYNE, Ottawa,

Ont.

. Experimental Plantation of the Eucalyptus, near Rome—

FRANKLIN B. Houcu, Ph. D., Lowville, N. Y.

. Conditions of Forest Growth—Brrnuarp EK. FERnow,

Slatington, Pa.

. Lessons to be Learned from the Forests of Western Asia—

Prof. H. 8. Osporn, Oxford, Ohio.

. Borers in Forest Trees—Rev. THomas W. Fy3szs, Cowans-

ville, Quebec.

. How Farmers may grow Forest Trees from Seed—D. W.

BEADLE, St. Catharines, Ont.

. On the Growth of Black-Walnut Timber in Ontario—

Tuomas Bratt, Lindsay, Ont.

. On the Growth of Poplar Trees for the Manufacture of

Paper and Charcoal—W. SaunpDeErs, London, Ont.

. A few Practical Remarks from the Lumberman’s Stand-

point—J. K. Warp, Montreal.

. Oaks of Hardin County, Ohio—W. F. Enetisn, Mount

Victory, Ohio.

. Tree-Planting for Railroads—Dr. JonNn A. WarbEp,

North Bend, Ohio.

. Timber-Trees of the Black Hills—Rozperr Doueuas,

Waukegan, Ill.

. Remarks on the Canadian Cultivation of the Catalpa

speciosa— ROBERT BurRNET, Pictou, N. 8.

. The Coniferous Trees of the United States and Canada—

Dr. Geo. Vasey, Botanist of Department of Agriculture,
Washington, D. C.

26. Black-Locust Growths—Dr. JonHn A. Warper, North

Bend, Okio.

. Experiments in Tree-Planting on Cape Cod—Josgpx 8.

Fay, Wood’s Holl, Mass.

. The Ash—ArtHur Bryant, Princeton, Ill.
. Larchmere, a Plantation on Drifting Sands—Dr. Joun A.

Warper, North Bend, Ohio.

. Three-Motion Plan of Planting—Rozerr Dovexas, Wau-

kegan, Ill.

. Extensive Planting by Shelter-Belts—H. M. Tuompson,

Lake Preston, Dak.

2. Classification of Oaks—Dr. Jonn A. Warper, North

Bend, Ohia.

. A Western Greeting—Jamers T. ALLAN, Omaha, Neb.
. Forest-Tree Plantation—B. F. PEcK.
. Trees, Tree-Planting, &c.—J. A. Maruewson, Little Metis,

Quebec.

. Planting on the Plains, &c.—H. M. PEnneEt, Russell, Kan.
. Timber Culture a National Necessity—D. C. Scorrexp,

Elgin, Il.

. Rural Improvement—B. G. Norturop, Clinton, Conn.
. The Commercial Value of Pruning—Jouy 8. Hicks, Ros-

iyn, ANY

. Apology for the Pioneers—Jonn W. CaLDWELL, Cincin-

nati, Ohio.

. Living Fence-Posts—Winuian H. Racan, Clayton, Ind.

. Roadside Tree-Planting—W. A. Hatz, Sherbrooke, Que.
. Letter upon Forestry—D’Arituy, Malvern, Ark.

. Fungi Injurious to Forest Trees—Byron D. HatstTep,

New York.

. Forests in Connection with Water, as Aids to Climatic

Amelioration—T. T. Lyon, South Haven, Mich.

. Forests of the United States, as shown by the Census of

1880—N. H. Eaueston, Williamstown, Mass.

. Forest-Cultural Survey, &c.—General WiLLIAM Burns,

Usha

. Economic Tree-Planting; How and Where?—B. Gort,

Arkona, Ont.

719

. The True and False in Aboriculture—WILLIAM Ross,

Montreal, Que.

. The Mills of West Fork—J. Jenxrys, Winona, Ohio.
. Individual Effort in Preserving and Propagating Trees

Dr. Rearnatp A. D. Kine, Compton, Que.

. Profitable Forest Culture—C. E. Tuorye, Springfield,

Ohio.

. What to Plant for Forest Trees, for Groves and for Wind-

Breaks—SvuEL Foster, Muscatine, Lowa.

. Canada’s Forests, and her Future as a Steel-Producer—

Epwarp Haycock, Ottawa, Ont.

. Climatological Range and Geographical Distribution of

Forests, and the Climates Favorable to them—J. Brav-
ForT Hurwsurt, LL. D., Ottawa, Ont.

. Plan of Instruction in an American School of Forestry—

Prof. ADoLPH LEUE, Cincinnati, Ohio.

. The Relation of Forests to Agriculture—A.G. HuMPHREYs,

M. D., Galesburg, Il.

. Forestry from a Hygienic Standpoint—Henry Howarp,

M. D., Montreal.

. Some Notes and Remarks on the Denudation of our For-

ests—G. L. Marwer, Montreal.

. How the Forests of the Eastern Townships was Broken

up—A Brief History—Rev. T. W. Fy es, Cowansville,
Que.

. “Woodman, Spare the Tree.”—The Forestry of the Niagra

Section J. R. Martin, Cayuga, Ont.

. Jessup Collection of Forest Products in Museum of Na-

tural History, Central Park, New York—Prof. A. 8S.
Bickmore, New York.

. Legislation upon Forestry—P.J.U. Beaupry, Beauharnois,

Que.

. On the Needs of Forestry—E. McGriuivray, Ottawa,

Ont.

PROCEEDINGS IN SECTIONS.

Section A.

President: Dr. Franxuin B. Houcu.

Secretary: Wini1am LittLe.

The papers numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,7, 8, and 9 on the pro-
gramme were read and discussed.

Section B.

President: Dr. Jonn A. WARDER.

Secretary: Hon. E. H. Sprine Rice.

The papers numbered 22, 24, 27, 30, and 36 on the pro-
gramme were read and discussed.

Section C.

President: Prof. WILLIAM SAUNDERS.

Secretary: Tuomas S. TytEr.

The papers numbered 39, 40, 49, 52, and 60 on the me
gramme were read and eee

EVENING SESSION.

Pursuant to public notice, a meeting was held at Queen’s
Hall, at 8 o'clock, Pp. M., at which the public generally were in-
vited. The hall had been tastefully decorated for the occasion,
with rare potted plants in bloom, and upon the tables were
arranged boquets of rare exotics. Conspicuously behind the
President’s chair was the, legend, “‘ Woodman, Spare the Tree,”
and on either side were shields bearing the words, ‘‘ American
Forestry Congress, 1882,” surrounded by the English and
United States flags, entwined.

Cards of invitation bearing the device of the Maple Leaf, and
printed upon very thin plates of wood, had been issued in great
numbers. The city band played several pieces of music while
the audience were taking their seats.

His Honor Mayor BrEanbpRy, presided, wearing the insignia of
his office, and after a few words of welcome, introduced the Hon.
H. G. Jony, who addressed the meeting. This was followed

~by an address by Dr. Franxiin B. Hoven. Mr. D. W. Bea-
DLE and others had been invited to speak, but the lateness of
the hour prevented.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE SEcoND Day.

ForRESTRY CHAMBERS, MONTREAL,
Tuesday, August 22, 1882.
The Forestry Congress met in general session at 10 o'clock,
pursuant to adjournment, the Hon. H. G. Joxy, presiding.
Prof. WILLIAM SauNDERS, from the Committee upon Consol-
idation, presented the following resolutions, which were
adopted :

Resolved, That whereas, in the year 1875 an association was
~ formed under the title of The American Forestry Association,
having for its objects the collection and dissemination of infor-
mation on the subject of Forestry, and the awakening of an
interest in the public mind, of which association Dr. Jonn A.
WARDER, of Ohio, was elected President; And whereas, That
association, especially through the labors of its President, who
has been most untiring in his efforts, and has spared neither
time nor means in the zealous prosecution of his labors for the
advancement of the science of Forestry, has been an important
agency in calling into existence the society known as the The
American Forestry Congress.

And whereas, The American Forestry Association is desirous -
of uniting with the American Forestry Congress, and thereby
forming one society for the prosecution of the objects common
to both; :

Therefore, this Committee of Conference hereby recommends
that the present members of the American Forestry Association
be received as members of the American Forestry Congress,
and that the funds in the treasury of the American Forestry
Association be applied in payment of its own expenses.

Mr. Beryuarp E. Fernow offered the following resolution,
which was adopted :

inasmuch as the Constitution of this Congress has been found
not to meet the wants of its aims, in vital points, therefore

Resolved, That a committee of five members be appointed by
the Chair to revise the Constitution, so as to adapt it to the
wants of the Congress.

The Chairman appointed Mr. Bernnarp E. Feryow, Dr.
FrankKLIN B. Houcu, Dr. Jonn A. Warper, Mr. WituiAM
LitTLe, and Dr. Coartes MonRas such committee, and desired
them to report in General Session to-morrow morning.

Upon motion, it was resolved that paper No. 20, upon the
printed programme, entitled “A few Practical Remarks from
the Lumberman’s Standpoint,” by Mr. J. K. Warp, of Mon-
treal, be taken from its order and read in General Session.
Mr. Warp then read his paper, which led to a discussion, upon
the subject of ‘‘ Forest Fires,” in the course of which Dr. GEoRGE
B. Lorrne, President of the Congress, appeared and assumed
the chair.

Dr. CHARLES Mor, chairman of a Special Committee ap-
pointed at the Cincinnati meeting to report upon the subject of
‘Forest Fires” and “ Injuries from Cattle,” then read the fol-
lowing

REPORT.

Since the last adjournment of this Congress I have been pre-
vented from communicating with other members of the com-
mittee, and find myself unprepared for presenting the results
of joint deliberation. I will, however, venture to submit a state-
ment of some facts that have come under my own observation
in the lower portion of the Gulf States, and more particularly
bearing upon the lumbering interests of the pine region.

Of these, as in other forests, it may be said, that fires have
raged from year to year, causing much greater destruction than
all of the past and present lumbering operations combined. The
Indians practiced the setting of fire to woods before the settle-
ment by whites began, partly for the driving of game, and
partly for the removal of undergrowth that hindered its pur-
suit. The white settlers in preparing the wilderness for culti-
vation, acquired a habit of destruction to the utter disregard of
the wants of the present and the future, which still continues

to a most needless extent, and to the great injury of private in-
terests and of public welfare. Other fires are set through neg-
ligence, but one of their chief causes in early spring every
year, is the intentional setting of fires to obtain a fresh growth
of grass for the half-starved stock that has been roaming
through the woods in the winter months.

This practice is wide-spread, and is persistently followed, not-
withstanding the remonstrance of those who wish to follow a
better usage, and whosuffer most from this barbarous custom. To
protect himself, the farmer who would do otherwise, must burn
off around his own premises, when wind and weather permit.
The lumbering operations of the country continually increase
the danger, by leaving great quantities of wasie inflamable pro-
_ ducts upon the ground, which seldom escape the flames, thus
greatly extending the waste; but still greater injuries result
from the fires set in the production of naval stores. In order
to protect the boxed trees from running fires, it is customary
to rake away the rubbish from around them and to set it on fire.
On a windy day, such fires, escaping all limits, spread over hun-
dreds of square miles, destroying all the Pine seedlings and
younger growth.

These fires greatly injure the growth of the trees that survive,
as will appear upon comparing the annual layers, in trees ex-
posed, and in those protected, the former being so thin that
they can scarsely be distinguished, while the latter are several
times as thick.

Another most injurious effect is the burning out of the organic
material in the soil, rendering it sterile upon the surface, to the
destruction of the finer and more nutritious grasses, and able to
produce only the coarser and more deeply rooting species. The
second growth of scrubby Black-Jack and Turkey Oak that ap-
pears prevents the pines from getting started, and the leaves
that fall from these oaks become fuel for ground fires, until the
surface becomes utterly barren for any growth.

The Long-Leaved Pine is not necessarily succeed by a decid-
uous growth, but where the soil is suited to its wants, a vigor-
ous growth of the same comes up where it has been cleared
away; but where it is not as rich the Oaks above-mentioned and
the Mocker-Nut will, if the fires are kept out, soon cover the
ground, and in a few years they will become groves.

Individual efforts for the prévention of these evils can do
nothing, and it is only by judicious legislation that relief can
be had. The injuries from the unrestrained range of cattle are

scarcely less than those from fires, as well from browsing, as
from breaking and tramping down. These damages are less
apparent in a pine forrest, because the leaves are not eaten, but
the loss even there is enormous, and constantly runs to ruin.
The most effectual remedy against this evil is an efficient stock-
law, that shall compel the owners of cattle from ranging over
the land of others. But hitherto, although such a law has been
introduced in some counties, it has met with great opposition
in Alabama. The measure has been earnestly discussed in Mis-
sissippi. In South Carolina, from information received through
Dr. Ravenal, such a law was first introduced as optional to the
counties, but its benfits became so apparent, that it has since
been extended to the whole State. The opposition which came
chiefly from the poorer population of the low country was grad-
ully disappearing, and they were becoming reconciled to its
operation, as the benefits became evident. Such a measure will
confer the greatest benefit upon the country, and will give an
impetus to the prosperity of the farming interests.

AFTERNOON SEssron—AuvGustr 22.

The Congress assembled after recess, pursuant to adjourr-
ment. Mr. D. W. BeapLe moved the following resolution,
which was adopted :

Fesolved, That this meeting shall be considered in the his-
tory of this Association as its first annual meeting, and that
members enrolled at this time shall be considered as original
members of the organization.

The President, Dr. Lorine, having called the Hon. H. G.
Jouy to the Chair, delivered an address.

The following papers were then read in General Session :

17. How Farmers may Grow Forest Trees from Seeds; by
D. W. BraDte, of St. Catharine’s, Ont.

18. On the Growth of Black Walnut Timber in Ontario; by
THomas BEALL, Lindsay, Ont.

28. The Ash; by ArrHur Bryant, Princeton, Il.

31. Extensive Planting of Shelter-belts; by H. M. THomp-
son, Lake Preston, Dak.

58. Forestry from a Hygienic Standpoint; by Dr. Henry
Howarp, Montreal.

During the discussion that ensued upon the reading of this
paper, the President withdrew, and the Hon. H. G. Joxy re-
sumed the chair, and presided until final adjournment.

19. On the Growth of Poplar Trees for the Manufacture of
Paper and Charcoal; By Prof. Winu1am Saunpers, London,
Ont.

63. Legislation upon Forestry; by P. J. U. Braupry,
Beatuharnois, Que.

42. Roadside Tree-Planting; by W. A. Hatt, Sherbrooke,
Que.

53. What to Plant for Forest Trees, for Groves, and Wind-
Breaks; by Hon. Suez Foster, Muscatine, Iowa.

61. “Woodman, Spare the Tree’—The Forestry of the
Niagra; by J. R. Martin, Cayuga, Ont.

14. Conditions of Forest Growth; by BERNHARD EH. FER-
NoW, Slatington, Pa., (now of Oxford, N. J.)

The remainder of the papers upon the programme were read
only by their titles, excepting No. 62, which was withdrawn
by the author for reading at the session of the American As-
sociation for the Advancement of Science.

EVENING SeEsston.—-AucGust 22.

A public meeting was held at Queen’s Hall, at which the
Hon. Joun Eaton, U. 8. Commissioner of Education, made re-
marks, and the Hon. Georce B. Lorine, delivered an address.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE THIRD Day.
FoRESTRY CHAMBERS, MONTREAL,
Wednesday, August 23, 1882.

Upon assembling at half-past nine o'clock, the Hon. Guo,
Bryson, from the committee appointec the day previous, to re-
port upon the subject of forest fires, presented the following:

This committee recommends the following measures:

1. The reservation of all Pine and Spruce lands unfit for set-
tlement, for lumbering purposes exclusively.

2. The prohibition of the burning of brush by settlers in the

vicinity of Fir trees during the months of May, June, Septem-
ber and October.

3. The division of the timber country into districts, and the
appointment of a sufficient number of police, the superintendents
of which force to have ample magisterial powers, and whose duty
it would be to detect and punish offenders, and to provide for
the extinguishment of fires.

4. The cost of maintenance of this protective force, might
partially be met by the imposition of a moderate tax on the
parties owning or leasing large areas of forest property, or co-
jointly with the respective governments interested in its preser-
vation.

Mr. B. E. Fernow, from the committee appointed to pre-
pare amendments to the Constitution, presented the following
draft of a new Constitution, which was read and adopted:

CONSTITUTION OF THE AMERICAN FORESTRY
CONGRESS.

ArtTIcLE I. This Association shall be known as the AmERI-
CAN Forestry CONGRESS.

ArtIcLE II. The objects of this: Congress shall be the dis-
cussion of subjects relating to tree planting; the conservation,
management and renewal of forests; the climatic and other in-
fluences that affect their welfare; the collection of forest statis-
tics, and the advancement of educational, legislative or other
measures tending to the promotion of these objects. It shall
especially endeavor to centralize the work done and diffuse the
knowledge gained.

ArticLe III. Any person may be elected a member of this
Congress upon the recommendation of two members and the
payment of two dollars. The annual fee shall be one dollar.

ArtTIcLE IV. The officers of this Congress, to be elected at
the annual meeting, as follows: President, First Vice-Presi-
dent, Second Vice-President, Recording Secretary, Correspond-

ing Secretary, Treasurer.

ArtTIcLE V. The President shall preside at all meetings of
the Congress in General Session, and deliver an annual address
at the close of his term.

ArticLE VI. The Vice-Presidents, Secretaries and Treas-
urer, shall constitute an Executive Committee for the transac-
tion of such business as may be required by this Constitution,
or by a vote of the Congress.

ArtTicLE VII. The Recording Secretary shall keep a record
of the proceedings of the Congress, and shall be custodian of
all documents, books and collections ordered to be preserved.

ArticLe VIII. The Corresponding Secretary shall conduct
the correspondence of the Congress.

ArticLE 1X. The Treasurer shall have charge of all funds,
and pay out the same on the direction of the Executive Com-

mittee.

ArticLE X. The Congress at any regular meeting, or its
Executive Committee, in the intervals between its meetinys,
may appoint such local or special commitjees as may be deemed
proper, and shall define their duties.

ArticLeE XI. The annual meeting of the Congress shall be in
the month of August or September, at such times and places as
shall be determined by a vote in General Session.

ArticLE XII. At the close of each annual meeting there
shall be an election of officers for the ensuing year, and they
shall remain in office until others are chosen. In cases of va-
eancies occurring in the intervals between the annual meetings,
they may be filled by the Executive Committee, until others
are selected. In case of absence of an officer at a regular
meeting his place may be deemed vacant.

Arricte XIII. The officers of States, Territories, Provinces,

or Local Forestry Associations, or their delegates, or the de-

legates of any government may participate in the pe of
the Congress as Honorary Members.

ArticLE XIV. This Constitution may be amended by a two-
thirds vote of the members present at any annual meeting.

Mr. D. W. Braptz, then presented the following By-Laws,
which were by a vote of the Congress, adopted:

BY-LAWS.

1. Papers or abstracts of papers to be read must be sent two
weeks before any meeting, for classification, to the Correspond-
ing Secretary.

2. The following classification of subjects is adopted for the
reading of papers:

Section A. Forest Planting, Forest Management, Forestry
Proper, Preservation of Forests.

Section B. Forest Economy, Technology and Statistics.

Section C. Applied Science and Climatology, General Topics.

3. Contributors who are present shall have the preference
in reading their papers.

4. Any member shall be entitled to the privilege of using
any books or documents, not of record, at the discretion of - the
Recording Secretary.

An election was then had for officers to supply the vacancies
occasioned by resignation, and the following named persons
were chosen to serve for the ensuing year, it being the will of
this Congress that the office of President be not deemed vacant,
inasmuch as but four months had elapsed since his election:

First Vice-President: Hon. H. G. Jouy, of Quebec.

Second Vice-President: Dr. Joun A. Warner, of North
Bend, Ohio.

Recording Secretary: Dr. FRanKuIn B. Houcu, of Lowville,
New York.

Corresponding Secretary: Mr. W1xL1AM LITTLE, of Montreal.

Treasurer: Mr. JosepH 8. Fay, of Woods Holl, Mass.

On motion of Dr. F. B. Houeu, the following resolution was
adopted:

Resolved, That the Executive Committee be, and hereby is
authorized and directed, to designate the time and place of the
next annual meeting of this Congress, and to appoint the Local
Committees, and make such other arrangements as may be
necessary for that occasion.

Upon motion of Mr. J. 8. Hicks, the following resolution was
adopted :

Resolved, That the Executive Committee appoint referees to
prepare papers upon the following subjects, and send them to
the Corresponding Secretary like other papers:

1. Legislation in relation to Forest Fires.

2. Prevention and Control of Forest Fires.

3. Management of Burned Forests, and effect upon the Soil
and Forest Growth.

4. Distribution of the White Pine.

5. Technology of-the White Pine.

6. Forest Management of the White Pine.

Mr. ELeEazeER WRIGHT, presented a verbal statement con-
cerning recent measures that had been adopted, and that were
in course of execution in Middlesex County, Mass., in forest-
tree planting. |

The thanks of the Congress were voted Mr. Wright, for this
communication.

Mr. D. W. BeaDLe, presented the following preamble and
resolution, which were adopted:

Whereas, Many sections of our country are not represented
in the American Forestry Congress, therefore,

Resolved, That the organization of Local Forestry Associations

be encouraged by this Congress, and that our Constitution and
papers be sent to persons interested in Forestry in these sections.

On motion of Dr. Jonn A. WARDER, it was

Resolved, That the thanks of this Congress are due, and are
hereby tendered to Mr. C. E. Belle, Crown Lands Agent of
Lower Ottawa Agency,Province of Quebec, for the opportunity

here afforded us for inspecting his large and beautiful collec-
tion of woods of Canada, elegantly prepared.

Upon motion of Mr. H. G. Joty, it was

Resolved, That the interest shown by the ladies of America,
in the work of this Congress, is most gratifying, and an en-
couragement to further exertions on our part.

On motion of Mr. Witt1am LITTLE, it was

Resolved, That the thanks of this Congress are hereby ex-
pressed to the Geological Survey of Canada, for the present of
a large a nearly complete series of the Maps and Reports of the
Gelogical Survey of Canada, for preservation in the archives
of this Congress.

Mr. Wo. Lirtxe, presented the following letter, which was
read and ordered to be filed, and the thanks of the Congress
were returned therefor:

Cius Houst, MonTREAL,
AMATEUR ATHELETIC ASSOCIATION,
August 22, 1882.

Dear Sir: The Directors of this Association have much
pleasure in tendering the use of their Club House to the mem-
bers during their stay in the city. Our library is extensive,
and may, perhaps, prove useful.

. Your obedient servant,
Horace 8. Grpss, Secretary.

Upon motion of Mr. Wa. Lirrte, it was

Resolved, That the thanks of this Congress are due to
those gentlemen who have contributed papers to be read at this
meeting, but who could not attend. It affords encouraging
evidence of a growing and wide-spread interest in the subject
of forestry, that promises the happiest results.

Mr. D. W. Beapue, moved the thanks of the Congress,
to Mr. H. G. Joly, for his services in presiding at this meet-
ing—which motion being put by the Secretary,was unamimously
adopted. :

Mr. B. EK. Fernow, offered the following resolution, which
was adopted:

—

i 31

The American Forestry Congress in closing its labors at
Montreal, cannot adjourn without expressing its gratitude to
the authorities of the Government, who have done so much to
render our meeting successful. It therefore,

Resolved, That our thanks are due to the Governments of
Ontario and Quebec, for the interest taken by them in sending
Delegates to this Congress, for the purpose of aiding in our
proceedings, and of reporting upon them.

Upon motion of Mr. Joun 8. Hicks, it was

Resolved, That we express our thanks to the Mayor of Mon-
treal, and to its citizens generally, for the interest taken by
them in our proceedings on this occasion.

Upon motion of Mr. W. Hupson STEPHENS, it was

Resolved, That we return thanks to the Press, who have so
kindly reported our proceedings, and who have published in
full, many of the papers read during our meeting.

Upon motion of Mr. Wm. Lirrue, it was

fesolved, That our thanks are due to the various Railway,
Steamboat and Telegraph Companies, that have afforded facilities
to our members in their attendance at this meeting, and es-
pecially. to the following: The Grand Trunk, Great Western,
Vermont Central, Delaware & Hudson, Intercolonial, Canadian
Pacific, North Shore, South Hastern, Detroit, Grand Haven &
Milwaukee, Flint and Pere Marquette, and Cincinnati Southern
(C. N.O.&T. P. R.Co.) Railway Companies. The Richelieu and
Ontario Navigation Company, and The Northwestern Tele-
graph Company.

Upon motion of Mr. Lirriz, the thanks of the Congress
were voted to the Montreal Horticultural Society, for copies of
its reports for distribution, and to Mr. John Lowell, for the use
of his*valuable library of Directories. /

Upon motion of Dr. Jonn A. WARDER, it was

Resolved, That we are particularly indebted to Mr. James
Lirrxe, of this city—the Nestor in American Forestry, for the
earnest and persistent efforts that he has made, from an early
period, in the discussions that have so largely contributed to
the diffusion of knowledge upon the dangers that threaten our
timber supplies, and that have in no small degree tended to the
formation of public opinion that now finds expression in the
efforts of the American Forestry Congress.

Upon motion of Dr. F. B. Houan, it was

Resolved, That we, in the most especial manner, express our
thanks to Mr. William Little, Vice-President of this Congress,
for the earnest, energetic and efficient manner, in which he
has by his personal labors, his influence and his means, secured
every preparation for our meeting that could be foreseen, and
that have rendered it a complete success.

Mr. Lirrte, in a very feeling manner expressed his thanks
particularly on behalf of his farther, Mr. James Little, for the
resolution that had been passed concerning him.

The Congress then adjourned to meet as the Executive Com-
mittee might appoint, in August next.

Frankuin B. Hovasu,
Recording Secretary.

[The Recording Secretary deems it properly a part of the
history of the Montreal Session of the American Forestry Con-
gress, that due mention should be made of the services of Mr.
William Little, in connection with the occasion, in the prepara-
tions that were made, and the work that was done.

Besides the very large amount of correspondence which it
involved, he provided for the use of the Congress a whole suite
of furnished rooms at ‘‘Forestry Chambers,” for the sessions—
the hire of Queen’s Hall for two evenings, and all the printing
needed before and during the meetings. He also secured the
printing of a large edition of two numbers of the “Montreal
| Herald,” making in all sixteen folio pages, exclusively devoted
to these proceedings. For these andot her expenses, no claims
were presented to the Society, and no aid was asked from his
fellow citizens. Very many of the members attending were
also placed under personal obligations to him for aid in secar-
ing accommodations at a time when the hotels were crowded,
and for other attentions which strangers cannot readily secure. |

i ts

THE AMERICAN FORESTRY

Forestry Congress complete, we present the following account
of the American Forestry Association, which was united with
it by resolutions, at Montreal, on the 22d of August, 1882.—H.]

In the year of 1875, a call was circulated among persons in-
terested in Forestry, inviting them to sign for the appointment
of a meeting, with the object of forming an organization for the
promotion of this subject.

In pursuance of this call, a large body of intelligent men met
on the 10th of September, of that year, at Chicago, and organ-
ized what is known as “THE AMERICAN FoRESTRY AssoctA-
Tron.” At this meeting, Dr. Jonn A. WARDER, of Ohio, was
chosen President, and Prof. Henry H. McAFexz, Secretary.

At the Chicago meeting, a Committee on Correspondence and
Statistics, consisting of thirty-five gentlemen residing in dif-
ferent States and Territories was named, with T. J. ALLAN, of
Nebraska, as Chairman, the points to be investigated and re-
ported upon being as follows:

/ 1. Estimates of the area of woodland in square miles or
acres, and average age of the trees.

2. Estimates of their productiveness per acre, in cubic feet
of lumber and cords of fuel.

3. Lists of native trees and woody plants, with local and bo-
tanical names and their special value in the arts.

4. Location of species relative to elevation above the sea,
to soil, etc.

5. Natural grouping and consociation of species, etc.

6. Numbers, kinds and. acres of artificial forests planted, and
the areas protected from cattle, in order to encourage the nat-
ural reproduction of trees.

was stated, the objects of the Society were, mutual improve- }

At this meeting the Association did not adopt a Constitution,
and it adjourned to meet at the Centennial, at Philadelphia, in
September, 1876. In the circular issued for that meeting, it

/ mént in the art, and diffusion of information upon the subject
| of Forestry, and the fostering of all interest of forest-planting
\.and conservation on this continent.

In pursuance of the call, a meeting was held at the Judges’
Pavilion, upon the grounds of the Centennial Exhibition at
Philadelphia, September 15, 1876.

President Joun A. WaRrDER, of Ohio, called the meeting to
order, and briefly stated the object of the occasion to be, to
complete the organization, and to devise means for promoting
its objects. For want of time a portion only of his address was
read.

A communication was received from the American Ferestry
Council,* proposing that measures be taken for uniting the two

*It may be proper here to state briefly what is referred to. Soon after the
American Association for the Advancement of Science, at its session at Portland,
Maine, in 1873, had taken action in the appointment of a committee to me-
morialize Congress and the State Governments upon the importance of meas-
ures for the protection and renewal of our forests, and, (as the writer was
informed by the chief mover in the proceedings in this note mentioned,) as a
direct sequence of the discussions at Portland, the subject was introduced at the
meetings of the Farmers’ Club of the American Institute, in New York City.
Their reports show that papers were read upon various occasions during the
fall and winter following. (Zhirty-Fourth Report of American Institute, N.
Y. Assem. Doc. No. 153, 1874, pp. 147, 154, 157, 163, 167, 175, 180, 195, 199,
210.)

On the 14th of October, a committee consisting of Geo. May Powell, of New
York; Col. A. D. Robertson, of Minnesota; and S. Edwards Todd, of New
Jersey, was appointed, and a week afterwards Prof. Henry E. Colton, of
Georgia, was added, for the promotion of this object. Early in the winter of
1872-4, a memorial was adopted for presenting to Congress, with the draft of
a Bill, (WV. Y. Assem., Doc., 1874, No. 153, pp. 180, 195, 199,) which, so far as we
can learn, were not then presented. This committee, or persons connected
with it, assamed the name mentioned in the text with the design of organiz-
ing an independent society upon a very expensive plan. In the subsequent
proceedings none of the names mentioned appear, excepting the first, nor have
we knowledge of further proceedings until the summer of 1876. In August
of that year, the following card of invitation was issued

organizations, when, upon. motion, the subject was referred to
a committee consisting of A. G. Humpureys, of Illinois; J. J.
Harrison, of Ohio; and Joun Sau, of Washington, D. C.

A committee on organization was appointed to prepare and
report a Constitution and By-Laws. A call for reports trom
States was made, but none of the Vice-Presidents reported.

A paper was then read by Dr. Franxiin B. Houau, of New’
York, upon “ The Duty of Government in the Preservation of

Forests.”* Remarks were made upon this paper by Mr.
Tuomas Mrenan, of Pennsylvania, in which he expressed the

view that we should not depend upon Government, but upon
private enterprise in extending tree-culture. A short discus-
was had upon the species most desirable for cultivation. Mr.
G. Husmany, of Missouri, called attention to the Osage Orange,
as perhaps the most desirable. He also regarded the Western
Catalpa, Box-Elder, Red Cedar, Scotch and Austrian Pines as
very desirable. :

_ Mr. Burnet Lanprerts, of Pennsylvania, gave by request
of the President, some account of the Osage Orange tree planted
by his father many years ago:

Mr. J. EK. Snoperass, of Virginia, remarked that he had

“You are invited to attend the National Forestry Convention, under the
auspices of the American Forestry Council, at Sea Grove, Cape May Point, N.
., September 7th and 8th, 1876. As concerning climatic influences for the
benefit of the life and health of the people, forests are of such importance, that
irrespective of the vast material and more tangible interests involved, we can-
not afford longer to-delay thorough, general, and systematic investigation of
the subject.”

This card bore the names of several well known and worthy citizens, but the
principal mover was Mr. Powell. Reduced railway and hotel rates were se-
cured, and from the announcements in the daily papers it might be expected
that an immense crowd would be in attendance. The writer of this note hav-
ing a special invitation, attended, and was one of a party of three persons who
were all that to his knowledge went for the purpose of attending the meeting.
By inviting in the guests, a small gathering, (of perhaps twenty persons,) was
had in the parlors of one of the botels the first evening, and sundry papers
were read and discussed. The draft of a Constitution had been prepared, but
Was not presented.—H.

* Printed in the Lowville Times, New York, of October 15, 1876.

observed the Ailanthus, both in Virginia and at Philadelphia,
and regarded it among the most desirable of trees on account
of its rapid growth.

Prof. H. H. McAres, of Iowa, read extracts from a paper
giving an account of Forestry in his State.*

The Committee upon Consolidation reported, recommending

-the Executive Committee of this Association to meet with the

Council at its next meeting on the 21st, and, if possible, effect
aunion. This report was adopted.

A paper was received from J. J. Harrison, of Ohio, upon
“The Forest Trees of Northern Ohio,” which, from want of
time, was not read. A report was received from W.C. FLaae,
Vice-President for Illinois, a part of which was read.

Mr. Burnet LANDRETH gave, by request, an account of cer-
tain experiments in forest planting in Virginia, which he had
caused to be printed.t He began planting in 1871, and de-
signed to cover7,000 acres. He is clearing off the native growths
and planting as the ground is cleared. He has 320,000 Black
Locust, 100,000 Black Walnut, 25,000 Cotton wood, 30,000 Per-
simmon, and 30,000 Larch trees, and intended to experiment
upon the cultivation of the Sumac for a tanning material.

The Committee on Organization reported a form of Constitu-
tion and By-Laws, which were read and adopted, as follows :

CONSTITUTION.
ArticuE I. This Association shail be known as the AMERI-

cAN Forestry ASSOCIATION. ta
Art. 2. Its objects shall be the protection of the existing

_ forests of the country from unnecessary waste, and the promo-

tion of the propagation and planting of useful trees.

* Printed in the Patron’s Helper, Des Moines, Iowa, December 6, 1876, under
the title of ‘‘ Forest-Tree Culture.”

+ We are not aware that the Council hal a meeting on the day mentioned,
or afterwards. :

{Address delivered before the American Forestry Association by Burner
Lanprera, Chief of the Bureau of Agriculture, Centennial Commission, Sep-
tember 15, 1876;” 800, p. 10.

Art. 3. Its members shall consist of all persons paying an
annual fee of one dollar into the treasury.

Art. 4. Its officers shall consist of a President, a Vice-
Preeident from each State, Territory, and Province of the
country; a Secretary, and a Treasurer; and the President,
Secretary, and Treasurer shall constitute an Executive Com-
mittee.

Art. 5. Its meetings shall be held biennially, and at such
other times as the Executive Committee may deem necessary.

Art. 6. This Constitution may be amended at any regular
meeting by a majority vote.

BY-LAWS.

It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all meet-
ings, to deliver an address at the regular meetings on the sub-
ject of the promotion of Forestry, and to call meetings of the
Executive Committee when he may deem it necessary.

It shall be the duty of the Vice-Presidents to gather statis-
tics in regard to Forestry in their several States, Territories,
and Provinces, report the same at the regular meetings of the
organization, and in general to promote in their several locali-
ties the objects of the Association. ,

It shall be the duty of the Secretary to conduct the corre-
spondence, keep the records, and prepare the proceedings for
publication.

The Treasurer shall receive and disburse the funds of the
Association, on the written order of the President and Secre-
tary;and he shall give such bond as the Association may re-
quire. .

These By-Laws may be amended at any regular meeting by

a majority vote.

The Committee on Organization also reported the nomina-
tion of officers for the coming two years as follows:

For President: Dr. Jonn A. WARDER, of Ohio.

For Secretary: Prof. Henry H. McArss, of Iowa.

For Treasurer: Dr. FRANKLIN B. Houau, of New York.

These officers being declared duly elected, and there being
no further business before the Association, it adjourned.*

*The Secretary of the Association emigrated to Nevada in the winter of
1877-8, and died there in March, 1878. The writer is unable; for this reason,

In January, 1880, a meeting of the Association was held at
Washington, D. C., upon the call of the President, and a me-
morial was adopted recommending to Congress the appointment
of a Commission for the purpose of obtaining information upon
the subject of Forestry in Europe. This meeting was adjourned
to the call of its President, which was next issued March 10,
1882, inviting its members to meet at Cincinnati, Ohio, April
25-29, 1882. Many of those who had participated in the
former proceedings did so, and assisted in the organization of
the AMERICAN ForEsTRY CONGRESS.

On the 18th of May, 1882, another call was issued by Pres-
ident WARDER to members and and all others interested in the
objects of the Society, to meet at Rochester, N. Y., on- Tuesday,
June 29th, the day preceding the annual meeting ofthe Ameri-
can Nurserymen’s Association, for the discussion of forestal
topics, and for reorganization by the election of officers and
other business. A meeting was accordingly held, at which was
adopted the fellowing

CONSTITUTION.

ARLICLE 1. This Society shall be known as the AMERICAN
ForESTRY ASSOCIATION, and shall seek to promote the interests
of Forestry and to disseminate information connected there-
with. 7

Art. 2. The Officers shall be a President, a Vice-President,
a Secretary, a Corresponding Secretary, and a Treasurer, who
shall constitute an Hxecutive Committee, with power to act on
behalf of the Association. There may also be one Vice-Presi-
dent elected for each State, Territory, and Province in North
America. The term of office shall be for one year, or until
their successors are appointed.

Art. 3. Meetings shall be held annually, or at such times
and places as the Executive Committee may direct, for the pre-
sentation of papers for discussion, and for practical measures
relating to Forestry.

to consult any records he may have kept. The above is made up from the
notes of the writer, made at the time, and is believed to be substantially full
and correct.—H.

——— er

Art. 4. Any person recommended by a member of the Ex-
ecutive Committee may be elected to membership on the pay-
ment of two dollars. The annual dues shall be one dollar.

Art. 5. The Executive Committee shall have full authority
to act for the Society in any emergency.

Art. 6. This Constitution may be altered at any regular
meeting by a two-thirds vote of the members present.

_ By-Laws to be framed as needed.

The meeting elected the following officers:

President: GEoRGE B. Lorine, of Massachusetts.

Secretary: JOHN JENKINS; of Winona, Ohio.

Corresponding Secretary: Rosert B. WaRDeER, Cincinnati, O.

Treasurer: D. W. BEADLE, St. Catharine’s, Ontario.

First Vice-President: JoHN A. WARDER, of Ohio.

And Vice-Presidents for several Siates and Provinces. They
thereupon appointed a committee, consisting of Norman
T. Coteman, of Missouri; E. Moopy, of New York City:
and D. W. Brapte, of Ontario, to confer with the American
Forestry Congress with a view of uniting the two organizations.

[The subsequent proceedings at Montreal, resulting in a
union as above contemplated, will be found on page 21 of this
publication. ]

On the 14th of September, 1882, Dr. WarpeEr, late Presi-
dent of the American Forestry Association, by circular informed
the members of that body of the recent action and union, re-
questing them to accept the situation, and to remit their annual
dues of the current year to Dr. CoartEes Mour, of Mobile,
Alabama, who had been appointed Treasurer of the American
Forestry Congress.

MEMBERS

OF THE

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

(Those marked (a.) belong to the AMERICAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. ]

Abbe, Cleveland, Washington, D. C.

Adams, ©. K., Montreal.

Addie, James, Huntingsville, Quebec.
“Allan, James T., (2) Omaha, Neb.

Anderson, Charles, Kuttawa, Ky.

Andres, 8. J., Montreal.

Andrews, C. C., St. Paul, Minn.

Augustine, H., (a) Normal, Ill.

Bambach, G., Ripley, O.
Barnard, E. A. .
Barnard, 8., Table Rock.
. Barry, Patrick; (a.) Rochester, N. Y.
Baskerville, P. (M. P.,) Ottawa, Ont.

— oe

Chabert, M. L’Abbe, Montreal.
Chaffers, Hon. W. H., St. Cezaire, Que
Chambers, A. H., Montreal.
Charleton, E. F., Quebec.

Church, Hon. L. Ruggles, Montreal.
Clay, Hon. Cassius M. Whitehall, Ky.

“Cochran, J. W., (a.) Blue Island, Ill.
yColman, Hon. N. J., (a.) St. Louis, Mo.

Costigan, Hon. John, Ottawa, Ont.
Crandall, A. R., Lexington, Ky.
Crebassa, J. B., Sorel, Que.
Cullman, John G., Cullman, Ala.

Dana, George, Belpre, O.

¥ Beadle, D. W., (a) St. Catharines, Ont» Davis, Franklin, (a.) Baltimore, Md.

Beal, Prof. W. J., Lansing, Mich.
Beall, Thomas, Lindsay, Ont.

Bear, 8. J., Dayton, O.

Beaudry, J. Alphonse D., Montreal.
Beaudry, J. L., (Mayor) Montreal.
Beaudry, P. J. U., Beauharnois, Que.
Bell, D. Pembroke, Ont.

Dean, Harmon, Sidney, O.
DeBeck, William L., Cincinnati, O.
Dempsey, P. C., Trenton, Ont.
Denton, John W., London, Ont.
TeZouche, George C., Montreal.
Dougall, James, Windsor, Ont.

* Douglas, Robert, (a.) Waukegan, III.

Bennett, Jno. P., Woodlyn, Pick’y Co., OtDouglas, Thomas, (a.) Waukegan, III.

/Bissell, W. 8., (a.) Pittsburgh, Pa.
Blaiklock, F. W., Montreal.
Bock, 8., Miamisburg, O.

Booth, J. R., Ottawa, Ont.
Brackett, G. B., Denmark, Iowa.

(Brackett, G. C., (a.) Lawrence, Kan. ~

Bronson, KE. H., Ottawa, Ont.

\ Bryant, Arthur Sr., (a) Princeton, Il.

Drolet, Gustave A., Montreal.
Drummond, A. T., Montreal.

~Dunlop, H. L., (a.) Champaign, Il.

Earle, Frank, (a.) Cobden, I).

Farle, Parker, (a.) Cobden, I.

Eaton, Hon. John, (U. 8. Com’r. of Edu-
cation,) Washington, D. C.

Brown, Prof. William, Guelph, Ont. +Edwards, Samuel, (a.) Mendota, Ill.
Bryson, Hon. George, Ft. Coulonge, Que.Edwards, William C., Rockland, Ont.

Buchanan, W. J., Montreal.

Egleston, N. H., Williamstown, Mass.

< Budd, Prof. Joseph L., (a) Ames, Iowa! Ellsworth, Lewis, (a.) Napierville, Il.

Buell, A. A., Montreal.
Burckhardt, L., Cincinnati, O.
Bureau, Hon. J. O., St. Remi, Que.
Burnett, Robert, Pictou, N. S.
Butler, Amos W., Brookville, Ind.

Calkins, FB. A., Burlington, Iowa.

Ellwanger, George, (a.) Rochester, N.Y.

‘Emery, 8S. M,, (a.) Lake City, Minn.

Fair, John, Montreal.
Fay, Joseph S., Woods Holl, Mass.

~ Fell, Jesse, (a.) Normal, Il.

Fernow, Bernhard E., Oxford, N. J.

+ Campbell, George W., (a.) Delaware, O. Foley, M. S., Montreal.

’ Forbes, Prof. S. A., (a.) Normal, Ill. ‘Lindley, J. V., (a.) Greensboro, N. C.
vFoster, Suel, (a.) Muscatine, Iowa. Little, Ch. B, Montreal.

vFrancis, L. C., (a.) Springfield, Iil. Little, James, Montreal.

v¥Freeman, H. C., (a.) Alto Pass, Ill. Little, L. G., Montreal.

¥Furnas, Allen, (a.) Danville, Ind. Little, William, Montreal.

vy Furnas, Hon. Robt. W., (a.) Brownville, Logue, Charles, Maniwaki, Quebec.

Nebraska. Loring, Hon. George B., Salem, Mass.
‘ Lowery, Samuel R., Huntsville, Ala.
YGalusha, O. B., (a.) Morris, Ill. Lynch, Hon. W. W., (Com’r. Crown
Gamble, James A., Cincinnati, O. Lands.) Quebec.
Garand, Remi J., Montreal.
¥Gaston, A. H., (a.) Lacon, Il. McConnell, Dr J. B., Montreal.
Gault, M. H., (M. P.) Montreal. McConville, P. W., Joliette, Quebec.

Geiger, H. R., Springfield, ILinois. McKinstry, B. W., (a.) Grant Park, Ill.
Gianelli, A. M. F., (Italian Con.) Mont. McLaurin, John, East Frampton, Que.
Gilbert, A. M., Ross, Ohio. McRae, George, Montreal.
Gordon, James, Ottawa, Ontario. (McWhorter, Tyler, (a.) Aledo, Ohio.

‘ Graves, H. C., (a.) Sandwich, Illinois. Mailhot, Hon. H.G., Three Rivers, Ont.

,/Grimes, D. S., (a.) Denver, Colorado. Mailhot, Rev. N. E., Sutton, Quebec.

‘Mann, W. H., (a.) Gilman, Il.

\ Haines, J. S., (a.) Germantown, Penn.” Manning, Jacob W.,(a.) Reading, Mass.
Hall, T. D., Montreal Marler, George L., Montreal.

VHammon, A. C., (a.) Warsaw, Illinois. Martin, J. R., Cayuga, Ontario.
Hammon, George W., Boston, Mass. Martin, Richard, Hamilton, Ontario..
Harvey, Prof. F. L., Fayetteville, Ark./Massue, Hon. L. H., Varennes; Quebec.

‘ Hatheway, Edmond, (a.) Otsdawa, N.Y Masters, J., (a.) Nebraska City, Neb.

/ Hatheway, Mrs. P.V.,(a@) Otsdawa, N.Y.’ Meehan, Thomas, (a.) Germantown, Pa.
Haycock, Edward, Ottawa, Ontario. Meyer, C. H., Fond-du-Lac, Wis.

¥ Heaver, William, (a.) Los Angeles, Cal. Meyneke, Oscar, Brookville, Ind.
Heneker, R. W., Sherbrooke, Ontario. Mills, James, (Pres. Ag. College,) Guelph,

‘Hicks, John S., (a.) Roslyn, N. Y. Ontario.

v Hill, David, (a.) Dundee, Illinois. Mills, W. B., Beaufort, N. B.
Hincks, Sir Francis, Montreal. ‘Minier, G. W., (a.) Minier, Illinois.
Hingston, Dr. William H., Montreal. /Minkler, S. G., (a.) Oswego, Illinois.

~ Hodges, Leonard B.,(a.) St Paul, Minn. Mohr, Charles, Mobile, Alabama.

’ Hoopes, Josiah, (a.) West Chester, Penn Moody, E. S., (a.) Lockport, Illinois.

¥ Hough, Franklin B.,(a.) Lowville, N.Y. Mooney, J. H., Montreal.

Howard, Dr. Henry, Montreal. Morton, J. Sterling, (a.) Nebraska City,
Hughes, Charles, Montreal. Nebraska.

* Humphreys, A. G., (a.) Galesburg. Ill. Morse, George H., Burlington, Vt.

’ Husman, George, (a.) Napa, Cal. Mousseau, Hon. J. A., (Premier.) Mont.

. ( Maundertol, William C., Montreal.
Jenkins, J., (@.) Winona, Ohio. Manson, T. V., (a.) Denison, Texas.
Joly, Hon. H. G., Point Platon, Que. ¥Murdock, Albert L., (a.) Boston, Mass.

Keefer, Thomas C., Ottawa, Oatario. ‘Neally, Green C.,(a.) Burlington, lowa.
’ Kelsey, S. T., (a.) Highlands, N.C Nelson, W. T., (a.) Wilmington, Ill.
v Kinney, D. F., (a.) Rock Island, Ill. Normand, J. B., Three Rivers, Quebec.
¥Knapp, J. G., (a.) Limona, Florida. | Normand, T. E, Three Rivers, Quebec.

Kramer, William, Dayton, Ohio.

Kuehnert, Robert, Cincinnati, Ohio. Ogilvie, Hon. A. W., Montreal

4 Orton, Edward., Columbus, Ohio.

Latour, L. A. H.,(M. A.) Montreal. Ouimet, Hon. Gedeon., Quebec, Ont.

Lazenby, Prof. W. R., Columbus, Ohio.

Leclere, Georges, (Supt. Council Ag.,) Papineau, J. G., Montreal.

Montreal. * Pearson, J. M., (a.) Godfrey, Ill.
Leuvé, Adolph, Cincinnati, Ohio. Peffer, P. G., Pewaukee, Wis.

4@ PD

Wbercnieton: Dr. L.S., (a.) Sterling, Ill. Taché, E. E., (Assist. Com. Crown Lands.)
y Pentland, Francis, (a.) Lockland, Ohio. Quebec.
eriam, Jonathan, (a.) Chicago; Ill. Taft, J., Cincinnati, Ohio.
Perley, W G., Ottawa, Ontario. “Tallant, Dr. J F.,(a.), Burlington, Lowa. ,
Petersen, P. 8., Chicago, Illinois. Teall, J. L., Pervins Mills, Ohio.
J Piatt, J. Sauters, (a.) Mock-a-check, O-\Teas, E. Y., (a.) Dunreith, Indiana.
Plumb, J. C., (a.) Milton, Wisconsin. ~Teas, J. C., (a.) Carthage, Mo.
Pope, Hon. J. H , (Minister of Agricul-Thayne, Stewart, Ottawa, Ontario.

ture.) Ottawa, Ontario. Thistle, W. R., Ottawa, Ontario.
Proctor, John R., Frankford, Ky. Thomas, F. Walferston, Montreal.
Thompson, D. D., Cincinnati, Ohio.
Quinn, Francis A., Montreal. Thompson, M. H., (a.) Lake Preston,
Dakota.
Ray, Jackson, Montreal. Thorne, W. R., Ottawa, Ontario.

v Raymond, H. C., (a.) Council Bluffs, Thorne, W., Springfield, Ohio.
Towa. Torrence, C. E., Montreal.
Riley, Prof. C. V., (Dept. Ag.) Washing-Townshend, Prof. N.S.,(a.) Columbus,O.
ton, D. C. Tracy, W. W., Detroit, Michigan.
Ritchie, William, Three Rivers, Quebec-Trowbridge, G. W., (a.) Glendale, O.
Rob, William, (City Auditor.) Montreal. Trudel, Hon. F. X. A., Montreal.
Roots, B. G., (a.) Pamaroa, Illinois. “Turner, J. B.. (a.) Jacksouvilie, Il.
Ross, W. Gerand, St. Nicholas, Quebec.
Ross, Hon. J. J., St. Anne de la Perade, Ulbricht, Geo. Alfred, Dresden, Saxony.
Russell, A. J., (Crown Timber Agt.) Ot-
tawa, Ontario. °. Vasey, Dr. George, (Botanist D. of Ag.)

Washington, D. C.
St. John, J. W., Hamilton, Ohio.
v Saul, John, (a.) Washington, D. C. Walbank, W. McL, Montreal.
Saunders, Prof. William, London, Ont. Walker. J. A., Montreal.
v Scofield, D. C., (2) Elgin, Illinois. Ward, J. K., Montreal.
y Scofield, L. K., (a.) Freeport, Illinois. ~Warder, Dr. John A, (a.) North Bend,

yScott, D. W., (a.) Galena, Illinois. Ohio.

Scott, Dr. W.8., Southampton, Ont. Warder, Prof. Robert B., North Bend,
Seeley, Prof. H. M., Middlebury, Vt. Ohio.

Senecal, L. A., Montreal. ‘Watrons, C. L., (a.) Des Moines, Iowa.
Shanley, Walter, Montreal. Watson, William, (a.) Brenham Tex.
Shepard, Otis, Boston, Mass. Weltz, Leo., (2.) Wilmington, Ohio.
Simpkinson, John, Cincinnati, Ohio. *Whiting, C. E., (a.) Whiting, Lowa.
Simpson, W., Montreal: Whitney, A. 8., (a,) Franklin Grove, III.
Smith, Charles, Marion, Ohio. Whitney, N. S., Montreal.

Smyth, Ex-Gov. Frederick, Manchester, Williams, H. H., (a.) Galesburgh, Ill.

New Hampshire. Wilson, Hon. Horace, Columbus Ohio.

Spalding, Prof. V. M., Ann Arbor, Mich.Wilson, H. W., Boston, Mass.
Springer, Alfred, Cincinnati, Ohio. Woodbury, C. H., New York.
Spring-Rice, Hon. E. H., Montreal. Wright, Elizur, Boston, Mass.

Starnes, Hon. H., Montreal. “Wright, George H.,(a.) Sioux City, Iowa.
Starr, J. W., Steele City, Neb. Wright, T. W., Montreal.
Steele; Robert W., Dayton, Ohio. Wurtele, Hon. T. S. C., (Prov. Treas.)

Stewart, Dr. J. T., (a.) Peoria, Ill.

Stickney, J.S , (a.) Wauwatosa, Wis. ‘Zimmermann, C. D., (a.) Buffalo, N. Y.
Stout, Henry Oursler, Adams Co., O.

Studer, Jacob H., Columbus, Ohio.

(Stewart, W. Hudson, Lowville, N. Y. Montreal.

,. 5%
Ye

Names omitted in the preceding list.

gurson, D. C.,—Philadelphia, Pa. Miller, Jos. W.,—College Hill, Ohio.
Jlarke, Robert,—Glendale, Ohio. . Sohn, John Wm.,—Hamilton, Ohio.
Comegys, Dr. C. G..—Cincinnati, Ohio. ;

Coursler, Henry,—Stout’s, Adams Co.,Tice, Jerome, Elenor—Clermont, Co., O.

Ts
~Ohio.*
Walden, Rev. John M:,—Cincinnati, O.
Gano, John A..—Cincinnati, Ohio. Wnight, Jos. F.—Mt. Healthy, Ohio.

cNamara, Thos.,— Hartwell, Ham Co..
Ohio.

: * Instead of the name given on page 43, 2d line from bottom, in first column.

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PROCEEDINGS

OF THE

AMERICAN FORESTRY «CONGRESS

FOR THE YEAR 1883.

Wide cele

The Congress met at the State House, in St. Paul, August 8th, 1883.

The meeting was called to order by the Hon. Grorce B. Lorine, President of the
Congress, at ten o’clock a.m.

Upon motion of F. P. Baker, of Kansas, a resolution was passed for the appoint-
ment of a committee upon the order of business, to consist of three persons appointed by
the chair.

Mr. F. P. Baker, Mr. G. W. Minier and Hon. H. G. Joly, were appointed as this

committee.
Hon. H. G. Joy moved a resolution, which was adopted, as follows :—

“ Resolved, That a committee be appointed with instructions to draft resolutions con-
cerning the great loss suffered by the American Forestry Congress by the death of Dr. J.
A. Warder, one of its vice-presidents, since its last meeting.”

The Chair appointed Hon. H. G. Joly, Dr. F. B. Hough, and Rev. N. H. Egleston,
as this committee.

Upon motion of Rev. N. H. Eateston, a resolution was offered, expressing the re-
grets of the Congress upon the death of the Hon. Leonard B. Hodges, of St. Paul; and
upon motion of Mr. G. W. Mintsr, the name of the late Arthur Bryant, Senr., of
Princeton, Ill., was included. It being suggested that there might be other names worthy
of mention, the resolution was further amended and passed, instructing the committee
above named, to include such as they might deem worthy, and instructing the secretary
to transmit certified copies of these resolutions to the families of the deceased persons.

Mr. R. W. Furnas, of Nebraska, offered the following resolution :—

Resolved, That Article VI. of the Constitution be amended by inserting the word
“ president,” so that it should read as follows :—

“ Art. VI. The president, vice-presidents, secretaries, and treasurer, shall consti-
tute an executive committee, for the transaction of such business as may be required by
the Constitution, or by a vote of the Congress,”

LF,

This resolution having been adopted, another was offered by Mr. Furnas, to further
amend by striking out the words “ the close of,” from Article XII. of the Constitution,
so that it should read as follows :—

‘* ART. XT. At each annual meeting there shall be an election of officers for the
ensuing year,” etc. e

This being adopted, Mr. J. S. Hicks, of New York, moved a resolution directing
the appointment of five persons in addition to those appointed by the Constitution, to
serve as an executive committee ; which was adopted.

Mr. J. G. Kapp, of Florida, offered a resolution for the appointment of a temporary
treasurer, in the absence of Dr. Charles Mohr, the treasurer, which was adopted, and
Mr. J. Fletcher Williams, of Saint Paul, was appointed.

Mr. R. W. Furnas offered a resolution, which was adopted, directing the president
to appoint a committee of three upon organization ; whereupon Mr. Furnas, of Nebraska ;
Mr. B. G. Northop, of Connecticut ; and Mr. J. H. Morgan, of Ontario, were appointed. —

Mr. Baker, from the committee on order of business, reported the following rules
for the present session, which were adopted :—

“‘]. That until all work be disposed of, the Forestry Congress meet every day at
ten in the forenoon, two in the afternoon, and half-past seven in the evening.

“2. That all the papers prepared by members present be read according to the
alphabetical order of the writers’ names.

“3. That the titles of the papers sent by absent members be read, and that on mo-—
tion of any member, the Congress will decide whether such paper be read at length or
not.

“4, After the reading of each paper, the subject matter will be open to discussion, —
no member being permitted to occupy the attention of the Congress more than ten
minutes,

pe cLoat, privilege be granted to this committee to make any further report, should —
it be deemed necessary.”

Upon motion, offered by the Rev. N. H. Eaieston, and adopted, the chair was di-
rected to appoint a committee to report upon the best methods of Tree Planting ; where-
upon the Rev. N. H. Egleston, of D. C.; Mr. George W. Wright, of Iowa, and Prof.
W. B. Lazenby, of Ohio, were appointed.

The following named persons were then elected members of the Forestry Congress,
upon recommendation of two members, viz. :—

J. H. Morgan, of Amherstburg, Ontario.
Edward Daniels (Curator Acad. Science), of Saint Paul, Minn.
B. G. Northop, of Clinton, Conn.

George H. Wright, of Sipux City, Iowa.

J. Fletcher Williams, of Saint Paul, Minn.
F. P. Baker, of Topeka, Kansas.

Warren Higley, of Cincinnati, Ohio.
William R. Marshall, of Saint Paul, Minn.
Dr. J. H. Bryant, of Saint Paul, Minn.
Eugene Seeger, of Saint Paul, Minn.
Ferdinand Harrsen, of Saint Paul, Minn.
J. L. Budd, of Ames, Iowa.

The hour of twelve meridian having arrived, the Congress took a recess until two |
o’clock!p.m, .

Afternoon Session, August 8th.

The hour of two o’clock having arrived, the President took the chair, and announced
the presence of Gen. George L. Becker, of Saint Paul, President of the Minnesota State
Forestry Association, who addressed the Congress with a speech of welcome, on behalf of
the Association, as follows :—

PRESIDENT BECKER’S ADDRESS.

Mr. President, Gentlemen of the American Forestry Congress :—

It is both a pleasure and a privilege to address such a body of men as is assembled
here to-day. You are on the border of these great boundless plains stretching, as our
great American poet has said :—

‘Tn airy undulations far away,
As if the ocean, in its gentlest swell
Stood still, with all its rounded billows,
Fixed and motionless for ever.”

They are the plains and the prairies which were known to our old geographers, and
familiar to the most of us in our boyhood days, as “the Great American desert.” We
have lived to see stretched out on every side over them the iron rail, and the mighty
electric wire ; and we see these plains becoming covered by a large population who are
constantly developing the fact that they are rich in all that adds to the dignity and the
comfort of man. When I first came to Minnesota I started out with this proposition :
that God had never made such a country as this without providing everything necessary
for the use of the human family, and I argued from that, that sooner or later we would
find our deposits of coal here for our use. After thirty years we haven’t found the coal.
I am still a believer in the proposition that I then maintained ; but whether we are to
discover our means of lighting and heating this vast territory in the unknown powers
which yet lie undeveloped in the electric force, or in the decomposition of gases in the air
we breathe, or by the more laborious process of tree planting, I am unable to say; but
that the means are here ready at our hand when we discover them, I haven’t the slightest
doubt atall. The Minnesota State Forestry Association has been in existence a number
of years. It is not large in numbers ; not influential in its members. It has been teach-
ing the A B C of forestry literature to our people, just as the schoolmaster teaches the
schoolboy. To begin with, we had to encounter unbelief, ignorance and prejudice. The
average settler of the prairie did not believe that trees would grow there. He thought
that if trees had heen intended to grow there they would be there, and it seemed almost
like flying in the face of Providence to think of planting trees on the prairies. But a
little leaven has leavened the whole loaf, and I believe that the settler who plants him-
self upon the prairie without contemplating a tree plantation that will grow, is the ex-
ception rather than the rule.

There is one earnest man whom we miss to-day. He whose life was devoted to this
work is dead. He died in the early spring, in the midst of his great purpose of planting
trees along the line of the Northern Pacific. I refer to Mr. Leonard B. Hodges, our late
Secretary. He was the author of our pamphlet of which we have published several
editions—the Tree Planting Manual. He was an honest man, a good citizen and a true
friend, and he gave an impetus to tree planting which all other forces combined never
gave to tree planting in this State. He was himself a learned and practical tree planter.
Better than any man I ever knew, he illustrated the truth that,

“Vast and sudden deeds of violence,
Adventures wild, and wonders of the moment,—
These are not they which generate
The calm and blissful and ‘enduring mighty.”

His body lies in a beautiful cemetery near our town. His monument, more enduring

than brass and harder than marble, is in the long lines of trees which line the railroads
of this State and the groves that dot our prairies ; and they will tell for generations to
come of his practical and patient labours. I need not say to you, gentlemen, that we
shall be glad to listen to your discussions. We shall study them with great care, and
shall hope to derive from them great inspiration and wisdom for the fuiare.

At the conclusion of his address he introduced to the meetifig the Governo: of
nesota, Governor HusBarD, who welcomed the Congress in the following ‘or. —

Gentlemen of the American Forestry Association :—

I extend to you a hearty welcome to our State. J assure you, gentlemen, that you
have come among a people who appreciate the great importance of the interest in whose
behalf you are labouring, and who wish to aid you by their efforts, as well as to profit
themselves thereby. It is most appropriate that Minnesota should be selected for the
place of your meeting at this time. Our people for several years past have given much at-
tention to the subject of tree culture, and the prairies of one State to-day bear witness of
what may be accomplished by an earnest and systematic effort to perpetuate and preserve
the growth of our forest trees. The encouragement given by legislation, national and
State, to the promotion of timber culture, supplemented by the intelligent action of your ©
body, and of our State Association, has made forestry a prominent feature in the agricultural
industries of the west, and has made habitable and indeed hospitable many otherwise
dreary and desolate wastes. Your efforts, gentlemen, are entitled to cordial recognition. ©
Your work is a great public benefaction. The people of the North-West, and of Minne- ©
sota especially, as I have said, realize the value of the interest you are seeking to pro-
mote, and they bid you, gentlemen, a most cordial welcome to our State, whose broad
area already illustrates the great good you are doing.

To this weleome President Lorine replied :—

I am sure I express the sentiment which animates you, when I say that the cordial —
welcome we have received here is grateful to this Congress. I am sure no State in this i
Union could have been more appropriate than,this in which we meet, for the consideration
of one of the most important subjects that can be brought before the minds of those who
are interested in the prosperity and industry of the United States—the care and preserva- —
tion of the forests to which Minnesota has given such careful and accurate attention, —
both by her Forestry Association on the one hand, and by her State deliberators and
members of Congress on the other.

The discussions were then opened by the reading of the President’s annual address,
which will be found to be full of valuable information.

IT :
Pp - PRESIDENT LORING’S ADDRESS.
Uh o

GENTLEMEN,— When [ had the honour of addressing an assembly of those interested
in promoting the cultivation and preservation of forests in this country, and in ornament-
ing our cities and towns by the planting of trees in their parks and along the highways,
now a year ago, I dwelt largely on the value and importance of providing in every way _
for the gratification of our refined tastes and for increasing the popular sense of beauty.
I did this as preliminary to the more practical work which called that assembly together,
and as an appeal to the strongest motive man has to engage in the business of providing
for his wants and surrounding himself with the comforts and luxuries which prosperity
secures. At this time I propose to confine myself strictly to the condition of forests in
this country, and to such suggestions as may occur to me with regard to their increase,
preservation, and economical use.

And first as to the increase of our forests. In this work both nature and art are
engaged. The “forests primeval” meet man wherever he advances to the occupation of
new lands best adapted to feed and clothe him, and best fitted for agricultural labour and
production. His primary work is to remove this great vegetable growth, whose condition
indicates the quality of the soil he proposes to cultivate. If he pauses in his work the

forests return to their accustomed place. In the older States many acres which half a
century ago were used for pasturage or tillage are now covered with forest growths, and
many timber lands which have once supplied the forest products are now hastening to
supply a new crop. The acreage of woodland is undoubtedly increasing in those sections
where farming has become unprofitable either through the exhaustion of the soil or
through a change in the locality and demands of the markets. In the strictly lumbering
States this is also true. While the deserted, remote, and mountain farms in Massachus-
setts are rapidly “ growing up to wood,” the woodlands of Maine and Michigan and many
another lumbering State are growing a new crop, which in a quarter of a century will be
more valuable than the original growth, although much reduced in size. The young pine
and spruce forests of the north, covering acres of land once occupied by their sturdy progeni-
tors, are full of promise and beauty. In other sections of the country, lands, which have
for ages been bare of trees while exposed to annual prairie fires, and under the protection of
man, producing rapid growths of wood. As the settler guards his fields against fires
and cattle, trees spring up, and especially along the water-courses may be seen forest belts
where an entire absence of trees had been the law for many generations of men. Wher-
ever the land is protected, therefore, whether it be the location of old forests, or bare
spots adapted to tree-growing where the forests have been hitherto unknown, nature is
busily engaged in producing wood, and in bringing back the forest growth which welcomes
advancing man as he goes on in his work of civilization.

In addition to this natural increase, much has been done in many of the States in
tree-planting, and much more ought to be done. The establishment of ‘‘ arbor days” and
the inducements held out by legislation have operated very favourably on the work of what
is called village improvement, and on an agricultural attention to the cultivation of trees as
acrop. And this business has increased with very considerable rapidity in some of our
best farming States. In Minnesota, for instance, the number of acres planted on “arbor
day ” in 1878 was 811; in 1882 the number was 1,184; and the whole number of acres
planted increased from 18,029 in 1878, to 38,458 in 1882. Work similar to this is done
in Iowa, Nebraska, and Dakota, as well as in Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, and Kansas. In
Nebraska, the number of acres of cultivated woodland has reached 107,438, as against
19,695 acres of natural increase. These are small beginnings, it is true, but they are en-
titled to our most careful consideration as the commencement of an enterprise which,
when properly conducted, will undoubtedly constitute an important branch of American
agriculture.

Tree-culture ought now to receive our most careful attention. It is time that the
skill which has been applied to the cultivation of our great cereal crops, to cotton, rice,
tobacco, and all the profitable products of the soil, such as grass, and vegetables, and fruits
of every description, should be applied also to the growing of wood as a farm product.
To the choice of forest treesadapted to each locality ; to the selection of land which can
most properly be devoted to trees, considering its fitness or unfitness for any other crop
on account of quality and situation, whether near to or remote from farm buildings,
whether useful or not for pasturage and tillage; to the best methods of cultivation,
whether by seeding or planting from nurseties ; to the best method of securing a speedy
return—to all these points the attention of practical and investigating farmers should be
carefully and systematically turned. The profit of the crop can, I presume, be no longer
questioned. Waste lands enclosed and left to nature have produced in wood a very large
return for the investment. Why should not land subjected to the well-directed art of the
cultivator produce just as good a result? For the purpose of encouraging this enterprise
it is important that Government should lend its aid in every legitimate way until the
wood crop is recognized exactly as are the great staple crops of the country. If a bounty
is legitimate and useful in any case, it certainly would be in this. The protection against
lawless invasion thrown around our grain fields and gardens should also be extended to
our woodlands, protection against depredation, wanton fires, and stray cattle. The rifling
of a forest should be as penal an offence as the rifling of anorchard. Over forest-covered
public lands and over forest plantations, against the careless destruction of the settler on
the one, and the trespass of the outlaw on the other, should the strong arm of the law be
constantly and vigourously extended.

A Ve

’ 6

—_—_ SSS 5555S eee
THE VALUE OF THE INDUSTRY.

In order that I may impress upon you the value of this industry I will ask your at-
tention to its extent in our country, which covers such a vast area. I do this in order to
impress upon your minds not only the value but the great importance of husbanding our
resources in this direction in view of the constantly increasing demand for our forest pro-
ducts in all their variety. The forest lands of the United States amount to less than
one-fourth of the entire areca. The proportion of wooded area is less than in eastern,
northern, and central Europe, and is very unequally distributed. Norway has two-
thirds of its area wooded, Sweden six-tenths, Russia nearly one-third, and Germany nearly
one-fourth. The countries having less fo ost areas, arranged in order of proportion, from
eighteen down to five per cent., are Belgium, France ; ‘Switzerland, Sardinia, Naples,
Holland, Spain, Denmark, Great Britain, and Portugal

Originally the southern, middle and eastern States were entirely wooded, except a
large portion of Texas, and a few small prairies in the south-west. Simall areas ‘ot moun-
tain glades among the ’ Alleghenies might also be excepi:d. Ohio and eastern and south-
ern Indiana were » wooded, and the northern portions of the lake States,

West of the line of prairies running south-west through Indiana, Illinois, Mis-
souri, to the Indian territory, the central prairies, the drier plains, and much of the
southern belt of the Pacific slope are destitute of wood. The streams in all the great
region are more or less fringed with trees of some sort, and the higher mountains on the
protected sides have a thin covering of forest. In the deep valleys” of the western slope

of the Sierra Nevadas are torests of “extraordinary density filled with soft-wooded evergreen’

trees of enormous size, the wonder and admiration of the practical woodman. Here the
Sequoia gigantea, or big tree, flourishes in isolated patches, while the coast range is the
home of the Sequoia sempervirens, or redwood.

From North Carolina to Louisiana nearly six-tenths of the farm area is wooded,
though much of the area thinly, and part of it has been culled and is in second growth.
Including unoccupied areas, not in farms, which are in forest, something like three-fourths
of the entire south is wooded.

There are counties in the south that were ten years ago almost unbroken forest.
More than nine-tenths of the area of Brunswick, North Carolina, were then wooded, and
almost as large a proportion of Beaufort, Craven, Onslow, New Hanover, and Bladen.

A similar preponderance obtained in Williamsburg, Georgetown, and Lexington, in South ~

Carolina ; and in Camden, Charlton, Clinch, and others in Georgia. In ‘all of the gulf
States such districts were found. Less than two per cent. of Newton County, in eastern
Texas, was cleared. To-day the proportion of woodland is but little less.) On the farm
areas of Georgia the percentage of forests has increased from fifty-five to fifty-nine on
account of taking two or three millions of primitive forests into the farm area. In
Florida, from the same cause, it has increased from sixty to sixty-six per cent. The de-
cline has been from sixty-one to fifty-eight in Mississippi ; from fifty-seven to fifty-five
in Louisiana. It has increased from forty-two to forty-four in Texas; and nearly one
hundred counties show from ten to eighty per cent in wood. The wealth of the forest
growth is scarcely appreciated in large districts of the south. There are districts where
clearings are yet made yearly by girdling the trees in the summer for planting among the
boles standing bare and blackened. Every winter a log-rolling disposes of the trunks
that fall, until decay and fire have cleared the field. And it is not long since a sprink-
ling of black walnut rails could be seen in the worm fences which still surround the
fi-ids of corn and cotton, and probably a few can yet be found.

Comparing the census returns of 1870 and 1880 we find a decrease of woodlands in
farm areas in Michigan from forty-one to thirty-two per cent ; in Minnesota from twenty-
one to fifteen, and in Iowa from sixteen to eleven per cent. In Nebraska tree-planting
has changed the record from three to ten per cent. From the increase of farms in the
wooded area Wisconsin has thirty-one instead of twenty-nine per cent. The comparison
is thus tabulated :

——— =

1880, 1870.

STATES. | Per cent. : | Per cent

Acres in | Acresin | af fain Acresin ! Acres in of farm

farms. | woodland. nade: farms. | woodland. ariciae

SEE ESATA ec istaireterstatinere orawerets 13,807,240 | 4,452,265 32 | 10,019, 142 4,080,146 41
Wisconsin ................. ‘| 15,353,118 | 4,768,046 | 31_—|- 11,715,321 | 3,437,442 29
SMIMESOUG sath. Uailae eo s)s ae .| 13,403,019 2,030,726 | 15 6,483,828 1,336,299 21
BU AMS cies tienes taieiess ts 24,752,700 2,755,290 | 101 15,541,793 2,524,793 i6
PPP INASICR bei) POR ote 25. 9,944, 826 321,566 | 8! 2,073,781 "913, 374 10
otals Genes. jogok | 77,260,903 | 14,327,893 | 18 45,833,865 | 11,592,054 25

The belt including latitudes 37° to 41° through which runs the Ohio River extended
westward across the Mississippi River, shows | a decrease from 34 to 26 per cent, ;
greatest in Ohio and Indiana, as follows:

gp ee SCE SR ES

teen 1880. 1870.
STATEs.
| Acres in Acres in a2 claane Acres in Acresin | grr
| farms. Soo woodland. | lesa, farms. | woodland. | Hears
Fed ee eee
Beobacky, J. {S0ths.t...-..--- 21,495,240 | 10,106,072 | 47 18,660,106 | 9,134,658 49
O (@ eescup ata sie a aapRrpoees | 24,529,226 feaee 5 982, 5OT | 24 21,712,420 6,883,575 32
: Indiana PSPS eek) clk couateats a6 b | 20,420,983 5,985, 308 | 29 18,119,648 7,189, 334 | 40
UTERO) ciao eink. co's orcs bce ee5 ,673,645 | a0 °935,5 Dio al 16 25,882, 861 6,061,578 20
MIBSOUNY a eeiae tite se. ce eee os | 27,879, 276 10, 137,790 | 36 21,707,220 8, 965,229 41
ULDUE CIR SotOC SGInC aE eee 21,417,468 991,187 | 5 - 5,656,879 635,419 15
Toot a | 147,415,838 | 38,088,439 | 26 | 111,739,134 | 37,869,793 sa

In the eastern section, Maine shows an increase from new farms in Aroostook
county and other northern counties, but it has been denuded of heavy timber and left
for new growths, and therefore makes adeceptive showing. New York shows a decrease
from 26 to 22 per cent., and Pennsylvania from 32 to 29, as follows:

| 1880. 1870.
Staves. |
| ae in oe in ae Acres in Acres in Ren eanby
| arms. | woodland. Tadic | farms. woodland. lands
SS eee ee — [eee 2) jolt
: |
Maine....... piv iaiote Rte eaete Ss t 6,552,578 2,682,296 41 5,838,058 2,224,740 38
iNew Hampshire: :<Sic24.,... 3,721,173 1,296,529 35 3,605,994 1,047,090 29
Marmont... 2. lave -saha is 4,882,588 | 1,503,467 31 4,528,804 | 1,386,934 31
Misw Vork,...:...:c.:2}ol:. | 23°780,754 | 5,195,795 22 22;190,810 | 5,679,870 26
Pennsylvania ............... 19,791,341 | 5,810,331 | 29 17,994,200 | 5,740,864 32
Totalss los! Pose -.-| 58,728,434 | 16,488,418 | 28 | 54,157,866 | 16,079,498 30

Taking the States by groups the inequality of forest distribution is strikingly shown.
The following statement divides the woodlands reported on farm areas as follows :
——EE———————————————

Srates. - Acres in Acres in iS
farms. woodlands. heey

a fig met REMC na hha ccnies ERlenina’ lai blales eminem wists cick steer 21,483,772 7,315,730 34
PTE Tee a css, La taee Gee Sane eae be ty oe eee OER Uo eee 47,592,113 | 11,993,317 25 {

Soh “Atlantic Meee a? sia Cle ake STAC MA y Rte © miothls aietelh utecelwieth kt tocole tiletts atapietee hs 90,117,593 | 49,339,653 55
Gulf and Southern ...... ss cabs copie heme eens arn eas 112,004,983 | 59,078,082 | 53
ADRs MNO EAT TIBND eC wee vente 0 ox pe 0 \ celaabir dans seeue 137,473,231 | 42,360,123 31
PREANIR-AVISHSISSID PLY c Vee iste sores gciemere tee Peter etic ws che eae OT. 397, 289 | 16,236,559 17

ERLE Beets fey laces 2 id ba aiaie sg ej helers Wis Seals Aa be ee anit we iLeae wvid © oO RCvS 21, 339, 316 | 3,115,924 15

Rocky Mountain .............. BO Ce eer OCT COREL Sie Cerae | 8, 673, 738 816, 406 9

Ota ci eet tee slay aisiv ence cecice me cece een eae ee be ve naar 536,081,835 | 190,255,744 Ly gt

CHANGES BY YEARS.

The following tables give a list of the States showing changes of ten years, both in
farm and woodland areas :

| : Per cent.
SraTEs AND TERRITORIES. | Bh of farm
A | lands.
7 EDA ORS ER OE RAs CETTE TRE ae OT 2.682.296 | 41
IWewabtampshires a fic.. 45 seth Stes asc cate ccio) Geeta ete ntlais to toe eens iio A 1,296,569 35
BVIOEMONG cent ete isc htte se mtigee cehiee oe ete eek Lara ee Caine eee ne esac if 1,503,467 31
Mesa TRGtEA Nf ot he coc eete 6 ce hicel elo eden ae tire nee Oe eee 1,004,099 30
LER T*C Lael ESE 1 (6 LO Os Se 2 GO ea eR apr A A Oe. Ls Mes Mee 0 182,666 35
SOTTTEC LIC: Meno eerste foes Sets koe chads wb eps Sa ee ee AL at seek oe eee 646, "673 26
Wew! Hngland <4 fcc. S25 sme o, Mwos. verte cetienente eer abate _ __ 7,315,730 34
Wewar orks. cost sn .-4 We cale rare car oeiehs rake ake Sra? lcty., oF vintes Date e Ree aie aa Cee eee j 5,195,795 ; oe
INGW eI GISCY Seth. eRe Leet ewes Nee ee oe ee ee ee 708, 092 24
Pennsylvania...... A irainona pot RB heia odin a Ades sate Pa De acts oe Shae tare) eceRee 5,810,331 29
iD Ey ee ee Be Cote saya neta clogs.) oRBRS Gos is: actos sina ee ea te eae ere 279,099 26
Mirddles my 3:262 eas tes cho He, Sas FR ee ae ee a's lg 993,317_ 25
Maryland... :....2. SAI 3 BP OUR, ete Maeege «seks eleieyoes eral ar cites a WARNER 1,634, 019 32
Warrinta, 25 neti os SERN OF Be Va ee SUES Ol Lael ay } 9,126,601 46
North: Carolina: 55a: 6h. oe ccc sats sche oh oo Ba cee eee oe ee: SR eee : 13,868,086 62
BEG ari soi, fc cons rersiurielcscistarsyrotone furs ks Vorars maT ISIC RSE RIEL lena Acdeyero annie MEE 7,255,121 54
Ey CA Aare aa ie a ae nhl d Sattte Sy afore oa eee + hate Kin aes ee tan 15,269,225 59
PN GrAG Ag se arabs PRE.” sinc ets nated! Sec wORIOD eon le ted ea elee ic tart leet ceceeeete 2,186,601 66

——— |

South MélanGe.ci. ><, c-psess> yesh <cfoandh;= <sea- saree eee ae 5B

A RAMA SS camer see o's chic ten oc hedbioete ntisins oath a Beate. oA one te 10,430,727 55
MRBSISRID Dic st anetieien ies Sues eichiiisptide dre: er ee dhnshanach «> 1-5 page 9,144,323 58
SCMSTHIBIGELSY. Fasc ot Safeis's.c tetaw sessie vis Ridin e eatacte ls oie wilacte cis elas eisai Cae oe 4,557,332 55
JEM AR fA. | Bescrere cada obec iat SI EGNOS aren yale cre tarela crore alkerascick ne CAS RSIS siete 15,851,365 44
PATEK ATISSS (05 oe: sce’ jas Rite Re Oe ale ie EI ww wieteig Bh duh id ects «cis EE eae asl 7,861,409 65
Tennessee). )2c. 54he ks Oe BR Siete. bBees sti S i ode ERR te oss ll, 932, 876 54
Gulf and Southern: $25 26.toke pot ecke ess) Sabbh AA. os OR OM Orc as ous 59,078,032 | 53

WCAG BY TEN 12 Fino aI B oars GA oI Ws bee Sti wate is oe cae le is Re dt ee ee ne 6,180, 350° 61
een Sh rova'nl Uti fete MMagaiie ww rw'ieraenetsbetate MroveR tae RN StoR eter Pension chin sie Meta lonibatnne tees 10,106,072 47
TORR iain a5 5s, ie eh ghia Ss ahaa Scie e aici caps wialuimiatle ciulale Ble fa da BS eRe of 5,982,507 24
4,452,265 32

5,935, 308 29

4,935,575 16

4,768,046 | 31

| \
Per cent.
Acres of
StaTEs AND TERRITORIES. onilad ae
| :

no ies ee. yal ei 2. 0 ge eae 2,030,726 15

TE. anni ER SR SERS RS 9,5 a ea 2,755,290 11

12s DLL ye a oe a rt ed Pe 10,137,790 : 36

RES NS als, WS said a) coe ati oe = <leiZhs cen oe SMa civ 991,187 5

(CSTE Se 5 hE SP oc! Se, Eek ae ae a 321,566 3

DireaneWEIRSISEE PDE. <= Aaa ss ee eens oS ELS ER BS 16,236,559 17

NSN CS ina as Re Re Loins slo asen ace ssce | etleae si 44,117 | 4

LEER och ASRS SE CGE pe REEDS On ae. (dc. 55 ee eae oS car 13,399 10

erence ramen hee eet 82S ME nee eee ito sscteccd steel Seid woules Bales | 80,264 2

Lilie. 2 Cb USE RUSS es OS 2 5 ee eee ee ee 11,892 4

Montana.......... SASS SA Bae Ach omee ER ORE ete 5 nia staat acoso ead 3,678 | 1

CT EE A ge el Se a BIR igs i SB Ae A a Sa ‘ 219,224 | 35
0) ETE RESTS SAE PTE | CS Se anae eee anee e 2,305 0-4

PU RRERNN ons nns ns ewow nb ween ce cnn nnn ane eset ene n en coe sesens 437,696 31
BRE eS eee nee ans | samitalgnice sacs ciaoe's + <ai< =) c+.c es pec sce ce | 510 04

MEE SES Se tettanw. ce" cout eciecw ae see Csheteter ts. seeder... csebenes Vabce | 3,321 18

SE pases ee SAT IFA OREIDY Gores Sno d Nhat ala aera alm So, ofS = Sy aloe o\ «| <taya alas s o'aiag ars <bidie's 816,466 | 9
SS SS

LELTLE oso: SGn SRS sds pO OS Een Ge Oona oe ar rot eres | 1,672,810 | 10

Eee Se Sedma Snes 2) Pay etn Deus ta avin «4 cecbia dees 1,424,417 | 34

A I Pe te en acioee at ects (el sy yo 5, ~pors nu o*jeiersi@ ye wrale mictonacie'e 18,697 | 4

TEI GTHGAC IES ASS BRS OOS Sc OF BEBE E SHED CeCe en ne ea ener Fe 3,115,924 15

RINSE 0 9A FE, Foo oda i ih on Bode koays <5 bie nse Inte 190,255,744 | 35

Of the value and importance of the forests covering these areas let me say: Next
to the white pine of the northern forests, the most valuable tree is undoubtedly the Pinus
australis, or long-leafed pine of the southern coast lands, forming a belt of varying
breadth, up to 100 and 150 miles from the Atlantic and Gulf shores. It is the Georgia
‘pine of builders, preferred for flooring and heavy frame-work, and is still found in
pristine vigour and abundance over a large area from Norfolk to Galveston. These pine
lands are now eagerly sought for by American and English capitalists, are rapidly taken
up for manufacturing operations or on speculative account, and are rising in value.
They have been held for many years by the general government at prices ranging from
12} cents to $1.25 per acre, the former being for lands that had been opened to market
for a certain period. This is the turpentine pine of North Carolina, where the business
of distilling turpentine and making tar and resin has long been profitable. It is also
carried on, though in isolated enterprises, in other portions of this coast belt.

TURPENTINE PINE.

The products of the year ending April, 1880, are thus estimated by Mr. A. H. Van
Bokkelen :

|
STATES. | Turpentine Resin

Gallons. G B pe Ol
North Joe 6,279,200 ‘663 907
NIE CARON ne tics a se cee cnc eld Maid bod bec ibisles a ohbes 4,593,200 | 333, 940
oo oso ol I ru win o'o ea wine ae Blea « ating oid «wis ann s'wals s'sae 3,151,500 277,500
SR eect) Ec coca duacoveesc vce peveceacare 1,036,350 68,281
EUS so. «ns oe oe. yeas Ned wncecldencdacste cous 2,005,000 158,482
POE DYN 5 0 NU et cde lbs Sk aod wele meee bedelccc veas boseee 250,000 20,000
INL: <0 oe pawn dcactac cece 250,000 20,000

Wakal Ummeee meets MY 6255. 02. ues oes OD 17,560,300 1,542,110

_ The Southern pine will come into still greater prominence as’railroad and steam boat
lines extend facilities for transportation, which is now being done with great rapidity.

THE SUPPLY OF PINE.

The condition of the pine-lumber supply of the United States in connection with the
statements I have made is interesting. The destruction of this tree by fire and the axe
of the settler and lumberman is very great. Together with the spruce it is being rapidly
consumed, and I| think the following figures will show that the supply is to be obtained
hereafter by allowing an exhausted region time to recuperate, while the comparatively
uncut sections are resorted to for filling the demands of the market. Investigations
recently made show that the supply of pine in New Hampshire and Vermont is exhausted,
and that the spruce lumber, at the rate the cutting is now going on, will last in the
former State but seven years, and in the latter but four. In the State of Maine the pine —
will last four years and spruce fifteen years. In South Carolina the pine forests will last
fifty years at the present rate of cutting; in California, 150 years; in Arkansas, 300
years ; in Pennsylvania, fifteen years ; in Georgia, eighty years ; in Louisiana, 100 years ;
in North Carolina, fifty years; in Wisconsin, twenty years; in Michigan, ten years; in
Minnesota, ten years ; in Mississippi, 150 years; in Alabama, ninety years; in Florida,
thirty years ; in Texas, 250 years. That the exhausted forests in this list of States can
be restored in time there is no doubt; and every means of cultivation and protection
should be applied by the people and the Government, both State and Federal, each in
accordance with its’own jurisdiction.

FEARS OF A TIMBER FAMINE UNFOUNDED.

We should not forget, however, that while the demand for timber is imperative and
increasing with increase of population, requiring the fostering care of the Government and
the enlightened enterprise of timber-growers in promoting the progress of forest culture,
there may be danger of assuming too hastily a prospective timber famine, and fabulous
prices for fuel, even with the foregoing striking estimates before us. :

It should be remembered that thus far the exhaustion of lumber relates mainly to —
the white pine. It may be found, when the great pineries shall be cut over, that the out-
come is greater than was assumed, and that isolated patches of pine in mixed forests, —
and the second growths and remnants from first cuttings, may suffice to delay the threat- —
ened famine.

The black walnut, culled from western forests to meet a limited though important
demand, is really becoming scarce on the northern side of the Ohio valley; but on the
southern, along the foot-hills and in the valleys of the Appalachian range, it is abundant
and almost untouched. It grows rapidly in the western States even beyond the Mis- —
souri, and it is destined to be the source of wealth to the future tree-grower. .

The millions of acres of existing forests on this great eastern chain of mountains —
have not yet been considered in the statistics of forestry here presented. Their resources
have never been measured, are yet comparatively unknown, and almost untouched by the
axe of the woodman. As railroads penetrate these mountain fastnesses in the Virginias,
the Carolinas, Kentucky and Tennessee, bonanzas of forest production will respond to the
call of enterprise, and enrich the proprietor woodsman and manufacturer. In addition to
this, the white pine of Minnesota is estimated at 6,100,000,000 feet exclusive of isolated
timber in birch lands and amidst other hard-wood growth. In Michigan the estimates
for the lower peninsula cover 7,000,000,000 feet in the Saginaw district ; 8,000,000,000 on
the streams flowing into Lake Huron, and 14,000,000,000 on those flowing into Lake
Michigan. The upper peninsula contains 6,000,000,000 more, making 35,000,000,000
feet in the principal pine districts of Michigan.

The great pine forests of Wisconsin are estimated to contain 41,000,000,000 feet
of lumber, the largest proportion in the Chippewa and Wisconsin districts. They cover
an area of 22,500,000 acres. The northern border of the pine area is less productive than
the areas of lower latitudes. The cedar swamps of Wisconsin scattered through the pine
belt are estimated to cover 1,365,000 acres, and to contain 62,800,000 posts, telegraph poles,
and railroad ties. There are also large supplies of tamarack, and spruce, and valuable oak
timber, especially in Dunn, Pierce, and Saint Croix counties, and other hard woods are
abundant through the southern border of the wooded districts,

——- —

e .

The united area of the States south of Maryland and the Ohio river is more than
500,000,000 acres containing nedrly 400,000,000 acres of forest lands. The farm area of
these States is 228,000,000 acres, containing 123,000,000 acres of woodland. Denude
any portion of this forest surface, and trees spring up spontaneously and grow rapidly.
“There are millions of acres of young forests in the South in which the corn-hills are almost
as prominent as when the waving corn occupied the surface. Nature abhors a vacuum of
‘broom-sedge, the first growth of abandoned fields, and speedily replaces it with a forest of
pines. Intelligent landowners of this region have estimated an average growth of a cord
of wood per acre each year, or twenty cords of wood per acre in twenty years.

Is there immediate danger then of scarcity of fuel in a country where more than two-
thirds of the entire area is wooded ; and when nature is so kind and so prolific in forest
farms, cannot the supplementary hand of man aid in providing even a sufficiency of tim-
ber for the wants of coming generations !

PRESERVATION $F FORESTS,

But notwithstanding this somewhat encouraging view, much remains to be done for

_the preservation of our forests. The waste by careless cutting, by fires, by settlers clear-
‘ing the land for agricultural purposes, is enormous. Thus far this has not been checked
to any great degree. Local and federal legislation, diffusion of knowledge, the manifest

destruction of valuable property have not yet been able to bring the forests within the

pale of well-protected possessions under the law. Often has the remedy been pronounced

by those who have devoted their lives to the study of this industry, and often have laws

been passed which seemed to afford a remedy for the existing evil. But still the work of

destruction goes on. It now remains, as it seems to me, for the public mind to be

brought to a true understanding of the value of the property itself, and of the disaster

which would attend its destruction. That protection can be secured in the States by

associations like this, by practical men engaged in planting trees and preserving their

woodlands, by bounties for successful tree-culture, by the distribution broadcast of bulle-

tins and pamphlets, there can be no doubt. On the best method of legislation it is not

easy to decide. Bounties based on exemption from taxation have not had the desired

effect, the tree-planting having served more as a mode of evading taxation than asa means

of developing an industry under the stimulus of protection. And of one county in Iowa

‘it is said “ the experience of the board of supervisors justifies them in the opinion that
forest culture in our county would advance as rapidly without as with the exemption
laws.” On the other hand the State auditor declares that :— “There can be no question

ae that this law of our State has greatly stimulated the planting of forest trees and
orchards too ;” and that “if advantage could be taken of its popularity by inducing
planters to set out a better class of trees, such as ash, walnut, etc., more good would
thereby be accomplished.” Connecticut, Dakota, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
Texas and other States, have all passed Acts encouraging tree-planting, either by bounty
or exemption. Encouragement has also been largely offered by agricultural associations
in most of the States, and great attention has been given to the proper selection of trees
for each locality. The introduction of new varieties of forest trees has been carefully
considered also ; and the habits of trees, native and foreign, have been made matters of
the most diligent study, both by those who are governed by scientific zeal and those who
are engaged in developing a practical industry. Of the efforts of the Federal Goverment

to preserve and develop the forests on the public lands of the United States much has
been said.

THE TIMBER CULTURE ACT,

On the working of the Timber Culture Act it is unnecessary for me to dwell. But I
think I can, with profit, submit some suggestions. made by the Land Office, with regard
to “ timber depredations ” and the laws to prevent them. On this point the Land Com-
missioner, in his report of 1882, says:

“While much has been accomplished in the direction of suppressing the unlawful
cutting and removing of timbers from the public lands, I am of the opinion that bet-

eee —

ter results can be obtained in the futitre ; particularly so if some general and compre-
hensive law could be passed, clearly defining who m&y take timber from the public
lands, the purposes for which it may be cut and removed, and prescribing the punish-
ment for unlawfully cutting, removing or in any way wantonly destroying or injuring
any timber growing, or being upon any of the public lands, or in any way causing or in-
citing such trespass. Such law should also establish the terms and conditions upon which
any compromise or settlement should be authorized. A law of this nature would be more
generally understood and comprehended than the several different enactments relating to
this subject now in force, and could be more easily and evenly administered.”

This is recommended because it is difficult to get competent and reliable special tim-
ber agents under the existing laws, and because the offences are committed too often under
cover of the homestead entries fraudulently made for the purpose of securing the tim-
ber on the lands. I think the difficulty in this matter lies in the fact that no value is set
upon the timber itself as a piece of Government property. It has been assumed that
Government does not desire to make the timber a source of revenue or profit, and that in
the survey of lands no discrimination should be made on the score of existing resources.
This policy may be wise and necessary, but it is not thrifty. Early in the history of the
Government public lands were sold, as in the case of the sale to the Ohio Company in
1787, for the purpose of replenshing the public treasury. And while Congress has exer-
cised great liberality in the donation of lands for various enterprises, still the fact remains
that this landed possession is of greal financial importance. The time is gone by when the
standing timber of the country, either on public or private domain, can be considered an
obstruction to be removed by the axe and fire to make way for crops of another des-
cription. There is a value attached to it equal to that of any crop known—a value which
should in some way be considered in the transfer of public lands to settlers and purchasers.
Whenever in any way a recognized value is attached to the timber itself, be it large or
small, its protection and preservation by the Government becomes a natural consequence,
and wanton destruction by the axe and fires may be prevented. Government now offers
a bounty for planting trees by its timber act, and makes no adequate provision for the
preservation of the valuable forests standing on unoccupied lands. It seems as if this
case might be met by some form of legislation.

The Timber Culture Act was passed March 3, 1873, amended March 13, 1874, and.
again June 14, 1878, since which date 75,045 entries have been made, of the aggregate of
93,246, since the first passage of the Act. The area covered by these entries is 13,677,146
acres, of which 4,890,802 are in Dakota, 3,594,775 in Kansas, and 2,338,155 in Ne-
braska. In 1882 the entries amounted to 2,566,686 acres, more than half of which were
in Dakota, The distribution of the aggregate entries is as follows:

States AND TERRITORIES. Entries, | Acres.

MATIZOMR. S2t)o aleld ee see C Cts S oe / ies Sorel tewie Sepia eee eee re «ss 88 | 11,866.08
PA TeICARINA (hou ttle Batya w lasin we oe specs ee edie ae ae uae ee eine PE eis: «2 3 231.92
CF LPL oT ae: Meine ne suet ee ei a SO Rah he Se S08 bees os oe 1,245 168,413.53
Colorado U.S hee ace. EE a Hic BAe Sdn Seeman ake cat. | 1,101 | 153,373.87
Pecotaies (cst es dolce eto ss idbince ice. eeemeee -eaee atest a! a ee 31,178 | 4,890,802.15
is Oy aa ge ees atk a ee Ee sO one oe one aan. ah aa 1,089 | 141,903.25
Lay ei Beate ge ais: Sey WOM ce ee BE Oe ee een eee each 23 ter 640 | 55,151.51
AC GABE, SONA Te Soe toe scl ek obit Baa dine onlosh a en SORES Pee iw ds Zlateale 24,854 | 3,594, 775.49
MN nsiriss eos TS SE a Sats oh vk ae rae see ee erecta: Sahat Ee 28 3,417.85
WHIBICROLA ERO oso ose Cee eee eke St eee Sear eer a ee Se Siee 10,866 | 1,510,382.56
Wiontana) is cnensis ce nc dec cee iAMs cae oe cnlom mn roe ci sale moe eieme aedinis 's << s1aSeer | 497 | 63,273.25
INGDIARKS, oo eee ac vec Cee CEO iron Bie etek eats sale e ce Tien Bont. ss eee 16,463 | 2,338,155.60
IN GYRUS irene cole, cme win hice ate ed icles ejarcls'eu sie Ae elie oe erate imnncre a's slave weg 30 4,120.

iNew: Mexicors 0.50 oth. beaetemee tesa ne Oh lO. Sa eee aes covets & ates 87 11,619.13
Gero SE h:< «BOTS Abe :- cdinish, bo teks rs wrote Spas ow a b)s os nae tc Webra Wace a bins obo 1,570 232,954.86
1 TE ON RE Se RRS oS ORES | 137 | 16,144.59
WWWAHINGTON sis onic vie ort ohis anos ere apie ok c.autainiicie Siu. <\0 0) speMietneins a1e.6's sis macs etal 3,332 476,841.52
SWABCONEIN Yeicionin Fob Oucuiciaeras + ooleas <iecin = Seipisinttes 0 ene u's eet a cenit te ae 1 40.

WV OININGT cE paint beasties Boe bass dete ER Yee ies 44 bn bees BER Riep ghia seks | 37 3,679.21

Totalac2 5 Soi. ob cc eee ets Cie eT. a ei ORME Cie ie econ eo ae 93,246 13,677, 146.37

THE NECESSITY OF PRESERVING AND REPLANTING FORESTS.

In the report of R. W. Phipps, Esq., of Toronto, on ‘The necessity of preserving
and replanting forests,” I find a sketch of forests and their management in other coun-
tries, to which I call your attention as one of the most comprehensive statements we
have on this subject. His sketch, which is here abridged, is taken from an extensive re-
port of Captain Walker, a gentleman who passed nine months on the continent, by direc-
tion of the English Government for that purpose.

From Mr. PhippsI learn that in Hanover there are 900,000 acres of forest,
under Government or State management, belonging to the church and to municipal-
ities. The care and working of these forests costs about $650,000 annually. The re-
ceipts therefrom are $1,500, 000, and the profit is about $850,000, about "$1.50 per acre
perannum. The officers in charge are a forest director, an over- forest master, 20 forest
masters, 112 over-foresters having charge of districts of seven or eight thousand acres
each, 403 assistant foresters. A systematic plan for the management of the forest is
adopted.

_ After a forest has, by thinning, planting, and so forth, been gradually got into per-
fect order, the system of nebo reproduction forms a great part of the German method.
It is as follows :—

The rotation and periods are fixed in the working plan. For beech it is, in Han-
over, 120 years, divided into six periods of twenty years each, that is tosay, when the for-
“est has been brought into order there should be nearly equal areas undér crop of trees in
each of the six periods, from one year to twenty, from twenty to forty, andsoon. When
a block arrives in the last period, felling is commenced by what is called a preparatory
clearing, followed by a “‘clearing for light” in the first year after seed has fallen, with
the object of (1) preparing the ground for the seed, (2) allowing it to germinate, (3) af-
fording light to the young seedlings. If there is a good seed year and sufficient rain, the
ground should be covered with seedlings in two or three years after the first clearing ;
but it is better generally to wait for a second year, and aid nature by hand-sowing,
transplanting from patches of many to barer spots, and turning up the turf to give the
seeds a better chance of germinating.

When the ground is well covered, the old trees are felled and carefully removed, so
as to do as little damage as possible to the new crop, and the block recommences life, so
to speak, nothing further being done till the first thinning. The time allowed between
he first and final clearing, is from eight to fifteen years. * * * In these forests can
seen all the periods of growth—nurseries and schools for seedlings.

In Prussia there are twenty millions of acres of forests, ten millions of which are
private, and the remainder, with which we have more to do, state, communial, and
ecclesiastical. Of these the income is $14,000,000, and the expenses $7,500,000, leaving
$6,500,000 clear. The forests in Prussia as in Hanover form part of the finance depart-
‘ment, and are presided over by an overland forest-master and ministerial director, aided
by a revenue councillor and joint ministerial director, and a numerous council or board.
There are two forest academies, one near Berlin and one in Hanover.

There are twelve provinces in Prussia, divided into thirty circles, each having an over-
forest master. These represent the forest department in local administrations, which as
a board represents the forest interest in the government.

In order to be a forest-master, the lowest of the gazetted appointments, five years
without pay are required to be given in study, with but meagre pay when employed, yet
candidates are numerous,

In some provinces the Prussian Government has certain rights concerning the man-
agement of private forests ; in others, none.
__ In Saxony the state forests are nearly 400,000 acres, worked at an expense of
500,000, receiving $1,750,000, leaving a clear rental of $3 per acre. The expenditure
planting, draining , roads, improvement of inferior woods, felling, transport, killing
sects, etc. About 5, 000 are planted yearly, at an average cost of $7. 50 per acre. The
official establishment resembles that of Hanover. There isa forest academy at Tharandt
| with a separate staff of professors,

3 F.

In Bavaria the state forests cover 3,000,000 acres. They return, after paying all
expenses, about $1.50 per acre per annum. About 30,000 are planted or sown annually,
taking 35,000,000 plants and 1,000,000 pounds of seed. Persons found guilty of breach
of forest rules have been punished by enforced labour in the woods. Private forest rights
are being bought up by the government. The system of management is much the same
as that previously described. .

In Austria the state forests have been largely sold to meet state necessities, but there
still remain nearly 2,000,000 productive acres, which yield, however, after expenses are paid
little over twenty-five cents per acre. The existing establishments of forestry are not uni-
form, but there are about 1,200 employes, of whom twenty-two are forest-masters. Sdien-
tific forestry is not so far advanced here as in Germany, but officials are busily introducing
a reorganization, by means of which, there is no doubt, it will be on a par with other states.
The Austrian crown forests have been neglected. There has been till now no attempt at
rotation of blocks, or working in periods. The present director is trying hard to change
matters for the better. He is planting up many bare or ill-covered tracts, where natural
reproduction.is impossible, owing to the absence of standard trees.

In the Grand Duchy of Baden there is a most interesting private forest belonging
to the Prince of Furstenburgh, in the Black Forest. There are about 72,000 acres in
charge of eighteen foresters and over-foresters, who have many subordinates.

The administration of the forests in France is entrusted to the ministry of finance,
and the head of the department is the director-general, assisted by two administrators,
one charged with the management of the forests and the sale of the products, the other
with the police of the forests and the forest laws. The forests under the management
of the bureau (state or commerce) are about 7,500,000 acres. Also, there are in France
15,000,000 acres of private forests. The sawmills in the forests are usually owned by
the government, and hired at a certain rate to the wood merchants, who buy the cuttings.
The school of forestry at Nancy is said to be one of the best in the world. The French ~
Government have, at great expense, replanted vast and almost barren districts ; they
have also established great forests along the sea shore where formerly the sand threatened
to destroy whole departments, and have averted the evil.

In Russia, the government own about 330,000,000 acres of woods, and other parties
150,000,000. About forty per cent. of the country (Russia in Europe) is timbered. The
immense government woods have been placed under the care of the minister of public
domains, who has a director of the forest department ; and the organization of the service
is very complete. Two special schools of agriculture and forestry have been established ;
one at St. Petersburg, and one near Moscow.

Italy has over 5,000,000 acres of communal forests, over 6,000,000 of private for-
ests, and only 500,000 acres of state forests. One-fifth of the land is in forest.

In Switzerland, the waste of forests has been more rapid and destructive than any
other country in Europe, and in none, perhaps, has this been followed by more disastrous
results. Public attention has, however, been thoroughly awakened, and active measures
are in progress to remedy, as far as may be, these evils. The cantons which have charge
of these operations have for some time at great expense, been constructing works to control
the streams, and planting trees wherever practicable.

The description of the forests in the British Isles, as given by Captain Walker, from
whom Mr. Phipps obtained his facts, is most interesting, and shows, as do those to which
I have already referred, that the business of forestry is entitled to the most careful con-
sideration of states and individuals.

VARIETY AND AGE.

In the practical work of planting forest trees there would seem to be a propriety in
following the example of nature and giving variety, mixing trees of early maturity with
those of great longevity, that the former may be cut when the great size of the latter
should command an ampler space. Thus after the usual consecutive thinning for hoop-poles,
fence posts, railroad ties, or other purposes, the mature trees of the genus of least lon-
gevity could be taken out, leaving the veterans of the plantation to mature their more
valuable crop of heavy timber.

In this connection the consideration of the proper age for cutting with profit is im-

portant. Mr. Michie reports his recent observation of a plantation in Great Britain
sixty-five years old, partly cut down, in which eighty-five per cent of a growth of mixed hard
woods was deceased from over ripeness. The plantation should have been cut at fifty
years. The proprietor all this time was losing a part of the value of his wood, and
losing the growth of fifteen years of young trees. He cites anexample of a ash growth
the root cuts of which were “tough as whalebone” at fifty-five years, while at seventy-
five all toughness had disappeared, and more than half its value lost. It should have
been cut down and replanted at the age first named. The ash should have a clean and
straight stem, and be cut while yet in rapid growth and full vitality.
‘Tn England, the larch, ash, and poplar are ripe at fifty to sixty years, shite the
oaks planted among them may continue to grow one hundred to one hundred and fifty
years, and a second crop of the earlier maturing species be matured among the oaks.
Mr. Michie places the mature age of the elm at eighty to one hundred years.

METEOROLOGICAL INFLUENCES.

The influence of forests on rainfall has been so frequently and exhaustively dis-
cussed that little of value can here be added. From ten thousand observations made in
Parana the mean annual temperature of the forest soil was found to be 21° lower than
in the open field, and the mean annual temperature of the atmosphere of the forest 10°
lower than in the open field. Relative moisture was found to be six per cent. greater
than in the open field, nine per cent. in summer and five in the other seasons. In the
mountain regions the difference was greater than at lower elevations.

It is not necessary to assume that forests induce a heavier rainfall, or even to show

that they influence locally the distribution of rain, to prove their beneficence in regulat-

ing the moisture available for the use of agriculture. The foliage of forests resists the
violence of storms, breaks the force of the rainfall which percolates through the covering
of leaves and moss, and is absorbed by the humus beneath to be given out by the slow
process of retarded evaporation, the surplus finding its way to the springs deep in the
earth. In an open field the storm beats with unbroken violence upon a surface impacted
and hardened under the rays of the sun, fails to penetrate the soil, and rushes on in tur-
bid streams down the slopes to swell the brooks and rivers, and instead of refreshing the
earth scarifying and wasting it.

The world is full of examples of once verdant and productive areas which have
become burned and blackened deserts. The gradual desiccation of the once green and
productive islands of the West Indies, Santa Cruz and Saint Thomas, which has been
progressive for many years, is the result of the destruction of primitive forests. The

little island of Curacoa, where rich plantations, beautiful villas, and terraced gardens
have given place to aridity and desolation, because of the export of its valuable timber,
is a striking illustration of the changes wrought by forest destruction. The entire coast
of the Mediterranean, once the garden of the world, has been blighted into comparative
barrenness by the denudation of the forest areas. A portion of this territory, the Karst
region of southern Austria, bordering on the Adriatic, has been the scene of extensive
reafforesting work by the Austrian Government. Centuries ago it was covered with
magnificent oak forests, and furnished piles and ship-building timber to Venice during
*her brilliant maritime career. So dense was the forest upon the Istrian coast that a

_ squirrel could traverse it for miles on the branches of the trees. It was plundered

systematically by Venetian spoilers, till the whole region was reduced to barrenness and
poverty. Fora score of miles north of Trieste the soil itself was washed away by the
floods after the exportation of timber had been followed by relentless fires, leaving the

_bare rock in rugged masses as the sole covering of the surface. The work of restoration,

commenced nearly twenty years ago, was one of exceeding difficulty. Exposure to sun
and rain had exhausted the fertility of any remaining forest humus; ; the underlying
masses of chalk were seamed and honeycombed with “cavities requiring a mixture of
underlying clay to sprout either grass-seed or tree-seed. Millions of trees were annually
supplied by the Government nurseries of Austrain pine, ash, larch, and other varieties,

and year after year the slow and patient effort has been continued with results that pro-
mise the ultimate renovation of a vast area of several hundred thousand trees, though
the blasted district is yet a scene of comparative desolation, requiring millions of treasure
and years of patient labour to restore a tithe of its profusion of forest wealth.

The productive capacity of the United States is due not alone to the great fertility
of its central areas but, in a large measure, to the amount and reasonable distribution of
the rainfall... The lower latitudes, the Southern States, where high temperatures prevail
and evaporation is greatest, have a rainfall of forty, fifty and sixty inches annually, with
a liberal distribution through the summer months. The lake region and the Ohio basin
have less, yet a good supply, suited to more temperate conditions, a lower temperatfre
and less evaporation. Yet the droughts that occasionally prevail, and which are most
severe on the borders of the wooded belt, as in Texas, Kansas, Missouri, and Illinios,
should admonish us to avail ourselves of the local benefits of forests in the equalization
and conservation of the rainfall actually received.

Some of the States have less than the rule of the Duke of Burgundy requires:
‘One-third to the hunter, two-thirds to the husbandman.” The rule of William Penn,
one acre in woods for five acres cleared for agricultural lands, exclusive of the wooded
hills and mountain forests, was not materially less. Yet Vermont, Massachusetts, and
Connecticut in New England have less than a third of the farm lands in forest ; New
York, twenty-two per cent.; New Jersey, twenty-four; Pennsylvania, twenty-nine ;
Delaware, twenty-six ; Ohio but twenty-four per cent. ; Michigan, thirty-two ; Indiana,
twenty-nine ; Illinois, sixteen. These are originally wooded States, except a part of
Indiana and Illinois.

The necessity of a careful and accurate cultivation and restoration of our forests is
now recognized by all. For three-quarters of a century we have been busily engaged in
the business of lumbering ; the time has now come when we must turn our attention to
the business of forestry. The great wood crop, which nature lavished on our ancestors,
has been so diligently gathered that all our ingenuity will be taxed to continue the
necessary supply for the growing wants of a rapidly increasing population. It is to this
point that this Association should especially turn its attention. It is to this point that
I have directed the work of the Forestry Division in the United States Department of
Agriculture for the development of the forest industry of this country.

Mr. Joty, from the committee appointed upon resolutions concerning deceased mem-
bers, then offered the following resolutions :—

“ Resolved, That the American Forestry Congress has suffered an irreparable loss by
the untimely death of one of its Vice-Presidents, Dr. J. A. Warder.

“ Resolved, That while Dr. Warder has endeared himself, by his genial and hearty
manners, to all those who have had the privilege of knowing him personally, he has at
the same time gained their admiration by the untiring energy and great talent with
which he has advocated for so many years past, the cause of Forestry.

‘ Resolved, That the loss of such an earnest and devoted man can be considered as a
public loss, and that, while his colleagues lament’ it as such, they feel at the same time,
what a void it must have left in his home circle, and deeply sympathize with his family.

“ Resolved, That the Recording Secretary of the Forestry Congress be requested to
send a copy of the foregoing resolutions to Dr. Warder’s family.”

Also the following resolutions, from the same committee :—

“ Resolved, That the Forestry Congress desires to express its sense of loss on the
death of Hon. L. B. Hodges, of this city. Mr. Hodges had been known for many years,
not only as one greatly interested in the subject of forestry, but as one who, by his
earnest activity, had done much to interest others in the subject. He was the pioneer in
the forestry movement in the State of Minnesota. He was also one of the first to pro-
pose and aid in the organization of the Minnesota Forestry Association. By his writ-
ings, and his practical exemplifications of tree-planting, he had become a recognized
authority on the subject both in this country and in Europe. His death was a loss to

the country at large, but his labours in behalf of Forestry will speak for him, and bear
good fruit, after his personal labours were brought to an end.
G ** Resolved, That the Recording Secretary be directed to send a copy of the above
resolution to the family of Mr. Hodges.”
Also the following resolutions, from the same committee :
* Resolved, That this Congress feels it to be a duty it owes to men who, like the late
Arthur Bryant, have forethought to discern, and courage to express their convictions on
the conservation of our forests,—to express regret for their death, and while we feel that
men of his age have done their work, we nevertheless deplore the vacancy in our ranks.
_ “ Resolved, That the Recording Secretary be instructed to send a copy of the above
resolution to the family of Mr. Arthur Bryant.”

Remarks upon the above resolutions having been made by Mr. Geo. W. Minier, of
Ill. ; the Hon. J. B. Grinnell, of Iowa; Hon. W. Higley, of Ohio; Prof. Daniels, of
Minn. ; Ex-Govy. Marshall, of Minn. ; Hon. Ignatius Donnelly, of Minn., and Mr. D.
W. Beadle, of Ontario, the resolutions were passed by a rising vote.

Mr. Baker, from the committee on Order of Business, made the following supple-
mentary report, which was adopted :—

“]. That all committees appointed at the Montreal meeting be requested to report
at the opening of the morning session, on Thursday.

“2. That immediately after the reports of the above committees, Judge Higley
present his report on the State Association of Ohio, and then, that F. B. Hough, of New
York, make such statement as he desires on the steps which have been taken toward
organizing a State Association in that State.

** Reports of committees :—

Mr. B. G. Norrurop presented the following resolution, which was adopted :—

“ Resolved, That the U. S. Commissioner of Agriculture be requested to call a meet-
ing of the representatives of associations and institutions interested in Forestry, at the
Department of Agriculture, during the ensuing winter.”

Dr. Hoven offered the following resolution, which was adopted :

“ Resolved, That a committee of three be appointed by the Chair to prepare the form
of a certificate of membership, and a device for a seal for the American Forestry
Congress.”

. _Dr. Hough, Prof. Leué, and Prof. Northrop, were appointed as this committee.

Mr. Erizur Wricut, of Mass., presented the following resolution, which was
adopted :

“ Resolved, That a committee of three be appointed by the Chair to consider and
report upon the probable effects that will ensue, should the plans proposed for damming
the upper waters of the Mississippi, for the creation of reservoirs, be carried into
effect.”

. Mk. Elizur Wright, of Mass. ; Gen. Geo. L. Becker, of Minn., and Hon. J. B. Grin-
nell, of Iowa, were appointed.

Mr. Fernas, from the Committee on Organization, reported the following list of
officers for the coming year, which report was adopted :—

For President, Geo. B. Loring, of Massachusetts.

“1st Vice-President, H. G. Joly, of Quebec.

; “ 2nd Vice-President, Geo. L. Becker, of Minnesota. .
| ‘“< Recording Sec’y., N. H. Egleston, of Dist. Columbia.
. “ Corresponding Sec’y., B. E. Fernow, of Pennsylvania.

* Treasurer, Charles Mohr, of Alabama.

Executive Committee.—B. G. Northrop, of Connecticut ; Warren Higley, of Ohio ;
J. G. Knapp, of Florida; J. S. Hicks, of New York; J. L. Budd, of Iowa.

The hour for recess having arrived, Mr, Baker announced the order of business for
the evening session, and the Congress adjourned till 7.30 p. m.

Evening Session, August 8th.

The hour for meeting having arrived, the President called the house to order, and
requested Vice-President Joly to assume the chair. ;
Mr. D. C. Burson, of Topeka, Kan., read the following paper : —

FOREST TREE PLANTING AS AN INVESTMENT.

More able tongues have talked ; more gifted minds have thought; more ready pens
have written upon the great future necessities of forest tree planting. But all the talking
thinking and writing, have so far availed comparatively little. Why is it? Because too
many look upon it as an act of benevolence, thinking they must metamorphose themselves
into a philanthropist before they can set out a grove of forest trees. While a few per-
chance, will set it out with a feeling of pride; while others may do it for honour or
fame. But is benevolence, philanthropy, pride, honour or fame, the motive power that
impels the progressive car in this the nineteenth century? No! It is money,—the love
of money, or the anticipation of money. Then let us consider tree planting in its true
light ; a light that will illumine the mind of every American citizen. The light of money
making. Yes! if we do that, we strike the keynote, whose music will vibrate throughout
the length and breadth of our western plains. Our capitalists, east, west, north or south, all
invest their money for the purpose of increase ; their sole object is to accumulate. Our
merchants do not invest their money in drygoods and groceries, and work and worry over
their business for the sole purpose of accommodating their friends and neighbours with
the necessaries of life. The capitalist does not invest in bank or railroad stock with the
spirit or feeling of a philanthropist. Vanderbilt, Garret, or Gould does not extend rail-
roads over our plains, or along our valleys, for the purpose of assisting the poor granger to
get his few bushels of corn or wheat to market. The millionaire who has his palatial
mansion, and is enjoying all the comforts of life, does not invest his surplus capital
in corner lots, fine dwellings or massive blocks, for the purpose of beautifying the city or
giving his poor neighbour a home. We do not invest in electric: lights or telephone
stocks to make the blind see, or the deaf hear. But in each and everyone of these
investments, the one great object is to make money. Then if this is the motive power in
everything that is progressive, it is folly to look at tree planting in any other light. And
in that light alone; yes in that electrofying light, we shall for a few minutes consider |
tree planting. For we think without being in the least egotistical, we have the power to
show that forest tree planting will make a safer investment, and bring in larger and more
satisfactory returns than any other business that man can embark in. But in this enter-
prise you cannot sow and reap the same year ; you sow in your prime, and reap in your
decline, and to the benefit of your children who follow after. And to illustrate this point
and to show it in the most practical light, we will take a kind and thoughtful parent ;
who has a bright and promising son of five summers, in whom he takes a great interest,
and wishes to see comfortably started in business when he attains the age of twenty-one.
Having five thousand dollars which he wishes him to have at that time—sixteen years
hence—and wishing it to increase as fast as possible in that time, he very naturally asks
himself, ‘‘ how shall I invest it so that it will not only be safe but increase in the greatest
ratio?” Government bonds are safe; but then the interest is so very small that his
capital would only increase about three thousand dollars in the sixteen years, even at .
compound interest. He next investigates a real estate mortgage bearing six per cent.
interest. In this he finds his capital would only be about ten thousand when he wants
to use it, but the father being desirous of a large increase, looks beyond bonds and
mortgages, and beholds the treeless plains of the great west, which is fast settling up by
the industrious emigrant ; he sees that building material, especially fence posts and rail-
road ties are in great demand, and that demand is fast increasing, while the material is
decreasing in an equal if not a greater ratio. He beholds a glorious future for the tree
planter, his mind is now fully made up ; he will invest his five thousand dollars in western
lands and forest trees. He selects forty acres of good tillable land, for which he pays.

eight hundred dollars ; and encloses it with a good substantial fence, for which he pays two
hundred dollars more, leaving four thousand dollars of the capital yet uninvested. He
now puts the entire forty acres under a good state of cultivation, preparatory to setting
out in forest trees. He is somewhat at a loss to know what species of trees to plant, but
he decides that it must either be, Catalpa, white Ash, Russian Mulbury or black Walnut,
but as his land is situated south of forty-four degrees north latitude, and fence posts and
railroad ties being in the greatest demand and the most profitable of any wood he can
raise ; and the Catalpa having no superior for that purpose, (the timber lasting a century)
and being a hardy tree and a fast grower, he decides that that shall be the tree. By
adopting the usual plan of setting four by four feet each way, it will require twenty-seven
hundred trees per acre, or one hundred and eight thousand to set the forty acres. He
finds that to prepare the ground, buy or raise the trees, set them out and cultivate as
long as they require any attention, it will cost about one hundred dollars per acre, or the
remaining four thousand dollars. He has now the entire capital invested. Let us look
for the returns. The weeds and grass being kept down, he will let nature take her course,
do her own trimming and pruning until they are eight years old. Of course the results
are only imaginary, based upon the knowledge and experience of others, but we propose
to be very liberal in our estimates. We will in the first place calculate on a loss of twenty-
five per cent., that is we will suppose that by the extreme changes of climate, twenty-
eight thousand have either died or been so stunted as to be worthless, which leave just
eighty thousand good thrifty trees eight years old. It now becomes necessary to remove
one-half of them, or forty thousand. Each tree making at least one good fence post. A
Catalpa post, even an inferior one will always bring a good price, say twenty-five to
thirty-five cents, but we will put them down at twenty cents each ; calculating that the
remaining timber of the trees being utilized for fire wood, will pay for cutting and
removing the posts. We now have forty thousand posts at twenty cents each, making
a total of eight thousand dollars. The remainder of the trees are left standing eight
years longer or until the son attains his majority, and is ready to start in business. The
father puts the axe-men at work to remove themyand convert them into ready cash. We
of course have again to let imagination, experience, and precedent do the calculations.
We cannot take isolated cases and make comparison or we will estimate too largely, for we
have heard of Catalpas sixteen years old, being twelve to fourteen inches in diameter,
which would make two or three railroad ties, or ten or twelve fence posts, but as we
would sooner be below than above, we will say that there can be realized on an average
four good posts per tree, or one hundred and sixty thousand posts, which at twenty cents
each, “would amount to thirty-two thousand dollars ; added to what we have from the first
thinning we have a grand total of forty thousand dollars, or over forty per cent. per
annum for the entire time.

Now I know that these results look incredulous, especially to a person who has never
given the subject any thought ; but the experience of many under the sound of my voice
to-day will bear me witness in these statements, and claim that even greater results can
be attained, while others who have been reared in the woods, cradled in a sugar trough,
and, per chance, housed in a hollow tree, and spent the prime of their lives in cutting and
burning valuable timber with no conception of its value, may say that twenty cents “for a
fence post is an enormous price, and the average farmer cannot afford to buy them. Well
for the benefit of that class, let us make a large reduction and put a Catalpa post that
will last a hundred years at the same price of a Cottonwood that will not last two years—
ten cents each—and yet we have twenty thousand dollars, or about twenty per cent. per
annum, two or three times as much as could be realized in bonds or mortgages. But it is
unnecessary to make any such reduction. Ten millions of Catalpa fence posts could be
sold in Kansas to-day at twenty-five cents each, and as many railroad ties at double the
price of an oak.

In making the above calculations, we have said nothing about the land after the
timber had been removed, neither have we said anything about taxes, so we will allow
one to offset the other.

We have also confined ourselves to dollars and cents, and said nothing about the
pleasure and comfort derived from shade and windbreaks. But the mission of this article

is not to picture the beauties and pleasures of forest groves, or to calculste the untold value
it sustains to fruit orchard, grain field, or pasture lots, but it is to show just how many
dollars and cents can be realized in a certain number of years, by raising timber for
commercial purposes.

Discussion followed, in which the following persons participated viz. :—Mr. Suel
Foster, Prof. Northrop, Mr. Burson, Mr. Minier, Prof. Lazenby, Dr. Hough, Mr. Hicks,
Mr. Thayne, and Mr. Deam.

Prof. Apoteu Lev®, of Cincinnati, O., read the following paper :—

FORESTRY EXPERIMENTAL STATIONS.

Forestry is both a science and an art. As an art it embraces the methods of plant-
ing, sowing, cultivating and managing forests for profits; this may conveniently be
called practical forestry. As a science it investigates the principles upon which practical
forestry is or should be based, and this may in contrast to the former be termed scientific
forestry. Practical and scientific forestry are however inseparable and must go hand in
hand, unless the former become a mere drudgery and the latter an abstract science. This
conception of forestry makes a simultaneous development of both practice and theory
imperative.

Now, it is a fact that under the existing circumstances in this country the nearest
future of our forests will depend upon our farmers, who almost exclusively constitute
the owners of property that is available for forest culture. In order, therefore, to make
a development of this kind possible, either our farmers must be educated in science, or
our scientists must become farmers. This, however, is impracticable, if not impossible.

Of this problem but one solution seéms possible. As practical and scientific forestry,
so the farmer and scientists must join hands. As soon as the farmers of our land begin
to take an interest in the endeavours of forestry associations and scientists in the actual
work of planting, cultivating and managing forests, we may hope for a system of forestry
that shall be worthy of the name and reflect credit upon American foresters.

When that system is fully developed we shall have a thorough knowledge of forest
botany, or the natural history of all forest trees that grow or may be grown in our land,
and of all other plants that are either injurious to the growth of forest trees or that are
of economic value to forests ; we shall be well acquainted with forest zoology or the
natural history of all the species of the animal world which are either injurious or bene-
ficial to forest and forest trees ; we shall understand the true nature of the forest soil,
2.é., we Shall know what may and what may not be grown on a given soil; we shall
know which are the best methods of cultivating and managing forests in the way most
profitable ; we shall have a minute knowledge of forest usufruct, z.e., we shall be able
to tell the various uses of all the different forest products and how to obtain them; we
shall be informed as to the influence of forests upon climate in the widest sense of the
word, and know in what ratio the forest should stand to cleared lands.

An examination in each and all of these points, profitable as it might be, would, I
fear, not be very agreeable. Let us, therefore, make no further inquiries as to what we
ought to know, but consider the means of developing that system.

One of the most conspicuous tendencies of advancing civilization is to place the
various mechanical arts upon a scientific basis. The beneficial influence of this tendency
is most strikingly seen in the history of the development of agriculture. From the
earliest time upwards to the beginning of the present»century, it was a mere empirical
art, resting solely upon the traditional maxims of experience, without any visible signs
of progress whatever. But when in the first part of the present century Liebig and
others subjected those ancient maxims of experience to a series of scientific investigations,
a new era began to dawn upon this most important occupation of mankind. Since then
such investigations have been carried on in schools of agriculture, which have been

;
é
4

founded in all civilized countries, and have reached the highest point of perfection in the
agricultural experiment stations. The results are most gratifying; for by means of
these scientific investigations and systematic experiments agriculture has been elevated
to the dignity of an exact science.

This hasty glance at the history of the development of agriculture plainly indicates
the course to be pursued in the attempt to raise forestry, the younger sister of agricul-
ture, to the same dignity. A very successful beginning has already been made in Ger-
many and Austria, where the idea of forestal experiment stations originated. The
great importance which the governments of those countries attach to these stations is
seen from the fact that Germany alone expends about $30,000 annually for the main-
tainance of the same; and from the other that their number has been at a steady increase.
Switzerland, Italy, Spain, and even Russia, are following the examples of Germany and
Austria.

After this brief consideration of what should be done and of what is being done
abroad, the question naturally arises: What are we doing in this matter, and what are
we going to do!

There has certainly been no want of agitation on this subject, for the establishment
of forestal experiment stations in this country has been talked of at different times and
places ; resolutions have been passed by societies of various descriptions, but to no effect.
Such resolutions addressed to the Congress of the United States or to the General
Assembly of the individual States, will, I greatly fear, be of no use, unless we accompany
such resolutions with a practical plan upon which such stations may be organized. A
resolution, accompanied by such a plan, has some chance of receiving a favourable recog-
nition. If this plan, in addition to its being practical, should have the advantage of in-
_ volving no great expenses, a favourable action on the part of our legislative powers may

confidently be expected. :

A still better course of proceeding seems to be, not to wait for legislative action, but
simply to adopt that plan and then carry it into effect. This, gentlemen, has been the
Ohio way of doing, for it may not be generally known that the establishment of a Forestal
Experiment Station in Ohio has been resolved upon.

A detailed history of the development of Forestal Experiment Station in Ohio does
not come within the narrow frame of this discourse, but briefly told it is this: A plan
on which such station might be organized was proposed in a meeting of the Ohio State For-
estry Association, held in the early part of last May, discussed in several meetings, found
practical, and adopted July 21st.

The object of this Forestal Experiment Station in Ohio is the development of a
system of forestry adapted to the wants of Ohio.

The station shall consist of a centre and an unlimited number of primary and second-
ary stations.

The centre of this station shall be the Ohio State Forestry Association, which shall
appoint a director whose duty shall be—

(1.) To preside at all the meetings of the Committee on Forestal Experiment Station.

(2.) To ascertain the wants of forestry in Ohio and to institute the necessary experi-
ments and investigations ; in this he shall consult with the committee.

(3.) To prepare plans of experimenting and to devise formulas for recording the
work performed at the primary stations.

(4.) To represent the Ohio Forestal Experiment Station both at home and abroad.

(5.) To attend to all the correspondence connected with the station.

(6.) To report to the Ohio State Forestry Association at each annual meeting in
January the work performed at the station, and to give an account of the money ex-
pended in experimenting and investigation, and of all other expenses of the station.

(7.) To keep the society informed of the progress of experimental foresty elsewhere.

(8.) To submit at the annual meeting an estimate of the probable expenses of the
station for the ensuing year.

The primary stations shall consist of at least three acres of ground each, which shall
be devoted to experimenting ; and the experiments on the same shall be made according to
a definite plan, agreed upon by the committee on Forestal Experiment Station.

The secondary station shall be dovoted to general investigations ; such as analysis of
soil, the study of forest botany and forest zoology, testing the vitality of seeds of forest
trees, determining the comparative value of forest products, such as tanbark, charcoal,
etc., testing the adaptability of wood for mechanical and technical purposes.

The director of the Forestal Experiment Station, the superintendents of the primary
stations and all having a secondary station, shall constitute the committee on Forestal
Experiment Stations. This committee shall meet at least once a year.

Each primary and each secondary station that may be adapted for forestal meteorologi-
cal observations shall be provided with the necessary instruments for such observations.

The Ohio State Forestry Association shall appoint a finance committee, of which
the director of the station shall be a member.

How can this plan‘be carried «into successful operation? is the next important
question. The nearest future of our forests depends, as I have already stated, upon our
farmers, who almost exclusively constitute the owners of property that is available for
forest culture. They are, therefore, the first to reap the benefit of a rational system of
forestry ; are thus directly interested in Forestal Experimental Stations, and should on
that account do their part to make the enterprise a success. By direct inquiry it has
been ascertained that there is a sufficient interest amongst our rural population to en-
courage the Ohio State Forestry Association in its endeavours. We already have the
promise of four of our most intelligent and well-known farmers and arboriculturists that
they are ready and willing to devote any reasonable amount of land for experimenting in
forestry and to carry out the experiments. Ohioans, as a rule, are not slow
to discern what may prove to them an advantage. The performing of an experiment
is to him who undertakes it, an excellent school of forestry, which not only
charges no tuition, but rewards him with at least a nucleus of a forest, which will greatly
enhance the value of his farm. We do, therefore, hot anticipate any difficulties in our
endeavour to dot the whole State of Ohio with primary stations.

It is, however, not only the farmer who will be benefited by our experimental
station ; the followers of the mechanic arts are interested in more than one way.

(1.) An abundance of forests and a cheap method of raising them will have material
effect upon the prices of the raw forest products, which in many instances almost entirely
constitute the material upon which such industry depends.

(2.) One of the objects of the Forestal Experimental Stations is to find new uses for
the various forest products, and new forest products for certain purposes.

It is, therefore, to their own advantage if these several industries aid the association
to make this department of the station a success. The fact that we have the promise of
one secondary station, with fair prospects of more, assures us of success in the me-
chanical division of our station.

We have had some grave apprehensions as to the scientific department, which, as
we proceed, will be made to consist of a chemical, a physical, a botanical and a zoological
division. But there seems to be no reason why we should entertain any fears whatever.
We ask scientists to aid us, and as a recompense we offer the material for researches,
and to publish the result of such investigations. We also contemplate to offer prizes for
certain investigations.

As our great object is to hasten the development of a system of forestry adapted to
the wants of Ohio, we justly demand that our primary stations be located within the
boundaries of that State. The secondary stations, however, which are of general inter-
est, may be located anywhere in the United States, in Canada, or even in Europe, if it
should be of advantage. ;

We contemplate to commence this work as an association, not because we believe it
to be the best or only course, for we are persuaded that as this is pre-eminently a sub-
ject of general interest, it is the duty of the State to institute and to carry out such
experiments, but we intend to take the initiative, because we feel the great need of such
an institution, and because we desire to illustrate the practical working of the same.
Such station or stations may be established as separate State institutions, and superin-
tended or directed by a State forester or commissioner of forestry, or they may be at-
tached to agricultural colleges as a special institution.

Cheeta

Le I

Whatever may be said against this plan of organizing forestal experiment stations,
let it be remembered that it may, and indeed will, be perfected as we proceed to carry it
into operation. With its defects it has some advantages which may thus be summed
u ——

: (1.) It is adapted to our circumstances.

(2.) It is exceedingly simple.

(3.) It enables us to perform the experiments where they are most needed.

(4.) It gives us the very best force that can possibly be obtained for primary as
well as secondary stations.

(5.) It is cheaper than anything of the kind that has yet been proposed.

(6.) It fills all the demands that can reasonably be made on a station.

(7.) It isa plan that makes a simultaneous development of scientific and practical
forestry possible.

Discussion followed, in which the Rev. Mr. Egleston, Mr. Minier, Mr. Higley, Dr.
Hough, Prof. Lazenby, Prof. Leué, Prof. Northrop, and Commissioner Loring, participated.
Dr. FRANKLIN B, Hoven, of Lowville, N.Y., read the following paper :—

FORESTRY EDUCATION,
By T. B. Hoven, Pu.D.

Using the term “ education ” in its broadest sense, as the imparting of knowledge in
any mode or form, and assuming that knowledge is indispensable to success in any pursuit
in life, we may be allowed to consider some of the means by which instruction can best
be given in matters relating to forestry, in order to secure the greatest advantages to the
greatest number who may have occasion and opportunity to apply this knowledge.

The special schools of forestry in Europe are, in some instances, elementary, and
almost wholly practical in their character, and are intended for no higher purpose than to
prepare young men to serve as foremen of working parties, and as forest guards. They
are expected to know when the work entrusted to their care is well done ; to see that
there is no needless waste of material or of time ; and if the work is done by a contractor,
but subject to their inspection, they are expected to know whether the terms of the con-
tract are faithfully observed. They must be taught the protection of game, and the pre-
vention of trespass and spoilage, in whatever form it may be attempted, and must under-
stand enough of the first principles of administrative law to draft a formal complaint as
the first step in a prosecution, whenever this may become necessary within the district
under their charge. It is only in extraordinary cases that persons thus trained find
opportunities for advancement, and they reach the highest point of their ambition when
they have done their work well.

But the schools for technical instruction in forestry, of which we find some thirty or
more under the patronage of government, in various countries in Europe, have a much
higher mission. They take their students after they have finished a course of study in
the public schools, and sometimes besides this after they have had a period of actual ser-
vice in forest labours, under skilled direction, and they endeavour, with this beginning,
to impart a course of ‘theoretical and practical education that is carefully adapted to meet
the future wants of the forest officer in every grade of the service, and quite as special
and technical in its nature as in our naval and our military academies. When this
course is completed they are not always then sure of immediate appointment, but must
wait for a vacancy in the service. The place once secured, there is great certainty of its
permanence, and a reasonable prospect of advancement as circumstances may favour, or
as talent may deserve.

I have thus briefly sketched the object and the motives that lie at the foundation of
forestry education in Europe. They apply to countries having large tracts of woodland,
in charge of a government or belonging to great hereditary estates, and they are carefully

and well devised to meet the wants of these countries, by preparing skilled agents for the
management of the interests concerned.

With us, a difference of laws, and in the tenure and inheritance of property, and the
perfect freedom to every owner of land in the management of his own estate, must neces-
sarily occasion a wide departure from these methods of special education in its relations to ©
forestry, in order to adapt it to the wants and requirements as they exist among us. I will
therefore invite your thoughts to certain points to be considered in connection with for-
estry education in our own country, and enquire as to the duties that may arise in pro-
viding the kind and degree of instruction that will be of greatest practical service.

And first, we may remark, that we do not for the present, and perhaps for many
years to come, require a class of persons who have been specially trained to the degree
that is deemed necessary in the better class of forest schools in Europe, because such per-
sons could not find employment either in charge of public or private forests at the present
time. In a journey through Europe and in visiting many of these schools in 1881, I
made inquiries about students from America, and so far as I could learn there had been
but one from their first beginning, and this one had but recently entered at Thavand. Of
the very few graduates who have come to America, everyone has, I believe, been obliged to
seek other employments ; and upon quite a number of occasions in which students or recent
graduates have asked my advice about the opportunities for professional employment in
America, I have in every case discouraged them from coming, unless prepared to seek
some other pursuit than systematic forestry. A time may come when it will be desirable
to seek for men well versed in science, who are capable to conduct series of observations
at an experimental station, or to manage the forests upon the public domain, should they
be put under regular management, as I have urged in my reports, but that time is not

et.

: I am well aware that this measure of the establishment of special schools of forestry
has been urged upon Congress, and that Saint Paul has been mentioned as a proper place
for its location. It certainly might as well be there as anywhere. But let me enquire:
Where would the graduates, if trained to the highest degree and fitted to accomplish all
that those can who leave these schools in Europe, be able to find employment? Neither
the general nor the state governments have any systems of forest management needing
their services. There may be a few railroad companies who would employ one, but this
is not certain, and as to private estates, I know of none upon which such a person would
be likely to find an engagefMent. A time may come when this want may arise, but it has
not yet arrived.

Should experimental stations come to be established, they should of course have men
of the highest qualifications ; and they would need a considerable amount of hand-labour.
In this, preference might be given to young men wishing to acquire skill in planting, and
thus these places might become in time the nuclei of schools of practical forestry, but these
too belong to the future. Let us then return back to the present, and consider what are
the existing needs of the country in the matter of forestry education, and how they can best
be supplied.

If we do not need a high degree of special training for a few, we certainly do need a
certain amount of instruction of a practical kind for a greater number. We can alto-
gether dispense with the whole of whai is taught.in the forest schools of Kurope, upon
the jurisprudence and the administration of forest codes, and the adjustments of rights of
common usage. We can leave out what they teach concerning the protection of game.
There is a great deal taught concerning “ aménagement,” that is, the working of a forest
through a future given period, upon plans first carefully studied, and which, when once
adopted, must be observed to the end, which do not find application in American forestry.
There are studies in topography and engineering, drawing of maps, construction of reser-
voirs, dams, and various hydraulic operations, including leveling for drainage, the build-
ing of sawmills and the like, which, however useful, do not necessarily require more than
is now taught in our best institutions in courses of study already in operation.

Let us now come to consider what we do want, and how this want can be best sup-
plied, and in this we will begin at the lowest and broadest stage of education, with what
our children should learn in their families and in the common schools.

bo
Or

————

They should be impressed with the idea that the woodlands are not less useful to human
welfare than the cultivated fields; and that like them they should be protected from injury
or waste, as well from fires as from other causes. They should be made to understand that
the birds nesting in our groves are, almost without exception, our friends, and therefore
entitled to protection. Under a competent teacher they can be interested in little
schemes of planting and rural adornment around the schoolhouse and at home, and this
without the formalities of a lesson from books, or under the semblance of a task imposed
_ upon the unwilling, but rather as a reward of merit. These first ideas so easily instilled
- into the minds of children, leave the most durable impression, and remain through after-
life, at least in the way of pleasant recollections of happy hours, and they may and should
create a sympathy with nature that the hard realities of life can never wholly efface.

A skilful and competent teacher might now and then by way of pastime, require the
scholars to bring in specimens of woods, and leaves, and flowers, and fruits, and ask
them to tell all they knew or could find out about them. The uses of things might be
explained, and some idea of the order and harmony of nature thus imparted, might
awaken observation, and a habit of inquiry, and a desire for knowledge, that might have
otherwise lain dormant. An hour or two in a week devoted to this kind of teaching by
object lessons, would bring about the best results, and the school boards could well afford
to pay something above the current wages to the teacher who could do it well.

This simple and elementary instruction might not go far in the way of education in
forestry, but it would be a good beginning, as far as it did go it would be in the right
direction. In mountain rills the source may be small, and a feeble obstruction may give
the first direction to the stream that finally becomes the river. It would at least impart
some knowledge of the names of things, and impress the truth that every part of a created
object has its uses, and that nothing is formed in vain.

We have been obliged, in speaking of the teachers of our primary schools, to use the
words “ skilful and competent,” preceded by an “if,” because it is painfully evident that
they do not apply to them all. And this leads us directly to the next point we have to
consider, namely : That our Normal] Schools, where these teachers are prepared, do not as
yet afford that instruction upon these subjects, that should impart that skill and com-
petence that we need. There should be introduced in the way of classroom recitations,
or by lectures, or otherwise, a little practical instruction upon the ways by which the
children of a common school may be interested in these habits of observation and
inquiry, and instructed in the rudiments of knowledge about the productions of nature
which are around them. This is done already to some extent in various normal
schools, and it might be done with profit and to a further extent in them all.

The cabinets of these normal schools, should contain specimens of woods, and of
the leaves, blossoms and fruits, and the students might be exercised in distinguishing the
different species by the bark, the wood, and the general habit of growth, of the trees of
common occurrence around them. The grounds of such institutions should have labelled
specimens of living trees, grouped in their natural relations, and in as great a variety as
their extent, and the soil and climate would permit. Some correct ideas might also be
imparted, as to the time and method of planting, the requirements of particular kinds of
trees, and the like, and the classes of young men might be taught in a practical way,
some of the first lessons in forest economy that are most useful in after life, or that
might be again imparted when they go forth to teach. In these lessons, instruction
might be given as to some of the relations that exist between forests and the climate,
the incidental benefits conferred by woodlands upon agriculture, and some of the
economies that may be practised in the planting and care of trees.

Our high schools and academies might in like manner and to an equal or greater
extent, impart instruction upon things useful to be known, and with the very best effect.
Under zealous and competent teachers the students might be interested in the formation
of collections of various kinds, and be taken occasionally upon little excursions into the
woodlands, where opportunites for practical instruction are afforded on every hand. This
method of education by means of excursions under the guidance of teachers, which is
quite common in certain schools in Europe, and is a prominent one in all schools of

SS SS = ~ = == = = = eee

forestry, should be more generally practised among us, and no summer term should pass
in these institutions without one or more of them being had.

In the various grades of schools that have been noticed, an arbor day should never
be allowed to pass without being duly celebrated, with ample preparations beforehand,
and it would add not a little to the interest in the custom, if the care and protection of
particular trees were assigned to particular ones of the number, who would be expected to
give their charge all needful attention by watering in a dry time, through the first season,
and by such further attention as their wants might require.

In the various grades of instruction, suitable prizes might be offered for proficiency
and merit, and the best results shown in a county or a state, should be rewarded by dis-
tinguished mention in the official reports.

Passing from these institutions of the middle class, to those of higher grade, we
come to the colleges and universities of the country. Some of these from their location,
or on account of their special object, may offer no opportunity for instruction in forestry
in any form ; but with much the greater number, more or less might be done, without
burdening the course of study as already prescribed, or requiring more time than is now
allowed.

In the course of instruction in chemistry, botany, natural history, physics, mathe-
matics, meteorology and the like, the application of these sciences to questions in
forestry might be noticed, as opportunity occurred. A course of lessons in the class-
room might be prescribed, as is already done in several of our colleges, as at Dartmouth,
and in the Michigan University. The remarks already made concerning collections for
the cabinet, and a labeled arboretum, might apply on a more extended plan, correspond-
ing with the more enlarged field of operation and greater opportunity ; and no class
should graduate without hearing at least one course of a dozen lectures by a person
thoroughly qualified for presenting a concise general outline of the whole subject of
forestry.

I have thus briefly presented the leading features which I think might be grafted
upon our existing system of education, without creating new institutions, or much
enlarge the operation of existing agencies. The plan I propose would embrace the whole
country, and include in its operation every person who is to become in a few years an
owner of the lands upon which our forests must in future be grown. It is no doubt
imperfect, but it would be a fair beginning, and its details could be modified from time
to time, as experience might suggest. It applies chiefly to the young, but this is the

class that learns. It is often said, and there is too much truth in the saying, that a man

in middle life or in old age can learn nothing. But these men are passing away, and our
greatest hope depends upon our ability to prepare those who are to come after them, to
discharge their whole duties, as well in this as in every thing, in such a manner as to do
full justice to themselves as to the commonwealth whereof they form a part.

Discussion followed, in which Mr. Foster, Judge Higley, Prof. Budd, and Mr.
Minier, participated.

The hour for adjournment having arrived, the Congress adjourned until to-morrow,
at 9 o’clock a.m.

Second day, Morning Session, August 9th.

The hour for meeting having arrived, the President assumed the chair, and the
Congress proceeded with the reading of reports from committees as previously arranged.
Prof. ApotpH Leuk, from the committee appointed at the Cincinnati session, in
April, 1882, to report upon Forestal Experiment Stations, presented a report, as follows :

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON FoRESTAL EXPERIMENT STATIONS.

In consideration of the existing circumstances of this country, as—
1. The absence of state forests ;

2. The want of trained foresters ;

3. The non-existence of forest academies ; and,

4, The comparatively little importance which the Legislatures of almost all the
States have attached to experimenting in Forestry ;—

Your committee most respectively submits the following :

I. That the members of this Association individually urge, in their respective States,
the necessity of establishing experiment stations.

II. That this Association, as a body, or through a committee, memorialize the General
Assemblies of their respective States, and in this memorial urge upon these bodies the
need of such stations, and the practicability of establishing them in various places in each
State.

III. That the Ohio plan of organizing such stations, on account of its being exceed-
ingly practicable and thorough, be recommended as the most suitable to our circumstances.

IV. That the Forestal Experiment Station, consisting, as it does in Ohio, of a centre,
of primary and secondary stations, may centre most appropriately in the agricultural
colleges.

V. That a standing committee on Forestal Experiment Stations be appointed for the
ensuing year.

(Signed) AvotpH Levt, Chairman,
FRANKLIN B. Hoven.

Upon motion of Prof. R. B. Warper, the above report was accepted and adopted.

Upon motion of Mr. J. H. Moraean, the Congress resolved that the memorial pro_
vided for in the report be also addressed to the Governments of the Dominion and the
Provinces of Canada.

The Chair appointed Prof. A. Leué, Mr. J. H. Morgan, and the Rev. N. H. Egleston,
as such committee. )

It was further ordered that a committee upon Forestal Experiment Stations be
appointed, and the following persons were named as this committee, viz: Rev. N. H.
Egleston, Mr. R. W. Furnas, Prof. Wm. Saunders, Mr. Leo Weltz, Mr. Warren Higley,
Prof. R. B. Warder, and Prof. Adolph Leué.

Dr. Frankuin B. Hovucu, from the committee appointed at the Cincinnati session, in
April, 1882, to memorialize State Legislatures upon the establishment of State Forestry
Commissions, presented a report, as follows :

REPORT UPON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF STATE ForeEsTRY COMMISSIONS.

The undersigned, being members of the American Forestry Congress, appointed to
prepare a memorial upon the- establishment of State Forestry Commissions, having con-
sulted as opportunity offered, would respectfully recommend the following draft of a
communication, which, if approved by the Congress now in session, might be addressed
to the Governors of the several States (and with proper change in the direction, to the
Governments of Canada), with the request that the same be transmitted to their respec-
tive Legislatures for consideration.

FRANKLIN B. Hoven, Chairman,
WiLiiAM R. LAzENBY.
To His Excellency, the Governor of-

Sir :—The American Forestry Congress, having, by a committee of its members, pre-
pared a memorial to the Legislatures of the several States of the American Union, and
to the Provincial Parliaments of Canada, upon the subject of establishing State and Pro-
vincial Forestry Commissions, adopted the same, after due deliberation, at its session held
in the city of Saint Paul, Minn., on the 9th day of August, 1883, and as to the former,
requested the Commissioner of Agriculture to transmit the same to the Governors of the

several States, with the request that it might be referred to their respective Legislatures
for consideration.

The inclosed communication is addressed to you in pursuance of this intention, with
the request that, if approved, you will refer the same to the Legislature at its next session,
with such recommendations as you may deem proper concerning it.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

To the Honourable the Legislature of the State of ————-:

The American Forestry Congress would respectfully invite the attention of your
Honourable Body to the importance of giving early attention to measures tending to
the maintenance of our forest supplies.

The very important relations that exist between a due proportion of woodlands an
our agricultural welfare, resulting from their influence upon climate; their protection
from drying winds and their effect in the equalization of water supply, for navigation,
hydraulic power, and the use of cities and towns, are worthy of serious atten-
tion, and present questions that may properly claim the notice of a legislative body.

It is well known that in every country upon the continent of Europe, systems of
forest management, originating from necessity, have grown up, and that codes and regu-
lations for protection, working, and restoration have been devised, and matured as
experience led, until they have become, in a great degree, adapted to the conditions and
wants of their inhabitants, and to the requirements of their governments, in matters o
timber supply.

Although, from the differences that exist between the American States and the
countries of Europe, as well with respect to the tenure of the land as the structure of
the laws, which would prevent any one of the European codes of forestry from being
applied in America, still there are strong reasons for urging the adoption of carefully
devised measures for promoting the maintenance and renewal of our forest supplies.

Since in the States and Territories of the United States, as well as in the Provinces
of Canada, most of the settled portions of the country belong in fee-simple to private
owners, who are usually the actual occupants; and since the entire cost and care of
management of the woodlands upon these estates must devolve upon these owners, it
is evident that there can be no more effectual means devised for promoting this object,
than by the diffusion of correct ideas among the owners of these lands, with reference to
the forest interests of the country.

In the case of fisheries, another element of national wealth, in which our citizens,
in their individual capacity, have a great interest, although the Government itself can
scarcely be said to have property, it has been found that great public benefits have been
derived from the information obtained and disseminated through the agency of State
Fishery Commissions.

The investigations made by Government in this matter, have been far beyond the
means of individual enterprise, or even of associated private effort, and the operations of
breeding, stocking distant waters with improved species, protection, maintenance, and
restoration, which have been carried on, in a large degree, under the patronage and intel-
ligent direction and advice of State Commissions appointed for this purpose, have greatly
enhanced the value of our inland fisheries, and promise still greater benefits in the future.
These Commissions of Fisheries exist in all the principal States of the American Union,
and in Canada, and their benefits are realized more and more every year, as we learn
their results.

In the case of our woodlands, we find in matters of public policy, and the promotion
of the common interest, a strong resemblance with the case above cited. Information is
to be collected ; investigations are to be made upon questions before unknown; the intro-
duction of new species is to be encouraged ; improved and economical methods are to be
made known, and the public interest is to be awakened and maintained.

Although it would be obviously inexpedient and improper to confer authority upon
a commission with respect to the control and management of private property, unless in

exceptional cases where a public interest was concerned, there are many ways in which

it could very greatly promote the general welfare, among which we may specify the
following :—

1. It might institute and conduct experimental stations, either upon lands specially
acquired for the purpose, or with the concurrence of institutions of learning, where facil-
ities exist, and the conditions are favourable. We would especially mention the colleges
for instruction in agriculture and the mechanic arts, in the several States, formed separ-
ately or in connection with colleges already existing, under a grant from Congress, as
proper places for aiding in these experiments. The co-operation of individuals might
doubtless be secured in many cases. These experiments should embrace, as well ques-

‘tions of culture and management, for the discovery of best methods, as matters of scien-
tific interest, including the study of the local climate in its relations to Forestry.

2. It might establish nurseries for the supply at cost, or otherwise, of approved spe-
cies of young trees, especial care being taken to offer those only which afforded the best
prospect of success, and the most useful product. These young trees (or in some cases
tree-seeds), should be accompanied by plain and simple directions for their care and man- »
agement, and the persons receiving them should be requested to report the results. —

3. It might stimulate competition by the offer of prizes, for plantations remarkable
for their extent or excellence, or for success in overcoming difficulties in planting.

4, It might reward the authors of approved essays, tending to make known improved
methods, or to awaken an intelligent interest in Forestry, or to disseminate useful infor-
mation upon any subject therein, calculated to promote the general welfare.

5. It might collect statistical and scientific facts, having reference to Forestry in its
various economic and scientific relations, with the view of furnishing information in
answer to private inquiry, or by way of public reports.

6. It might promote an interest in the subject by the holding of public meetings,
addresses, and the discussion of subjects relating to Forestry and rural economy.

7. It might establish at its central office, a reference library, and collections for
illustrating the various subjects pertaining to Forestry ; and it might very materially aid,
by advice and otherwise, in the formation of similar means of reference and information,
at institutions of learning, and other agencies of public utility.

8. And, finally, it could carefully study the subject of Forestry, as it may grow in
importance, with the view of recommending for legislative action such measures as may
be deemed proper for meeting the wants of the country in this matter, as it comes to be
better understood.

It is presumed that intelligent, capable, and public-spirited citizens might readily be
found in every State, who would be willing, without pay, to give reasonable attention to
this subject, by attending stated meetings of a board, their actual expenses being paid.
With a capable and intelligent secretary, devoting his whole time to his duties, upon rea-

sonable pay, we might confidently expect that such a board would in due time become a
centre of influence, and an important agency for good; sustaining the expectations that
_ gave it being, and abundantly repaying its cost in an advancement of the public welfare.

Upon suggestion by the President, that this memorial might be transmitted from the
Department of Agriculture, with its suggestions tending to give it greater effect, upon
motion of Dr. Hough, seconded by Prof. Northrop, it was so referred, and the report
was accepted and adopted.

The Hon. H. G. Jory, of Quebec, from the committee appointed to report upon:
Forest Fires, and the injuries to Forests by cattle, made @ partial verbal report. He
stated that copies of the report of the committee appointed at the last session of the
American Forestry Congress (August, 1882), for the purpose of drawing the attention of
Government to the question of protection to the forests, were sent to the Federal and to
the Provincial Governments of Canada, several of whom took immediate action. Ontario

passed a law for the encouragement of the planting of forest trees, and voted a consid-
4y¥.

erable sum for that purpose. Quebec passed a law, as recommended by the Forestry
Congress, for classifying public lands under two heads: Lands for cultivation and lands
unfit for cultivation, but growing pine and spruce, which are to be reserved for lumbering
purposes. Quebec furthermore amended the laws already existing for protection of for-
ests against fire, adopting a great number of suggestions offered by the Forestry executive
committee, among others, appointing a superintendent to watch over and guard against
fires. The Province of Nova Scotia passed last winter a law very similar to the preced-
ing, and designated an Arbor Day.

Prof. Ropert B. Warner, from the Committee upon Forestry Education, appointed
at the Cincinnati Session in April, 1882, made the following report, which was accepted
and adopted :

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON FORESTRY EDUCATION.

Many difficulties attend the discussion of this subject, many opinions prevail, and
years will be necessary to work out in detail an educational system, in which the claims
of Forestry shall be duly recognized. Your committee respectfully submits the following
propositions :—

I. One or more special schools of Forestry may eventually be organized, modelled
in most respects after those of Germany, but (like other American technical schools) de-
manding a less amount of general information, and linguistic training for admission.
For the present, however, the business openings offered for trained foresters, are not
such as to encourage a suitable number of students in such a course, even with the modi-

fications proposed. For this veason, among others, we believe that it is not best to urge

the immediate establishment of such a school.

— oe

Tl. We may expect the interests of practical Forestry to be promoted incidentally

by those engaged in agriculture, rather than by those who are exclusively foresters ;
hence we recommend that courses of instruction in Forestry, as full and practical as cireum-
stances admit, should be offered in the various schools for the promotion of agriculture.

III. Practical lectures before farmers’ institutes, promise to be effective in commu-
nicating a large amount of practical information among those who will appreciate and
apply it. It may be very desirable for State organizations to employ lecturers, and co-
operate with the various local societies in this work.

IV. Local Experiment Stations, in which intelligent farmers unite in specified inves-
tigations, will have a real educational value,—both awakening a more general interest,
and affording object iessons upon practical Forestry.

V. With increasing intelligence, and general information among the American
school teachers, we believe they may do very much unofficially, to impart a love of trees,
and habits of observation. An Arbor Day, designed for school children, as in Ohio, is
a valuable educational means, though quite distinct from the arbor day designed for for-
est plantation, as in Nebraska and Minnesota.

VI. The agricultural press affords a wide opportunity for pioneer work in Forestry
education. Much has been accomplished by the Forestry manuals in Minnesota and
Kansas, and by the Iowa Forestry Annuals. It is a cause of regret, that so excellent a
periodical as the American Journal of Forestry should be given up for want of *pat-
ronage. We believe that monthly or bi-monthly Forestry leaflets, published as cheaply
and scattered as widely as possible, may have a very useful influence. Such a publica-
tion may be offered in quantities to the local horticultural and agricultural societies,

at the bare cost of paper and printing. We believe that a guarantee fund of $300 would

suffice to insure such publications for one year.
Signed on behalf of the Committee :

= Rosert B. WARDER,
ApotpH LEvE.

Mr. Mrnter said that he wanted to see the interest in forestry become as contagious
as the small-pox. Let American homes be made cheerful and interesting, he said, and
we fear not for the future welfare of the people.

Mr. Burson spoke of the existing ignorance upon the subject of trees, and urged
that measures should be taken for educating the people in a knowledge, not of tree cul
ture merely, but of the trees themselves.

Exizur Wricat referred to the progress which has been made in Europe in this
matter, through the schools established there. This was an enterprise, he said, in which
the old countries had gone ahead of progressive America.

Mr. Mrivnter believed in comme2nzing the teaching of forestry to children at an
early age.

Dr. Hovues stated that forestry schools had been established in every country in

Europe, upon the continent.
The report of the committee was adopted.

{t was ordered that a committee upon Schools of Forestry be appointed, and the fol-\ /
lowing persons were named as this committee, viz: Prof. B. G. Northrop, Prof. R. B.
Warder, Mr. G. W. Minier, Mr. D. W. Beadle, Prof. J. L. Budd, and Dr. F. B. Hough.

Mr. G. W. Minter presented the following recommendation, which was adopted :—

“In view of the widespread and happy results of the observance of Arbor Day in
many States, this Congress recommends the appointment of such day in all our States,
and in the Provinces of the Dominion of Canada.”

Pending the adoption of the preceding, remarks were made by Messrs. Burson,
Egleston, and Minier.

Judge Warren Hictey presented a report upon the organization and operations of
the Ohio State Forestry Association.

Dr. Franguix B. Hovues presented a verbal report of the action which had been

taken in the State of New York, in reference to Forestry, which may be briefly summar-
ized as follows :—

In 1872, a law was passed naming seven citizens of the State as a State Park Com-
mission. This Commission consisted of Horatio Seymour, Patrick H. Agan, George H.
Raynor, Wm. B. Taylor, Richardson, William A. Wheeler, Franklin B. Hough, and
Verplanck Colvin. They were instructed to make inquiries with the view of reserving
or appropriating the wild lands lying northward of the Mohawk, or so much thereof as
might be deemed expedient for a State park. It is believed that the leading motive in
this was, to secure the benefits to be expected from woodlands, in the maintenance of
the water supply for the State canals, and for hydraulic power, which had been material-
ly injured by clearings.

It was found, upon inquiry, that the State had only about 40,000 acres then in its
possession in that region, the rest having been sold at nominal prices to timber operators
and a railroad company. As soon as it was understood that the lands were wanted by
the State, their owners showed a tendency toward combination, for the enhancement of
values, and as the commission did not propose to become accessories to this speculation,
_ they simply recommended a law forbidding further sales of these lands, and their reten-
tion when forfeited for the non-payment of taxes. In 1883—eleven years after this first
law—the action then recommended was taken. The prediction had been verified, as now
more than 600,000 acres belonged to the State, from neglect of taxes by the owners.
This is only the beginning of a system of Forestry, since nothing was as yet provided for
the management of the lands, except in one county only (St. Lawrence), where an agent

——— SSS SS sss :

has been appointed to look after the interests of the State in the forests of that county.
The law relating to tree planting along the highways has been very recently modified,
and the germs of something that may grow into a kind of forest management, may be
found in several local laws in various parts of the State, which provide that waste lands
upon which taxes are not paid, shall become the property of the counties.

Very recently a call was issued for the holding of a convention for the formation of
a State Forestry Association. The proceedings were merely preliminary, but three per-
sons had been named to attend the present Congress and make a report. The speaker
(Dr. H.) was the only one present.

Dr. Hoven further remarked, that in the State of Vermont and New Hampshire,
commissions had been appointed by law, and incipient measures were in progress for as-
certaining the duty of these States, with reference to the Forestry question. As no
representatives appeared from these States, he was not authorized to say what had been
done, or what was intended.

The Hon. Marx H. Dunneti, for many years member of Congress, and mover of
the principal Acts that have been passed relating to timber culture and investigations
upon Forestry, being introduced, addressed the Congress at some length, upon these sub-
jects. 8

Mr. D. A. Ropertson presented the subject of publication of the proceedings, and sug-
gested the appointment of a committee to memorialize Congress, with the view of procur-
ing an appropriation for that purpose. Discussion arose thereupon, pending which the
hour for recess having arrived, the Congress adjourned until 2 o’clock, p.m. |

Afternoon Session, August 9th.

The Forestry Congress having been called to order by the President, at the hour ap-
pointed, Dr. Frankiix B. Hoven, from the Commission appointed at the Montreal
Session, in August, 1882, to report upon the subject of “ Legislation in Relation to For-

est Fires,” made the following
REPORT.

The Executive Committee of this Congress was instructed, at our last meeting, to
refer certain subjects for report on the present occasion, and, among these, ‘ Legislation
in Relation to Forest Fires,” has been assigned to me for consideration.

We find, already, legislation of some kind, in nearly every State and territory of
the Union, in Canada and other British colonies, and in every country in Europe.
With the view of ascertaining what had been done in this line, I carefully collected our
existing legislation upon this subject, and it will be found in my third report, in which
this subject is considered with much detail.

The fact that prohibitions are imposed in any law, upon any subject, assumes that
something is or may be wrong; and when we find penalties, the presumption is that
they can or should prevent this wrong or injury from being done. We find neither pro-
hibitions nor penalties against what is unavoidable; they are enacted only in cases where
it is presumed that they will prevent some injury from being done, which might happen
without them. Without spending a moment upon the origin of forest fires from natural
causes, and which are fortunately of rare occurrence, we may attribute the greater part
to human agency, and as originating either from intentional motives, or through
earelessness or accident.

We find that fires are intentionally kindled, with the expectation that they will
spread to more or Jess extent, in the following cases :—

1. In clearing land of its timber, as in the beginning of all settlements in weoded

countries, and occasionally, from time to time, in the ordinary operation of cutting off
wood lots, and in lumbering.

2. For agricultural improvement, in the burning off of stubble and rubbish, to clear
the ground for cultivation.

3. In certain operations in the woodlands, where it is desirable to get rid of the
underbrush, by the aid of ground fires, so as to render it easy to get around, as in woods
worked for ‘turpentine, ete.

4. For improvement of pasturage in woodlands and waste places, by burning off the
dead and dry herbage, and to favour the growth of the succulent grasses.

5. For exposing the ground, asin search for nuts or fruits, in prospecting for min-
erals and ores, and the like.

6. For clearing the ground of materials that might favour the spreading of ground
fires, to the peril of buildings, fences or inclosed fields.

7. From a wanton desire to see a “big fire,” but without intention to do injury, or
with the expectation that no great harm will ensue ; or,

8. With malicious design, and for the purpose of destroying property, or of conceal-
ing a trespass ; or, in the case of hostilities, as a war measure, to injure an enemy.

The spreading and destructive fires, originating from carelessness or accident, may
be kindled from any of the above mentioned causes, except the last, the escape being

_ sometimes unavoidable, or beyond the means at hard for control; and sometimes from

want of common prudence and forethought, in leaving a fire, or some burning object, in

places where a fire may catch and spread, as in throwing down a burning match or cigar,

or in the use of gunwads in hunting, that ignite and retain the fire. They may spring

from a neglected campfire, kindled for cooking or warming, or from a coalpit where.
charcoal is being made, or from fires or sparks dropped in any manner as notably in

the case of sparks or coals froma passing engine on a railroad.

The extent of the disaster, however it may be started, will depend upon a variety of
causes, chiefly the condition of the soil as to drought, and the force of the winds. A
great deal will also depend upon the nature of the soil itself, and upon the kind of timber
and other vegetation that grows upon it. Light sandy soils, when overgrown with ever-
greens of the coniferous species, and with the undergrowth that usually accompanies them
are particularly liable to spreading fires; while a heavy clay soil, or fertile loam, under-
laid by limestone and shales, may favour the growth of ‘deciduous trees, and a rank and
humid undergrowth, in which a forest fire could scarcely be made to spread, and in
which a disaster of this kind is scarcely ever known.

We also find that the season of the year has much to do with forest fires, They are
seldom or never known in winter; but in the early spring months, after the ground has
become dry, and before vegetation has made much progress, we find the conditions dan-

gerous. It is the same in a dry summer and autumn, and especially in times of exces-
sive drought, and in high winds. At such times, when this aridity was intensified, the

memorable fires of the Miramichi in 1825, and the forest fires in Michigan and Wisconsin
in 1871 and 1881, occurred, with destructive energy, and wide spread ruin, consuming
millions of dollars worth of property, and destroying great numbers of human lives.

We have started with the theory that prohibitions and penalties imply an avoidable
cause. Let us consider, separately, how this will apply in the several classes of causes
that have been above enumerated :—

1. In the clearing of land, a little judgment will enable the careful man to avoid a
time for the burning of his brush when there is great liability to the spread of fires
beyond control. But as some men have not this “little judgment” and this “care,” it
would be an effectual check upon their carelessness, if we had a law requiring them,
before applying fire, to get a premission from some preper town officer, such as the
supervisor, the selectmen, the trustees, or such other officers as the State laws recognize as
the guardians of the public intrests of the town, and who would presumably be men of
prudence and good judgment. They should also be obliged to notify their neighbours: of
their intention, so that proper watchfulness might be awakened, where the possibility of
danger to adjacent woodlands might be apprehended. They might be still further

restricted absolutely from setting fires in certain months known to be dangerous in
common or exceptionally dry years.

In this matter of burning brush, it should be more generally known, that it is not a
very difficult thing to dispose of it gradually as the clearing progresses, by getting a fire
well started, and then throwing the brush upon it. In the case of resinous woods, this
may be done at once, and in the deciduous kinds, as soon as they are somewhat dry, but
before they have become like tinder.

2. The danger from field fires, in the burning off of stubble and dead grass in fall or
spring, as on the prairies of the west, may be greatly lessened by ploughing two belts of
land and carefully burning off the rubbish on the strip of land between them. Where
this precaution is taken, it is not difficult to keep these fires away from stacks of grain,
buildings, and plantations, and it might, in these States, be well to require this to be done
by law. Here, as in the case last mentioned, there is great need of prudence and caution,
and in case of the least uncertainty, the advice and aid of others should be obtained. In
this, also, there should be a prohibited season, wherever there is need.

3. In cases where it is thought necessary to clear the ground of underbrush, the need
of caution and counsel is quite evident, and the subject should be placed under the
restrictions of law.

4. The custom of burning off woodlands, especially in mountain regions, is one of the
worst that we have to contend with in certain portions of the country. It is often
practised by those who have a fewcattle but no land,and who depend upon finding subsistence
for their stock upon the unenclosed lands of others, or upon the public domain. There is
nothing more likely to arrest this practice, than an efficient stock law, requiring every
owner of stock of whatever kind, to keep them upon his own premises, under the penalties
that may result from their trespass and damage upon the lands of another.

Where an owner thus sets running fires on his own lands, to improve the pasturage
for his own stock, there should be a legal prohibition as to dangerous seasons of the year,
and ample responsibility for the payment of damages that may result from his fires upon
the property of others. The penalty of a fine is generally effectual, in the case of a land-

owner ; for the possession of an estate implies a certain degree of care, industry, and

forethought in the owner; and such a person would realize the responsibilities of the
situation, if fully known beforehand. But there is a class of men, and unfortunately it
is a large one, who, having neither care, industry, nor forethought, and therefore no land,
would care nothing for a fine, because they have nothing that the law could reach, if its
collection was attemped. For this reason, any law imposing a fine as a punishment,
with respect to the setting of fires that escape from their lands to the injury of others,
should end with the clause: ‘or imprisonment for a period of days, unless the fine is
sooner paid.”

5. The clearing off of leaves by fire, for the purpose of exposing the ground, is most
likely to be practised by boys in search of nuts, and who do not realize the danger that
may result ; or by those prospecting for ores and the like, who care as little for the conse-
quences as the common tramp. It may not be a very common or a very important
cause of these fires, but it should be forbidden on lands not owned by the person who sets
the fire, and should, in this case, be coupled with penalties where it injures another.

6. In light sandy regions, and in cases where the pitch pine and other resinous woods
form the principal forest growth, there are seldom many years together in which we do
not hear of distressing accounts of woodland fires. They have been particularly disastrous
upon Cape Cod, in the interior and eastern portions of Long Island, and in southern New
Jersey. In these fires, we often hear of the burning of farm-houses, fences, bridges, mills,
and other property, and they generally leave the soil greatly impoverished. In such
regions there is a continued liability to the recurrence of these fires, whenever the con-
ditions are a little more favourable to their spread, and nothing but continual care and
watchfulness can prevent them.

In such regions, it is undoubtedly a good practice to keep the borders of the wood-
lands along the railroads, and around buildings, clear of rubbish and litter, by carefully
burning off a strip of land in the winter, and when the fire can scarcely be made to

>”

spread, and is easily controlled. Where this is done every year, the amount of combus-
tible material is slight, and the risk is reduced to next to nothing.

It is, therefore, advised that legal provision should be made, requiring railroad com-
panies to keep the rubbish and dead herbage, that might be liable to spread the fires,
burned off every year, and forbidding them to allow piles of old ties and other combus-
tible materials from accumulating or being left along their roadway.

7 and 8. From wanton and wilful burning, we have no hope of escape, except in the
execution of proper laws against malicious mischief and deliberate crime.

Before considering the measures that might be recommended in our country for pre-
venting by legal enactments the spread of forest fires, let us briefly notice what has been
attempted, and what has been accomplished elsewhere. There is a district of country in
southern France, some forty or fifty miles in extent, between Nice and Marseilles, and*
fronting upon the Mediterranean, that has, in former years, suffered often and severely
from forest fires. The conditions were peculiarly liable to the occurrence of these fires,
as well in soil and climate, as in the vegetation that covered the surface. The soil is
rich, resulting from the decomposition of schist, porphyry, and granite. Itis exposed toa
ardent sun, and watered by abundant rains at the season most proper for giving excep-
tional vigour to forest vegetation, and, as the result, an abundant accumulation of litter.
But it is also liable in certain seasons, to protracted drought; and in such a time, the
least spark of fire, in a strong wind, would start a conflagration which nothing could stop,
until the tinder upon the ground was burnt off. The forest trees in this region were
chiefly chestnut, cork-oak and the maritime pines, and the undergrowth various species of
broom, heather, and herbaceous plants that become dry and inflammable in a drought.

The repeated and ever-recurring damages resulting from these fires, led the Govern-
ment in the autumn of 1868, to send the director-general of forests (M. Faré) to make a
careful study of the causes of these disasters, and, if possible, to devise the remedies for their
prevention. Having prepared a list of some two hundred names, selecting the principal pro-
prietors and industriels of the district, he first addressed a circular of inquiries, and then
convened as many of them as could attend, for the discussion of the subject, and the col-
lection of data upon which conclusions could be formed. The results in the way of oral
evidence and written opinions were published in detail. There were also separate publi-
cations upon the subject, the more important one being by M. Charles de Ribbe, who
deals with great intelligence upon questions relating to the causes of these fires, their
history, and the measures that should be taken for preventing them.

It was noticed, as to ownership, and incidentally as to the effect which this had upon
surveillance and prevention, that the richest portion, and that chiefly devoted to the cork-
oak, belonged to many small proprietors, while the poorer parts, covered with the maritime
pine, and largely devoted to resinage, was owned by a few persons, some of them having
tracts of several thousand hectares each. It was natural to expect that the former were
better cared for, and that the greatest precautions had come to be adopted for preventing
the origin of fires. But on the other hand, this parcelling out into small properties, is not
favourable for concerted effort ; as, in case of danger, every man would be most anxious
to save his own, while the wealthy owners of large estates could more easily associate in
the adoption of measures for their common welfare, and: that a more systematic effort
might bring a better result.

But, in the present instance, although there was a great diversity in ownership, and
the woodlands were for the most part contiguous, or at least with no large clearings inter-
vening, however diverse the local interest might be, they were menaced with a common
danger. The inquiries undertaken in this instance, brought out, as might have been ex-
pected, a great variety of opinions as to causes and prevention, as each one reasoned from
his own standpoint, and from the little circle of observation around him. They very
generally agreed in this, that means should be devised for preventing their neighbours’ fires
from running over their own possessions, but were more or less widely variant as to the
remedies that should apply to the whole.

As to the causes, M. Faré arranges them under two classes :—The one purely intrinsic
and belonging to all woodlands, and the other exceptional, and produced by the special
- circumstances that have been already noticed. It was chiefly to the latter that these

sweeping disasters might be attributed, since two-thirds of the department, having a dif-
ferent soil and forest growth, but otherwise the same rains and droughts, and the same
exposure to the sun, suffered no inconvenience from this cause.

The fires are generally started by careless hunters, by smokers, by charcoal burners,
and very often from a practice of setting fires for the purpose of clearing off the mosses,
herbage, brambles, and rubbish, in which it was generally intended to keep the fire
smouldering under a covering of turf, but which in a dry and windy time might easily
escape control.

This inquiry resulted in the enactment of a law, limited to twenty years from April
13th, 1870, the date of its passage, the leading features of which were as follows :—

The Prefect, with the advice of the General Council, was to fix the time in each
year, within which no fires were to be kindled within the woodlands, or within 200
meters of their borders, for any pretext either of forestry or agriculture. Notices of
this order were to be posted fifteen days previous to the forbidding season.

At times not included within this season, fires might be built, provided the space be
inclosed by protecting trenches.

Between adjacent properties, a cleared avenue should be maintained, at the joint cost
of the owners. The power of arresting offenders was extended, aud vigilance, especially
in the dangerous season, was increased. The fines were to be not less than twenty
nor more than 500 francs ; but these were to be in addition to the damages that might
ensue,

At a somewhat later period, frequent and disastrous fires occurring in the region of
Landes, in south-western France, in the young pine forests, led to another investigation
by direction of Government, by M. Faré, and an extended report was made, but not
leading to any special law. In visiting this region in 1881, I learned, upon inquiry, that
these fires had ceased to be troublesome, and was told that they had probably been set
for a malicious end, a certain family owning extensive tracts of pine, being the heaviest
losers. Through some financial failure, great numbers, acting under the advice of
members of this family, had lost their little all, and to revenge this grievance, these fires
had been set.

But returning to the question before us, as it is presented in the United States and
Canada, and reasoning upon the assumption that destructive fires are very generally
avoidable with proper caution, I will attempt to draft a bill, that with some modifications
might be made applicable in any of the states, territories, or provinces, and which, if
sustained by public sentiment, and properly enforced, could not fail to render these dis-

asters less frequent, if they did not hinder their occurrence entirely. I will give it the
title of—

“ An Act To PrEveNT THE OccURRENCE OF FIELD AND Forest Fires.”

» Be it enacted, ete.

V Section 1. It shall be the duty of the Board of Supervisors (County Commissioners,
or other authority in charge of the public business of counties), in districts liable to suf-
fer injury from forest fires, to establish rules restricting the setting of fires in fields or
woodlands, and forbidding them entirely, in what experience has shown to be a dangerous
season of the year. These rules may be revised annually.

§ 2. In every township, the inhabitants, when assembled at their annual town meet-
ings, may elect as many Fire Wardens as they may determine by a public vote. If there
be more than one, the district of each one shall be described by roads or natural boun-
daries, a record of which shall be made in the office of the town clerk.

§ 3. It shall be the duty of the Fire Warden, in case of a spreading and dangerous
fire, to take the chief direction of measures for arresting its progress, and he may order
any citizen to assist in this labour, under the penalties hereinafter mentioned.

§ 4. In the absence of the Fire Warden, the supervisor (or other officer in charge of
town business) may designate in writing some person to perform the duties of such Fire
Warden, and the person so appointed shall have the same authority as if duly elected.

§ 5. In cases of great danger, a Fire Warden, with the approbation of a justice of ~

37 .

the peace, may order back fires to be set, or property to be destroyed, to stop the pro-
gress of the fires. Any structures so destroyed shall be paid for as a county charge.

§ 6. The expenses necessarily incurred in stopping the progress of a forest fire, shall
be audited and paid by the Board of Supervisors (or other county board, as the case may
be), as a county charge. It shall be lawful for the inhabitants at town meetings to fix
the rate that may be paid for services in arresting a spreading fire, and to limit the total
sum that may be paid; but in no case shall any allowance be made for services to any
person through whose act or negligence a fire originated, nor shall payment be made for
losses incurred, otherwise than as mentioned in the last preceding section of this Act.

§ 7. No person shall, at any time within the season prohibited under the first sec-
tion of this Act, set fires in any field or woodland, for the purpose of burning brush, or
clearing the land for agricultural purposes, or for improving the pasturage. , v,

§ 8 No person shall, at a season not included in this prohibited period, apply fires
in any field or woodland, for the purpose of clearing or improvement, without first ob-
taining permission from the Fire Warden of his district. He shall also notify any
neighbours who may have fields or woodlands adjacent, and liable to injury, at least one
day previous to the setting of such tires. vA

§ 9. No person shall kindle any fire in any woodland, or within two hundred yards
of its borders, unless the combustible materials be first cleared away within six feet of
the place where it is kindled ; nor shall any such fire be left, until it is- fully extin-
guished, or safely covered.

§ 10. In the making of charcoal, there shall be provided at least one barrel full of
water to each pit, with pails in readiness for use in the case of a fire escaping and liable
to spread. Al] combustible materials shall be cleared away to a distance of fifty feet
from the pits or kilns in which charcoal is made. ;

§ 11. It shall be the duty of railroad companies, to cause the dead herbage, and Y
other inflammable materials within their right of way to be carefully burned off once a
year, at a time when this can be safely done, and with a sufficient force in readiness to
prevent injuries therefrom.

§ 12. In districts where it is a common custom to provide against the spreading of
field fires by ploughing strips of land, and burning off between them, such strips may be
ploughed and burned once ina year, along the boundary of adjacent properties, and
along lines of railroad, at the joint expense of the owners. In case that either of said
owners, upon request from the other, shall neglect to do his share of the labour, it may
be done by the other, and one-half of the cost thereof may be collected, as in an action
for debt.

§ 13. And whereas, experience has shown that great benefits result from the main-
tenance of cleared avenues in a forest, for the control of forest fires, it is hereby enacted,
that wherever -a line of property between two owners runs through a woodland, and
whenever the Fire Warden shall deem the measure necessary, he may direct the owners
to clear and maintain such an open space, of not less than fifty feet in width, half of it
being on each side of the line, and the expenses to be equally borne by the owners
thereof.

§ 14. It is forbidden to throw down a burning match, or any lighted cigar or other '
burning object, in any field or woodland, without immediately extinguishing the same.

It is also forbidden to use tow, or other material liable to hold fire, as a gunwad. It is
further forbidden to discharge any firearms within a forest, during the period that is
designated as dangerous by the Board of Supervisors (or other county authority).

§ 15. The following penalties are imposed for each violation of the provisions of
this Act: .

For disobeying the orders of a Fire Warden, from $5 to $50.

For setting running fires in the forbidden season, from $50 to $500.

For setting fires in the season not forbidden, but without permission from the Fire
Warden, or notice to neighbours, $5 to $50.

For kindling fires in violation of § 8, or for neglecting the requirement in § 9, from
$5 to $50.

For neglecting the requirement in § 10, from $5 to $10 per mile.

And in case of non-payment of fines, the person upon conviction may be impris-
oned in the county gaol one day for every $2 of the fine imposed.

§ 16. It is further provided that in addition to the foregoing penalties, every rail-
road company, and every person, through whose act or negligence a field or forest fire
originates, shall be liable to pay the damages which such fire may occasion.

§ 17. And be it further enacted, that the Board of Supervisors (or other county
authorities), may cause printed notices, stating the times when running fires are prohib-
ited, and the varions penalties mentioned in this Act, to be posted in each school-house,
and at such places as election notices are posted, throughout the county, or in such towns
as they may deem proper, and the expenses of this may be made a county charge.

§ 18. All penalties incurred under this Act, shall be prosecuted by the Fire Warden
of the district before a justice of the peace, and in the name of the people. The moneys
recovered are to be paid into the county treasury, to be applied first to the payment of
expenses incurred under this Act in the extinguishment of forest fires ; and if any remain
over, for the support of roads and bridges in the towns where the fines were incurred.

§ 19. This Act shall take effect immediately.

I have thus presented the outlines of a plan of legislation, which I think might be
modified to meet the wants of every part of the country. It embraces the following
principles :—

1. A local option in the county authorities, who would be best able to judge of local
wants and circumstances.

2, A recognized authority in directing operations, as in the case of city fires, where
the chief of a fire department, or his representatives, may compel assistance in case of
fires.

3. A county charge for necessary expenses. This is justified and allowed in the
ease of property destroyed by a mob, upon the principle that the county owes protection
to its citizens, and that having provided an agency in its civil officers, for the prevention
of crimes, and the protection of property,—which may be expanded to meet an emer-
gency at any time,—it is bound to exercise this power for prevention and protection, or
pay the Josses that may happen from failing to do so.

4. Personal responsibility in the use of fire, and penalties for carelessness, whether
damages ensue or not.

5. Responsibility for damages resulting from fires, as a matter of common justice,
and upon the general principle, that if any person injures the property of another, he
shall pay him for it.

6. A pecuniary fine for carelessness and wrong doing, which may, within certain
limits be proportioned to the offence, ..or a personal punishment in default of payment.

In studying this subject, we cannot fail to notice, how much of these calamities is
avoidable, with due caution; how much might be saved, by a little timely thought and
habitual care ; and how much might be gained, by instilling into the minds of the young, in
our families and our schools, those habits of caution and prudence, and regard for the

rights of others, that would in future prevent so many of these losses that we now
deplore.

The following report was then read by the recording secretary, the writer being
absent.

THE MANAGEMENT OF BURNED FORESTS.

By BernHarp E. Frrnow, SLATINGTON, PENNA.

It is evident that in the management of a burned forest, 1.¢., the efforts to repair the
damage done by fire to the standing growth as well as to the soil, the prospective value of
the forest, must depend not only on the requirments of the species, of which the forest is
composed, and the system of management, to which the forest has been subject, but also
on the intensity of the fire and the degree of injury, which has been suffered by the
growth.

eee ee

We have to study the influence of the fire on the soil and on the standing timber,
before we can decide upon the treatment.

When we contemplate the method of the prairie settler or the Kassack of the Russian
steppes, burning over his grazing lands with a view of encouraging the sprouting of new
grass, and of enriching the soil for a more luxuriant verdure, we might be tempted to
consider the burning over of a forest tract, if only kept in bounds so as not to injure the
timber, as beneficial after all to the growth of trees. But here weare drawing a mistaken
analogy, for whilst the production of grass and herbs, in fact afl agricultural vegetation
depends mainly on the mineral richness of the soil, in forestry this factor of the growth
takes a very different part. The tree lives mainly from the air ; the bulk of its substance
is undoubtedly made up from the decomposition of the carbonic gas of the air and of
water.

The influence of the soil on the forest growth is almost entirely based on its physical

_ properties, and of these especially its capacity of absorbing and retaining moisture, the

main agent of successful tree growth. The yearly fall of leaves and dead branches or
twigs, not only returns to the soil the greatest part of any mineral substances, absorbed
by the trees, and thus sufficiently renews, if that were necessary, the richness in inorganic
elements, but by the decay of this vegetable mould a soil cover is formed, which eminently
possesses the desired quality of receiving the atmospheric precipitations and returning
the same to the trees as needed; besides this vegetable mould or humus being a bad
conductor of heat, it counteracts the drying effects of the scorching sun, wherever the
crown cover of the thinly foliaged species or of the thinly standing trees does not afford
sufficient protection.

Now, this cover is first attacked by the devouring flames, and is converted into ashes
to a greater or less depth according to the season, when the fire occurs and the consequent
relative humidity of the soil. And by its destruction all the inherent favourable physical
qualities are destroyed.

Especially where the natural conditions of the under-lying soil are of a poor
description, such as the dry sands of the diluvial plains, the destruction of the humus,
accumulated through many years, may seriously affect the capacity of the soil for successful
forest culture. And when, to crown the disaster, the protecting cover of the trees
themselves has fallen a victim to the ravaging element, thus giving access to parching
sun and wind, the ingenuity of a forester will indeed be taxed to the utmost, to restore
the necessary conditions of forest growth, nay, it may become almost impossible.

Although the fire may not have attacked the standing timber, yet the injurious effect
will be visible years hence, when the trees are cut ; one or several annual rings or layers
of wood following the years after the catastrophe will note the consequent decline of
growth, or to express it in a financial way, a reduction of the yearly dividend.

The vitality of the trees may be impaired by the action of the scorching fiames on
the cambium, and even if utilized at once, the injured butt logs, the most valuable ones,
will often count a considerable deficit in the lumberman’s estimate. In hardwood forests,
where the reproduction is expected from sprouts, the reproductive power of the stocks is
injured in proportion to the degree of heat developed by the fire. In the pineries, where
reproduction is expected from the seed, the young seedlings fall the first victims of the
merciless foe.

Where the fire kills the original growth or causes the speedy death of the same, the
conditions for forest growth are at once changed, and those alternations of species occur,
which are a natural consequence of the change of these conditions. The shade-loving and
the shade-bearing species find no favourable inducements ; the light-needing, especially
the light-seeded ones, which produce seed plentifully and give it to the distributing winds,
take the place, excluding by their rank and vigorous growth the existence of their more
pretentious and slow-growing brethren.

Unfortunately the latter are the more valuable kinds. Yet we must be thankful
that the tribe of birches, poplars, cherries, willows, will be satisfied with the unsatisfactory
conditions presented to them by the burned forests ; because their decaying foliage,
what cover they afford to the soil, reeuperates in time the powers of the same to bear a
better crop, and recalls to useful production the lost area.

I may be allowed here to quote Prof. C. C. Sargent’s happy description of this —

rocess.

air If a forest is destroyed by fire, which kills the trees and undergrowth of shrubs

and herbs of the same species, except in the case of some of our least valuable trees, they rarely _

spring up again. Let us take the case of a white pine forest. If a forest of white
pine is destoyed by fire, this tree does not spring up again. The land if only a part of the
trees had been cut, would have continued to produce pines indefinitely, is not covered
again with any growth of trees for a considerable period. The fireweed makes its appear-
ance. ‘The light seed of this plant is often blown for a long distance, and falling upon the
bare ground germinates quickly, and finally covers the burned surface with vegetation.
Birds drop the seeds of raspberries and blackberries, which find sufficient nourishment (?)
and light for germination. These, as they grow, cover the ground and afford protection
to the stones of the little mountain cherry, dropped by birds also, or the light seeds of the
gray birch or some of the willows or poplars, which are constantly blowing about, and

which germinate anywhere upon unshaded ground, however barren.

“These are generally the first trees, which succeed a white pine forest destroyed by
fire; but years often elapse before the ground is covered even with such trees. Nature
works slowly,;and the wounds made by fire on the earth’s covering of trees are only healed
under most favourable conditions, through the gradual growth and decay of many gener-
ations of plants. The cherries, and the birch and poplars are short lived; and unless
burned up, when the same process of recovering commences again, are succeeded by more
valuable broad-leaved trees. Squirrels and other animals deposit acorns and nuts in the
ground, and the wind brings the seeds of maples, ashes, and the valuable birches. Such
seeds find protection among the poplars and willows which had sprung up on the burned
land, and as these die, the more valuable trees get a chance to grow and gradually occupy
the ground. This new forest of hardwood trees, if protected from fire, will long occupy
the ground, and the original pine forest will not appear again until the land long enriched
by an annual deposit of leaves has been again stripped of its tree covering and mellowed
by years of cultivation. Such land, nearly all over New England, if freed from the
plough and the scythe, and guarded from fire and pasturage, grows up again with pine.
The different processes, however, by which white pine land, on which the forest has been
destroyed by fire, has been again brought into the condition to produce spontaneously
another crop of pine, have occupied a long period of time—so long, indeed that it must
extend through generations of human life. The forest fire then which destroyed the pine
trees growing upon the land, destroyed also, the capacity of the land to produce again,
during a period which may be set down at from fifty to one hundred years a similar crop
of trees.” What now can human ingenuity do to meet these disastrous effects and to
recall to profitable use a forest so destroyed, so withdrawn from the production of valuable
timber ; what is the best management of a burned forest?

Before answering these questions let me recall to you the old adage that an ounce of
prevention is better than a pound of cure, and never more so than in this case; where,
what it took decades and centuries to produce, may be destroyed ina day through criminal
carelessness and inexcusable neglect. What may, and ought to be done by legislation to
prevent these dangers, will be discussed by another member of this Congress. Let me
only call attention to some advisable means, by which the forester may secure his pro-
perty, or at least lessen the danger and risk of fire, such as are adopted in other countries.

Whatever may be done in regard to a vigilant firewatch, to careful handling of fires
outside and inside of the woodland, the following methods are successfully applied to re-
strict the spread of eventual fires. In the plain and especially in pineries a forest district
is divided into blocks of any desired area, by openings of from one to tworods width. In
a well regulated forest management, these blocks serve more than one purpose. Not
only do they enable the confinement of running fires in the limits of the block, the open-
ings or fireguards presenting convenient lines of defence, and points d’appui for counter-
fires, etc., but they also form the basis of an orderly division of a large area, they enable easier
areantation by numbering the blocks, they give chance for a closer estimation of the stand-
ing timber, they reduce, if opened up in time, the danger of storm-falls, (as the outside
trees accustom themselves to the swaying wind and take firmer hold with their roots) and

they facilitate the access to any one point of the forest. In fact it is advisable to ar-
range these openings so that they may eventually serve as roads. The size of the blocks
may depend not only upon the size of the area so to be divided, but upon the
thoroughness of the management and especially upon the degree of danger from fires ; for
the latter reason resinous woods should be cut up into the smallest blocks. In Prussia
the blocks comprise generally 100 to 200 acres. The form may, in the plain, be most con-
veniently an oblong, facilitating the removal of the timber. In the mountains it is gen-
erally adapted to the configuration of the soil.

If in this country the conditions of development do not yet call for such orderly
management, the time will not be far when, at least in the Eastern States and near wood-
using centres, similar attention to detail will be requisite, and the economy of such order
will be appreciated.

Where the risk of fire is occasioned by the proximity of railroads, and as long as
efficient spark arresters are not invented, or their use not enforced, recourse may be had
to the formation of a safety belt along the endangered line. Such a belt consists of a
space say sixty to seventy feet wide, along both sides of the railroad, cleared of all timber
which, where opportunity offers, may be put to agricultural use. In Prussia very often
the track-walkers use the ground for their potato patches, etc. Or if the soil cannot be
spared from timber-culture, the growth of a thin foliage, deciduous species like the birch,
may be allowed on such a belt, taking care, however, to clear away any casual under-
growth and little rubbish, which, by its inflammability, would breed danger. The plough-
ing up of a few furrows or a ditch between the belt and timber is a cheap additional pre-
caution.

The practice of burning the rubbish after clearing can be recommended only where
no other precaution against the spread of fire will do, or where, as sometimes in pine-
woods, the additional danger of destructive insects may be increased by offering a breed-
ing place in the dry litter. Otherwise, as has been said before, any firing must he con-
sidered injurious to the capacity of the soil, especially on sandy soils with only a thin
humus cover may it preclude all possibility of reforestation.

In regard to the management of a burned forest it must not be forgotten that the
consideration of this question |involves a financial as well as a purely forestral problem.
In this country, especially where the desire of realizing all the value for the present without
regard to the future is prevalent, the distance and the fastidiousness of the market, the
lack of demand for inferior grades and for firewood, may preclude all efforts to exercise
any systematic forest management.

Considerations for the financier would be the following :—

The possibility of utilizing the remaining timber at any profit, or at least at the cost
of working it.

The value of ‘the loss in accretion by the impaired vitality of the timber.

The loss of soil rent for the time from reforestation to growth to the size of the
destroyed forest.

A change of system, for instance, from timber forests to coppice, or the reverse : or
from forest to agriculture.

Choice of a more valuable or quicker-growing species instead of a slow grower or a
less desirable timber.

Setting aside the financial question, which is of a local character, the treatment
depends on the species constituting the forest, and on the system of management adopted.
In the coppice when the stems have been not only blackened but partly burned, the only
right plan is to clear at once at the proper season. Otherwise decay will set in and the
vitality of the stocks will be greatly impaired. Besides, with the impaired vitality of
the stocks, the yearly accretion would fall below an average rate of growth, and it would
therefore make the continuation of the same growth unprofitable. The same rule may
be best applied to young plantations of deciduous trees up to fifteen or twenty years; the
new sprouts will, it properly thinned in most cases and with most species, soon replace the
cover. It is, however, in the further treatment of these, to be considered that the rate
of growth of the coppice—i.e., where the growth is originated from stocks, is different
from that of seedlings ; and that though the sprouts of most species will show a thriftier

growth in the first year, their height accretion relaxes earlier, and they attain their
greatest accretion and their maturity sooner than seedlings. The rotation of such forests
therefore must be shortened.

As regards the retaining of such trees or groups of trees as were not injured by the
fire, this is a temptation to which we must yield only with caution, as their shade might
prove injurious to the surrounding young shoots and impeding their growth. .

In larger growths, intended for timber forests, if the injury does not extend to a total
destruction or nearly so of the trees, it must be kept in mind that a fire induces earlier
maturity ; and where a healing from the effects of the fire cannot be expected, the utiliza-
tion with a view to natural seeding or else clearing, followed by immediate reforestation,
should be adopted,

Where the destruction is a total one, no wiser plan than immediate replanting
can be recommended. This is especially the only measure with resinous trees, which are
almost certain to lose their ground entirely, if after a fire left to themselves in the struggle
for existence.

It is noc to be forgotten that the dead trees remaining offer the very best opportunity
for an increased development of injurious insects. In forests of deciduous trees, where —
the heat of fires generally is not as intense as in pinewoods, it may be a cheap plan to
await a new growth from the stocks, and by carefully nursing the more valuable species,
cutting back the less valuable ones, eventually filling up bare spots by planting or seeding
shade-enduring species, to recover in time the lost ground for the valuable species.

In this, as in every other problem of forestry, it is impossible to prescribe definite
rules that will cover all requirements of particular cases. A thorough elementary know-
ledge of the conditions of forest growth alone will enable the forester to decide what
methods to adopt for the restoration of the lost growth, and to repair the damage inflicted
by fires upon the soil and the forest.

Dr. Frankiin B. Hoven then read the following paper on

ASSOCIATION OF INTERESTS IN FOREST CULTURE.

In the management of landed estates generally, there is perhaps more than in any oth-
er kind of investment, the need of direct personal supervision, and that attention to detail
which an owner can best bestow. Still, in agricultural affairs, it is sometimes necessary
for several owners, having lands adjacent, and needing a common improvement, to seek
an organization under the protection of a law, where individual enterprise could not se-
cure the result required, even though it becomes necessary for an unwilling minority to
unite with them in sharing the expenses and the benefits.

We find an example of this, in the drainage of swamp lands, the reclaiming of tracts
submerged or liable to overflow, and especially in regions that can only be cultivated
under irrigation. In these cases, and others that could be cited, there is often a large
expense to be incurred, before any benefit is realized. It is sometimes necessary to em-
ploy skilled engineers ; to acquire right of way across lands that are not benefited, or
that may be injured by the work in prospect ; and sometimes to obtain the consent of a
public authority before the work is begun. For most of these cases provision has been
made in the several States, under general laws; and special legislation, in the absence of
such laws, has seldom been denied, when the enterprise was reasonable and proper, and |
the owners of the property were able and willing to incur the expenses.

We cannot but congratulate ourselves, at one advantage in our favour, as compared
with most countries upon the continent in Europe: we have no rights of common usage
to conciliate. What a man owns is his ; and his neighbour has no right to question him
in its enjoyment, so long as he affects the rights of no one else, and so long as a public
interest is not injured by his occupation. This is of course qualified by the conditions
imposed upon all citizens, of yielding the right of eminent domain as it becomes neces-
sary for public use, and of assisting in the maintenance of a common government. But
there are other instances in which a common interest requires a common effort, beyond

that which is so naturally and so often manifested’; by consultation, voluntary associations
for the discussion of special subjects which concern all their members, and other meas-
ures tending to promote the general welfare.

In the matter of forest management, we find at times a convenience, amounting
sometimes to a necessity, for the association of the interests of adjacent owners, in the
profitable management of the property, which at a future time cannot fail to require the
protection and regulation of law.

In the planting of groves and of wind-breaks upon farms, there is of course no
occasion for public notice, any more than there would be in respect to a common grain-
field ; but in the matter of adjacent woodlands belonging to many owners—perhaps of
large aggregate extent, but difficult of access—sometimes inaccessible without crossing
the lands of others, there are points to be considered, that we may have to notice.

We find an instance at hand that will illustrate the subject. About fifty years ago,
in Rockland county, New York, there was found a wild broken tract of forest among
the highlands, extending into two adjoining towns, belonging to a considerable number
ef owners, and collectively known as the “ Big Woods.” It was found that the common
interests of these owners, required a union of effort in which a majority might control
for the common welfare, and an Act was procured March, 13, 1835, entitled “An Act to
Enclose a Tract of Woodland in the County of Rockland.”

It was a special Act, and after describing the tract by metes and bounds in detail, it
named three of the owners as trustees, until others were elected at an annual meeting to.
be held by all the owners on an appointed day. These trustees were to cause the whole
of the tract to be enclosed, each proprietor being allowed to build a certain portion,
according to the share of his interest ; or if this was neglected, it was done at his expense.
In places where the boundary was along lands not thus enclosed, their owners were of
course required to build their share as on common partition lines. A record of proceed-
ings was to be kept, and a report made at the annual election of trustees. No person
whatever, whether an owner or not, was allowed to turn any of his domestic animals
into this common enclosure, unless upon his own part—which was to be separately fenced
at his sole expense—under penalties that might be recovered by the trustees in an action
of debt, and for the common benefit. In short these trustees were vested with corporate
powers, in so far as concerned the maintenance of the protection of the combined estate.
In this instance, it does not appear that any of the parties included, dissented from the
arrangement. If there had been, it should afford no reason why the law should not have
been passed; at the desire of a controlling majority. There would be no difficulty in
arranging a general statute, in any of our States, that would meet all the contingencies
likely to atise in cases of this kind ; and if such a law provided that each owner should
have in person or by proxy, a voice in the elections in proportion to his interest, and if
the elections and accounting were annual, there appears to be no reason to suppose that
injustice could be done.

In Prussia, a law was passed in 1875, after several years of discussion, which
secured very effectually not only protection but management of the common interests of
adjacent forest lands of different owners, after a proceeding which I regard as better
calculated for guarding the rights of all parties concerned, than anything we have in use
in this country, and for this reason I will present it as concisely as possible.

This law provided that where woodlands adjoining could not be worked conveniently,
except by a common association, a majority might apply for measures having this object
in view ; might agree upon articles specifying the object, plan and organization, and
submit the same to a district tribunal, of the district where located, with all the informa-
tion necessary for its full understanding.

A time and place being appointed for a hearing, and all parties having an interest
being notified, any one of them may appear and state his reasons for or against the proposed
union. Those not attending are presumed to accept the decisions of the members present.
If approved, a formal code of regulations is prepared and signed, in which the rights of
every member are carefully stipulated, including rights of servitude, and the indemnities
to be allowed for their extinction ; and when these formalities are concluded, the com-
pany is declared fully organized, to continue until dissolved by a similar appointment

and proceeding. As such a tract of woodland might be of very unequal value, as well in
respect to soil surface and location, as the condition of the timber that might be growing
upon it, the values as well transient as permanent, are carefully appraised, and each
owner is credited with what is found due.

There are obvious economies to be realized in the management of large tracts of forest
land, quite as great as those from associated capital invested in large commercial or
manufacturing purposes. I am well convinced that the problems concerned in this sub-
ject will at a future day become a matter of careful study in this country,—when the
time shall approach, be it near or more distant, that the present great sources of our
timber supply shall have been spent.

Should it be found practicable for capital to monopolize and control our lumber sup-
plies, as it does our railroad system, and in various departments, our manufacturers, our
financial institutions and our commerce; we need not doubt but that every advantage
in the way of scientific principles and economical methods will be sought, and that the
most will be made from the opportunities under control.

The time may not be near, but it is none the less true, that these advantages are
worth seeking by every owner of a forest estate ; and it is capable of proof that in many
sections of the country, and especially in the broken and rocky portions of the Atlantic
states that are unfit for agricultural purposes, as well as upon fields exhausted by impro-
vident tillage, there is no form of investment that promises a better return. There is
certainly no form of cultivation, that, after the beginning, requires less labour, and none
which with proper protection is more sure of a profitable return.

These opportunities are offered in increased degree upon the prairies, with the
additions due to a better soil, greater convenience in working, and often with a nearer
market for the products, besides all the incidental advantages resulting to agriculture,
which their presence would bring.

The Hon. H. G. Joty, of Quebec, read a paper on

THE STUDY OF FORESTRY AS AN IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTOR
TO PRACTICAL EDUCATION.

There is a danger, in treating this subject—that of exaggeration—which will damage
the best cause.

The fact that we have met here from such widely distant sections of North America
—that many of us, leaving our homes and occupations, have travelled hundreds and
hundreds of miles to attend this Forestry Congress—is a strong guarantee that every
effort made to raise in public estimation the study and practise of Forestry, will meet
with your hearty support. But I wish to appeal to your reason rather than to your
sympathy, and to satisfy the judgment of the thoughtful men, who are ready and
willing to join every earnest effort, if they can once see that its results will be beneficial
to mankind.

What is meant by practical education? Training the child, his body, his mind, and his
heart for the work of life. Itisa general preparation for it. When you begin the education
of the child you do not know what his future occupation in life will be. A good educa-
tion is like a solid foundation built on the rock, ready to receive and support with safety
any kind of superstructure that may be erected upon it.

Education is training.—There is mental gymnastic to train the mind, as well as
corporal gymnastic to train the body. A man is not often called upon in after life to
repeat the performances learnt as a boy at the gymnasium. He may even forget them,
for want of practice ; but he will preserve through life some of the strength and activity
thereby acquired.

The aim of practical education or training ought to be as much as possible to choose

for the training of children such exercises as will be directly applicable and useful in after
life ; and I think the study of forestry fulfils these conditions to a great degree.

Timber is in request, more or less, all over the world. The Esquimaux is about the
only man who dispenses with it, not from choice, but because he cannot get it. His
winter residence is built with blocks of ice, and he braves the angry waves of the North
Seas in a leather canoe, ribbed with the bones of whales. Everywhere else you will fnd
wood, sometimes only the palm tree, or even the bamboo, but everywhere in the wildest
as in the most civilized countries, you will find wood in daily use.

Where the natural growth of timber is abundant the people will waste it, if they
are not brought up with a due consideration of its value. As a Canadian, I can speak
with some experience on that point. In such countries people ought to be taught the
value of timber; which trees to cut, which to preserve, how to thin their forests with
judgment, so as to increase their value, while deriving a good revenue from them.

On the other side, where the timber is scarce, or where there is none, like in the
western prairies, people must be taught how to grow it. They must learn what kinds of
trees are best adapted to their soil, their climate, and their wants, and how to grow them.

It is wonderful how little the country people in general know about forest trees.
Let them begin to learn when theyare young. The best mode of instructing a people is to
begin by instructing the children. This is the surest way of reaching the people at large.

You will say: “ You are speaking of a general system of education ; remember that
what you propose will only apply to the country, and not to the cities.” By far the great
majority of the human race live in the country, and those who are condemned to live in
the cities generally look forward, as a happy deliverance and reward for their labours, to
the time when they will leave town and live in the country. Take the most devoted
townsman and ask him if the forest trees are not the finest ornament of his streets. But
let that distinction stand as between country people and city people, if you like. I will
now attempt to show that the proposition enunciated in the title of this paper applies to
both cases, and that the study of the elements of forestry can be made an important con-
tributor to practical education.

How can you teach a child a better lesson of foresight, observation, patience, care for
the smallest details, and perseverance, than in teaching him to planta tree? He will soon
learn that he can only transplant his tree with hopes of success, in certain seasons ; that,
if he does not take it up with care, carry it with care, replant it with care, it will not
grow. He will soon find out that, by weeding and cultivating the ground, carefully staking
his tree, pruning it judiciously, it will prosper.

Speak of the training of young trees? Has not that very example of the careful
training of a young and tender tree, been taken in all ages, in all countries, as the best
example for the education of childhood ?

There are not many schools, even in the cities, where children could not be taught to
plant, every year, and attend to at least one tree each. If there is no room on the school
grounds, there is room along the streets, the roads, the squares, the uncultivated hills,
stony patches, waste ground in the neighbourhood of cities, where trees would always be
welcomed. The fact is that in several schools the practice has been already introduced in
observation of Arbor Day. It is good work for the body and the mind, and I do not
fear to say for the heart, too.

What a lesson you could teach a child when he asks: “ How long will it take before
_ that tree I am now planting is big enough to be cut down?” if you answer: “It may take
twenty, thirty, forty years or more ; that is a terrible long time to wait, is it not? You
may die before your tree is big, or go so far away that you will never see it again. But
your work will not be lost, my child. If you do not profit by it others will, and you will
have done more than many a grown up man has done; you will have left something
useful behind you.”

A communication was received from Gen. Hermann Haupt, Manager for the
Northern Pacific Railroad Company, inviting the Association to an excursion upon their
road. The thanks of the Congress were voted to Gen. Haupt for this courtesy, and Mr.

J. Fletcher Williams was requested to ascertain the details of arrangement.
5 F.

Prof. Wm. R. Lazensy, from the committee appointed the day previous, to repor’
upon Tree Planting, made the following report :

REPORT OF COMMITTEE UPON TREE PLANTING.

Forest Trees exist mainly for use, and no knowledge pertaining to the subject of
Forestry is more essential than to know how to raise them. Trees may be planted for at
least three distinct and special purposes :

(1.) For Timber.

(2.) For Shelter (an object too often overlooked), or,

(3.) For Ornament.

Your Committee would emphasize the fact, that the variety of trees grown for any of
these special purposes, the manner of treating the seed and raising seedlings, the method
of transplanting and after cultivation, will depend very greatly upon the conditions of
soil and climate. Hence the success or failure of tree planting in one section, will be no
criterion for success or failure in another. So variable are the attendant circumstances,
that nothing except a very general report upon the raising and management of trees will
be given.

PROPAGATION BY SEEDS.

No specific time can be given for securing all kinds of tree seeds. As a rule, they
should be gathered soon after they are ripe, placed upon the ground and covered to a
greater or less depth with soil ; the depth depending largely upon the amount of moisture.
All seeds which have a porous covering, like the elm, ash, maple, etc., should be sown in a
carefully prepared seedbed, immediately after they are gathered. Seeds which have a
firm hard covering, like the locust, retain their vitality for a long time, and may be kept
in a cool, dry, equable temperature. Such seeds should be thoroughly soaked before
being sown. In many sections of the country, seeds like the walnut, acorn, hickory-
nut, ete., can be successfully grown by planting them where the trees are to permanently
stand, rendering transplanting unnecessary.

PREPARATION OF SEEDBEDS.

For nearly all hardy deciduous trees, any open ground is suitable, provided the soil
be deep, mellow and rich. For evergreens, and a few deciduous trees like the elm,
the seedbed must be shaded. In propagating forest trees, it is well to grow several
varieties at the same time. Some insects, atmospheric trouble, or ill-understood con-
dition of soil, may cause a failure of one or two varieties, where others live and thrive.
If all should do well, when you come to transplant, those that are the most valuable may
alone be used.

TRANSPLANTING OF SEEDLING TREES.

As a rule, this operation should be performed after the first season’s growth. For
some cases, if the season has been unfavourable, the variety a slow-growing sort, and the
seedlings are not crowded, it may be better to leave them in the soil till another year.

Trees may be transplanted in the fall or spring ; these are points that must be
determined by the exercise of judgment. In Forestry, as elsewhere, nothing should be
absolutely trusted but your own senses.

HINTS FOR PLANTING AND CULTIVATION.

(1.) Plant thickly in rows, with full purpose to thin and prune as circumstances
shall dictate.

(2.) Never plant a tree that has any dead or diseased roots.

(3.) Upon a heavy clay soil, never plant seedlings any deeper than they were in the
seedbed. On a deep porous or drift soil, they should be planted several inches deeper.

(4.) Good cultivation is just as essential ina young forestry plantation, as it is in a
cornfield.

PRUNING FOREST TREES.

A straight stem is always desirable, and to secure this some pruning is often
necessary. Trees that are planted for ornament or for shelter should usually be allowed
to branch low. Those grown for timber, should be trimmed up, 2. e., all the lower
branches should be removed. Care should be taken, however, not to carry pruning so far
as to check growth. All suckers should be annually removed from the base of trees.

CHOICE OF VARIETIES.

The varieties most valuable for any given section, will depend upon location, and the
demand in the nearest market. Locust, Catalpa, Chestnut, Soft Maple, Box-Elder,
Cottonwood, Willow, etc., are varieties which will give the most speedy returns.

White Pine, Black Walnut, Butternut, Ash, Oak, etc., while not yielding so speedy
returns, will prove in many sections the most profitable in the end.

Remarks upon the report last presented, were made by Messrs. Burson, Minier, G.
W. Wright and Northrop.

Mr, Minter, presented some observations from his experience in the preservation
and planting of seeds. He remarked asa general rule, a seed should be placed in the
soil to a depth equal to three times its length.

Mr. Norturop strongly deprecated the planting of large trees.

Mr. Gso. H. Wricut thought that soft maple seeds should be planted the same day
that they were gathered.

Mr. BEADLE inquired concerning the planting of black walnuts, and particularly as
to the necessity of their being frozen in order to their germination. In the discussion
that followed, Messrs. Burson, Beadle, Minier, G. W. Wright and Loring participated ;
the latter thinking that continuous moisture alone was sufficient.

Mr. J. G. Kapp then read the following paper on the

EFFECTS OF CLIMATE UPON THE FOREST TREES OF FLORIDA.

By tHE Hon. J. G. Knapp, Srmona, Froripa.

In the discussion of any product of Florida, the peculiar climatic conditions of the
state must be constantly borne in mind.

In most regions latitudinal, isothermal and isohyetosal lines give clues to natural
growths ; and also to what exotics may reasonably be expected to succeed therein, The
temperature and rainfall of regions to be compared as homogeneous, must be as nearly
identical as possible. It isnot enough, that the mean temperature of all the months in
the year be equal ; because, such an equality may be reached by very high degrees at one
season of the year, and very low ones at another season. The same mean temperature
for the year, may be thus obtained as well as if all the seasons had been more eauable.
So too, the isohyetosals for the year, may be the same in two places, and yet in one region
the rainfall may be distributed very evenly throughout all the months, and in the other,
all the rains may fall in a very few months. Under both these conditions, there will be
_the same annual temperature and rainfall; but vegetations will not be the same. The
one may have killing frosts, and the other be nearly frostless|) The one may have des-
tructive rains and floods at one season of the year, and be parched and rainless at another ;
the other region may have the same amount of rainfall, but spread over the entire year.
The mean is the same in both, but the extremes differ. Some of these differences, which
characterize Florida, will crop out as this paper proceeds.

The soil of Florida does not essentially vary from the maritime portions of the other
Southern States ; therefore differences of forest growths must be traced to some differing
conditions of the climate.

In an excellent paper, read at Montreal last year, ‘On the Distribution of the
more Important Forest Trees in the Gulf Region,” Dr. Mohr noticed a deviation of
forest tree growth from the latitudinal lines, east and west of the Mississippi river.
He instanced the long leaved pine (Pinus australis), as having its northern limit at 32°
in Texas, while in Alabama it is found two and a-half degrees further north; and he
might have added, that in North Carolina, its northern limit is four degrees further.
The over cup oak (Quercus macrocarpus ), is common in the bottoms as far south as 29° in
Texas, yet it is even doubtful if it grows in Mississippi or Alabama. He very properly
attributes these differences to the changed climatic conditions of the region west of the
Mississippi, and mainly to the chilling influences of the north-western winds sweeping
with unmitigated force over the vast expanse of treeless plains west of the forest
region ; and to the diminished precipitation of atmospheric moisture. Here is a rule
which must not be lost sight of in considering any aspect of Florida—an equable
distribution of rainfall. :

Homogeneousness of climatic conditions causes homogeneousness of vegetation. So
heterogeneousness of climate causes heterogeneousness of growths. It is not enough
that there be the same isotherms and the same isohyetosals in the regions compared,
but temperature and rainfall must correspond in months and seasons. San Antonia and
Brownsville, in Texas, correspond in latitude and isotherms with San Augustin and the
Ten Thousand Islands, in Florida, but the temperature and rainfalls vary essentially. In
Texas the summers are hot and dry ; in Florida warm and wet. The Texan winters have
severe northers, which, even at Brownsville, would kill the orange tree. In Florida the
frosts do not kill them as far north as San Augustin. The rains fall most in winter in
Texas, and in Florida they occur in all the months, but most insummer. ‘The dry season
of Texas, often a drought in summer, is met in Florida, at the same season, by an average
of four showers in a week and a rainfall of three or four feet. In this is found the
main cause of the difference of forest growths in the two States.

Below the 33rd degree of latitude, the atmosphere may contain the same absolute
degree of humidity, or insensible water held in suspension, over Texas, Mississippi,
Alabama, Georgia or Louisana and Florida ; yet there may be a great difference in the
amount of precipitation in the different localities, owing to a difference in temperatures.
The winters of Florida are warmer than in the other States, and the rain and dew are less
because the warm atmosphere can retain the moisture. On the other hand the summers
are warmer in those States than in Florida, and the Jatter has wetter summers than the
former, which make them suffer from summer droughts. This variation of temperature
and rainfall, is one cause of the variation of forest growths. Add to this cause the
variation of timber growths already mentioned, which places Texas north of the belt of
the long leaved pines, and it is not difficult to suppose most of Florida south of the same
belt, and the heterogeneousness of the Florida forest as compared with those of Alabama
and Georgia may be accounted for notwithstanding latitudes.

DIVISIONS OF FLORIDA,

In Florida the isotherms and belts of rainfall have such a parallelism east and
west, that the most convenient method of considering its forests is by the lines of
latitude. The State extends into seven degrees of latitude, and I shall consider it under
seven divisions or belts. 1 Northern, 2 North Central, 3 Central, 4 South Central, 5
Southern, 6 Semi-tropical and 7 Tropical.

NORTH FLORIDA.

This belt lying between 30° and 31°, embraces all the northern counties, and
extends from the Perdido [Partido?] river to the Atlantic. As far east as the Suwanee
river, it is mostly in what Dr. Mohr designates “the great maritime pine belt of the
eastern Gulf States ;” the timber trees of which he has so ably described, as to leave

little need of further notice. On the older formations of Gadsdon, Leon, Columbia and
Jefferson counties, besides the pines on the most silicious portions, are found the more
southern forms of hardwood trees and some of truly Florida growth. Mingled with
these are seen a few of more northern growth. These last contain the blue ash
(Fraxinus quadrangulata), red maple (acer rubrum), basswood (Tilia Americana), mul-
berry (morus rubrus), sassafras (S. offinale), sour gums (Nyssa multiflora and unaflora),
sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua), the magnolia grandiflora, acuminata, and glauca.
Among the oaks are the live oak (Quercus virens), willow oak (Q. phellos), swamp white
oak (Q. lyrata), swamp oak (Q. Michauxii), water oak (Q. aquatica), turkey oak (Q. Cats-
baei) and blue jack (near tinctoria) ; the pignut (Carya porcina), and water hickory or
bastard pecan, (C. aquatica.) Dr. Mohr describes many other trees of great value which
are found in this belt. The lands on which the hardwoods grow, are denominated
“ hummucks,” or “ hammocks,” as distinguished from pinelands, and are esteemed the
richest soils of the State. The richness is in part due to the character of the soil, but
more to the fact that the forest fires seldom run on them to consume the fallen leaves
and grass. But this richness has had the effect to destroy these same valuable forests, in
order to make fields for cotton and corn.

Near the Atlantic coast and east of the Suwanee river the land is more level, and
much of it is at times submerged, giving rise to the expression “ flat woods.” On this
land the long-leaved pine (P. australis), “loblolly (P. teda), and swamp or bastard pine
CP: cubensis) are found. But owing to the fact that these lands are not sufficiently
drained to allow the long tap roots of the yellow or long leaved pine to penetrate the
subsoil, these trees are small and low, as compared with those of the dryer lands. The
swamp pines are also less than those described by Dr. Mohr, further west. Much of the
timber, such as it was, near the railroad lines, has been already stripped off, and the
land is left a prey to the devastating fires that during the dry seasons annually sweep
over it, and destroy any young trees that might otherwise grow.

This belt contains many small swamps, called ‘‘ Bayheads,” filled with small bays,
swamp ash (Fraxinus platycarpus), and small cypress trees, few of which are of any
value as timber. The cabbage palmetto (sabal palmetto) is common in those flat swamps,
but are generally small and short, from some defect in the soil or climate. On places
best drained the pines are largest, and the live oaks and water oaks appear. The last on
the lower St. John’s and St. Mary, become large trees, of little value as timber and
short lived as ornamental trees.

The causes spoken of by Dr. Mohr as «Miter de the timber belts from the parallels of
latitude, operate in this portion of Florida, and cause the eastern portion to show a range
of timber trees of warmer character than in the western portion ; so much that that
portion may be considered south of the great maritime pine belt.

All of north Florida possesses a very decidedly warmer temperature than even the
adjoining counties in Georgia, fitting them to excel in early market gardening. East of
the Suwanee the orange is largely cultivated. The wet lands of this belt are not
unhealthful, because there is little alluvium in the soil, and the fresh water in the
swamps and marshes does not become stagnant. All can bé completely drained, and
when so done, the cultivation of crops adapted to the soil and climatic condition will
become profitable.

Before leaving this belt, it should be stated that in Gadsden county, near the town
of Chattahoochee, and confined to a small locality, grows the Torreza tawifolia, or stinking
cedar, the most indestructible wood known ; also the Florida yew (Taxus Floridiana)
grows near the same place. The first is a small tree, but deserves the attention of the
arboriculturists in the south. Like the Sequoia, it has come to us from eons of the past.

THE NORTH CENTRAL BELT

lies between the 29th and 30th parallels, at the base of the peninsula ; and is affected by
the winds from both gulf and ocean. A great climatic change takes place here. In the
eastern half of the belt the sweet orange trees are seldom. severely injured by frosts,
though frosts are seen every winter. The cold atmospheric waves prevent the growing

of the lemon, citron, and lime. The oranges in this belt do not contain the same amount
of sugar as those grown further south, and the grape fruits and shaddocks are not con-
sidered edible. The forest growths, however, wear a decidedly warm aspect. The short-
leaved and loblolly pines are seldom met with. The white oaks, magnolias, elms, and
gums diminish in size and number; the black walnut (Juglans nigra), and some other
trees disappear from the forests, and other and more southern trees have taken their
places in the forest growth of the belt. The climate is becoming more decidedly Floridian.
The cold waves are less frequent and injurious in winter. Suflicient rains fall during the
colder months for such agricultural products as can be grown. The months of May and
June are the dry portion of the year, though they can scarcely be classed as droughty.
The summer rains are more frequent than in the northern belt, and the flat woods more
often covered with water. These rains have been known to destroy the yellow pines
and turkey oaks, in the water lands. Some of the richest hummocks in the State are
found in this belt ; but not unfrequently, as in the higher portions of the northern belt,
these have been sacrificed to corn and cotton. Some tine tracts of pine lands are found in
this belt, but they are being sacrificed to fire and cotton.

THE CENTRAL BELT

lies between the 28th and 29th parallels. Being near the centre of the peninsula, and
under the influence of the Gulf and Atlantic winds, a further climatic change has taken
place, and the Floridian character is more fully established in this belt. The parallel of
28°, and the isotherm of 72° nearly coincide, only separating on account of the greater
altitude and distance from the ocean and gulf in the middle of the peninsula. Cold
waves do not reach this belt with destructive force every year ; and it may be truly said
no one can be prepared to speak of the climate and productions of Florida, who has not
made himself thoroughly acquainted with this region in all its part.

On both coasts are found the mangroves, butterwoods, ironwoods, and other trees
of decidedly tropical origin. The sweet orange, both in tree and fruit here approach their
highest perfection. In this central belt lie the counties of Hernando, Sumter, and Orange ;
the southern portion of Volusia, and the northern portions of Brevard, Polk, and Hillsboro.
The backbone of Florida is still found in the counties Hernando, Sumter, Orange, Polk,
and Hillsboro. It is supposed that the highest point in the state is in this belt. Some
very rich hummocks lie in it ; and there is much first-class high pine land, on which the
orange trees thrive well ; and, as they are never killed by the cold waves, they promise to be
durable and prolific, Oranges and other fruits are more profitable than cotton raising,
which is yearly increasing in area ; and it is to be hoped that the destruction of the
forests for the purpose of cotton growing will not continue. Nearly all the wet lands
of this belt may be drained sufficiently to grow sugar cane and rice, and make excellent
pastures and meadows. Such improvements may put an end to the firing of the woods
and consequent destruction of the forests from that cause.

THE SOUTH CENTRAL BELT

lies between the 27th and 28th parallels. Wherever the land is sutticiently dry in this belt,
is the region par excellence of the semi-tropical fruits. In it lie the counties of Hillsboro,
Polk, Brevard, and Manatee. The backbone of Florida extends across the counties of
Hillsboro and Polk. Though there is a large area of flat land on which more or less water
lies during the rainy season, all may be drained, and made valuable land for agricultural pur-
poses. Much of this land is too wet during the rainy seasons for a healthful growth of the
long-leaved pine ; and the fires in the dry seasons have destroyed many trees that might
otherwise have grown. The cold is never sufficient in this belt to kill the leaves of the sweet
orange, grape fruit, and shaddock trees ; and the more tender lemon, lime, and citron are
seldom cut by the cold waves. The growth of the citron family is continuous, and they all
thrive on soils adapted to their growth. All these fruits can remain on the trees until fully
ripe, and they have matured their full supply of grape sugar. Hence the best seedling fruits
of the state are found in this belt; and it is confidently believed that a large proportion

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of the dry land, from which the wild forests shall have been removed, will be again covered
with fruit trees, and thus all the climatic advantages of forests be secured.

The wet lands are more subject to winter frosts than the dry ridges, and therefore
should not be selected as sites for winter gardens, or for the growth of the more tender
fruit trees. The high grounds of the southern terminus of the backbone of the peninsula
tend to bend the thermal lines of winter further south in the centre, than on either shore
of this belt.

The climate of this belt is decidedly Floridian in character, and cannot be compared
to anything bordering upon the Mediterranean. From the vernal to the autumnal
equinox, the winds, seldom more than the most gentle breezes from gulf or ocean, vary
vary from the west by the south to the east ; not unfrequently from all these directions on
the same day. The two months before the summer solstice are the dryest, and the three
months following that date are the wettest portion of the year. It would therefore be
advisable for gardeners, nurserymen, and orchardists to secure the means of watering
their crops in that dry period ; while the wet season will admonish them to avoid those
lands on which water can accumulate on or near the surface, as to all their crops, except
sugar and rice ; or to provide the means of draining them at that season.

“‘ Bayheads,” abounding in rich muck are frequent; and valuable marls and rich
phosphates are abundantly scattered over it. By the use of these the dry grounds
impoverished by the fires that have devastated these lands for years, may be restored
‘sufficiently to produce crops of grass and fodder plants for the support of stock, upon
which farmers here, as elsewhere, must finally depend for the means to keep up the
fertility of their lands, and give nourishment to their fruit trees.

Notwithstanding the large amount of wet lands in this belt, there is a tract contain-
ing more than 2,500 square miles, where mosquetoes are no more troublesome than in the
farming lands of the older northern states, and biting gnats are unknown. The fact is
mentioned, not accounted for.

The forest growth of this belt has undergone a further change. The white oaks have
disappeared from the woods ; the basswood, elm, magnolias, ashes, sassafras, the short-
leaved pines and many others are seen for the last time. Two pines not mentioned by Mohr
are found. On the keys and mainland are found the mangroves, the sea grape (Coscoloba
worfera) ; gumbo-limbo (Bursera gummifera) ; several varieties of eugenias or ironwoods,
white buttonwood (Conocarpus erecta); black buttonwood (Laguncularia racemosa) ;
sea bean (Dolichos puniens) ; the sweet and sour saps, and several others of the custard
apples (Anonas); the prickly ash (Xanthowylan pterota); the hog plum (Ximenia
Americana) ; the whitewood (Sapindus saponaria) ; the wild fig (Ficus aurea), whose
juice forms a kind of India-rubber ; the Spanish dagger (Yucca aloifolia) frequent the
coast, but may be transplanted to the dry lands, and constitute a hedge impervious to man
and beast. Single trees will form a body straight as an arrow, twenty feet high, crowned
with a spike of a thousand white liliaceous flowers, and its wood assumes the double form
of an endogens and exogens, like Dracena, whose antique form is found in the fossils,
clathraria and sternbergia. These are a few of the many trees, shrubs and plants of a
truly tropical character, found on both coasts and far into the interior. With this almost
tropical climate, and vegetations approaching the tropical, no portion of the state is
naturally as free from malarial diseases as this ; and its general salubrity and advantages
must guarantee a dense population to this belt.

THE SOUTHERN BELT

lies between the 26th and 27th parallels, and is embraced in the counties of Manatee,
Monroe, and Dade. Its north line passes just north of Charlotte harbour, through the
eentre of Lake Okeechobee, and a little north of Jupiter Inlet. Its only harbours are on
the west side. The few settlements, generally by cattlemen, are confined to the banks of
the Miakka, Peace, and Caloosahatchee rivers, to the western keys and the rocky ridge
along the eastern shore. The known forests are confined to about the same limits. The
peninsula in the southern central belt has been gradually flattening, and the rainy season
covers much of this belt with water, without sufficient drains to discharge it into the

ocean. Wet prairies are the result, on which only water plants can thrive, though at
some seasons these are dry, and for many years they have suffered like the balance of the
state by the insane practice of the incendiary’s torch ; and all the young trees have been
killed as fast as they may have attempted to grow. This, together with the water cover-
ing the ground in the wettest and hottest season of the year, has most effectually prevented
much of this region from making only a small forest growth.

In this belt the influence of a yearly six feet rainfall, and a tropical heat during
summer, have caused a complete absence of all truly northern varieties of trees. The
live oak, the southern pines, and a hickory near the Pecan, with a very hard shell, are
about the only trees of more northern origin found in this region. The cypress is still
seen in the swamps ; but, as in the belt next north, it is not the large valuable timber
tree of Alabama and Mississippi. The cause of diminished growth is not explained,
unless the climate is uncongenial ; and it is only found here because trees better adapted
to the climatic conditions have not found their way hither.

Frosts are seldom felt in this belt, and ail plants that can endure a minimum temper-
ature of 40° will succeed on all lands suitable to their growth. On both shores are found
cocoanut palms, and other trees of decidedly tropical character, and we may safely con-
clude that many other valuable trees may be introduced successfully from abroad. This
belt, almost without exception, is sufficiently elevated to admit of perfect drainage. It is
now healthful. What effect drainage may have in that respect remains to be determined.
I incline to the opinion that it will not be injurious.

THE SEMI-TROPICAL BELT

embraces all the balance of the peninsula, with the east and west keys. Its harbours on
the west are Calvareo Bay and the Ten Thousand Islands, entirely unexplored and
unmapped, and Bay Biscayne on the east.

The trees are almost exclusively tropical, including the royal, thinax, and cocoanut
palms, the cinnamon tree (Canella alba), the quassias (Simaruba glauca and S. amara),
satinwood (Chrysophyllum oliveforme), torchwood (Amyrio sylvatica), that will blaze like —
a candle when fresh cut from the green tree, lignumvite (Guiacum sanctum), hornwood
(Condalia ferrea), the hardest and heaviest of all Florida woods. Mahogany (Sweetenia
mahogani), crabwood ( Schefferia frutescens ), manchineel ( Hippomane mancinella ), poison-
ous to cut or work even when dried, the joewood (Jaquinia armillaris ), the most curious-
ly grained and ornamental of all timber, the Bastic (Dipholis salcifolia), the mastie (St-
deroxylon mastichodendron ), the lancewood ( Nectandra willdenoviana ), the wild tamarind
(Lysilonra latisiliqua), the tallowberry (Byrsomena lucida), and many others of great
commercial value and commendable qualities. From these trees we have plain indications
that other valuable trees may be here produced by cultivation.

Except the shores and keys, this belt is unexplored. Most of the Indians left in
Florida are hidden in its unknown recesses, where whites have never penetrated. The
accepted opinion is that it is uninhabitable by Europeans, or even Africans. No reason
is assigned for the opinion. These Indians reach it by land, but are never guides. Neither
cattlemen, surveyors, nor naturalists have penetrated into the interior—into a region
larger than the States of Connecticut and Rkode Island. What forests may be hidden in
its everglades, or what new and old varieties may be found, we know not. Whether it
consists of tangled jungles like India and central America, from whose labyrinths men
can only extricate themselves by the use of a compass; or, if it be deep morasses of tall
water grasses, and tropical reeds, no one can do more than guess. We only know that
most of it may be drained, and converted into extensive sugar grounds and rice fields,
with grain-bearing bamboo plantations ; while its drains shall form water ways to the
markets of the world, and return to its people such things as they may need. It is health-
ful now, as far as known, and the copious rains that fall on it, with the sea breezes that
always fan across it, will in all probability prevent any unfavourable results from its
drainage and cultivation ; seeing that all its water-ways should be lined with balsam bear-
ing trees.

TROPICAL FLORIDA

consists of the Southern Keys. These are narrow islands washed on every side by the
warm waters of the gulf stream. No winds can reach them that do not pass over those
warm waters. They are of coraline rocks, and elevated but a few feet above the level of
the ocean. Winds reach them unbroken, and storms dash the salt spray across some of
them, and waves roll over others ; so much that the firm rooting mangroves cannot obtain
a durable foothold, and make a shelter for other plants and hold the sand and wind. On
the higher keys are palms and the treesand fruits of the West Indian Islands. The
water in the ground is salt, and the inhabitants must always depend upon the clouds for
their water to drink. All trees except the palms must be short. The population must
find employment in gardening, wrecking, and fishing, and live in fields ratherthan villages
and cities ; and being on the very verge of the trade winds, these keys must be of great
value on account of their climate as residences, and for their productions, though from
their narrowness and rocky soil they may never be covered with forests of large trees.

NUMBER OF TREES IN THE UNITED STATES.

There are said to be four hundred and twenty varieties of trees in the United States,
and of these full one-half are found growing on Florida soil. More than fifty varities are
confined exclusively to this State, more ornamental woods than in all the other States.
The climatic conditions we have thus rapidly sketched, the heteroclitical character of
Florida, as compared to the balance of the continents of America, Europe, Africa, and a
very considerable portion of Asia, becomes apparent, and the trees peculiar to Florida in
a great measure demonstrate this characteristic.

Those who may desire to introduce other varieties of trees, whether for the timber,
fruit, or ornament, will, by an understanding of these climatic conditions, have a clue to
the locations from which the desired trees are to be derived ; as also the kinds that will be
likely to succeed in this climate. Selections are not to be made from the extremely dry
regions of Mexico or California, from the semi-parched coast of the Mediterranean, or the
Cape of Good Hope, in Africa, or from the parched peninsula of Persia in Asia, where ir-
rigation is absolutely required for production. Rains are as abundant, and in the hottest
seasons of the year in central America, and in Brazil, along the Congo, Niger and Sene-
gal in Africa ; in the islands of Ceylon, Java and Sumatra, as they are in semi-tropical
Florida ; but most of them have a dryer winter. In those places are many trees of great
value, which may find a home in Florida, such are the cocoa (Theobamba cocoa) from
whose nuts chocolate is manufactured ; the cow tree, (Galactadon utile) which, when
tapped, as we do the maple, yields a thick glutinous milk, without acidity, that is drank
and eaten as if it were milk from the cow, and is equally nourishing ; the Brazil nut,
(Berthelletia excelsa) whose nuts are so well known, may be grown near the southern
shore ofthe peninsula. It delights in wet marshy lands. The baobab (Adansonia digt-
tale) one of which is the oldest tree known upon the globe, and produces the monkey’s
bread, which is both food and a remedy in putrid fevers ; the bread fruit ( Atrocarpus in-
cisa) with many of the higher orders of spice-bearing trees may prove equal to any cold
that may occur in our two southern belts, if they may find a foothold in our coraline
rocks, and the salt spray not be uncongenial to their growth. Experiments should be
made with many of these trees to determine their adaptability to Florida. There are
other trees, like the date and other pinnated and thorny palms, upon which sufficient ex-
periments have been tried to show that they can be grown as far north as Brooksville,
latitude 28° 30’. The cocoa-nut palm will thrive near the coast as high as 27° 30’. Al-
though these palms may require twice as many years as the sweet orange before they
will bear fruit, yet, when they shall have reached that stage, they will not be less valuable,
and with the other valuable trees, will give all the beneficial results, as would the preser-
vation of the natural forests, in retaining to Florida its healthfulness, and afford the
people even better shades, and the soil better protection. Among the many valuable trees
native and exotic, that may be profitably extended to the warmest regions of the State,
the pecan (Carya oliveformis) and the mulberry should not be forgotten. The former

will follow the bitter pecan (Carya porcina) to Charlotte Harbour ; and the morus multi-
eaulis and morus rubra will flourish all over the State. The latter isa rapid growing
tree of valuable timber, and the fruit of both may be made of mercantile value. The
olive, as far as tried, thrives well in all parts of the peninsula.

A REGION FROM WHICH TO CHOOSE.

In casting about for a region nearest assimilated in climatic conditions to our Flori-—
da, none seems to approach so nearly in its summer rains, equability of temperature and
semi-tropical heat, as does the region found near the foot of the Himalaya ranges in upper
British India. Here are found some of the largest and most valuable of timber trees, also
trees whose fruits are more valuable than the timber itself. Here is the magnificent
teak (7'ectona grandis ) whose timber is preferred by the cabinet-maker to mahogany, and
by the ship builder to the live oak. The mango and mangosteen are trees nearly as large
as the teak, and their timber is nearly as valuable, while their fruits hold a high rank.
The tamarind, and the orange with its congeners are natives of this region. These make
large and valuable timber trees, and their fruits are too well known to need description.
The orange is known to succeed in nearly all of Florida, and the tamarind is found as far
north as the twenty-eighth parallel. Some others have already been introduced, and suc-
ceed in the southern belts. Others will do the same. Some will thrive on the drained
morasses and everglades ; and others will cover the dry lands, from which the pines shall
have been removed, with more valuable timber and fruit trees and shades, and fill the at-
mosphere with equally balsamic odours. The tall, straight bamboos, whose seeds equal
rye for food of man and domestic animals, can take the place of the tall worthless saw
grass and aquatic plants of the morasses, and give their annual yield of seeds and reeds for -
ages without cultivation. These gigantic straws are brought to our ports by the ship
load, and are familiar to every fisherman and boy. Florida might and should supply the
United States. The peninsulas of Siam and Cochin China, even China and Japan must
be searched for treasures with which to fill our Florida.

ONLY ONE FLORIDA.

The whole earth has but one Florida, and the United States own that. There is only
the Florida peninsula in all this world, washed on the west, the south and the east by
that greatest of all rivers, “the great river in the ocean,” the warmest water of that
ocean ; but one region in America, if in all the earth, over which devestating cyclones and
tornadoes do not pass; but one semi-tropical spot over which siroccoes do not blow and
parch ; but one region daily fanned by ocean breezes, and whose atmosphere is the breath ©
of flowers and balsamic odours—that region is our Florida.

The general Government may therefore well afford to give a few dollars to the ex-
ploration, to the study of the capabilities of Florida ; and to place on its soil such trees
and plants of value as are adapted to its climatic condition. Florida has in its climate,
and may have in its productions, such treasures as none of its sisters can possess—treasures
that should be most carefully fostered. Good statesmanship requires the most careful
yet liberal legislation on the part of Congress and the State to protect and improve this
best inheritance bequeathed by the FarHer to man, till Florida, from an unknown and —
much slandered region, least of states in estimated value, shall be ranked among the first
of states, not only in her rich productions, but in being the home of a healthful and happy
people.

Professor Dan1zLs, of Saint Paul, read a paper on
HOW TO ENLIST THE SCHOOLS IN AID OF FORESTRY.
He spoke of the prevailing ignorance upon the subject of forestry. In creating an

interest in the matter, he would first ask the co-operation of the school-teachers, but this
also implied an interest on the part of school boards and the State. The first step would

Or
Or

be to summon all the teachers to enlist themselves so far as to know trees by sight, so as
to be able to call them by their proper names ; for the teachers as a rule were not better
informed in these matters than the general public. The essayist went back to the olden
time, when country life was more prominent than city life, and when the children, living
as they did in the midst of forests, were acquainted not only with the varieties and uses
of wood, but of all plant and animal life. The conditions were now changed, and our
cities were swarming with people who knew nothing at all about these things. How was
such knowledge to be imparted? It must be done through the public schools. Every
teacher should be able to teach at least the names of the trees passed by the pupils on
their way to school, in the public parks and about their homes. To these should be added
the fruit trees. The essayist believed it would be proper for the Legislature to require
boards of education to require of the teachers sufficient knowledge to teach these things.
In time, when the pupils become more advanced, they should be taught concerning the
germination of seeds and the setting of trees. The essayist also suggested the plan of
having the pupils cultivate little patches of trees from the seed. If it was urged that the
schools were already overcrowded with studies, he would propose that some of the
ornamental studies be thrown out and forestry substituted.

It was announced that the excursion upon the Northern Pacific Railroad would start
from the Union Depot at 8.30 a.m. on the day following, and that the tickets would be
issued to Mandan, Dakota, and return.

A donation of cut flowers from Messrs. Underwood and Emery, of Lake City, to each
member of the Congress was then announced, and upon motion of Mr. JoLy, a vote of
thanks was returned.

The President having an engagement that would prevent further attendance, made
brief remarks upon retiring, and the Congress adjourned until 7.30 p.m.

Evening Session, August 9.
The hour for meeting having arrived Mr. H. G. Jouy, First Vice-President assumed

the chair.
Professor ApotpH Levé, of Cincinnati, Ohio, read a paper entitled

FORESTRAL EXHIBITIONS IN CONNECTION WITH FORESTRY
CONVENTIONS.

Professor Leue commenced by saying that forestry conventions in this country have
a double purpose—mutual instruction on the one hand and the arousing of a popular
interest in the cause of forestry on the other. Nothing should be left undone that may
tend to make a forestry convention both instructive and attractive. Instructive to those
who earnestly seek information in matters pertaining to forestry, and attractive especially
to those who have heretofore persistently remained in that peculiar state of apathy
towards our forests, which so advantageously distinguishes the people of this country from
those of Europe. The question, How can these be reached, was a problem which at all
times had engaged the attention of friends of forestry, and which had never been solved
satisfactorily. Forestry, in treating of trees as individuals, of trees in their relation to
one another, to the soil, to man, in fact, to all nature, was an extremely interesting study,
of which only those who had given it special attention had any idea. In order to reach
the indifferent, and create an interest in this study among the people, we must take the
forest to them, applying as it were, the advice of Malcolm, when he says :

“Let every soldier hew kim down a bough,
And bear’t before him.”

Not only boughs, but anything cf the forest, that may be instructive, beautiful or even
odd, should be brought. Such a collection which the friends of the forest might easily
bring together, will, if properly arranged for exhibition, attract the attention of the
people, excite their curiosity and induce them to come and see. Seeing will beget a desire
to learn, questions will be asked and discourses listened to, in short an interest will be
created and the object is attained. Such an exhibition at each of our annual conventions
can not be valued too highly as a means of education. It will stimulate researches, im-
press upon the mind certain truths, remove doubts, correct errors, become the testing
stone of our forestal knowledge.

Professor B. G. Norturop, of Connecticut, addressed the Congress at some length
upon

THE NEED OF A DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY IN COLLEGES.

Professor Norturop stated that he had agitated tree planting in Massachusetts and —

Connecticut, and that now there was not a homestead in Connecticut that had not been
beautified by tree planting during the past fifteen years. What was most needed was to
popularize and diffuse the sentiment of trees. Men were more readily reached by senti-
ment than in any other way. The place to start is at the beginning, and that important
fact seemed to have been neglected. There was a school of forestry in Ames, Iowa.
There was an arboretum connected with Harvard, but aside from this few steps had been
taken to encourage the education of the youth in forestry. In Europe it was one of the
rudiments of an early education, and a person destroying a tree or shrub in France or
Switzerland would be looked upon as a miscreant just as much as one who would poison
the public drinking fountain. What was most needed was to instruct the youth of
America in the sentiment of trees and then there would be no need for special legislation
to protect the beautifiers of our homes, and we would not be troubled by the starting of
forest fires. The value of trees for the reclamation of waste land was not understood,
but has been found to be very effective even in Europe. On the shores of the Bay of
Biscay terrible storms of sand were continually blowing, and trees were ultimately
planted. They protected the habitations on the coast, and where these terrible storms
prevailed with such disastrous effects there now stood a beautiful forest over 100 miles
long. Thirty years ago Daniel Webster influenced tree planting on Cape Cod, then a
barren waste, and to-day there were hundreds of acres under forests. This tree planting
had become a matter of vital importance even in China, and recently several trees were
planted as an experiment to reclaim waste land near the city of Tine-T'sin, on the property
of Wing Ho Tong, president of the Chinese Merchant Steamship Navigation Company.
The tree that he was experimenting with was the European larch.

This led to a discussion upon certain points suggested, in which Mr. Thane, Professor
Budd and others participated.

THE GrRowTH or Various TREES.

Mr. Greorce W. Minter, of Illinois, gave the result of some measurements he had
made of forest trees in that State, measuring the circumference at two feet from the

ground, as follows :—

Balsam fir, twenty-two years setting, twenty-four inches in circumference ; Norway
spruce, thirty years .setting, thirty-one inches; white elm, thirty years, from seed,
seventy-two inches ; white ash, eleven years, from seed, twenty inches; hard maple,
twenty-one years setting, thirty-three inches ; tulip, twenty-three years setting, fifty-two
inches ; Scotch pine, twenty-one years setting, forty-six inches ; hemlock, eighteen years
setting, twenty-two inches ; European larch, twenty-one years setting, thirty-eight inches ;
white pine, thirty years setting, sixty-three inches; Austrian pine, thirty years setting,

forty-three inches; red cedar, thirty years setting, thirty-seven inches; white cedar,
thirty-one years setting, thirty-seven inches; soft maple, thirty-one years, from seed,
_ thirty-three inches; black waJnut, thirty-two years, from seed, twenty-eight inches ;
_ butternut, thirty-two years, dead, thirty-two inches; butternut, thirty-two years, living,
_ twenty-nine inches ; white willow, eighteen years from cutting, sixty inches ; chestnut,
; five years from seed, twelve inches; soft maple, thirty-one years setting, sixty inches ;

t red elm, eight years from seed, twenty-four inches.
: measurement was to take the trees as they averaged in the State.

Mr. Minier stated that the trees were not selected for their size, but the object in the

ARE THE CONCENTRIC RINGS VISIBLE IN THE WOOD A CORRECT
; INDICATION OF THE AGE OF THE TREES?

Ex-Governor Furnas, of Nebraska, stated that the concentric rings of trees is no
_ criterion of the age of the tree. Asa rule Mr. Furnas said the number of rings were in
excess of the age of the tree, but he had found one specimen, the age of which was abso-
lutely known, which bore less rings than the age of the tree. He had another specimen

_ which contained two rings for every years’ growth.

Prof. Bupp, of Iowa, invited attention to a specimen of white poplar, grown on the
Towa Agricultural College farm. It was a close grained timber, does not warp or shrink,
and thought it would be a good substitute for the white pine. The specimen showed
more than thirty rings, while its actual age was not more than fifteen years. In answer
to a question, Prof. Budd said his experience in propagating this poplar from twig cut-
tings had not been very ercouraging. Root cuttings, however, were of quick and strong
growth, and twig cuttings put out in the fall generally did well.

Mr. Foster, of Iowa, said he had found in trees he had raised and cut—the catalpa
_ —the rings corresponded with the age of the tree. He noticed, however, that there was
_ @ great difference in the width separating the rings, but he was not prepared to say that
_ the rings were unerring indications of the age of the tree. Mr. Foster also stated that he
had grown a white pine, not yet thirty years old, which was twenty-seven inches in

diameter, which convinced him that that timber could be successfully grown.

Professor Bupp said that he had noticed that in dry seasons trees would produce two
rings.

Mr. Minter, of Lllinois, said he had cut this spring two pine trees he knew to be
thirty years of age, in which the rings corresponded with the age, and in his opinion if
the gentlemen would look a little further they would find that the timber in which the
rings did not agree with the age, they would find it was in cultivated timber. Nature

- never produced a double flower. Cultivation did that. So, in his opinion, was the ring
question, cultivation did the business. As to a substitute for white pine, he thought the
_ reproduction of that wood itself was the cheapest and the best.

Professor C. E. Besszy, of Ames, Iowa, took the position if two rings were pro-
duced in one season, there must have been two separate and distinct periods of growth
that season, and he asked that each member of the Congress resolve himself into a com-
mittee of one to study the subject in readiness for the next meeting.

Professor Wa. SaunvErs, of London, Ontario, read a paper on the

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE WHITE PINE.

This paper is embodied in the report of the Entomological Society of Ontario for the —

year 1883.

Mr. Exizur Wricut, of Boston, Mass., read a paper on
THE HYGIENIC VALUE OF FORESTS.

In comparative computations this is perhaps the least of the values attributed to the
woodlands, while possibly, it isthe greatest. Health is of the greatest interest to every organ-
ized being. The necessary condition of health to all that breathe is, that the atmosphere
shall be reasonably pure. It must consist simply of oxygen gas diluted with about four
times its volume of nitrogen. Any other gas vitiates it, and, especially if the air should
contain as much as one per cent of carbonic acid gas, it becomes intolerably unwholesome.
Geology teaches us that previous to the formation of the coal beds the atmosphere was so
mixed with this deleteorous gas, that such breathing animals as men could not have ex-
isted. It was necessary to deoxodize the carbon that existed in that gas, before the higher
forms of animal life could exist. And this was done by that vegetation which extracted
carbon from the air, and left it in the form of coal.

But no sooner was the air by the paleozoic forests made fit for breathing animals,
than these, in the act of breathing, poured more carbonic acid gas into the air, so that the
trees or some other powerful deoxodizer must still keep at work purifying the air, or the
breathing animals would be stifled; for be it remembered that carbonic acid though it
mixes freely with common air, is so much heavier that it is always found in the largest
proportion near the surface.

Well, however it may have come about, what exists to-day is, that animals and vege-
tables are dependent upon each other. The warm-blooded animal is constantly pouring
out of his blood, through hiylungs, waste carbon, in the shape of carbonic acid gas, and the
tree is constantly absorbing that carbon through its leaves and releasing the oxygen. We
must not argue from the vastness of the atmosphere that the animals can get along with-
out the trees. Where is any other deoxodizer that works on a sufficiently large scale ?
Observe that men and domestic animals not only multiply by millions on the face of the
éarth, but they are disembowling the earth of its coal and burning it by hundreds of mil-
lions of tons a year, which means that they are doing much to put the atmosphere into
that condition in which only saurian monsters could live. The tall chimneys carry much
of the carbonic acid far above our heads, and the kind winds waft it away to the mountain
sides, where it feeds the hungry trees. The great Hebrew legislator plainly recognized
the hygienic value of trees, where in his Deuteronomy he wrote :

‘““When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou
shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of
them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man’s life) to employ
them in the siege.” Deut. xx. 19.

The true doctrine, including the mode of operation, of the interdependence of men
and trees, is quite a modern one. Its real discoverer died only six days before the pres-
ent speaker was born. He was a pagticular friend of our Benjamin Franklin. Nearly
nine years ago, at the unveiling of the statue of Joseph Priestley, at Birmingham, Prof.
Huxley used these memorable words :

“‘ He laid the foundation of gas analysis, he discovered the complementary actions of
animal and vegetable life upon the constituents of the atmosphere, and, finally, he crowned
his work this day one hundred years ago, by the discovery of that pure ‘ dephlogistica-
ted air’ to which the French chemists subsequently gave the name of oxygen.”

For human welfare, was there ever a more valuable discovery in the annals of time ?

Yet Priestley was persecuted for his humanity and really driven from his own country to
ours. His country honours itself with his statue. Let ours honour itself with the glorious
forests of the future, whose cause he pleads.

All vegetables absorb more or less carbon from the atmosphere, but plainly, trees the
most, for wood consists mostly of that substance. A white pine will grow on a slightly
covered rock, when the soil accessible by its roots could not possibly contain enough car-
bon to make a cubic foot of wood till its grand trunk contains 500 feet or more. That
trees do not get their carbon from the soil or the water therein, the negative evidence is
partly complete. That they get it from the carbonic acid floating in the atmosphere, L
will adduce authority from the highest scientific minds of the age.

Prof. Balfour, of Edinburgh, after citing and considering all the various opinions and
theories of naturalists on the subject, says :—

“ From all that has been stated, it would appear that an absorption of carbonic acid
by the leaves of plants and an elimination of oxygen takes place during daylight, and
that this process ceases in a great measure during the night. The exhalation of carbonic
acid by healthy leaves is still doubtful, and the appearance of this acid gas may in many
of the experiments be traced to an abnormal condition of the leaves. The great function
of the leaves thus seems to be deoxydization, by means of which they are instrumental in
keeping up the purity of the atmosphere. This function of plants is antagonistic in its
results to animal respiration ; for while the latter takes oxygen from the atmosphere, and
replaces it by carbonic acid, the former removes carbonic acid, fixes carbon, and gives out
oxygen. The processes of respiration and combustion are pouring into the atmosphere a
large quantity of carbonic acid gas, while the active leaves of plants are constantly re-
moving it, and, under the action of light, substituting oxygen. While plants thus get
carbonaceous food, the air is by them kept in a state fitted for animal life.”

Prof. Ferdinand Cohn, of Breslau, says :—

* The leaves are cell-villages which perform their daily tasks in the air and in the light.
Their principal business is to obtain coal, which is the chief constituent of the vegetable
body. Our atmosphere is an enormous coal mine, many miles in thickness, that cannot
be exhausted in thousands of thousands of years. The coal, indeed, is not found pure in
the air, any more than the metal in the ore, but is in combination with oxygen as a trans-
parent gas, carbonic acid, and a peculiar art is required to separate it.

“In the mining districts smelting houses are erected beside the pits, where the noble
metal is extracted from the impure ores. The green cells of the leaves combine the art
of the miner with that of the smelter, and have the power of extracting the pure carbon
from the atmosphere. In order to perform this work they must be shone upon by the
sun, for the sunlight alone can excite in them the marvellous faculty. Having extracted
the carbon they combine it with water and with the mineral substances that have been
drawn from the soil, and prepare from them the living matters out of which the plant it-
self builds up its cells, and which, taken up into the body of an animal, are transformed by
it into flesh and blood.”

Hence, I think we may safely concluded that only decaying or unhealthy vegetables
ever give out carbonic acid by day or night, and that forests do nothing to speak of in re-
gard to the atmosphere, but to absorb the impurities which animals and their arts are con-
stantly pouring into it.

lt follows from this demonstrated fact that keeping up a fit proportion of forest to
arable land, is the prime condition of human health. Ifthe trees go, men must decay.
Whoever works for the forests works for the happiness and permanence of our civilization.
A tree may be an obstruction, but it is never useless. Now is the time to work if we are
to be blessed and not cursed by the people of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
The nation that neglects its forests is surely destined to ruin.

A paper by Dr. A. Exy, of Sebringville, Ontario, was presented by the recording
Secretary, entitled :—

HOW SHOULD WE MANAGE OUR NATURAL FORESTS.
By Dr. Expy, SEBRINGVILLE, ONTARIO, CANADA.

As our natural forests will doubtless be used as the bases of the future forests, it
becomes us to consider well how we should manage them in order to achieve the best re-
sults. In other words, how can we change our neglected, natural woods into forests culti-
vated on scientific principles. Many people imagine that nature left to herself will pro-
duce her best results ; but experience teaches us that though she may produce splendid
specimens, her best results are only yielded when subjected to cultivation and managed
according to scientific principles. Profuse and exuberant as nature may be, no one would
think of comparing her products with the fruits of our gardens or our orchards. Who
does not know the immense superiority of the cultivated strawberry over the wild fruit ;
yet it is well known that this result has been attained by the cultivation of the wild
plant. In a state of nature the potato produces tubers little larger than walnuts, but by
continued cultivation our splendid varieties have been produced. Who does not know
the difference between an apple tree left in a state of nature and one subjected to cultiva-
tion. In the same way a far larger amount of wood and much more valuable timber can
be produced from a given acreage, in a given time, in a forest subjected to cultivation by a
scientific forester, than will be produced in the time from an equal area, in a forest left to
itself.

If we examine a natural forest, we find it consists to a large extent of trees that have
reached a state of maturity. Giants, hoary with age, occupy a large extent of ground, extend-
ing their roots and their branches widely in every direction. Some of them have doubt-
less stood for centuries, and have long since ceased to grow ; and though still showing signs
of life and health, are really slowly decaying and will finally die. Their wood, though still
firm and sound, shows a looseness of texture not at all found in growing wood. Other
trees, not quite so large or so old, are still slowly growing, though their annual increase
may not be perceptible. Others again are hardly able to find a place to spread their
leaves to the air and the light. These are still young and vigorous, and in the best years
of their growth. But as they are, to a large extent over-shadowed by older and larger
trees they make but little annual growth. As sunlight is essential to the growth and
development of wood cells, small trees that are over-shadowed by those of greater age,
grow very little until they are able to expose their leaves to the sunlight.

There are comparatively very few small trees, or what are popularly called saplings.
Though the old trees bear seeds abundantly, large numbers of which annually sprout,
very few manage to find their way to the light. The dense shade of the older trees soon
kills them off. Only here and there one finds sufficient light to grow upward, to where it
can spread its head to the sun. As it is very difficult for young trees to get sufficient
light for their development, comparatively very few reach a state of maturity. They
mostly die of starvation. Though in the midst of an abundance of plant food, for want of
some light and heat to change the chemical composition of that food, and thus enable the
plant to use it for the growth and development of its cells, the plant sooner or later dies
from want of sufficient nourishment.

As the decay and death of mature trees is very slow, requiring ages for their removal,
it requires very few young trees to keep a natural forest intact. As the removals are so
slow, but few renewals are required. Very few natural forests contain sufficient young
trees to make a dense or close growth if the old trees were all removed. I have seen forests
a few years after a full seed year, thickly covered with seedlings which would have
rapidly grown up if the overshadowing trees had been removed. But left to a state of
nature those seedlings die in a few years, as the amount of light that reaches them is not
sufficient to effect the chemical changes in their sap to adapt it to their growth. They die
because they cannot get the light necessary to change the food that surrounds them, so as
to adapt it for their digestion. An abundance of light is essential to plant growth. As the

toe ks
cata ed

overtopping trees that occupy nearly all the upper surface of the forest are mostly full
grown, their annual increase in size is very small. At the same time the overshadowed
smaller and younger trees are stunted in their growth from want of sufficient light. It
will thus be seen that the aggregate growth each year of a natural forest must be much
less than would be the case if the trees were ali of the same age and still sufficiently
young for vigorous growth. At what age our native trees cease to grow and the period
of their greatest growth are subjects for future observations. Those points can only be
decided after those trees have been extensively subjected to forest culture. The observa-
tion of their growth in isolated situations, and even in gardens and parks will be of com-
paratively little value to the forester. Trees grown in isolated situations have the advan-
tage of a greater amount of light and air than those grown in aclose forest. At the same
time they are more exposed to droughts and storms than the latter.

The first point for the forester to consider in taking charge of a natural forest is how
shall he restore it to a state of vigour, so as to attain a maximum increase of bulk each year.
This can in a measure be done by removing all the mature trees and leaving only those that
are still young and vigorous. It can be done still better by removing all trees more than three
or four inches in diameter, and even those of that size if they have been injured by the falling
trees, or if they have been much stunted in their growth by overshadowing trees. Care
should, however, be taken before the removal of trees to have the ground thoroughly seeded.
If it is possible to await a year when the trees bear a full crop of seeds it should be done; but
if such cannot be done, or it is desirable to change the variety of the trees, seed or trees must
elsewhere be obtained and planted in the vacant spaces between the saplings that have been
left standing. A good many healthy sprouts can be obtained from the stumps if care is taken
not to injure them in the cutting and the removal of the old wood. If it is intended to
utilize the sprouts from the stumps in the growth of new trees, they should be cut as
closely as possible to the ground. I need scarcely say that in a forest to be renewed great
care must be taken against fire, which not only destroys the life of the stumps, and thus
prevents their sprouting, but it destroys the seeds. Where it is necessary to destroy the
brush and other rubbish, it should be removed to some vacant lot, where the fire can do
no harm.

If the area to be managed is small it may be as well to make the changes as fast as
a profitable market can be found for the wood, unless it is intended to treat it under the
copse system, when it must be changed in accordance to the system of rotation to be
adopted. If the area to be managed comprises several hundred or more acres, it should
be divided into such lots as it may be possible to replant each year with the help and
resources at the command of the forester ; due regard always being taken of the wants of
the wood market. If the future forest is to be allowed to grow up to the natural height
of the trees, it will be well to divide the forest to be managed into lots corresponding to
the number of years that the trees are expected to grow. One of these lots should be

renewed each year. Thus a regular system of rotation will at once be established, giving

not only a certain area of wood to be felled each year, but the replanting of the same
area. Concurrently with the renewal of the annual lots, the large over-mature trees
should be removed from the rest of the natural forest, as fast as it is possible to find a
profitable market for the wood.

If the existing trees are of such kinds as are valued for their timber, they should by
all means be preserved, by obtaining a new growth from the seed or from sprouts. But
if they are of inferior value or quality, it will be advisable to replace them, at least
partially, by more valuable varieties. For example, it would be advisable to change a
beech forest into one in which oak or some other more valuable wood predominates.
Consideration should always be taken of the future wants of the district in which the
forest is situated. If it be near a manufacturing centre, such woods as are in especial
request by the manufacturers should be grown, if,the soil and climate be at all favourable
to their growth. This fact cannot always be known from the fact that the particular
trees wanted grow in the neighbourhood or in the same latitude in other places. Some
trees bear exposure to a moist or a salty atmosphere much better than others. Some,
again, will flourish on a southern exposure, while others require the northern declivity of
amountain. If the district to be managed is far from a railway or other means of cheap

transportation, while the inhabitants of the surrounding country follow agricultural pur-
suits, the chances will be that fuel and building timber will be in demand by the time the
trees will grow up. It will, therefore, in such cases, be well to plant trees valuable for
fuel, with a lesser amount of such trees as will be valuable for building purposes. As
building material will always be in demand, no one will go wrong by planting such trees,
as pine, spruce, laurel, oak, elm, etc. ; which are most highly valued for building purposes.

My remarks have hitherto been directed especially to deciduous trees. In pine or
spruce forests a somewhat different course should be pursued. No trees less than at
least sixteen inches in diameter should be allowed to be removed. Trees smaller in size
than that mentioned are still in the best years of their growth, and should be permitted
to grow on for future use. At the same time steps should be taken to have the vacant
spaces well seeded. Care should also be observed that the ground is properly cleaned
for the seed. If it is covered with grass or moss such must be removed before the seed
begins to fall. Care should also be taken to have the tops and other refuse removed to
some vacant space and burnt to prevent their becoming a source of danger by fire. In
districts where fuel is scarce, it may be well to allow poor people to remove the stumps
for the sake of the wood. They will thus not become a source of danger from fire when
they become rotten. When it is not possible to get the stumps removed, care should be
taken to have them cut as close to the ground as possible, so as to be out of the way of
future operations.

If the trees are cut before the cones have had time to shed their seed, they should be
carefully collected from the prostrate trees and placed on cloths or a tight floor in a dry,
warm but airy room so that the cones will open, when the seeds will fall out if the cones
be well beaten. The seeds so collected should be carefully sown over the vacant spaces in
the forest. In Norway a few of the larger trees are left standing to seed the ground, but
as the seeds do not fall very far from the parent stem, the young plants will come up
very thickly near them, while the ground will be but sparsely, if at all, covered at some
distance from the parent trees. Great care should be taken to have our great pine forests
thoroughly reseeded after being cut over. This isa matter of so great importance to the
future welfare of our continent that it should by no means be left to the chance of a nat-
ural seeding. Where the pine lands are stillthe property of the government, they should
be placed in the charge of an efficient staff of thoroughly qualified foresters, who should
inake it one of their duties to have the annual cuttings thoroughly reseeded so as to have
them reforested as soon as possible. Where the pine forests have become private pro-
perty, their reforestation becomes a question of greater difficulty. But as those lands
are mostly of inferior quality or worthless for agricultural purposes and offer few induce-
ments for settlers, it might be good policy for the state or provincial governments to ac-
quire the title to them for the purpose of reforesting them. As forests they would again
in a few generations, become sources of wealth to the people and of revenue to their own-
ers, the government. Those lands if left in private hands will, from the poverty of the
soil, in a few generations become a barren desert, totally worthless to their owner and a
loss to the national wealth. I do not wish to be understood as saying that all pine lands
are worthless for agricultural purposes, but it can be said of most of them. Many pine
Jands at first show a great richness of soil, but will gradually become worthless for farm-
ing purposes. The vegetable mould that was formed by the decay during many cen-
turies of the annual fall of leaves, soon becomes exhausted where the subsoil itself is of
a poor quality. Once exhausted, such lands bring the husbandman but a very poor re-
turn for the labour he is compelled to devote to them. Planted with pine they would
produce a rich harvest and would be a source of wealth to the country, but for other crops
they are almost worthless. :

It will be observed that I have advised the renewal of our natural forests. In my
opinion they have reached their maximum growth, and the best thing to be done with
them is to make them the basis of future operations. To continue them in thsir present
condition is merely storing up the timber for future use in the same way as we store up
grain ina granary. It does not gain in bulk, it merely keeps its own. What it gains
in bulk by the growth of the young trees it loses in quality by the decay of the old trees.
Our natural forests have reached a stage of maturity and the animal growth merely com-

eT a gti

pensates the continual decay. What is required is the decrease of the annual decay
and the increase of the annual growth, so as to obtain a net increase of bulk. Just in
proportion as the increase of bulk exceeds the annual decay, will the forest become pro-
fitable. The cost of the land and the expense of planting may fairly be represented as an
investment of capital. The annual increase of bulk should be regarded as the interest on
the investment; and just in proportion to the annual growth will be the profit on the in-
vestment of capital. It would not be advisable completely to remove our natural for-
ests atonce. Though it might be desirable to renew them as quickly as possible, it would
be bad economy to cut them down faster than a profitable market can be found for the
wood. At the same time the wood should not be placed so abundrntly on the market as
to encourage waste. It is to be feared that such is but too often the case. The
owners of our woodlands seem to be but too anxious to get rid of their wood,
even if they overstock the market,as is very often the case. While we plant
trees in order to create a supply for future generations, we should not forget to
economize with the store nature has so abundantly provided for our use and make it last
until the growth of our own planting can be utilized. Our people should learn so to
economize with their wood that the consumption can be brought within the production,
that is as much wood should each year be grown as is required for consumption.

We have still a large amount of forest land on this continent and a great deal of
waste land that should be reforested. But it cannot be denied that our forests are disap-
pearing so fast as justly to afford thoughtful men cause for serious apprehension for the
future welfare of our countries. In many of the older settlements wood is becoming so
valuable that the people are carefully husbanding what is left to them, but little effort is
however made in reforesting even waste and otherwise worthless lands. What is wanted
is a thorough education of our people on the importance of always having a certain pro-
portion of our lands covered by forests. So long as the Forestry Congress is not well
supported by the public sentiment of our people, our forests will continue to disappear
and no serious efforts at reforesting will be made until public opinion will compel our
governments to take the matter in hand. Far however be it from me to say that our
present labours are in vain. On the contrary, they are of the highest importance in edu-
cating our people and creating that very public sentiment we are now wanting in order
to attain practical results from our labours.

When a forest is to be preserved, steps should be taken to make it accessible at all
seasons of the year. In other words, roads should be laid out and graded to all parts of
the forest, so that if it becomes necessary to remove any fallen trees or thinnings from the
forest, it can be done without injury to the growing trees. A waggon driven over the
roots of trees will injure them more or less, and will proportionally retard the growth of
the trees injured. The question of forest roads may be a question of small importance
in woods containing from ten to fifteen acres; but is a matter of great import-
ance when we have to deal with large tracts. It is also of importance where
the forest is divided into lots for successive cutting as in copse culture. In such cases,
unless the lots are very small, it would be well to have a road around each lot.

Care should also be taken to have the forest cleared of fallen trees, and decaying logs
and stumps, as these are a constant source of danger from fire. The forester should al-
ways carefully guard his charge against fire. A fire of a few hours duration may de-
stroy the growth of a life time. The forester should also carefully protect all insect eat-
ing birds.

Prof. B. G. Norturop, offered a resolution recommending the appointment of an
Arbor Day especially for the schools, in the several States and Canada, which was

adopted. i

Mr. Stewart Tuane, then moved the following resolutions, which being seconded by
Prof. Levt, and discussed by various members, were adopted, viz :

“ Resolved, That it be an instruction to the Executive Committee of the American
Forestry Congress, to call a meeting of enrolled members at the opening of next session,
prior to any generzl meeting, to receive reports and communications, and to arrange the
order of business.’

“* Resolved, That in the opinion of this Congress, it is advisable that some member of
the Executive Committee, or some member or members deputed by them, shall proceed
to the next place of meeting ten days prior to such meeting, to see that all necessary
preparations be made for the reception of the Congress.”

Votes of thanks were then passed—

To the Governor of Minnesota for his kindness in granting the use of the Capitol for
the meeting of the Congress, and for personal attention ;

To the Mayor of Saint Paul, and to the members of the Local Committee for courte-
sies and attention to the affairs of the meeting ;

Mr. J. Fletcher Williams, in an especial manner for his constant and efficient
services prior to and during the session ;

To the Burlington Cedar Rapids and Northern R. R. Co.; the Grand Trunk Railway
Co. of Canada, the Chicago, Minneapolis and Omaha R. R. Co., the Saint Paul and
Milwaukee R. R. Co., the Chicago and Alton R. R. Co., and the Michigan Central
R. R. Co., and the Rock Island Railway Co., for the kindness shown to the members of
this Congress, and for the concessions granted ;

To the gentlemen of the press, who have attended and reported the proceedings.

, The American Forestry Congress then adjourned to the call of the Executive

Committee.
The Province of Ontario was officially represented by Messrs. D. W. Beadle and
William Saunders ; and the Province of Quebec by the Hon. H. G. Joly and Mr. Stewart

Thane.

The following paper contains most valuable information upon the subject of

NEW AND NOTEWORTHY TREES, SHRUBS AND CONIFERS.
By W. C. Barry, Rocuestser, N. Y.

[A paper read by request before the American Association of Nurserymen, Florists and
Seedsmen, at their annual meeting, at Saint Louis, June 20, 1883. |

During the last few years several beautiful and valuable new trees and shrubs have
appeared. It is my purpose in this paper, to refer briefly to some which we have tested
and consider most entitled to the consideration of planters.

Taking up the family of Maples first, we have the Japanese species and varieties,
which, after having been tried for some time in various soils and localities, have, so far
as I can learn, proven nearly hardy. It affords me much pleasure to furnish favourable
evidence relative to this important qualification, for when these maples were sent out a
few years ago, many persons, myself included, doubted their value for out of door decora-
tion, supposing them to be too tender to resist successfully the severity of our winters.
However, being greatly interested in them on account of their extraordinary beauty, we
imported fine plants of the choicest varieties direct from Japan, gave them a fair trial,
and now have large specimens doing finely upon our lawns at Rochester, where they have
stood out unprotected the last three winters. Our experience is that young plants, until
they become well established are liable to suffer injury from extreme cold. Hence spring
planting is recommended for them, thus affording the plants a chance to become well
rooted before the approach of cold weather. Protection with evergreen boughs the first
winter is also suggested, and judicious pruning is attended with the most satisfactory
results. In the spring, just before the buds start to grow, every tree should be carefully
examined, and the dead wood, of which there is always sure to be some, removed. If
the specimens do not grow vigorously enough, give them more nourishment, and cut
them back severely. These are simple hints regarding their treatment, but nevertheless
important; and if the suggestions are carried out, success can be recorded in the future
where failure has been experienced in the past. The best varieties for general use are as
follows: The normal form or type, polymorphum, is a tree of small stature, medium

growth, and regular outline, having rather slender branches, and small handsome foliage
of a pleasing green colour during the summer, but turning to a rich crimson in the autumn.
This species is, I think, destined to become very popular. The variety sanguineum, is a
dwarf tree, having rich red foliage, which holds its bright colour till the middle of sum-
mer. During the months of June and July a specimen is a very conspicuous and attra-
tive object upon the lawn. Atropurpwreum is another variety of modern growth, having
purple leaves, and when planted with the above produces an effective contrast. Atropwr-
pureum dissectum, has slender branches, which show a strong tendency to droop, and its
leaves are delicately cut, resembling fern leaves, and of a beautiful purple shade. Japon-
acum is another very distinct species of medium growth, with large, handsome, bright
green leaves, the edges of which are scalloped. It grows more vigorously than polymor-
phum and its varieties, and bearssome resemblance to the Red Colchicum Maple. There
are several other varieties and forms, but these are the most beautiful and useful.

Now a suggestion with regard to the manner of planting. As these trees are what are
termed slow growers, it takes some time for them to become effective. Hence, we advise the
planter to arrange them in groups consisting of three or six plants. A very satisfactory
effect will thus be quickly realized, and every year the group will become more elegant and
attractive. For several years the propagation of these maples has been conducted on a
very limited scale, owing to the difficulty of procuring stocks to graft upon, and the price
of plants has consequently been quite high. These obstacles having been removed, we may
hope soon to obtain these beautiful dwarf trees at a moderate cost.

Two new varieties of the Norway Maple have recently been introduced from Ger-
many, and promise to become important acquisitions. These are Schwedlerii and
Reitenbachi. Both have the vigorous, elegant, clean growth, for which the type is so
justly esteemed. Schwedlerii has bronzed purple leaves, which appear to the best
advantage during the spring time and early summer. As the season advances the leaves
change to a duller shade which is less attractive. But in this respect it differs little from
purple-leaved trees generally, as they all lose their richest tints during the hot summer
days. Reitenbach’s maple is of quite recent introduction, and while its foliage lacks the
richness and brilliancy of colour, for which Schwedlerii is noted, its purple shade is more
enduring and lasts till late in the season. Lorberg’s cut-leaved Norway maple is also
quite new, but it does not differ enough from the old variety, dissectwm, to be of much
value, at least such is my opinion at present. Dissectum is a rare and handsome variety,
and has always been scarce, owing to the difficulty which nurserymen experienced in ob-
taining saleable specimens, its growth being always more or less crooked. Lorbergii seems
to be a better grower, and asit can be propagated more successfully, it may displace
dissectum. Among cut-leaved trees both deserve our highest regard, as their leaves are
deeply cut, and they form elegant specimens. Woorle’s golden-leaved sycamore, a recent
novelty from Germany, has superb yellow-tinted leaves; which render the tree remarkably
showy in spring and early summer. Planted with purple-leaved trees the effect is
charming. The yellow hue is not of the character which indicates lack of health; on the
contrary, it has a richness and depth betokening extreme vigour. Still another interesting
form of the Norway is the curled-leaf. The leaves are of the usual size, but the lobes
curl and turn inward in a curious manner, giving to the tree a unique aspect. This
variety must not be confounded with the eagle’s claw from which it is very distinct.

Acer Tartaricum ginnala is an ornamental variety of the Tartarian maple, of rather
slender, yet vigorous growth, rounded, regular form and having small or medium sized
foliage. Its health, freedom from insects, hardiness and handsome appearance combine to
make it a desirable addition to the list of small trees. .

Acer velutinum is a species brought to notice recently, but its origin I am unable to
give. In general appearance it resembles somewhat the sycamore, but the foliage is
thicker, of a dark green colour, and the petioles are deep red. The impression I have
formed, after examining a small specimen, is that it will prove to be a distinct tree of
considerable merit.

We have now studied the maples pretty thoroughly, and will pass to other interesting
trees.

Memminger’s horse-chestnut is a comparatively new tree, having showy pale yellow

foliage, suffused or sprinkled with white. This shade, though peculiar, is effective and
beautiful, and a well developed specimen appears to fine advantage, especially in spring.
Later on the delicate tints of its leaves fade under the effects of scorching sun, and
then it reverts te the ordinary form of the horse chestnut.

Alnus tiliacea is a noteworthy tree, having the foliage of a linden and the growth of
analder. Indeed few would recognize it as an alder. Its fine pyramidal form and rich,
glossy, dark green foliage render it an elegant tree.

The large, double-flowering almond, although it has been known to some extent for
many years, deserves mention on account of its rarity. As a flowering tree it has few
equals. A specimen about five years old is now in full bloom on our grounds, and I can-
not refrain from expressing my surprise that so valuable a tree should be so neglected. The
specimen I refer to is a mass of blooms, every branch and branchlet being literally cover-
ed with flowers of a delicate pink shade, and perfectly double like small roses. The
double red, double pink and double white flowering peaches, are exceedingly showy and
ornamental, and wherever seen elicit expressions of the highest admiration. How are we
to account for their absence even in fine collections? Is it necessary to call them novelties
in order to insure their recognition? At the present time I do not know any subjects
more worthy of our attention and I strongly urge their propagation and dissemination.

Cerasus Japonica, rosea pendula, a weeping cherry from Japan, lately introduced,
is destined to wide-spread popularity. Grafted standard high, its slender branches droop
like those of the Kilmarnock willow, and form a symmetrical head which is sure to please
admirers of this class of trees. As the Kilmarnock willow has become pretty generally
disseminated, this introduction has enough merit to be ranked with it, and no doubt
public appreciation will be shown in its behalf, and a large demand created for it.

Cercidiphyllum Japonicum is a distinct tree introduced lately from northern Japan,
where it is said to attain large size. It is pyramidal in form, of vigorous growth, but
slender and compact ; foliage small, heart-shaped and some what like that of the Judas
tree. Specimens have stood out uninjured in our grounds for three years, and we have
no doubt as to its hardiness. Its propagation is not easy, hence this promising addition
will be rare for sometime to come.

Variegated-leaved Tulip tree. We have in this variety similarity of likeness in all
respects to the normal form, except in the leaves which are bordered with yellow, the
effect of which is most pleasing. The young subjects which we have seen promise to
grow in beauty as they acquire age, and a large well grown specimen will without doubt
prove a most interesting object to lovers of rare and curious trees.

Phellodendron amurense or Chinese Cork tree comes from Manchuria, where it is
said toattain the height of sixtyfeet. In general appearance and rapidity of growth it resem-
bles the ailantus. Some authorities claim that it is destined to take the place of the ailantus,
being possessed of all the valuable characterists of that tree, without any of its objec-
tionable features.

Quercus concordia or golden oak is 2 variety of the English, which will undoubtedly
prove to be a great favourite with planters as soon as it becomes better known. Itis a
rapid, vigorous grower, and its leaves are of a rich golden yellow colour, even from the time
they appear in spring ; and they increase in richness as the season advances, assuming
their most charming tints late in the summer and fall. The colour is exceedingly grate-
ful to the eye, and is so enduring that a specimen in perfection makes an impression
which it is not easy to forget. Among golden-leaved trees there is certainly not another
which can compare with it, particularly in autumn, and, when planted near a purple-
leaved tree, the effect is grand. .

The Fastigiate Birch is still a rare tree, although it was disseminated some time ago.
It has the upright habit of growth, and spiry, compact form peculiar to the Lombardy
poplar ; hence it is quite unlike any other birch. It will be found useful to give variety
to a landscape, and can be employed where the poplat could not, owing to the size which
the latter attains.

A real gem among magnolias is Halleana or stellata, which, though it was brought
some years ago from Japan, is rarely seen. The Chinese magnolias, usually cultivated,
are distinguished for their size and stately appearance, and are great favourites with the

public on account of their remarkable flowers. Halleana is quite different from the other
varieties, being vf dwarf habit of growth, and forming a symmetrical bush. Its blooms
appear very eu:ly in spring, before those of any other magnolia; a fact which tends to
give addition | value to the plant for spring decoraticn. For the margins of groups or
borders it will be found extremely useful, and it is sure to gain numerous admirers wherever
it is disseiuinated.

Van Geert’s golden-leaved poplar has showy yellow foliage, which renders it a
highly effective tree in groups. For a long time we questioned the value of this variety ;
but its bright+and enduring shade makes it conspicuous, and we think it merits
attention. .

The purple, myrtle-leaved Elm is a new variety of medium size, having small myrtle-
like leaves of a dark purple colour. The foliage is pretty and the colour permanent. It
has not been my good fortune yet to see large specimens: but judging from the small
plants I think we have in this novelty an addition of high merit. The colour of the
leaves is very much darker and more lasting than that of the old variety campestris
purpurea. There are several other new and very promising kinds of elms, with variegated
foliage, but I will defer a consideration of them until they have been better tested.

A very well defined and curious variety of the English elm is that called monu-
mentalis. ts habit of growth is erect, compact, and its form conical, resembling as its
name implies, a monument. It grows slowly, and can be employed in small grounds
advantageously.

Ulmus Wredei aurea is a golden-leaved elm, which bids fair to become very valuable.
The leaves have a rich, warm yellow tint, which is permanent, and consequently a fine
specimen arrests attention and commands admiration.

SHRUBS.

The common red dogwood is much esteemed by planters for winter decoration, on
account of its dark red or crimson coloured bark. The variety to which we now draw atten-
tion is called Sibirica, and its bark is of a bright red colour. In the depth of winter the
bark is brightest, and a single plant or several together form a most interesting feature in
a garden. In thesummer its beauty is also apparent, for the foliage is of a pleasing green
colour and the white flowers which it produces in spring are followed with purple fruit.
This is not by any means a new shrub, nevertheless it is rarely found. Its merits have
been;withheld from the public long enough, and I trust it will soon receive the recognition
to which it is justly entitled.

Shrubs of this character are doubly valuable, being ornamental and effective both in
summer and in winter. The crimson and red branches of these two varieties when placed
in contrast, produce a very pleasing result.

Cornus sanguinea elegantissima. In this we have a new claimant for public favour.
lts origin I cannot give ; but when in Europe two years ago, I found it in one of the
nurseries, and was much impressed with its beauty and value. Fancy a red dogwood
with handsomely variegated leaves, or rather having its leaves broadly edged with silvery
white. Cornus mascula variegata has long been held in high regard on account of its
distinctly variegated foliage. In some particulars this new variety of sanguinea will
surpass it. The variegation is brighter and the shrub more rapid and less formal in its
growth, hence it can be made use of in a greater variety of ways. As a new shrub of
high promise it will certainly receive a great deal of attention.

Prunus pissardi, or purple-leaved plum, is a novelty sent out from Paris last year.
Its leaves are purple, the colour is permanent, and I think this new plant will prove to be
an acquisition.

A pure white Weigela of good habit of growth, has long been sought after. During
the last few years several so called white varieties have been ushered into notice, but the
flowers, nearly always turned out to be blush and frequently rose-coloured. MHortensis
nivea the old variety, which bears pure white flowers, and which is comparatively well known
to nurserymen and florists, has not been disseminated, being extremely difficult to
propagate. Its habit of growth also is quite unsatisfactory. Hence candida, which

is a strong upright grower and an abundant producer of pure white flowers, will at
once be pronounced a desideratum. It has the additonal merit of being a perpetual
bloomer, flowers being upon the plants nearly all summer. Nurserymen will have
no difficulty in obtaining a stock, as it can be easily propagated.

Other new weigelas which appear to be very promising, are Lavallei, a variety with
reddish purple flowers, the darkest of any. Its habit, however, is loose and spreading.
Edward Andre, a latter introduction, bears flowers of a very dark shade, and is a better

ower.
a P. Duchartre produces flowers of a clear amaranth shade, which contrasts finely with
the yellowish foliage of the plant. Hendersoni bears medium-sized flowers of a red
colour. Both of them have a good habit and are free bloomers.

Spirea crategifolia is not a new variety, but still quite rare. It resembles the well
known lance-leaved, in colour, size, and form of the flower, but differs from it in foliage ;
and it has the valuable characteristic of being more hardy. I consider lanceolata a grand
shrub, and in localities where it is hardy it comes out in spring, loaded with pure white
blooms, and a large plant resembles a mass of snow, affording a striking contrast with
the profusion of green which prevails at that season. But it often happens that much
of the flowering wood becomes injured, hence, an equally fine variety, possessing greater
hardiness will be an acquisition. I think we shall realize the improved form in crategi-
folia. While on this subject, I should not fail to refer to another improved variety of
lanceolata, which has given much satisfaction. It is called lanceolata robusta, which ap-
pears to be more vigorous, hardier, and its flowers are larger.

Spirea Van Houttei is another form, distinguished for its hardiness.

There is another addition to the family of spireas which is quite novel. It has
received a rather indefinite name, being called species Japonica. It appears to be closely
allied to the type callosa, and like that species, does not grow large, but forms a
symmetrical bush and yields an abundance of flowers all summer. Its regular shape and
small habit of growth will make it useful for borders of groups, and for planting singly
on lawns of small extent.

The golden syringa is a most charming golden-leaved shrub. When planted alone
or associated with other shrubs in a group, its bright and delicately tinted leaves create a
pleasing effect.

We now come to the consideration of one of the most important acquisitions made
recently, Xanthoceras sorbifolia, for this is the name of the newaspirant. It comes from
Mongolia, or the centire of China, where it was found by the Abbe David, and brought
to Paris about 1868 by a Frenchman named Pichou. It is of medium size, forming a
shrub or small tree not exceeding ten to twelve feet high. Its leaves resemble somewhat
those of the mountain ash and its flowers are five-petaled, white, and reddish copper
coloured at base, and disposed in racemes. They appear in April and May at the same
time that the leaves are developed. The flowers are succeeded by fruit.

CONIFERS.

Having now discussed the merits of the best new flowering shrubs, we will proceed
to examine afew of the best new coniferous trees.

First upon the list and perhaps one of the most important gains of many years is
the Rocky Mountain Blue Spruce, (Abies pungens.) Its chief merits are great hardiness
and beauty. So much disappointment has resulted from planting tender evergreens, that
planters generally are commencing to lay great stress upon hardiness, and it is right that
they should do so. What advantage is there in growing fine specimens of rare species,
only to lese them as they reach perfection. Two years ago when in Paris, I saw in every
section of that grand city, ruined specimens of noble and rare evergreens, which it had
taken years of patent attention and care to develop. To be sure these extremes do not
come every year, but as I stated in a former paper, we cannot place too much importance
upon the qualification of hardiness. The blue spruce is the bluest of evergreens, and a well
developed specimen is a sight that will charm every lover of beautiful trees. 1 would
like to say something about the beautiful Retinisporas, plumosa aurea and argentea, and

filicoides. These are charming evergreens of moderate growth and medium size, and well
adapted to plant in small places ; but they are tender with us, and must be protected with
a few branches of evergreens, or they will suffer in winter. Those who are willing to
devote extra care and attention to them should introduce them to their gardens by all
means. But for the general planter in cold regions, we cannot yet recommend them.

Pinus ponderosa, the heavy wooded pine of California, has proved to be a most
valuable accession. It is perfectly hardy, of fine form, has long distinct foliage, and is a
_ vigorous grower. Pinus Pallasiana has bluish foilage, and is hardy and beautiful. Pinus
_ Jeffreyi, from California, has also succeeded admirably, being hardy and very orna-
mental.

Abies parviformis is a dwarf spruce, of slow growth and small foliage. It is an
excellent small evergreen ; very hardy and will be useful for small grounds. Abies nigra
- Doumeiti, is a handsome form of the black spruce, of dwarf habit and compact growth.

The Silver-variegated Japan Juniper, with foliage of a glaucous green colour, and
the golden Japan Juniper, which has golden yellow foliage all the year, are two varieties
to be commended.

The Golden Yew, Taxus elegantissima should not be overlooked, nor should we for-
get the pyramidal Arbor-Vitz or Geo. Peabody, with its golden foliage.

The Golden Yew and Geo. Peabody are undoubtely the two best golden evergreens.
And among the Arbor-Vitzs there is nothing hardier or more handsome than the
pyramidal. The new varieties of Arbor Vites introduced by Mr. Robert Douglas, are
very promising.

I will not occupy your attention longer, but in closing I desire to say that it is a
great satisfaction to those engaged in horticultural pursuits to know that there are always
new pleasures to look forward to. With each year comes some new tree or plant to
engage our attention, and demand our care, and our interest is never permitted to flag,
even fora moment. What a gratification it is to aid in the dissemination of a really
valuable article. Joy enters the home when the new plant arrives; the new comer is
welcomed, receives the best of care from loving hands, and if it proves worthy, affords
genuine happiness to the household. But if perchance the great expectations should not
be realized, and the high priced novelty should prove worthless, what sorrow and disap-
pointment follow. Let us therefore exercise a care that we distribute only good things,
and thus contribute to the welfare and happiness of our fellow beings.

In the summer of 1882 Mr. Charles Gibb, of Abbotsford, Province of Quebec, in
company with Professor Budd, of the Agricultural College, of the State of Iowa, visited
Russia for the purpose of ascertaining what fruits, trees and shrubs, growing in climates
similar to our own, could be procured from that country likely to be of value to us. On
his return he prepared his Hasty Notes on Trees and Shrubs of Northern Europe and
Asia, for the Montreal Horticultural Society, which were published in the Eighth
Report of that Society, 1881-2.

At the request of your committee, Mr. Gibb has kindly revised an' enlarged his
notes and furnished them to us for publication in this report. We take much pleasure
in calling very particular attention to Mr. Gibb’s paper, as being full of very interesting
information of great value to all who reside in a climate of great extremes, as is that of
a large part of our Province. Many of the trees and shrubs mentioned by him are
worthy of extensive trial in Ontario, as being likely to prove of value for economic pur-
poses, or for ornamentation, or for both. These trees, although botanically identical with
those of western Europe, are more hardy. Seeds of these obtained from Russia and
grown in Ontario will produce more hardy races than those we have hitherto obtained
from England, France and Germany.

ON TREES AND SHRUBS OF NORTHERN EUROPE AND ASIA.
By Cuarves Gisz, ABBOTSFORD, QUEBEC,
With notes added in December, 1888.

The experience of the Russian horticulturists is just like our own. They have
searched central and western Europe for new species, and have found among the many
tried a few hardy and valuable. They have searched for new species on this continent,
and in some instances, like ourselves, have received the southern forms of hardy species.
Have you the Ash-leaved Maple? I ask Dr. Regel, the Director of the Botanic
Gardens at St. Petersburg. “ Yes, but it isnot hardy here.” It is the only street tree
in Winnipeg, I replied. ‘Then I have some Southern form,” he said. Yes, such is his
experience and ours, and such must continue to be our disappointing experience until we
establish direct communication with our like climates in the old world. The Russian
botanists had tried to find us years ago. They had endeavoured to get into correspond-
ence with the botanists of the colder parts of Canada through their Consul at New
York. They failed in this, but turned their attention to the cold climates eastward to
the Pacific.

In the Imperial Botanic Gardens at St. Petersburg, we find the flora of the cold
inter-continental climates of eastern Russia, Siberia, northern Turkestan, Soongaria,
Mongolia, Mantchuria, and Amur, our own like climates in the old world.

Europe may well be proud of her botanic gardens. The large outlay of the
European Governments seems to have been money well invested. Botany in its relation
to agriculture, horticulture and forestry is a science deemed too valuable to be suffered
to remain untaught. Russia is in no way behind in this matter. At St. Petersburg
what cannot be grown out of doors must be grown within, thence they have there the
largest number of species under glass in the world. Not only in the larger cities,
Moscow, Warsaw and Kiev, but in the smaller towns like Kazan, Voronesh, Orel and
Penza (the last not visited by us), we find Botanic Gardens such as we might feel proud
to own.

A generation or two ago, when Loudon and Lindley were at work in England, the
Royal Horticultural Society imported from all parts of the world the plants likely to be
useful or ornamental in England. They sent agents to China. Robert Fortune, how-
ever, spent much of his time at Canton, almost in the tropics. He was not in search of
plants suited to the climate of Quebec, and yet some of our best hardy shrubs were
brought to light at that time. This was probably the age of greatest horticultural
interchange the mild temperate regions have ever seen, and upon it is largely based their
present advanced horticulture ; and yet this work has been of only minor use to us.

In the tropics, and in the sub-tropical climates, the British colonies have taken the
lead in this matter of botanic gardens; wherever there is a colony of any size there
almost always is a botanic garden. Ceylon, India, (several), Singapore, Hong Kong,
Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, Mauritius, Cape of
Good Hope, a: } many others which I am not sure enough to note have their botanic
gardens. Also in the West Indies, Jamaica, Trinidad and Demarara. The East and
West Indies have interchanged for over 100 years! Read the reports of the Jamaica
and other Botanic Gardens in the library of the Montreal Horticultural Society, and you
will see that it is this botanic interchange which has built up the present enormous
export trade of the tropics.

Now there are two points to which I wish to draw special attention.

I. We in the cold North have hardly begun to exchange with our like climates in
the old world.

II. In Canada we have no’ Botanic Gardens.

As to exchange with our like climates, that will begin next fall. As to botanic
gardens we must speak less hopefully. Our horticultural societies have done good
work. Our universities do not neglect the science of botany. We have some fair

Se pie

collections of trees, some horticultural gardens; but our Government has never seen
the need of expenditure upon botanic gardens, as have the Governments of the
European powers, and the Governments of other British colonies. That this great
Dominion of Canada, which stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific, should be without a
botanic garden, or a series of such gardens, is a fact without parallel in British Colonial
history.
Norr.—It was at a meeting in Winnipeg, in August last, at which Messrs. Joly, Saunders and Beadle
urged the formation of the Manitoba Horticultural Society, that I was speaking of the good work which
had been done by the Botanic Gardens and testing grounds of the other British colonies. Mr. J. R. G
- Moffatt then brought tu notice the interesting fact that it was not the British colonies who began this work,
but the early Dutch, Portugese and Spanish colonies, in their earliest days, 200 and even 300 years ago,
Mr. Moffatt had visited the Botanic Gardens of Wellington, Aukland, Christchurch, Dunedin and Nelson,
in New Zealand; of Adelaide, Melborne, Sydney and Brisbane, in Australia ; of Hobart Town and Laun-
ceston, in Tasmania; of Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town, in the Cape colonies ; of Colombo and
Point de Galle, in Ceylon; of Penang and Singapore. Yes, Mr. Moffatt had visited these, or most of
these, and others (not British) as those in Java, Sumatra and the Philippines. He had studied their pro-
ducts and their work. He urged the establishment of testing grounds, because he knew the value of them,
and it is because [ have personally examined the testing grounds in Jamaica, plantations upon high levels
and low levels, on the dry scorching seashore, and on the misty mountain tops 6,300 feet aboveit, and
because I have noticed how dependent the prosperity of this island has been upon this experimental
work, that I said above, ‘‘ that it is this botanic interchange which has built up the present enormous export.
trade of the tropics.”
Should this great government work be left mainly to private individuals? Surely not.

On the European Forestry plantations I must saya few words. The planted
districts in France we did not pass through, but we obtained some idea of their method
of work by visiting the Forest School at Nancy. One may get some idea of that work
by reading their reports now in the Montreal Horticultural Society’s library. In Ger-
many we were continually passing extensive plantations of Scotch Pine (Pinus
silvestris), bordered with Norway Spruce (Abies excelsa). The Germans are most
economical in the use of wood, so that pine so extensively planted must ere long become

an article of export. But where are the hardwoods needed for a thousand different pur-
poses. Strange this exclusive planting of one species. So well are the forest plantations
of Wurtemburg cared for, that the term ‘“‘ high culture” could with justice be applied to
them. Evergreens are easily and cheaply propagated in the climate of Germany, and
hence the method of planting adopted is that of close crowded planting, which of course,
necessitates continued thinning.

In Russia the Government controls, in fact “works,” a large proportion of the
forests of the Empire. Of natural and planted forest the Government held in 1878
what is equal to 351,780,000 acres, exclusive of Siberia, besides about 51,590,000 acres
of scrub at the far north. In 1878 they received from these forests an income of
10,648,000 roubles, and expended on new plantations, and working expenses, 6,400,000,
leaving a profit for the year of 4,248,000 roubles, or about $2,124,000. The extent of
the plantations in Russia I cannot state. I know, however, that in three of the Steppe
Governments in Southern Russia, 22,880 acres have been planted within the last eight
years. There are 762 forest stations under the charge of a like number of foresters ;
and as we journeyed over the prairie regions of Russia, we were continually coming
across some forestry station with its surrounding plantations. Like the beet sugar
factories they are scattered all over the otherwise treeless plains. Unlike the plantations
in Germany the Russians have planted not only their native forms of the Silvestris pine
and Norway spruce, but largely of Pedunculata oak, ash and basswood, and somewhat
of larch, birch and poplar; also in the southern steppe regions, yellow locust, maple,
elm, honey locust and others.

The Imperial Forestry Association was in session at Moscow at the time of our
visit. Delegates from all parts of European Russia had assembled under the presidency
of Dr. Arnold, Director of the Agricultural College, at Petrovskoe Rasumoskoe, near

Moscow. They meet biennially. We drove to the Government forests in coaches hold-
ing eight persons each, on side seats, back to back, drawn by four stallions abreast.
After luncheon I was called upon (my friend, Mr. Budd, was not present that day) to
plant an oak, which is the joint property of the Canadian and United States Govern-
ments, and which may be worth several hundreds of dollars some centuries hence.

These foresters are a fine set of men. It was one of this staff who, of his own
accord, and at his own expense, accompanied us through the fruit-growing peasant
villages of Kazan, sharing our discomforts and sleeping upon a bundle of hay when
necessary.

As to the climates of the places I name, I must refer to my report on “ Russian
Fruits.” Had I had more time I would have shown what these climates are, not
from meteorological tables, but from the flora in their botanic gardens. I would merely
say that the mildness of central Europe one may judge by the trees growing in the well-
sheltered Botanic Gardens at Warsaw. Here, in latitude 524°, we find Sophora Japonica
ten or twelve inches in diameter of trunk, growing from an old stump which had grown
to a diameter of two and a-half feet ; Juglans regia had grown up with two trunks, each
twenty-two inches across; Tulip tree, large and low branched, measuring three feet
across its stump at the ground ; Gingko, of eight inches diameter; Cornus mascula,
twenty-five feet in height, and thirty feet across its extended branches. The horse
chestnut grows luxuriantly, and attains very large size at Warsaw.

I must say that these trees could not be grown in open exposure near Warsaw, for
such is the ameliorating influence of a large city that the shelter it affords is equal to a
difference of more than fifty miles in latitude. Proscau in Silesia, on account of its
elevation of 720 feet, its open exposure and cold soil, is a rather more severe test of
hardiness than the sheltered city gardens of Warsaw. North and east of Warsaw the
climate soon becomes severe.

These notes I have written as addenda to a somewhat lengthy article on “ Ornamental
Trees,” written by me last year for the seventh report of the Montreal Horticultural
Society, so that what I say is merely a jotting down of things not said then.

Notre.—This is a sequel to my report on “ Russian Fruits,”

notes on climate and table of temperatures.

I would also urge the study of the reports written by Mr. Budd, Professor of Horticulture in the State
Agricultural College, at Ames, Iowa, my fellow-traveller. His notes are of great value to the north, and
I will freely quote from them.

and should be read in connection with my

ACER—Maple.

A. Campestre.—In my paper on ‘Ornamental Trees,” I spoke of this as a tree or
shrub that would prove hardy, if only we obtained our seed from northern stock. Its
beauty in Central Park and other places had made me wish we had its northern forms.
In the Imperial Botanic Gardens at St. Petersburg, we find a fine specimen, eighteen
feet in height, apparently quite hardy. Another in the Botanic Gardens at Orel, thirty
feet ; this latter, however, not cork-barked. In the grounds of the Agricultural College
at Petrovskoe Rasumovskoe, near Moscow, their stock did not prove hardy. It is a
native tree north of Kursk, in central Russia, and runs thence north-west into the
Baltic provinces. Further south it grows to larger size. In the Botanic Gardens at
Warsaw there is a tree twelve inches in diameter of trunk, and at least forty-five feet
high, not cork-barked, and in the Vienna Botanic Garden, twenty inches in diameter of
trunk, and forty feet or more across its extended branches. This, too, is not cork-barked.
A tree capable of standing drought well. I am at a loss to know what name to give this
tree. English cork-barked maple will not do for a tree worthless to us if grown from
English seed ; a tree not always cork-barked. Let us procure seed of this pretty shrub
maple—seed of northern growth. We need direct communication with the botanic
gardens, and nurserymen and seedsmen of our own like climates in northern Europe.

A. negundo fol. variegatis argentum.—This is a variety of our ash-leaved maple,
with white-edged foliage. It is very ornamental, and largely used, top-grafted in central

Europe. Further north, grown as a low shrub with slight protection, otherwise not at
all hardy in extreme climates.

Norte sy D. W. Brapie.—The foliage of this tree unfortunately is badly burned by the hot summer sun
_ south of the line of the Great Western Railway, so much so that the tree cannot make a healthy growth.
In my own grounds it has at last perished from want of sutticient leaf action to ripen the wood.

A, platanoides (Norway Maple).—We did not find this tree grown in as large

quantity in Russia as I had expected ; nor did we even find specimens of it as large as
our own sugar maple. We find it as a street tree, and in gardens in all the Russian
towns, but in limited quantity only. I noticed on the Volga, in the dry regions, that

the trees growing there, trees looking just like the platanoides of western Europe, stood
drought remarkably well. :

Var. dissectum.—This pretty thing we found in severe climates, and in Vienna we
saw a specimen eight inches in diameter of trunk, with a dense, round head, nearly
thirty feet in height, showing that it attains larger size than I had expected. _

Var. fol. digitalis we say only at the Pomological School at Proskau, eastern
Prussia. A small tree with leaves still more cut than dissecta.

Var. Reitenbachi a curious and a pretty tree. Leaves, dull brown in summer, and
in spring, red. I do not remember seeing it north of Warsaw.

Var. Schwerdlerit.—A maple with young shoots bright red. Quite hardy at Riga,
says Mr. Wagner. We did not see it further north.

A. Tartaricum (Tartarian Maple).—This tree is a native near Moscow, and may
be seen in the botanic gardens and parks in the severest climates we visited. It is an
* entire-leaved” maple, grows into a large bush, and is decidedly ornamental. It is a
pity that the trees of it for sale in the States are not to be relied upon for hardiness.
We must get northern stock.

Var. Ginnala (tegmentosum of some catalogues.)—A very pretty shrub maple from
Amur, noted as quite hardy at St. Petersburg, though only fairly hardy at Riga. My
Moscow notes do not mention it. Hardy enough for Montreal, I should expect.

AESCULUS AND PAVIA—Horse Chestnut.

As we wandered from place to place we found decided variety in foliage of this tree.
‘Mr. Budd used to notice the thickness of leaf of the trees in some districts, as likely to
‘stand the dry air of the Iowa prairies. The best collection we saw was in the Botanic
Garden at Munich. ‘Here special attention had been given to making a large collection.
Specimen trees at St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Volsk looked as if out of their latitude.
One thing, however, we observed, and that is the hardiness of the Pavias or smooth-
fruited horse chestnuts, and these Pavias, we were told in several places, were European,
not American.

ALN US—Alder.

There are some beautiful shrubs among the Alders. Jmperialis is said to be the

least hardy, and yet I would expect it to thrive in a sheltered city garden in Montreal.
Incana laciniata has a dull, sombre tint, very unusual; leaves deeply cut, and very
‘ornamental. It seemed and was said to be, quite hardy in the nurseries at Riga.
Incana pinnatifida or acuminata in the Botanic Garden, St. Petersburg, is a large bush
twenty-five feet in height, with a trunk twelve inches in diameter; foliage dull in colour
and deeply cut. From my notes it must be very like Laciniata. A. glutinosa oxyacan-
thafolia is well named, and, like those above, bears no resemblance to an ordinary Alder.
It is light and airy, and rather pretty, but sparse of foliage, and should be headed in to
make it appear to good advantage.

AMELANCHIER—June-berry.

We found nothing of special value, but I must speak of kinds which have already
found their way into the west, probably from Europe. A dwarf variety has been grown

by a German in Greene Co., Iowa, for the past twelve years. Mr. Budd, who visited th
plantation, says “that the plants were literally loaded with a dark, nearly black fruit ¢
good size and excellent quality ;” even the sprouts, not more than a foot in height, wer
bearing. The bushes when full grown were two to three feet in height, bore fruit th
size of black currants, and all this time had been grown and marketed under the impres
sion that they were huckleberries. This variety was imported from Germany. Anothe
colonist, near Davenport, Iowa, has had four acres of a somewhat similar berry, and ha
produced fifty to sixty bushels in a season from the bearing portion of his plantation
This has been over twenty years on trial, and its origin in not traceable.

Again, Mr. Budd draws my attention to the Amelanchier alpina, received fron
Texas, and which is a native of the Andes of Mexico, and apparently quite hardy a
Ames, Iowa. It grows a foot or more in height, and has been highly thought of
Texas, where it has been grown as a huckleberry.

Norr.—A variety of A. Canadensis oblongifolia, obtained the silver medal of the Massachusetts Hort
cultural Society. The plants were received from Davenport, Iowa, in 1874, and fruited abundantly i
1878. Mr. B. G. Smith, Treasurer of American Pomological Society, the worthy recipient, says the frui
is mild and delicate in flavour, and about the size of black currants. Possibly this may be the variet

spoken of above.

ARIA—White Beam Tree.

This is a medium-sized tree, allied to the mountain ash; somewhat like it in blos-
som, and in the fact that it bears clusters of fruit.

The largest collection we saw was in the grounds of Mr. Wagner, at Riga, and o
these, Vivea specially struck me, on account of the snowy whiteness of the under side o}
the leaf. This tree would be specially beautiful in a windy situation. Of others, Acert
folia has a very long leaf very much indented, and, I suppose, lobed. Corymbiflora, like
laciniata, an indented rather than a cut-leaf. Cretica, leaf small, but white on unde
side. Eliptica, very broad leaf, white underneath. G/abrata, leaf glossy on upper sur
face, and quite unlike others. Lantana, leaf lanceolate, and white beneath. Latifolia
atroviridis, leaf larger and broader. A. lutescens, of M. Simon-Louis, at Metz, is remark-
able for the whiteness of the under, and even of upper side of leaf.

ARMENICA—Apricot.

Let us add the Apricot to our list of hardy fruits as soon as possible.

Mr. Maximowitch, the Primus Botanicus of the Botanic Gardens at St. Petersburg,
who has spent many years botanizing that vast country eastward to the Amur, says that
in Soongaria, in eastern Turkestan, at the eastern end of the Altai range, it is growing
in quantity, and that there the boars, and the bears, and the natives, ficht it out as to
who is to have the fruit. The fruit is small, that is, about one ith in diameter, bu
sweet, and pretty good.

in the podtiiern parts of the Province of Mantchuria, there is, says Mr. Maximo-
witch, a variety of apricot different from those in cultivation. They do not thrive well
near the coast, but in sheltered situations inland they grow in great quantity. They are
realiy good, and are sold in quantity in the Pekin market. Could we not get the pits of |
this apricot expressed to us by our Consul at Pekin? Surely this might be done.

AZALEA,

A, mollis has a large salmon-coloured flower, a variety brought by Mr. Maximowiteh
from high altitudes in I apan. It has proved quite hardy at St. Petersburg. I see tha
Ellwanger and Barry, of Rochester, N. Y., speak of the great beauty of A. mollis, bu
say it is only half-hardy and needs protection. What difference in hardiness there is
the offspring of plants of different elevations.

BERBERIS—Berberry.

These I have not made notes of. However the seedless Berberry is recommended
as an acid little fruit—good for preserves. The Chinese sweet varieties, which are said
to be dried like raisins by the Chinamen, I did not see.

BETU LA— Birch.

The beauty of the Russian Birches is a matter of general remark by travellers. In
general appearance they are not like our own, nor the birches imported from western
Europe. The alba of Linnzus, or pubescens of Ehrhart, has a leaf in shape like our
canoe birch, but smaller and velvety. Sometimes it is very aromatic. It is probably the
fastest growing, and is suited to moist soils only, and is the best variety for the far North.
The trunk is mostly white, and that almost to the ground. These notes were given to me
by a forester who had made a special study of the question. On the other hand, the
alba verrucosa is a weeping or drooping tree, with triangular leaf, a leaf like our common
white birch, and when over ten or twelve inches in diameter of trunk the bark becomes
rough and covered with black clefts.

This latter, this weeping form, is the one I wish to draw special attention to. It is
the birch growing upon the dry soil of the Petrovskoe park near Moscow, that park which
is the summer resort of the residents of Moscow. The most attractive feature of this
park is its avenues, and groves of weeping birch. Some of these groves seem to have
sprung up as though planted irregularly at distances of from six to nine feet apart, each
way. Thus the one thing that presents itself is a vista of bright, translucent, white-
barked trunks. The effect is almost magical, and could not beeproduced by plantations
of our dull-barked birches. What an attraction to our Mount Royal park, Montreal,
such a grove would be. It would become the haunt of our snowshoe clubs by moon-
light, in summer the resort of picnic parties and pleasure seekers. How beautiful our
Montreal park could be made by the judicious planting of trees of varied form and
foliage.

B. Dahurica, we saw at St. Petersburg, an oldish, slow-growing, rough-barked tree.
Costata, too, usually noted as from the Amur. Much like our canoe birch in bark and
leaf, but has a slow-growing, stunted look.

CALYCANTHUS.

Some northern forms, C. Sibirica, seems quite hardy at the Botanic Gardens, St.
Petersburg. Flowers whitish yellow.

CARAGANA.

The most widely popular of the Russian shrubs is unknown, I may say, in Canada.
In western Europe we scarcely notice the Caraganas, except in the botanic gardens.
In central Europe they become much more generally planted ; even in mild climates like
Prague, we find them common in the city gardens. It is a plant capable of enduring
great extremes of cold and drought; the best shrub for planting on the confines of the
cold desert, and therefore widely popular in the cold, dry North.

On the Finland road, that suburb which is the resort of the townspeople of St.
Petersburg during their short, cool summers, the caragana is the common hedge plant.
It and the red berried elder are the commonest shrubs. In the tea gardens of the
Petrovskoe park near Moscow, where the Russians meet to enjoy their tea around their
hissing samovars, the dividing screens are caragana. At Moscow and Kazan, it and the
Siberian thorn are the common hedge plants.

This arborescent caragana is known also as the Siberian Pea tree and in France
sometimes called acacia de Siberie. It is a shrub usually from eight to fifteen feet in
height, although at Saratof I saw it as much as thirty feet. It has a very small dark

leaf, and may be trained to grow in tree form. There are many varieties ; some catalogues
offer thirteen or fourteen varieties. The most beautiful to my mind is pygme pendula ;
top grafted, it forms a delicate, pendulous head, very graceful and ornamental. I fear —
there is some confusion in the names given to these varieties. I have seen the names
gracilis, microphylla and horrida given to what appeared to me to be this. C. ferox or
spinosa is spiny, stiffer in growth, and has more foliage ; it, too, may be top grafted. Of
other kinds I would mention C. altagana Dahurica, a straggling bush with leaf smaller
than arborescens. /rwtescens, a good shrubby little bush from the Altai Mountains and
Turkestan. OC. Jubata is from Mongolia, and from the cold district of that coldest.of all
countries, eastern Siberia. This, however, is positively ugly.

CORN US—Dogwood.

One variety of the Cornus I wish to draw special attention to, the Cornus alba fol.
variegatis or C. stricta of some catalogues. It is a low shrub with bright, white-margined
leaves, very showy and attractive, and perfectly hardy. A very great favourite in the
nurseries at Riga, a great favourite wherever known.

There is also a white-margined variety of the Cornus mascula, very pretty indeed ;
hardy at Warsaw, but not hardy at Voronesh or Riga. The ordinary Cornus mascula is
not to say hardy at Riga. At Warsaw, in the Botanic Gardens, we find a tree of it
eighteen inches in diameter of trunk and twenty-five feet high, and at least thirty feet
across its extended branches.

Andrew §. Fuller, in his ‘‘ Fruit Culturist,” recommended the introduction of the
Cornus mascula as a fruit-bearing bush. At the nurseries of Simon-Louis at Metz, where
they have six kinds, the @. mascula macrocarpa is considered the largest in size, and the
best in flavour. This was corroborated at other places. It is worthy of trial at Toronto
and southwards.

CORY LUS—Hazel.

On this I have nothing definite to say. At Vienna we saw a specimen of the C.
colurna or Tree-hazel, thirty feet in height. Further south in Turkey it grows to a
height of fifty or sixty feet, but is not hardy in cold climates. At Reutlingen Mr. Lucas
showed us the fruit of a number of varieties bearing large nuts of different shapes, but I
cannot say if likely to prove hardy here. In the extreme climate of Kazan we saw lots
of wild hazel, but the fruit is small ; no improvement upon our native species.

Nut culture has been tried at Riga, and Mr. Goegginger suggests that we should try
the Giant de halle.

COTONEASTER.

We saw many hardy varieties. In the garden of the Agricultural Academy at.
Petrovskoe, multiflora, vulgaris and lucida seemed all right. In the Moscow Botanic
Garden we saw one variety bearing red berries, and another blue; both seemed quite
hardy, so was lucida. Acwutifolia grows to a height of six feet, and seemed quite hardy at.
some points in northern Russia. I saw many hardy forms, but did not take any trouble
to look them up.

CRATAGUS—Thorn.

The Oxyacantha, or Quick, is the common hedge plant of central and western
Europe. On our way to Russia we passed thousands of miles of this hedge; along the
railways, along the roadsides, often separating suburban properties. We began to
lose sight of it on the way to Warsaw. However, it is quite hardy there and is
grown a good deal, but we cease to find it as a hedge plant beyond Vilna. At Riga it is
not hardy, and from thence northward it is replaced by Sibirica. On our return
journey we find the Oxyacantha again at Kiev, large trees of it in the Botanic Gardens,

such as one sees upon estates in England. The hardiness of this plant could no doubt be
increased by getting seed from its north-eastern limits of growth.
| The Stbirica, or rather C. sanguinea of Siberia, is a good hedge plant. Much like
some of our own thorns, but I think of rather faster growth. Good hedges of it at Riga
ten feet high. In the College Gardens at Petrovskoe, Mr. Shroeder points it out as per-
fectly hardy, so too is Crus-galli. Nigra also is all right. Monogama has a pretty cut
leaf, and is fairly hardy, not as hardy as the above.

CYTISUS—Laburnum.

Here, again, are some hardy forms, although the same species from Scotland will not
endure our cold winters.

In the Botanic Gardens at Munich we found alpinus growing to a height of over
thirty-five feet, with a dozen trunks from five to twelve inches in diameter.

In the severe climate of Orel, in central Russia, we find a tree of alpinus which
seemed quite hardy. The northern nurseries all grow cytisus, and these hardy varieties
are well worth looking up.

ELEAGNUS—Wild Olive.

This is a race of bright, silvery leaved trees and shrubs of great ornamental value.

In the grounds of the Pomological School at Proskau, we find a shrub three feet high
with gray, silvery leaves three inches long and an inch or more wide. We saw it again
in the Botanic Garden at Moscow, apparently hardy. It was not named. This is very
ornamental and should not be lost sight of.

£. angustifolia. In moderate climates this grows toa large size. At Warsaw we
find a tree two feet in diameter of trunk and thirty feet high, old, and on its decline.
In the cold climate of Orel we saw a tree thirty-five feet in height, but I do not remem-
ber it farther north. It has long, narrow leaves, white on under side, bright and pretty.
Of its blossom and fruit I cannot speak.

E. longipe, of Japan, we saw at Kew; a shrub six feet high, bearing large quanti-
ties of spotted red berries, like oblong cranberries. At Verrieres, in the garden of M.
Henri de Vilmorin, we again see this plant bearing heavily ; fruit red, a nice acid, fully
equal to cranberries, and as free from seed. It seems a very abundant bearer, and well
worthy of introduction as a fruit-bearing plant—a plant likely to yield quite as much of
a fruit as good and as saleable as cranberry. The only question is its hardiness. It
should be tried with us*in sheltered corners, where the snow-drifts would be likely to
cover it. In many nurseries this is known as £. edulis.

FAGUS—Beech.

The European Beech is not as hardy as our native species. It will not thrive at St.
Petersburg, whereas our own is found fifty miles north of the city of Quebec. I observed,
however, that the cut-leaved beech (F. syl. incisa) is hardier than the purple-leaved, and
may be tried in rather severe climates. There is a very fine specimen of the cut-leaved in
good health on the grounds of Mr. Wagner at Riga.

FRAXINUS—Ash.

The foresters in Russia prefer the American ash to their native species. So do the
Forest Schools in western Europe. The excelsior, however, grows to greater size ; one in
the Botanic Gardens at St. Petersburg rises from the ground with six trunks from five to
fifteen inches in diameter. The American is said at several different points to be the
hardier. This seems strange, for at the Botanic Garden at Kazan we are told that excelsior
Was indigenous in that government. The variegated form of our native ash (F. Am-
aucubaefolia ) we find at Moscow and other places. The single leaved ash (F. exc. mono-

ras

phaylla) has grown to the height of twenty feet in the Moscow Botanic Garden, and seems
quite hardy, whereas little trees of mine at Abbotsford suffer. The weeping ash (¥. ewe.
pendula) is fairly hardy at Riga. The young shoots are sometimes injured there. F.
juglandifolia subintermedia may be seen in the Botanic Garden, St. Petersburg; a tree
twenty-five feet in height and apparently quite hardy. #, mantchurica, a fine tree, quite
hardy at St. Petersburg, and grows to a diameter of three feet in its native land.

GENISTA.

Nore.—Several species and varieties of this small shrub are worthy of,trial. Genista pilosa plena, flowers
abundantly in June; G. tinctoria is hardy even at Moscow; the double flowering yellow of Germany we
did not see north, but it will no doubt prove hardy with us,

GLYCYRRHIZA.
|
G. echinata.—A shrub like a bastard indigo, bearing large balls of rough tufted
seeds. A very curious shrub, which we saw in the Botanic Gardens at Kazan.
G. glabra is not so striking.

HIPPOPHAE.

The grey silky foliage of these shrubs makes'them very attractive. “Are they hardy?” —
I asked Dr. Regel. ‘I received them from central Europe and they proved tender; I
then procured seed from Siberia, botanically the same, and they are quite hardy.’’
Such was Dr. Regel’s reply, the same old story, his experience and mine, as far as I~
may be said to have any.

The Hippophae salicifolia, which we saw at Proskau, was much like a rosemary
willow, and lacking in that white lustre which others usually have. Sibirica is more
like the argentea of Proskau, bright and very ornamental.

JUGLANS—Walnut.

Note.—When at Saratof on the Volga, Mr. Budd and I saw two large trees of the so-called English
Walnut (J. regia), and let us remember that the winter temperature of Saratof is but one degree milder —
than the city of Quebec. We examined the trees carefully, and could not have easily been mistaken, as
we had watched this same walnut and noted it wherever growing for several weeks, through central Europe,
noting its variations in leaf in different places. The nuts which are for sale at all the little provision stalls
along the Volga, are much like those shipped to the London market, but are harder in shell and slightly
amaller, but whether these are grown on the lower Volga, the Caucasus, or in Persia, I cannot say.

LIGUSTRUM.,

Ligustrum foliosum.—The common English privet has not been found hardy i
Iowa. The northern species named is equally beautiful, and stands the dry snmmer
and cold winters at Voronesh, Russia. It is more than probable it will do good servic
as a border plant with us.

LARIX—Larch and Tamarac.

In the Riga nurseries we first saw Sibirica and Europea growing side by side.
Sibirica much the faster grower in nursery, foliage slightly longer, more fringy, and
clothing the branches better than on Europwa. This larch was from the Ural Moun-
tains. Again at the Petrovskoe Academy there is a very fine avenue of Sibirica,
quarter of a mile or half a mile long. The foliage very light in colour ; the outline
yauch less sharply conic than other varieties. An avenue of even-sized trees about
thirty feet in height. In the Botanic Gardens at St. Petersburg we see it in old age, J

;

few old trees about seventy feet high. Alongside of it is L. Dahurica, of equal size and
age, but different in this way, that at a certain height Dahurica usually forms two or
more trunks ; it is just as ornamental, but on this account not equal as a timber tree.
In the far north, on the border of the tundra, Dahurica is a small stunted tree. Many
years ago the Duke of Athol had imported larch seed from the forests to the south of
Archangel. This proved inferior in growth and in quality of wood, and led us to suppose
‘that there was no larch in the Russian forest equal to Europea, which is that of central

Europe. The Duke of Athol’s seed, too, may have been obtained from stunted specimens
on the northern limit of its growth.

The L. Koempheri of Japan, Mr. Wagner, of Riga, says is not hardy at Berlin.
t

LONICERA—Honeysuckle.
The following list is given by Mr. Budd:

Nortr.—‘‘ Lonicera orientalis.—A hardy fine shrub, with large black fruit.
‘© Lonicera cerulea.—Much like the above, but with large dark-blue berries, covered with a rich bloom.
“‘ Tonicera ruprectiana.—This has peculiar thick plicated leaves and is ornamental through the season.

“* Tonicera alpigena.—This has the largest and finest leaves of the family, and the red berries are as
Jarge as Morello cherries.

“¢ Lonicera hispida.—A new species from Turkestan. It has very narrow leaves, and bears fine erops of
showy white flowers.

‘STonicera xylosteum mollis.—An upright form of the Chinese honeysuckle, which is very hardy and
ornamental.

“* Tonicera Kamschatka.—A large berried species, popular in all the parks of northern Europe.”

If I may I will add from my own notes which are very brief. The first four above named seem quite
hardy as growing in the Imperial Botanic Garden at St. Petersburg. Coerulea and orientalis are from
Siberia. Ruprechtiana is growing to a height of ten feet. It is from Amur. I saw a specimen of it twelve
feet high somewhere, I think at Moscow. Sorbifolia is common at St. Petersburg. Alberti is from Turke-
stan, and has foliage like a purpurea willow. Xvylostewm, noted by Mr. Budd, and which I noted as hardy
at St. Petersburg, is growing in bush form to the height of ten or twelve feet in the Botanic Garden at
Warsaw. Kamschatka is also growing there to the same size. Maximowiczi is from Amur. It is said to be
quite hardy at St. Petersburg and well worthy of introduction.

MAGNOLIA.

Mr. Maximowitch tells me that the hypoleuca, if the seed be procured from Hako-
dadi, on the Island of Yezo, might be worth trying in rather severe climates. It

becomes a large tree, and, I think, has a large blossom. The M. kobus is less beautiful,
but probably still hardier.

MORUS—Mulberry.

We made many inquiries about the Russian Mulberry, but could hear nothing of it
in the colder climates. At Voronesh, in the Botanic Gardens, we saw a variety in leaf
much like it, though there not valued. In Odessa there are large mulberry trees, we
are told, and in the Botanic Garden in Vienna, we saw not only large trees of Alba, but
a specimen of Vartarica, fourteen inches in diameter of trunk and twenty-five feet high.
The Russian mulberry, however, as known in the States, is on extensive trial in the
old climate of Cottonwood county, Minnesota. It has been visited by horticulturists,
and we shall soon have opinions upon its probable value.

Mr. Maximowitch suggests that we should try the Mongolian mulberry, if we cau
manage to get it. '

The following note by Mr. Budd gives the status of the case in a few words:

Nore.—On account of ease of propagation from cuttings, the so-called Russian mulberry has been intro-
duced very suddenly and extensively. Its home is in southern Russia. We first saw it at Voronesh and’
Orel, where the above noted forms of the horse chestnut are perfectly hardy. The stories told about its
value as a timber tree were laughed at by Russian foresters. It is used in Russia as it will be here, as a
small-sized ornamental tree, of some value as a fruit producer. It is worthy of trial, but not of the fuss
which is made over it by interested parties.

PANAX.

e
P. sessiliflorum.—A shrub or small tree from Amur, well worth introducing.
There is a specimen in the Botanic Gardens, St. Petersburg, about fifteen feet high, and
Mr. Maximowitch tells us that it blossoms well there, but does not mature its fruit. It
grows in Mantchuria, but not north of lat. 49°.

PHELLODENDRON.

Mr. Goegginger, of Riga, tells us that in the Botanic Garden at Dorpat, half way
between Riga and St. Petersburg, there is a tree of this variety eight to twelve inches in ©
diameter of trunk, and twenty-five feet in height. Again, at Orel, in central Russia, we y
find a young tree about fifteen feet. Clearly hardier varieties than those now grown in. —
United States. The tree I have at Abbotsford is not quite hardy.

Nore.-—Seed might be obtained from Prof. Dr. Russoff, Director Botanic Garden, Dorpat.

POPULUS—Poplar.

.
;
The poplar is our most valuable tree where quick shade is needed. Different
species abound in varieties; some of the best we have not. 4
P. alba.— The silver poplar is a tree of very wide habitat; the varieties indigenous in ~
cold, dry regions we have not tried. In the Botanic Garden at Kazan, there is a row of —
eleven trees, in all in the garden twenty trees, about eighteen inches in diameter of .
trunk ; trunk straight and tapering, the leaf larger than our varieties, and than acerifolia —
only where making strong growth. The quality of the wood of the white poplar is well —
known, but the trouble is the difficulty of getting a straight piece from the western
European form. On dry soils the white poplar we have, becomes very small in leaf,
and looks unhappy, while the varieties we find on the Volga, maintain « large acerifolia
leaf and good growth on very dry soil, and stand severe drought better than any of the
Siberian poplars, better than any other tree we find there except the wild Volga pear.
Cuttings from Kazan and other points in eastern Russia should be obtained, for these
straight-trunked, drought-resisting, white poplars are very important, both as timber
and ornamental trees. In the collection at Verrieres, near Paris, planted by the late
M. de Vilmorin, two varieties maintain this straight trunk.
Of the erect forms of white poplar, that which we find in the nurseries under the —
name of Bolleana, and said to be from Tashkent and Samareand, seems the same as
that at Busy Institute introduced by Prof. Sargent, and described by me last year as a
species from Turkestan ; a deeply cut-leaved silver poplar, as erect when young as a
Lombardy; a decided acquisition. I am told by those who have been at Astrachan,
that the common white poplar along the Volga, from Tsaritsin to Astrachan, is uprighel
like the Lombardy. A
Such are the variations in poplar seedlings, that in dealing with them we mastie
consider that we are dealing with approximations. The P. alba and the P. alba nivea
in the different botanic gardens of central Europe all differ somewhat. j

At Kew there is a grand specimen of alba pendula, three feet in diameter of trunk
a lofty tree of fine weeping form. There is an alba pendula in the catalogues of Riga,

and I think Metz, but I have not seen it. “|

P. monilifera.—This is the most largely planted tree in northern and eastern
France, the most common country road-side tree in central Europe. Not only along
the road-sides, but, especially in France, along all sorts of imaginary lines across the
fields we find it in single rows, with side branches trimmed up and cut as they grow for
faggots and even for sheep feeding. Loudon queried as to whether it was introduced
from Canada or Virginia. At any rate botanists seem to say it came from this continent.
‘This favourite tree, with some variation of form, is our own native cotton-wood; universally
planted in the north-western States, valued in Kurope, scarcely known and never
planted, I may say, in this Province. A most valuable, though an overlooked tree. Its
wonderfully rapid growth at Abbotsford has begun to attract notice there.

P. nigra.—At Warsaw some of the roads are lined with grand old trees of what is
there known as the Vistula poplar. We saw large spreading trees sixty or seventy feet
in height, with a leaf much like our cotton-wood, and with bark rough except on limbs
less than five or six inches. In the Botanic Gardens at St. Petersburg are two immense
trees, one nearly six feet in diameter, now in a state of decay, and said to have been
planted by Peter the Great. However, at Riga and other places this tree is not a
favourite on account of its tendency to decay or kill back in the tops of the branches,
both on dry and moist soil, and as we get into severer climates, trees of this variety are
often very unsightly, and thus it is not a favourite as is monilifera.

A very different tree is the Nigra of the Botanic Gardens at Munich. A tall tree
of small diameter, not spreading, and with very small leaf. A good healthy tree, unlike
others, and worthy of trial. According to the Flora Russica, by Dr. Ledeborn, the
Populus nigra is a native of Lithuania, Moscow, Kazan, the Caspian desert, southern
Siberia, and the Altai. For some reason the Siberian balsamiferas have been planted
instead of it in eastern and middle Russia.

P. Lugenei.—This is a hybrid between fastigiata (or Lombard poplar) and monilifera ;
so we are told by Messrs. Simon-Louis, at Metz, who have a very large collection of the
poplars of central Kurope and who seem to have made them a special study.

P. tremula.—Our own aspen is the poorest tree we have, so short lived. The
Russian form grows to much larger size, and does not appear to be short lived. In
Botanic Garden at Munich there is a high, narrow, small leaved tremula, much like
the Munich nigra. A good tree.

ASIATIC POPLARS.

Under this vague heading, for want of a better, I will group a race of poplars hardly
known to us; trees better suited to dry, cold climates than those of the monilifera and
nigra types, at least one would suppose so from the fact that they are the street and garden
trees from Moscow to Kazan, and south to Saratof, and in middle Russia. They do well
on dry soils, yet do not maintain anything like the same healthy foliage during extreme
drought as the Volga forms of the silver poplar. Neither are they trees of great size, at
least not in their native climates. They seem related to our balsamifera or Balm of Gilead,
yet have leaves not pubescent but smooth, and whitish on the under side, and in some
forms singularly narrow.

P. laurifolia.—This, Mr. Maximowitch tells me, is a medium sized tree, usually
thirty or forty feet in height, and one foot in diameter of trunk, as growing on the Altai
Mountains. Mr. M. had seldom seen it larger. It is a common street tree in north-east-
ern Russia. It is a fast grower, has narrow leaves curled very much on their edges, and
hasangulated branches. A specimen in the Botanic Gardens at St. Petersburg is nearly
fifty feet in height, and I understood it to be but twenty-six years planted. It seems to be
faster grower than suavolens.

P. suavolens is a native, says Mr. Maximowitch, of very cold districts in eastern
Siberia, also of Kamtschatka and the islands of the coast. It grows to a height of fifty
or sixty feet, with a trunk two or three fect in diameter, and is a good street tree.
Branches round.

Norr.—The two above mentioned are botanic species. The following, mostly horticultural varieties
named as in the Russian catalogues :—

P. Berolinensis of Dr. Regel and of the Riga nurseries is the P. Certinensis of Prof. Sargent, and whi
has been grown at Busy Institute, Jamaica Plain, Mass., and has thence found its way into some of the Uv.
S. nurserymen’s catalogues. I am not a botanist and am at a loss to know whether to class this as a Euro
pean or Asiatic poplar. It is a very fast grower, and a favourite in the Russian nurseries, but would seem
to be a seedling of our own cotton-wood. Leaf just like it but curled on the edges,

Petrovskoe, as received from Chas. H. Wagner, and growing in the college grounds at Ames, Iowa,
seems the same.

P. Sibirica is another variety ; foliage slightly broader, and Mr. Wagner, of Riga,
says it grows to be a good sized tree. This must be the Sibirica pyramidalis of some cata-
logues, and i is, I think, the tree we used so often to see planted in the gardens at the rail-
way stations, ‘and which looked at a distance very like a sweet cherry.

FP. Sibirica pyramidalis received by Mr. Budd from Mr. Wagner, of Riga, seems the
same as the laurifolia of Mr. Sargent.

P. balsamifera in leaf in nursery is just like the above, but is said to grow into a
tree of different form. We saw a specimen of it in the Botanic Garden at Kazan fifty
feet in height and two feet diameter.

P. Sibirica swavolens.—A good sized spreading tree, Mr. Goegginger says like a
tilia. Said to grow larger than S. pyramidalis.

Of others, “Wobsti, Mr. Shroeder, at Moscow, says, isa large as wellas a good tree, with i
broad leaf. It is said to be from Turkestan. i

Norg.—This has dark foliage of balsamifera type and brownish red shoots. This seems to be P. Wolesti
of Busy Institute.

Petrovskoe, Mr. Goegginger says, is a Turkestan variety, growing at Petrovskoe, also
a broad-leaved variety. Nigra horizontalis, said to be from Tashkent. Simoni, an —
Asiatic variety with red twigs and a close thin leaf the least like the balsameas. Hffratica —
or diversifolia from Turkestan is a curious variety of irregular foliage ; so says Mr. Goeg- "
ginger of Riga, who has the largest collection of these poplars which we saw. Tristis is
a variety with dark concave, thick, glossy leaf, which sprang up by chance in the Botanic
Garden at St. Petersburg.

These varieties are “mostly variations of what Pallas called the Siberian balsamifera.
They will not grow to as large size as our own Balsam of Gilead, which here is a lofty —
tree with a trunk three feet and even four feet in diameter, and which reaches a diameter
of six to ten feet on the upper Peace river in the North-West. They are, however, so —
easy of introduction, so easily scattered, they differ so much in foliage and growth, that.
they must be looked upon as interesting and valuable introductions. }

POTENTILLA.

Nors.— Pretty little shrubs for the north. Dahurica bears white flowers, fruticosa yellow..

PRUNUS—Plum.

P. padus aucubaefolia (Variegated-leaved bird cherry). This and other varieties
quite hardy in the north.

P. Maakia.—Hardy at St. Petersburg.

P. spinosa.—The dwarf form on the Volga, seldom grows over three feet. I have
seen bushes eighteen inches high loaded with bright blue little fruit. Very ornamental. |

ee ee eS eee

= =

PY RUS—Apple and Pear.

Some very ornamental trees among the wild forms of the apple and pear.
P. eleagnifolia.—A bright foliaged tree, nearly as white as salicifolia, leaf broader

‘and growth more upright and regular. I do ‘not know that it is a tree of northern habitat,
still it is hardy at Proscau. We also saw a good specimen of it eight or ten inches in di-
ameter of trunk at Warsaw. ‘

P. salicifolia.—The most ornamental of the pyrus; of irregular, eccentric growth,
somewhat pendulous, and with branches intertwisted in all sorts of ways. The leaf is
very narrow, and as white as the regalis willow; a strikingly beautiful tree. It isa
native of the Ural Mountains, and therefore should prove hardy.

P. Ussuriensis.—The wild pear of the Ussuri in Mantchuria. Iam not sure that I
saw it. The tree is said to be quite ornamental, the fruit of fair size, but it does not
soften even when cooked.

The wild pear of the Volga and of middle Russia, I must mention as the best tree [
know of for a cold climate, for maintaining a dark, glossy leaf during extreme drought.

QU ERCUS—Oak. 2

Tender and unsatisfactory as are some of the English oaks, the peduneulata in Russia
grows in climates quite as severe as the native oaks of this Province. The foresters tell
me that pedunculata is indigenous in the Government of Moscow, also, I am told, in the
Government of Kazan. From this latitude southward, wherever the soil is suitable, this
oak has been planted in vast quantity by the Government forestry stations. Our red
oak is a good, fast grower, but the wood is inferior. Our white oak is the very best of
wood, but, I was going to say, it grows ; but watch a white oak for a few years, and if you
believe your eyes you will declare it does not. This Russian pedunculata combines good
growth with a good quality of wood.

I find the Q. r. fastigiata, the upright oak, hardy as far northas Riga. Q. Mongolica,
a variety with a very small indented leaf, is recommended to us for trial in our cold
climate.

y RHAMNUS—Buckthorn.

R. alpinus.—A variety with an immense leaf, and quite ornamental. At Riga, Mr.
Wagner says, hardy but sometimes slightly injured.

R. catharticus.—Hardy at St. Petersburg.

fh. Pallasii.—A pretty shrub with very glossy foliage, six feet in height. It seems
hardy in the Botanic Garden at Moscow.

RHODODENDRON.

The rhododendrons extend from the Himalayas north, to the Altai, and east to
Kamschatka, and are found in some cold regions. &. dahuricum is an evergreen variety
with purple blossom, quite hardy at St. Petersburg. It does well on limestone soil. A.
parvifoliwm, a smaller and more compact shrub with a small blossom ; grows well on peat
or without it, and is very hardy far to the north.

RIBES—Currant.

R. alpinum.—A fruit and an ornamental shrub. The fruit is of fair size, a rich car-
‘mine, quite sweet, but with a very slight bitter, yet nice, and quite productive, it would
seem. Itis from Siberia. Mr. Shroeder, at the College Gardens at Petrovskoe, seemed
_ to value ithighly. In Siberia, not only the currants, but some of the loniceras bear fruit,
which is gathered for the table, and yet these same varieties ripened in the climate of St.
Petersburg are not eatable.

ROBINITA—Locust.

The pseudo-acacia, or yellow locust, next to the monilifera poplar, is the most com-
mon tree in northern and eastern France, We find it planted along the railroad cuttings
and embankments to bind the earth. We find it a common tree in the streets and parks.
of Paris. We find it planted to cover waste tracts of land. As we enter Germany we
find it a most popular tree in their streets and city gardens.

According to Loudon it was introduced into Europe in 1601 or 1635, and the tree
planted at the latter date in the Jardin des Plantes at Paris is still living. A still larger
tree, however, is that in the public gardens at Warsaw. This locust has run into endless
varieties. The great favourite in central Europe is a top grafted, rounded variety, which,
I think, must be the wmbraculifera or globe acacia. Not quite hardy at Warsaw though
grown there. Not likely to prove hardy here.

In Europe this tree does not seem affected by borers, nor does it have the same seedy
look when old that it does here. Its wood is most durable and valuable at any age; its
growth when young is rampant ; it suckers very badly. At Abbotsford we have had no
borers, and hence it promises to be the best fence-post and fence-rail tree we have.

ROGERSIA.

This I did not see, but Mr. Maximowitch speaks of it as a pretty shrub, which does
well at St. Petersburg. The flower is small, but plentiful.

ROSA—Rose.

I wish to draw special attention to the Rosa rugosa, and especially its double form,
lore pleno, as a shrub perfectly hardy at St. Petersburg and Moscow. In this respect it
is pointed out to us as a shrub of unlimited hardiness. It has a pretty double flower, and
is a decided acquisition. It is a native of Japan. The R. villosa pomifera is so named
because it bears a fruit two inches in diameter, and which is good for preserves. It is
fairly hardy at Riga. It should be planted where likely to be covered with snow. A&.
rubrifolia is ared foliaged shrub. The flower is not special, but I am glad to know that
this plant, which I had admired at Busy Institute, is hardy in the north.

SALIX—Willow.

S. alba var splendens.—In the Botanic Garden at St. Petersburg there is a fine speci-
men of this bright silvery willow, a tree about fifteen inches in diameter, and thirty-five
feet high, without any dead wood about it; a tree of great ornamental beauty in contrast
with dark foliaged trees like S. laurifolia. Throughout Russia we find willows more or
less of this shade of colour. In France and central Europe many willows have this bright
silvery tint. We intended to try the alba lucophylla of Messrs. Simon-Louis, at Metz,
until we found at St. Petersburg a variety whose hardiness was already tested for us.

S. alba of the Volga.—The first groves of this I saw were on low land on the bank
of the Volga, some distance below Nijni Novgorod; lofty trees with straight narrow
trunks, growing quite close, and therefore without lower branches. The foliage is quite
narrow and feathery, the branches pendulous. Single trees maintain the same straight
trunk, At several points on the Volga I asked what variety it was, and was told Salix
alba. It is also known as “vertla.” How different is the salix alba of western Europe,
the great screen, wind-break and snow-break tree of the prairie States. This Vo.:a wil- .
low is not suited for these purposes, but is a straight growing timber tree of great height,
with feathery foliage.

S. acutifolia.—This is the favourite willow for planting to stay drifting sands. In
Mantchuria, in the woods, it isa large tree with a trunk four feet in diameter, used by
the natives for canoes. In cold open exposures it is a mere shrub. It is the best weeper
among the willows in the Botanic Garden at St. Petersburg.

Of others, S. Californica, a small, broad-leaved, very bright silvery little shrub,
quite hardy at Proskau, quite hardy, top grafted even, with Mr. Hoser at Warsaw.
S. cuspidata becomes a large handsome bush. It has a laurel leaf and yellow twigs,
quite hardy at St. Petersburg. 8S. fragilis is, I believe, a widely scattered tree in north
Europe and Asia. Large canoes are made of itin Amur. Rather ornamental and quite
hardy.

SAMBUCUS—Elder.

An ornamental race of plants, most of which are adapted to cold climates.

S. nigra.—We find this as a small or even medium-sized tree in the milder parts of
~ Europe. It has been grown at St. Petersburg, but is tender there. The S. nigra incisa,
which we saw at Prague and similar climates, is a very dark, yet feathery cut- leaved
shrub of great beauty. I think this isthe Vigra laciniuta of the nurseries at Riga, which
is fairly hardy there.

S. racemosa.—The red-berried Elder is the favourite shrub in Russia ; more widely
planted than any other, except the Caragana ; more common than the mountain ash, or
any other tree bearing ornamental fruit. In the north it bears its clusters of bright red
berries in profusion, and decorates the roadsides and gardens, where it is planted. The
S. racemosa seratifolia is a beautiful cut-leaved variety ‘of it ; fairly hardy at Riga, nearly
hardy at St. Petersburg. There isalso a variety plumosa, much like it, and about as hardy
at Riga.

SORBUS—Mountain Ash.

As we journeyed from Proskau to Riga, during the first week in August, the Moun-
tain Ash everywhere were full of clusters of bright red berries. This eastern form is not
as straight and smooth a grower as the ordinary forms from western Enrope, yet this
seems to > fruit more heavily ; but here is the point, it colours its fruit a month earlier.

SPIRAAA.

I will again quote from Mr. Budd :—

Nore. —We have introduced very few hardy spirzas at the west, and the few fine ones we have tested
are not yet common in our nurseries. Yet, with the hope that we will soon have a specialist in this desirable
line of nursery work, I will note a few fine species of the spirea for the central and north part of the State.

Spirea oppulifolia.—While no better than our native species, it is a special favourite in all parts of
Europe. It should be better known with us.

Spirea Douglasi.—We have a fine spirea under this name in the eastern nurseries, but the Russian form
seems an improvement in plant and in the length and perfection of its purple flower spike.

Spires cana.—This has fine graceful foliage much like our Thunbergia. It flowers freely in June and
July at the north. .

Spirea nobleana.—This is afine hardy species wh a profusion of scarlet flowers in July at the north.

Spirea laviegata.—The only spirea, it is said, which is strictly diecious. The leaves are very large and
the whole expression of the plant peculiar : very hardy.

Spirea alba.—In the northern steppe gardens this species attracts the attention of all visitors.

Spirea bella.— Hardy, fine foliage, and a profusion of fine, white flowers.

Spirea chamedrifolia.—A steppe species, improved probably by crossing. It is popular as an orna-
_ mental hedge plant inthe north, and even as far south as Austria. It bears pruning, and in June and July

it is literally a wall of pure white flowers. It grows readily from cuttings. Of the spirzas, only the special-
ly hardy are noted, as for milder parts of the State we already have a good collection.

To the above list, by Mr. Budd, I would lke to add fruticosa, a variety noted for its prolonged bloom,
which is yellow. It is indigenous in parts of Siberia, Mongolia and Thibet, and would seem suited to dry
climates.

: These varieties are all so well known by Mr. Maximowitch, that the list specially recommended by him
taust be given. It is as follows, amurensis, betulifolia, callosa Foxi, cana, carpinifolia, confusa, hypericifolia,
levigata, sorbifolia, and triloba.

SYRINGA—Lilac.
Nore.—The northern steppes seem the home of the large leaved lilacs of the Josikea race. In the large

cities of central Russia, trees fifteen or more feet in height, with fine rounded tops, are everywhere common
in public and private places.

TAMARIX—Tamarisk.

This is a beautiful feathery shrub, unlike any other. 1 was always making enquiries
to see if we could not find a really hardy species, The 7. tetranda is a native of the Altai
Mountains, yet needs shelter at St. Petersburg. Dahurica is very light in colour, and
very feathery. Mr. Goegginger, at Riga, finds it a little hardier than Gallica or tetandra.
Gallica seems to differ much in hardiness. In the Botanic Garden at Moscow itis said to
be seldom covered. In Norway, Germanica grows wild in lat. 70°, about as far north as
the sorbus and the trembling poplar.

We cannot grow the tamarisk as a tree, as in the gardens of the Tuilleries, in Paris,
but as a shrub, cut back each fall, grown in some corner where the snow is apt to cover it,
there should be no trouble in the culture of this beautiful plant.

Nore.—In my search for a hardy Tamarisk, Mr. John Robinson, of the Arnold Arboretum at Jamaica
Plain, Mass., kindly comes to the rescue. He tells me of a T. Chinensis (?) received thirty years ago from
an unknown source, and which has never shown any signs of winter injury at Salem, Mass. He evensends
me a photograph of the tree, the top branches reaching the sills of the windows of the third storey, and yet
the tree has been cut back many times to keep it in shape. Mr. Robinson also speaks of the readiness with
which it grows from cuttings.

TILIA—Linden or Basswood.

The Linden is a very favourite street or park tree in central and northern Europe.
It has long been a favourite, and hence we find avenues of grand patriarchal trees
which have been the pride of generations. At Verrieres there is an avenue planted by
the late M. de Vilmorin, trimmed inside in the form of a high narrow Gothic arch, with
transcept, a prolonged Westminster Abbey.

T. Europea.—The linden of western Europe is hardy in Montreal, but its leaf is
so fine and thin that it is sensitive to drought, and even in England its foliage is apt to
wilt in dry weather. It is a favourite street tree on the Massachusetts coast, yet should
not be planted largely in drier regions.

T. Europea var parvifolia.—As we proceed eastward this becomes the favourite,
and finally, in middle and eastern Russia, the only iilia. The first specimen we noticed
was at Reutlingen, in Wurtemburg, a largish tree with leaf no larger than an English
shilling. It was growing very slowly, the foliage is always larger. At Salzburg, in
Austria, the grand old lindens, centuries old, trees four or five feet in diameter of trunk,
were all parvifolias. At St. Petersburg the @nest street trees are lindens, and I believe
most of them parvifolias. Here the ordinary Europxa is known as the tilia of Holland.
At Moscow parvifolia is represented in the Botanic Gardens by a tree with a straight trunk
over four feet in diameter. In Kazan we are told that the trade in basswood bark from
that region is all from this parvifolia variety. Russian foresters view the enormous
consumption of basswood bark much as thinking men do here our export hemlock bark
trade, and consider it a destructive industry. Soon some other material will have to be
found for peasants’ shoes, rope and matting.

Of the other varieties, nigra, which we saw in the Munich Botanic Gardens, struck
me as being a good tree, with dark, glossy leaf. The vitifolia, of the American nurseries,
has a good leaf, but I did not see it in Europe. So has dasystyla. Grandifolia and a
host of others have foliage too thin for our dry air. Begoniaefolia is not variegated
enough to be ornamental, not in dry weather. Aspenifolia is a great curiosity, leaves
torn and slashed irregularly, folded and indented, with scarcely two Jeaves alike; quite
hardy at Proskau ; fairly hardy at Riga. This is sometimes noted as dissecta.

Of the white-leaved lindens, the American, which I have noted as a native tree as far
north as the Hennepin Islands in Minnesota, is spoken of at Riga as the hardiest tree,
and the largest tree. I believe it is rather erect in growth. The Hungarian, known
there as pannonica (I suppose the tomentosa of Messrs. Simon-Louis) is not as hardy,
not as erect in growth, more bright in colour, more ornamental. Further south, at
Vienna, in the Botanic Gardens, we find a variety marked heterophylla, of Ohio and

Mississippi, twelve inches in diameter, semi-upright, more bright and white in foliage
than the T. argentea of Hungary alongside. The white leaved European lindens we
did not see in the very severe climates. The alba of Hungary has not proved hardy
with me at Abbotsford, still less so the alba pendula which winter kills at Riga. So we
had better try the northern forms of the American white lindens.

ULMUS—Elm.

In Europe they have overlooked the grandest of all American trees, the white elm,.
a tree that thrives in climates even more severe than St. Petersburg and Moscow.

The campestris is not indigenous at St. Petersburg, as I had said, nor is it hardy
there, but effusa is. In the southern part of the Government of Moscow, both effusa
and montana are found wild, but the northern limit of campestris is yet further south.
Effusa is % good and a hardy tree, but I never saw one of large size. At Petrovskoe,
Moscow, Mr. Shroeder showed us a fine specimen of effusa pendula, so my notes say, but
T have forgotten it. Montana, or the so-colled Scotch elm, is not so hardy there or at
St. Petersburg. Some weeping forms of it of the camperdown type, seemed quite hardy
at Riga, and were very graceful and ornamental. The pendula should rather be named
horizontalis. They have a fine specimen in one of their public gardens, eight inches or
more in diameter of trunk. Another is quite pendulous. We are much in need of a
tree of this kind a littlehardier than camperdown. U. montana exoniensis is very erect in
growth, has large curled leaves clinging around the stem—both odd and ornamental.
U. m. Damierii is much like it, but said by Mr. Wagner to be less hardy. Adantifolia is
like the urticaefolia of the American nurseries, but even more crinkled, and its recurved
serrations are very curious. The U. suborosa (?) of Turkestan, is a small-leaved variety,
not hardy at Moscow. Under the name of Sibirica are several varieties unlike one
another, and quite unlike that described by me last year.

VIBURNUM.
I again quote from Mr. Budd:

Norr.—Except the snow-ball and high-bush cranberry, we have no species of this numerous northern
family under cultivation in the State. The following should be introduced: <Alnifoliwm, Dahuricum,
dentatum, lantanoides, macrophyllum, lantana flore pleno, lantana marginatum. lantana minor, prunfolium,
pygmeum, and pyrifolium.

The lantana appeared quite hardy in the Botanic Gardens at Moscow.

EVERGREENS

ABIES AND PICEA—SPRUCE AND BALSAM.

Norr.—The favourite evergreen in the Riga nurseries is A. Sibirica, known also there as pichta. A
good grower and a balsam with rich, long foliage. I think the seed was said to have been brought from the
Ural mountains. Picea pichta is common in the U. S. nurseries, but as I noted three years ago, is quite
variable in different nurseries in its length of leaf and beauty. On the grounds of General Greig, the Pre-
sident of the St. Petersburg Horticultural Society, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, in full view of
Cronstadt, there is a specimen about thirty-five feet in height and much richer in foliage than the Norway--
Tn fact it was about the most ornamental in the whole collection. At Kazan and again in the Petrovskoe
Park near Moscow, we saw much larger and older trees, trees without any decay of their lower branches, as
is apt to be the case with our native balsam, and yet these trees were growing on dry soil.

Of other varieties, Wngelmanni of the Rocky mountains, a great favourite and always hardy. As Mr.
Budd says, we must go to Russia to get a true estimate of its value in our own country. Wordmanniana,
a fine specimen, thirty feet in height,, in the Botanic Gardens at Warsaw, but not hardy further north.
Pectinaia, said not to be hardy at Moscow, and yet it would seem as though they had obtained their seed
from some southern source, as there are trees of it two feet in diameter at Kazan. Obovata, a hardy spruce

‘from the Urals, with foliage like the Norway, a lofty tree with very short branches, and therefore a tree of
unusually small diameter compared with its height. I have seen trees which struck me very much, and
supposed them to be Obovata or Shrenkiana. Orientalis, no hardy varieties of it in the Russian nurseries,
‘those so far tried not hardy.

JUNIPERUS—Juniper.

J. communis.—The common Juniper grows to a good size in Finland. Sections of the wood at the
‘National Exhibition at Moscow were nearly a foot in diameter. We also saw a specimen in Kazan nearly
the same size.

J. sabina or Savin Juniper is a native northern plant, we saw it in the Botanic Garden at Moscow.
“General Greig tells us that it is commonly known as the Cossack Juniper.

PINUS—Pine.

P. sylvestris (Scotch and Russian Pine). It was through the kindness of M. Alphonse de Vilmorin that
Mr. Budd and myself had an opportunity of studying the variations of the sylvestris pine at Des Barres.
In 1822 the late M. de Vilmorin began that series of experiments which has been of such great service to
the forestry of Europe, and here I would call special attention to the article ‘‘ On the Riga Pine” in the
U. S. report on Forestry in 1878-79, by Dr. Franklin B. Hough. Mons. de Vilmorin had been struck with
the variableness of the sylvestris pine of France from a timber point of view. He therefore planted
‘thirty-two samples of seed, seven of which were from Russia, the others from different parts of Scotland,
France and Germany. Every sample of seed is now represented by its row or rows of trees, each having an
individuality of its own. In the sylvestris of western Europe we find great variableness ; some have
ascending branches, others horizontal ; some attain to good size, others not; some have trunks almost
straight, others wobble, if I may so speak. Of the seven samples of seed received from Russia, two were
from Riga, and the others from Smolensk, Vitebsk, Vilna, Tchernigov, and Volhynia. All these trees had
ascending branches remarkably straight, trunks with reddish bark, and though these different groups to the
eye of a botanist like M. de Vilmorin each had an individuality of its own, yet they all combine those
characteristics which make them first-class timber trees. It may be noted that these samples were all from
western Russia, for the last two Governments lie to the north-east and north-west of Kiev, and yet for
timber purposes they are fair representatives of the pines of European Russia. At the Moscow exhibition
there was a collection of the branches, cones, seeds, etc., of the sylvestris pine, from nine different govern-
ments of European Russia. A chat with a professor in charge, gave me the impression of the general
uniformity of these pines for timber purposes. I also asked from which government he would rather
obtain his seed? He replied, if planting at Moscow my preference would be rather in favour of seed from
one of the three divisions of the Archangel district, but from which division I do not know. This Russian
pine seems to grow nearly as high as our own white pine, but is a tree of smaller diameter of trunk. Among
the pines of western Europe one variety growing abundantly between the Loire and the Rhone was
especially crooked and stunted in growth and worthless as a timber tree. These trees were pointed out by
M. de Vilmorin as heavy seed producers, and hence the seed has been picked in quantity, and no doubt has
come to this country in quantity.

The experiments of M. de Vilmorin show clearly the great advantage of the Russian pine, which he
says ‘‘not only grows more rapidly and to a larger size,” but he adds “‘the timber is more elastic and valu-
able when mature.”

The plantations of M. de Vilmorin are not confined to sylvestris pine. There are five varieties of
P. laricio, a faster growér, but of doubtful hardiness here. Of Mugho, eleven varieties; of pines of different
species, seventy-six kinds. There are sixteen varieties of spruce. Altogether about 117 varieties of ever-
greens, and 296 varieties of deciduous trees. Y

M. de Vilmorin began his experimeets with the Riga pines with the hope of growing on French soil the
masts for the French navy. The masts had to be brought from Russia. The French forests could not pro-
duce them. But this noble patriotism widened into a yet nobler universality, so that his experiments, now
perfected by the lapse of time, are the grandest accumulation of forestry data that the temperate regions
have ever seen.

P. Cembra (Var. Sibirica).—This is the most ornamental of the pines in the Russian "parks, more
massive in its foliage than our native white pine. We find fine specimens at Gen. Greig’s, and in all the
botanic gardens and parks. We were told by the foresters that in the Koloninsky Park not far from

‘

€

Moscow, there are trees of immense size, 600, or 700 years planted. It is a common tree in the Uralsand
in Siberia. Its seed and that of the sunflower are sold in all groceries, and are the peanuts of the Russian
peasant population.

TAXUS— Yew.

T. baccata.—The common yew of central Europe is scarcely hardy at Warsaw. In the well sheltered
Botanic Gardens, it has been injured so much as to be scarcely ornamental. Neither is it at all hardy at
Riga. However, Mr. Wagner tells us that there is a northern form found in the woods near Riga, and
which I suppose is more or less hardy there.

At Volsk, in the Botanic Garden, there are two large specimens of yew, nearly thirty feet in height,
with anumber of branches or trunks ascending from the ground, different from anything we had seen
elsewhere.

In conclusion, I would say that I have written these notes when pressed with other
work, but felt it was necessary that they may appear at once, that whatever is of value
to us, should be imported next autumn ; for orders of plants from points north and east
of Warsaw must be shipped in the fall.

Seeds can be sent from or to Russia in bags under eight ounces. Scions I have sent
safely to Warsaw by mail; and scions sent by mail from Riga arrived in fair condition.
Letters to central and eastern Russia (Moscow excepted) should be addressed in Russian.

As an amateur, I cannot continue to give up to this work the time I have given in
the past. My part has been an endeavour to show our Governments and our horticul-.
tural societies what may, what should be done.

Let us carefully watch the work now being carried on by Mr. Budd, at the State
Agricultural College at Ames, lowa—work of the highest value to the cold climates of
Canada ; that work which made our trip to Russia a necessity, that is, a necessity to fair
progress ; a trip which enabled me in part to see with his eyes, and give you in some
degree the results of his study and observations.

Let us then follow out this scheme of interchange with our corresponding climates
in the old world. The work has some difficulties. However, as we have the north-
western States and the Russians as our allies, the .difficulties may be overcome to our
great and mutual good.

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE WHITE PINE—

Pinus strobus.

By Wm. Saunpers, Lonpon, ONTARIO.

More than one hundred species of insects have been enumerated as destructive to
-the white pine, some attackin the wood, others the bark, twigs or leaves, and while
some of them do comparatively little harm, others are very injurious. In the present
paper reference will be made mainly to those which do the greatest injury to this our
most valuable timber tree, briefly sketching their life history, and habits as far as they
are known. ‘The losses occasioned by the destructive work of borers are unfortunately
too well known to those engaged in the lumber trade, although the sufferers in most
instances know but little of the curious transformations which these insects undergo.
These specially destructive species inflict their greatest injuries during the larval period
of their existence, in which condition some of them continue their work for several years
before reaching maturity. Most of these pests belong to one of two families of beetles,
the longicorn, or long-horned beetles (Cerambycide), or the serricorn, or saw-horn beetles
(Buprestide). The cylindrical bark-beetles are also injurious, but as they operate chiefly
near the surface, immediately under the bark, they do not injure the timber to any
material extent.

MonouHAMMUS CONFUSOR.

Among the most formidable enemies in the family of long-horned beetles are two
-species belonging to the genus Monohammus, and known as Monohammus confusor and
M. scutellatus. M. confusor is a large grey beetle,
remarkable for the extraordinary length of its
antenne or horns. This insect is shown in fig. 19.
The body varies in length from an inch to an inch
and a-half, the average size being over an inch.
Its general colour is ashen grey, mottled with
darker spots and dots; there are also patches of
a whitish colour on the head, thorax and abdomen,
which are sometimes indistinct or almost want-
ing, the colours being chiefly due to a covering of
very fine, short hairs, which, as they are easily
rubbed off, occasion these variations in the appear-
ance of the insect. The antenne of the males
vary in length from two to upwards of three
inches ; those of the female are much shorter, and
seldom exceed the length of the body. During
the summer the female lays her eggs in the
crevices of the bark of the white pine trees, fre-
.quently selecting those which have been scorched by fire or felled by the wind or the
Jumberman’s axe.

Fig. 19.

The larva when hatched soon eats its way into the wood, where it forms channels or
galleries through and through the solid interior. When full grown it is a large, soft,
white grub, nearly cylindrical in form and destitute of feet. The head is large, of a
reddish-brown colour, and is armed with a pair of powerful jaws; the next joint behind
the head is flat and horny, and larger than the others, the body tapering a little from
this point backwards. The chrysalis state is passed within the burrow, and the beetle
appears late in June or during the month of July. As this insect lives a long time in
the larval state, the beetle is often developed after the timber has been built into a
house, when, suddenly emerging from its concealment, it becomes a source of wonder to
the inhabitants of the dwelling. When burrowing into the wood, the larva makes a
noise not unlike the boring of an augur, which on a still night may be heard in the woods
for a considerable distance, and such noises occurring in a house where the cause has not
been suspected has often given rise to superstitious notions and excited in the timid much
alarm. This beetle is very generally distributed throughout the Northern United States
and Canada, and in the lumbering districts is sometimes excessively abundant. One
instance is on record where nearly three hundred of the beetles were seen at one time on
a single pine tree. As these insects are partial to cut timber, they often greatly injure
jogs which are allowed to remain a season over in the mill-yard.

Monouammus ScurELLATUS.

This beetle derives its specific name from its white scutellum situated at the junction
of the wing-covers with the thorax. It varies in length from three-quarters of an inch to
an inch, and usually occurs most abundantly in June. In
fig. 20 we have a very good representation of this insect.
The body is black above and below, and thickly pitted with
irregular impressions. On the wing-cases there are a num-
ber of scattered whitish spots of various shapes and sizes,
which, when examined with a magnifying lens, are found
to be formed of dense clumps of short, whitish hairs, which
often disappear by being rubbed off. On each side of the
thorax is a thick, triangular spine; the antenne are many-
jointed, and in the female are about the same length as the
body, while in the male they are nearly twice that length.

The larva of this insect is also a thick, white grub, without feet. The body is
divided into a number of well-marked segments, the head as in the species last described
being furnished with a strong pair of jaws. This larva infests the white pine chiefly
after the lumber has been cut or newly fallen, and injures it by boring large, oval-shaped
cavities, which extend for Jong distances through the interior of the log. In some localities
these insects are very plentiful, literally swarming on pine trees, They are common in
the lumbering regions of Canada and the Northern States.

Fig. 20.

CRIOCEPHALUS AGRESTIS.

Another injurious beetle belonging to the same family, but having much shorter
‘horns, is known under the: name of Criocephalus agrestis. This beetle is of a blackish-
‘brown colour, with three large irregular indentations on the top of the thorax and two
ridges on each of the wing-covers. The antenne are about half the length of the body.
‘The eggs of this insect are laid on the pine trees, and the larva when hatched bores into
the wood, perforating the trunk in all directions, making a flattened cylindrical hole.
When full-grown it is about an inch long, is white, footless, with a brown head. The
anterior portion of the body is somewhat thicker than the hinder segments. ‘Lhe larva
changes to a chrysalis within its burrow, and produces the beetle late in May or early .
in June.

Tue Lesser OrtTHosomMa—Orthosoma brunnewm.

This is a long-horned beetle of a rather flattened form, about an inch and a-quarter
long and about one-third of an inch broad—see fig. 21. It is
of a deep red colour, darker anteriorly ; on each side of the
thorax there are three sharp teeth and several slightly elevated
lines on the wing-covers. ‘The larva is about an inch and a-
quarter long, cylindrical in form, and of a whitish colour. The
beetles are very common during the months of June and July,
and the larve are frequently met with in decaying pine stumps.
Since they feed chiefly on decaying wood they do but little harm.

There are several other smaller species of longicorn beetles
which injure pine trees, but as their habits are very similar to
those of the larger species to which reference has been made, it
will perhaps be unnecessary to speak further of them now.

Tue Vireintan Burrestis—Chalcophora virginiensis.

Among the Buprestidz, or saw-horn beetles, the Virginian
buprestis (Chalcophora virginiensis) will first claim attention.
This is a large and handsome beetle, which measures from eight-
tenths of an inch to an inch or more in length. It is of an
oblong form, and brassy or copper-coloured, sometimes almost
black. The upper side of the body is roughly punctated, the top of the head deeply
indented, on the thorax there are three elevated and polished thick black lines, and on each

Fig. 21.

wing-cover two small, square, impressed spots, a long, elevated, smooth, black line near-

the outer margin and another near the inner margin, with several thinner, shorter lines
between them. The under side of the body has a coppery lustre, and is sparingly covered
with short whitish down. It appears towards the end of May, throughout June, and
occasionally later. The larva is a flat-headed white grub, with its anterior segments very
much enlarged, which bores into the sap-wood of the white pine, and sometimes girdles
the tree; its track begins as a narrow shallow groove on the surface of the wood, increasing
in breadth as the larva grows, following an irregular course, and terminating in a large
hole, at which point the grub changes to a chrysalis.

Tue LiserateD Buprestis—Chalcophora liberta.

This is a closely allied species, much resembling the Virginian buprestis in all its
stages. The beetle is about three-quarters of an inch long, of a brassy or coppery hue,

sometimes glossed with green, in other specimens nearly black. The thorax and wing--

covers are deeply furrowed by irregular longitudinal depressions. It differs from Var-
giniensis in the width and character of the raised lines on the wing-covers.
Dicerca TENEBROSA.

Is another member of the family of Buprestians which is an enemy of the white
pine. This species in the larval state mines under the bark of the tree, where it

occurs as a medium-sized whitish grub, with a flat head, brown jaws, and enlarged anterior’

segments. The beetle occurs late in the summer, is of an ashy-bronze colour, with the
thorax and elytra more or less furrowed, and densely pitted. ‘The under surface is copper
coloured. This insect is found in most parts of Canada and the Northern United.

Ste tes.
THe GoLpEN Buprestis—Buprestis striata.

This s~ecies alko deserves mention here. It is a very handsome beetle, from six to
seven-tenths of an ich long, of a coppery-red colour, with a broad bluish-green stripe
on each wing-cover, which varies in brilliancy in different specimens. There are four
raised smooth lines on each wing-case, and a wide, shallow groove along the middle of

the thorax. Both thorax and wing-covers are pitted with minute dots. The larva of
this species, which is very similar to that of tenebrosa, is occasionally found in sound
pine logs, but much more frequently in decayings logs and stumps.

Harris’ Burerestis—Chrysobothris Harrisiv.

This lovely little beetle measures about one-third of an inch in length. The female
is of a beautiful metallic green all over; the male has the legs and the sides of the
thorax of a reddish-bronze, with a purplish tinge towards the tips of the wing-covers.
The thorax has a conspicuous furrow down the centre, and is marked with some irregular
indentations, which are repeated also on the finely-punctured elytra. The beetle is found
on white pine saplings towards the end of May and in June; the larva lives under the

bark of young trees and in the smaller limbs of older trees.
| CyLinpricaL Pine Borers.

Eight species of cylindrical bark beetles belonging to the family Scolytide are known
to attack the white pine, of which perhaps the boring Hylurgus (Hylurgus terebrans) is
one of the most common, and since they are all very similar in their appearance and
habits, this may be taken as a representative species. The beetle is about a quarter of
an inch long, of a nearly cylindrical form, a chestnut-red colour, and is thinly clothed
with yellowish hairs. it is found in abundance in May in pine forests and amongst
lumber in mill-yards and elsewhere throughout the greater portion of North America.
The larva is a small, yellowish-white, footless grub, with a yellow, horny head, which
bores winding passages in many directions in the inner layers of the bark of the tree, and
also in the outer surface of the wood.

Ayleborus xylographicus (fig. 22) is another member of this family, which has proved

to be a formidable enemy both to the white pine in the north and to the
3” yellow pine in the south.

Tue Pates WrEEvit—Hylobius pales.

Among the weevils, or snout beetles, there are also several species which
injure the white pine, one of them is known as the pales weevil (Hylobius
pales). Itis a dark chestnut-coloured or black weevil, from three to four-
tenths of an inch long, sprinkled with dots more or less bright, which are
found, on magnifying them, to be clusters of very fine, short, yellowish-gray
hairs. These insects are quite common in May and June among pine trees, and lum-
ber piles. The female perforates the bark of the tree with her snout and in the
excavation deposits an egg, where it shortly hatches into a white or yellowish-white
larva, which burrows beneath the bark, consuming its substance and loosening it from
the wood. In the autumn the larva bores into the sap-wood, forming a cell nearly
a quarter of an inch deep, arched over the top with a roof of sawdust and woody fibre.
Within this enclosure the larva changes before spring to a pupa, from which the beetle
escapes early in the summer. It is found from Maine and Lake Superior to Florida.

THe WHITE PINE WEEvIL—Pissodes strobi.

This is a common weevil met with at all times during the season, but most commonly
in May. They affect the upper shoots of the trees, depositing their eggs in
the bark of those which are young and growing thriftily. When hatched
the young larve devour the wood and pith, causing the shoots to wither and
die. The leading shoots being destroyed, the trees become irregular in their
growth and much disfigured. The larva is white, and about one-third of an
inch long. The beetle (see fig. 23) is of an oblong, oval form, rather narrow,
about a quarter of an inch long, of a dull dark brown colour, with two
dots on the thorax, and a short, irregular, white band behind the middle
of the wing-covers. They are also ornamented with a few patches of tawny
yellow.

F, 8

Tue Wootty Bark Louse or THE PINE.

This is an insect which, in some localities, is very destructive to the white pine.
Large patches are frequently found on the trunk and branches covered with a white,
cottony secretion, under the protection of which live myriads of tiny
lice. These puncture the bark with their sharp beaks and feed upon
ER the sap, thus exhausting the trees, and sometimes : '

& causing their death. Large numbers of these lice
are destroyed by lady-birds, who feed on them
4 both in the larval and perfect state. Two species
Hie 94 are especially useful in this instance. One is
a shown in fig. 24, where it is represented in its
three stages. This is known as the painted lady-bird (Harmonia picta); the other is
black, with two red spots, and is called the twice-stabbed lady-bird (Chilochorus bivul-

merus). The larva is shown in fig. 25,

Fig. 25.

Pine Lear Scare Insect—Chronaspis pinifolie.

Another allied species is the pine-leaf scale insect (Chionaspis pinifolie, Fitch).
The leaves of the pine are sometimes found to be covered with innumerable elongate,
snowy-white bodies, which, on examination, are found to be the scales of an insect ;
these when abundant give to the whole foliage a whitened appearance, and, if the insects
are allowed to pursue their course unchecked, the leaves shortly become yellow or brown,
and the trees languish and occasionally die. In fig. 26 is shown a tuft of leaves injured

Aancid.

by this scale insect. The scale of the female, shown at 2c, is about one-tenth of an inch
long, that of the male, shown partly grown at 2d and mature at 2, is not more than
one-thirtieth of an inch. Both male and female scales are much magnified in the
figure. This insect has not yet proved troublesome in forests, but has chiefly affected
trees in cultivation. It very closely resembles a species found on cultivated pines in
Europe, and may possibly prove to be the same, The eggs are produced under the female

- i alam wm

eas 3

ae ate

scales, from fifteen to thirty under each scale; they are oval in form and of a red
colour. The larve hatch early in May, and are also red. When first hatched the
young females move briskly about until they have selected suitable locations for a per-
manent abode, when they attach themselves thereto and remain fixed. The males are
less active, and often attach themselves to the leaves in the immediate neighbourhood
of the parent scales. This insect produces at least two broods in a year, perhaps more,
and is found throughout the United States from New York to Florida.

Tae Wuite Pine Saw-Fry—Lophyrus Abbotit.

This species belongs to the family of saw-flies, a class of insects which are said to
have greatly injured whole forests of pine in Germany. This American saw-fly is
abundant in Indiana, Illinois, and Mis-
souri, and is generally distributed elsewhere
, through the Northern and Western States
and Canada. Fig. 27 represents the insect
in its several stages. The larva is from
eight-tenths of an inch to an inch in length,
of a dingy white colour, with a black head,
and several longitudinal rows of black spots
along the body, and is found most numerous
inthe autumn. When full fed they enclose
themselves in oval cocoons, which are some-
times spun up among the leaves on the tree,
but more frequently among the fallen leaves
and other debris on the ground. Within
the cocoons the larve remain unchanged
until the following spring, when the pupa
is formed, from which the flies issue in about two weeks The male measures, when
its wings are spread, about half an inch the female two-thirds of an inch across.
The body of the male is black excepting the under side and tip of the abdomen, which
are yellowish. The female is of a honey-yellow colour, with the head and thorax a little
darker, the thorax with the abdomen being slightly marked with black. The wings are
transparent, with black veins. The larve feed in flocks, and seldom leave a twig or
branch until they have completely stripped it. When approaching full growth they
consume a large quantity of food, and strip a tree of its leaves with wonderful rapidity.
When disturbed they have the habit of throwing back the head and ninder part of the
body, and if the tree or branch is violently shaken many of them will fall to the ground.
A large proportion of these larve are destroyed by a parasitic fly.

THE PINE-BoRING PyraLiD—WNephopteryx Zimmermant.

In the months of June and July branches of the white pine often show that they
are suffering from the attacks of an insect by the pitch which exudes; the wounds
usually occur below the insertion of the smaller branches near the top of the terminal
shoots. On cutting into the affected part, the injury is found to be caused by a small
larva which, when full grown, is nearly three-quarters of an inch long. The head is
shiny-brown, with black mandibles, the body blackish-green, naked, with a few black
dots on each segment, from each of which arises a single rather stout hair. The larva
devours the inner side of the bark, and making furrows in the wood, causes the exuda-
tion which, when excessive and continuous, especially in the case of young trees, some-
times proves fatal. In July the larva spins a thin, whitish, papery cocoon in the mass
of exuding pitch, which seems to act as a protection to both larva and chrysalis. The
chrysalis is smooth, and of a blackish-brown colour, and produces the moth in from ten
to fourteen days. The moth, when its wings are expanded, measures an inch or more
across. It is of a blackish-grey. shaded with reddish, the hind wings are pale yellowish-
white, and the abdomen greenish ringed with dull white. The species is probably single-

a eee

brooded. From the fact that the exuding pitch offers so much protection to the insect,

it is scarcely likely that any remedy would reach it. The knife seems to be the only

resource. A small four-winged parasite attacks the borer in the larval state, the chrysalis
being often found filled with the cocoons of this useful friend.

Comstocr’s Retin1a—Retinia Comstockiana, Fernald.

This insect as yet has only been ob-
served on the pitch pine (Pinus rigida), but
as it is probable that it will sooner or
later be found to attack the white pine it
will be briefly noticed.

The perfect insect is a small moth of a
light grey colour, varied with darker shades
of rusty brown, which measures, when its
wings are spread, nearly three-quarters of
an inch across. The eggs are laid on the
terminal shoots of the trees, and the larve
are found in the early part of the summer
boring into the twigs and small branches,
causing an exudation of resin, and sometimes
girdling them. The larve, when full-grown,
are nearly half an inch long, of a yellowish
colour, with a brown head, a patch of the
same colour on the next segment, and a few
polished brown dots on each ring, and from
every one of these there arises a single hair.
The larva changes to a chrysalis within the
burrow from which eventually the moth
escapes. In fig. 28 we have the insect
represented in its several stages, also a small
branch of an affected tree and a section of
one of the bored twigs.

Tue Pine Luar-miner—Gelechia pinifoliella
(Comstock).

This insect was first described by Prof.
Comstock in his report to the Department
of Agriculture, Washington, for the year
1879. It has been found mining the leaves
of different species of pine in many parts of :
the United States, and although as yet unrecorded in Canada, will very probably be
found here. The larva is very minute, in the figure it is much magnified ; the line below
indicates the natural size. It lives within the leaf on the soft tissues, and its presence
is soon indicated by the change in colour which takes place in the part affected ; it
becomes brown, and on examining the leaf, or that portion of it which is discoloured,
it is found to be entirely eaten out, and to contain, if in season, the insect, either in
the larval or pupal condition. In fig. 29 the work of this tiny insect on the leaves is
shown. The moth, chrysalis, and larve are all represented, but much magnified.

The larva, when full-grown, is about one-fifth of an inch long, of a pale brown
colour, with a black head and a black patch on the upper part of the next segment. It is
also sparingly covered with short, fine hairs. The change to a chrysalis takes place
within the mined leaf, and in summer the moth escapes in about a fortnight. ;

The perfect insect, when its wings are spread, measures about three-eighths of an
inch across ; it is of a brownish-yellow colour, dotted with fuscous scales. The fore-wings
are crossed by three white lines, as shown in the figure ; the hind-wings are pale grey,

Fig. 28.

ae a

and both pairs are deeply-fringed. There are two or three broods of this insect during
the year.

Fig. 29.

In addition to those enumerated, there are a score or two of species of insects which
are known to devour the leaves of the pine, in some instances injuring them very much.
Unfortunately it does not yet seem to be within the power of man to do much directly
towards limiting the destructive work of these enemies to our forests, yet this should not
deter us from studying their habits and life history, as a knowledge of these may help us
much more than we anticipate. A few trees, such as a belt or group planted for shelter
or ornament, may be protected from the leaf-destroyers by syringing them with a mixture
of Paris green and water, in the proportion of a teaspoonful of the poison to a pailful of
water. Bark lice may be killed bythe use of alkaline washes applied with a brush or
broom ; such alkaline applications are also of use in preventing the borers from obtaining
a lodgement in the trees, as these insects will not usually deposit their eggs on trees so
protected ; but it is scarcely possible that such remedies can ever be applied over extensive
areas of forest. It is gratifying to know that in addition to the number devoured by
insectivorous birds, almost every injurious species is preyed on by predaceous and parasitic
insects, which seek out and destroy the pests with ceaseless diligence. Were it not for
these friendly species, the destructive insects would long ere this have rendered the growth
of trees an impossibility.

THE CHINCH BUG—WMicropus leucopterus. Say.
By Wm. Saunpers, Lonpon, Ont.

This formidable insect pest has recently appeared in force in the adjoining State of
New York, where it has within a limited area inflicted a very considerable amount of
damage. That an insect so enormously destructive as this one is in the west, has
domiciled itself so near us is sufficient to excite some alarm and induce our agriculturists
to be on the alert and to use such defensive measures, in case of attack, as the science of
economic entomology has suggested.

During the last week in September a package of insects was forwarded to the New
York State Entomologist, with the following statement in regard to them, from Mr. M. H.
Smith, of Redwood, Jefferson county, N.Y.: “I herewith transmit specimens of (to us)

a new and formidable grass-destroying insect, together with portions of grass destroyed
by them, and also some of the soil, for the purpose of examination. If the insect is
known to you, and there is any known way to exterminate it, please inform us at once.
The evidence of its destructive work was first discovered in June of 1882, by Mr. H. C.
King, of Hammond, St. Lawrence county. At haying time, about the middle of July,
he noticed about three acres of his timothy grass to be apparently prematurely ripened.
In the fall he observed that there was no aftergrowth, and that the stubble was as dead
as if it had been boiled. Search was made among the dead roots without any discovery.
The following spring the field was entirely barren of timothy, but some clover seeds and
thistles occupied the ground where at least one and one-half tons of timothy to the acre,
under favourable circumstances, would have been cut. In June of 1883, Mr. King
discovered other fields to be affected in the same manner, and instituted a search which
has recently resulted in the discovery of myriads of the insect, not in the dead grass, but
at the edge of the live grass, where they may be scraped up by handfuls. They have
destroyed about fifteen acres for Mr. King, and several acres for’ each of several other
farmers of his vicinity. They are causing extreme alarm, and if you can give any relief
from this calamity it will be gratefully appreciated. This is an important grazing locality.
In addition to the timothy, June grass and wire grass are also destroyed.”

On examination this insect proved to be the notorious chinch-bug, a pest hitherto
extremely rare in New York State, and never before recorded as destructive within
that State. Prof. Lintner at once visited the district referred to, and thus records
his personal observations made during the 5th and 6th of October. He says:
“The cold weather of the past few days (ice was formed upon three nights), has
doubtless driven most of the bugs to their winter quarters for hibernation, in
crevices, beneath boards, rails, etc., in rubbish heaps, and to many other secure retreats,
where such insects are accustomed to hide. Yet, upon parting the roots of the timothy,
upon the borders of the killed portion, they were found in alarming numbers—in some
spots sufficient to cover the ground with their bodies over an area of a couple of inches
in diameter, being apparently congregated in such places. In one spot, upon the warm
sloping side of a dead furrow, they could be seen, in numbers, running like ants over
the ground. Elsewhere, they were concealed among the roots, near to and about the
bulbs, upon which they appeared mainly to feed. Their presence in any spot could
always be detected by bringing the nose near the ground by their peculiar bed-bug odour.
This method of detection proved more convenient, amd infallible than looking for them.

‘The invasion is more extended than was at first supposed. Nearly all of the farms
in the neighbourhood of Mr. King have been attacked, either last year or this, and
discoveries of attack not before suspected, are, upon examination, being made daily. A
present range of about eight miles is indicated. It is believed to occur throughout most
of the town of Hammond, and to extend into Alexandria.

“ Without any desire to play the role of an alarmist, I feel it my duty to say that,
as the result of my observations, this chinch-bug invasion of northern New York
threatens to be the most serious insect attack to which our State has ever been
subjected. The following are my reasons for this belief :—

“Tt has planted itself, maintained a footing and has shown a rapid increase under
unfavouring, unpropitious and unnatural conditions, such as these :

“ First.—It is regarded as a southern insect (extending further northward, as do most
animal forms, in the Mississippi valley), yet it has appeared in the most northern county
of the State, and upon (if the report be reliable) the St. Lawrence river.

“Second.—-Its attack has been made upon timothy. This seems to be its most
unusual food plant, and therefore, we infer, the least suited to it. All previous accounts
concur in giving it a preference for spring wheat above all things else ; next in order,
ate or corn, and last the grasses. Timothy is only mentioned as occasionally attacked

ry it.

‘« Third.—In all previous accounts, great prominence has been given to its being a
hot and dry weather insect, dependent upon these conditions, not only for its multiplication,
but for its existence. Heavy rains have been claimed to be invariably fatal to it. It
could not abound, it is stated, ina wet season. Dr. Fitch had even made recommendation

of sprinkling it with water (an artificial shower), as the best means for its extermination.
In the present instance, the bug obstinately persists in multiplying, contrary to all rule.
The past year and the present have both been years of excessive rainfall in St. Lawrence
county. Spring, summer and autumn have been exceptionally wet. In the spring, I
am told that heavy and continued rains flooded meadows now showing the chinch-bug
attack. At haying time, when the bugs were young, and, according to all the statements
hitherto made, readily killed by wet, the rains were so frequent and severe, that the
grass cut could only be secured with difficulty. Upon Mr. King’s farm, much of it was
drawn in, upon favourable days, by improving the opportunity of extending the labour
into hours after nightfall. At the present time grass is lying in fields in stacks, which
could not be gathered, owing to continued rain, and fields of oats are still unharvested.”
This insect belongs to the order Hemiptera, which includes all true bugs. These
are all furnished with a sharp proboscis or beak by which the substance they feed on is
pierced and its juices extracted by suction. This piercer when the insect is at rest is
bent beneath the body. The chinch-bug belongs to a sub-division of the hemiptera
known as the half-wing bugs (Heteroptera), and to this same group the well-known bed
pest belongs, and they both give off the same disagreeable odour when touched.
The accompanying figures will aid in making clear the life history of this species.
At a and 6 (Figure 30) the eggs are shown
much magnified, the short lines at the
side of all these figures indicate their
natural size. These eges are about one
thirty-third of an inch long, of a long oval
form with the top squarely cut off. When
at first laid they are pale in colour and
semi-transparent, but shortly they change
to an amber shade and finally in part to
red as they approach maturity. The
2 newly hatched larva shown at c in the
figure is pale yellow, with an orange-
Fig. 30. coloured patch on the abdomen; very soon
the whole body becomes red, except the first
two joints of the abdomen which remain yellowish. With the growth of the insect the
red colour becomes quite bright and contrasts strongly with the pale band as shown at
e and in a more marked manner at 7. As the insect approaches full growth the head
and thorax become dusky in colour, and the abdomen of a duller shade of red. At g the
pupa is represented, in which stage the insect loses none of its activity but gradually
becomes duller and darker in colour. At h one of the legs of the insect is shown
enlarged and at j the tip of the same still more highly magnified, while at i the jointed
proboscis or beak is represented.

In figure 31 we have a view of the perfect insect, also magnified, the short line
behind it showing its natural size. It is about one-tenth of an
inch long and about one-third of its length broad. In colour it is
black, and when examined with a magnifying lens the body is
seen to be slightly hairy. The wing covers, which lie flat upon its
back, are white with black veins and a black spot on each side
about the middle and towards the outer margin. The feet and
the outer swollen joints of the antenne are yellow, the legs and
the basal joints of the antennz black.

Its size seems to be quite out of: proportion to its destructive
powers, and minute though it be it nevertheless inflicts an almost
incredible amount of injury in certain years upon the grain and corn
crops. Prof. Lintner states that “In 1864, its injuries in the State
of Illinois to wheat and corn alone were computed at seventy-three
willions of dollars. This was a year of unusual excess, but it is
not of rare occurrence that a State should suffer a loss of from
twelve to fifteen millions of dollars in a single year. When the

100

insect abounds, it is so numerous as to cover the ground; it blackens the stalks of the
plants upon which it feeds ; it fills the air when, at seasons of its mating, it takes wing
for flight; it marches to new feeding grounds in solid bodies, upon and over one
another ; its invading armies sweep over and utterly destroy a wheat or corn field in
two or three days; and the nauseous bed-bug odour which they exhale sickens those
who are compelled to breathe it.

«‘ As the past history of the insect has shown that parasites and other enemies have
entirely failed to arrest its multiplication, we are compelled to believe, from present
indications, that it has come to stay, and that it will do so, unless effectual means are
taken to prevent it. Its capability of increase is wonderful. Under the most conser-
vative circumstances, a single chinch-bug, depositing its eggs about the 1st of June,
would be, in the following August, the progenitor of a quarter of a million.”

It is evidently most important that every practicable means should be employed in
the endeavour to arrest as far as possible the progress of this mischievous foe, and to -
destroy it wherever found. Should it continue to increase, since it is already upon our
borders, it will in all probability establish itself in force in the adjacent districts in
Ontario, if indeed it has not done so already, and it may become to us a more formidable

enemy than the wheat midge.

REMEDIES, ;

Where the insects are found among the roots of timothy, it is recommended to
plough them under by turning over a flat (not overlapping) broad furrow as deep as
possible, but not less than eight inches. It is said that the insect cannot survive this
deep burial. Fire will certainly destroy it, and where the conditions of the grass will
admit of burning, this measure should be resorted to; a thin covering of straw would
prove a material aid in the burning. Where neither of these remedies can be applied
the field should be heavily rolled as early in the spring as possible, for the purpose of
preventing the bugs which have hibernated, from gaining easy access to the roots of the
grass or grain on which to deposit their eggs. The use of common kerosine or coal oil
has also been recommended, made into an emulsion by forcibly agitating it for a
considerable time with an equal measure of milk, either sweet or sour, when it will
become thick almost like butter, which, diluted with water, should be sprayed over the
ground by means of a suitable pump; or the oil may be emulsified by agitating it
thoroughly with a larger quantity of soapsuds and applied in the same manner.

ge,

WASHINGTON:
JUDI) & DETWEILER, PRINTERS. :
1886.

re as ee eS Ne A ie Pe ae PE as EE

from its platform or publishing those papers afterwards in connection wi

ceedings, is not to be understood as endorsing the views expressed or ado

moting a free and full discussion of all questions of importance conne
subject of Forestry.

er rinmril Anintial. MeGhitigr= soo 2 1 a_i eee

aS PRocEEDINGs:
iress of President Higley .-------_- --_--- Bile it ee ee
Semief orresponding Secretary __—_ -___ _._.._-_ --__ --_. ---2-

SEES Ss DR A aS ee epee st

i Preservation in Canada. By A. T. Drummond -__--~~~-----__. --. -_-_
nnn: etsy i). Wards 2) 2 ee
mber Interests—their dependence on Systematic Forestry. By John E. Hobbs-

State of Legislation in regard to Forests. By N. H. Egleston_-_------ ----
are the Essential Features of an Efficient Forest-fire Legislation. By S.W.

: e-consuming Devices for Locomotives. By J. N. Lauder .-~-—-_----_-_-

1e » Future of the Forests of the Lower Southern States and their Probable Tim-
er Supplies. Beene ARs sot Cano So Cet a eee
ation of Waste Lands. By B. G. Northrop-_._-------_---___-.--------
st Planting—its importance, practicability, and Methods. By William C.
splanting Miverereen, Trees..- By.William C. Strong-_———- --—- ---__2_--2 =
ure e of the Black Walnut in Northern Latitudes. By Hon. H. G. Joly_--_-
Red Cedar and Osier Willow. By Edmund Hersey----_)-_--------------
1e Practical Hints on Tree-raising. By Joseph S. Fay- .__- s-__-=----=. -__-

ing Seeeetoresa stevie. H Wernow =~ 2 ee
berman’s Waste as a Fertilizer. By B. E. Fernow -__- ----____--.--- --_-
mumomolozy.. By EB Southwick- 2 ----__. __-__.
n of Forests to Floods. By Thos. P. Roberts____-.=--.---------- ------

peapanying SS AT | a a a SS

103

o> 2 La

bp
wae President, Hon. Warren Hiaiey. New York city.

é. First Vice-President, Hon. H. G. Jory, Quebec.

“gy Second Vice-President, Hon. J. SrertinG Morton, Nebraska City, Neb ie
e: Recording Secretary, N. H. EGLesron, Dept. of Agriculture, Washington
rf Corresponding Secretary, B. E. Fernow, Dept. of Agriculture, Washi

ts p Treasurer, JouN S. Hicks, Roslyn, Long Island.

. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.

This committee consists of the above regular officers, together with—
Hon. B. G. Norruror, Cinton, Conn.
Hon. WiLLiAM LirtLe, Montreal, Canada.
Hon. J. B. GRInNNELL, Grinnell, Iowa.
Hon. J. G. Knapp, Limona, Florida.
R. H. Warver, Esq., North Bend, Ohio.

STANDING COMMITTEES FOR 1885-’6.

On New England Forest Policy: Gen. Cuas. HAMLIN and JOHN E
Maine; Wm. 8S. Lapp and Geo. B. WALKER, of New Hampshire ; Fra N
PLETON and Wo. C. Strona, of Massachusetts; HENry G. RussELL anc e

FIELD Procror and Hiram Currine, of Vermont.

On Legislation: Ex-Gov. J. SrerLINnG Morron, of Nebraska ;
of Washington, D. C.; Hon. T. S. GoLp, of Connecticut ; Hon. H. R. Low °
York; Hon. J. B. GRiInNELL, of Iowa. Bee

On Arbor Day: Hon. B. G. Norrurop, of Connecticut; N. H. ]
Washington, D. C.; Hon. J. B. PEAs.esn, of Ohio.

On Publication: N. H. Eaieston, of Washington, D. C.; F. W-
Hingham, Mass.; B. E. Fernow, of New York city.

Adan Prof. Chas. Kendall____. Ithaca, N. Y.

ee Middletown, Conn.
Riord, grea tae. San Francisco, Cal.
nderson, AON See Bae Kuttawa, Ky.
_ Appleton, Prof. Francis H._-___- Peabody, Mass.
_ Baker, F. iN A eee eee Topeka, Kans.
aker, Harvey -- ---- ----~-- ---- Oneonta, Ney:
(2 se Re Boston, Mass.
Billings, 7 Os a Woodstock, Vt. 2
Bishop, Heber R. —__. _-__-_- 993 Fifth avenue, New York city.

Brewer, Se Hingham, Mec

-* Brooks, Henry -- be Le Boston, Mass. -

aa Bryant, Jig 3c eS ee Paul, Minn.

: Bi pees a 2 --_.__ Fort Caulonge, Quebec.
MuenmAN VV, cJe seo Montreal, Canada,

‘ile Seni En Fee Ames, Towa.

pee, oS Topeka, Kans.

urnet, Robt. --____ -_..__- ---_-_ Box 23, Burlington, Ontario.
eeremecLOn 22 0 ea) Winnipeg, Manitoba.
emesis Wheeling, W. Va.

0 ae 234 Beacon street, Boston, Mass.

rombie, W. A. - Metieet Ses3i\ Burlington, Vt.
imam donn.G>.-___- _.-__.-_Cullman, Ala.
fete Tr. Hiram A... u Lunenburgh, Vt.
be meegwe se. <.._ ___. 4 Belpre, Ohio.
s BeOamiels, Hdw...-______ .___ -____St. Paul, Minn.
SE __.- Lakewood, i ea
Dean, JE Nee ee Sidney, Ohio.
Mestiorrest.... W. -=---_-....120 Broadway, New York city.
oane, (a Charlestown, Mass.
ee Dolgeville, N. Y.
poamond, A. T. 2.2 2..2___. Montr eal, ‘Canada.
vleston, N. pees! oe _2 Washington, D. C., Division of Forestry.
lwanger, Geo.________________ Rochester, N. Y.
n ery, o.oo ee e Lake City, Mich.
urley, Miss Sarah J. .-_-------- Westchester, Chester county, Pa.
Fay, Joseph S. -____._._____-_ Boston and Wood’s Holl, Mass.
y, Miss Sarah B. -____----_-- Pomfret Center, Conn.
, Jesse pen Normal Til.

* Fisher, Wim. Hubbell ____.. ---Cincinnati, Ohio.
meta W , N. 2... Monson, Mass.
I ster, Sams o Muscatine, Towa.
merench, J. D. W.--__.. _______ Boston, Mass.
Furnas, Dr. A. ee. Danville, Ind.
urnas, R. W..=---- ---------- Brownville, Nebraska.
Bene ea. 22 Cincinnati, "Ohio.
a A ee __-.--Cincinnati, Ohio.

Mere Oliver 2. 2/2 0%" Lake City, Minn.

PMN ee nS et Ross); Ohio.
co a a eS Boston, Mass.

en ee ee
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‘ H3.2 8 _ Pf <: ade
at at Psy © 4 = 'y ai
FW er +S Fr cd ik ies ob i v4 ¥
a? ‘ ie reac
™~ , (i. SEN tar <
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Bae). . = ____-____.. Washington, D. Gs Comm’r of Agriculture.

a ‘ernow, DoeUieget ee Cee WW ashington, D. C., Chief Division of Forestry.

* Life members.

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OMG, Gi Waser mes meee ate ac West Cornwall, Conn., Sec. Bd, of Asset
Goodwin, Frank --.--._.-------Boston, Mass.
Gnonell) Mone), 16.205 -.. le). Grinnell, Lowa.
Hathaway, Edw. _..-_.. .-------Otsdawa, N. Y.
IAIN WW ee see Ce Germantown, Pa.
Heaver,-Wm.._-.--.... .... -~_. Los Angeles, Cal:
Loy cae 0 0 ec Sherbrooke, Ont.
EMIGME SSS: oan 4 > ORLY, Uae Ls
SA ks ee DUNG SO, ALI.
saaipley, Hon. Warren... -.-—- Potter building, New York.
BOOS vO". i. 2-- <==. -- == North Berwick, Me,
Hudson, Stephens ---.-: -.-- ..=- Lowville, N. Y
Jackson, R. T..-------- ---. ----89 Charles street, Boston, Mass.
™eackson, Thos. ----+-+--.-_-.. Portland, Me. L
thts Morris K. ------------52 William street, New York city.
Puoly, Hon: H...G.2---— 22... Pointe Platon; Quebee.
Beemer, Sane. oa eS or LS A a Limona, Florida.
BINS A the tet eo Great Neck, i Wee be
HGR ane ee = ee Gancaster:. Nv Et.
Tiazenby, W. R.---: --- -_-- ~~. Columbus, ‘Ohio.
moeue; Ol pl. ew sles Cincinnati, Ohio.
Pte Orb == oes >. Montreal, ‘Canada.
Tithe, Wu rGe 2 Ss * 2 ss Montreal, Oanada:
“QTE Tih F508 [Coy se 6 a pre ae Montreal, Canada.
Loring, Hon. Geo. B.-----------Salem, Mass., late U.S. Comm’r of Agriculture, —
gel Oh aS 8 See kee oe Chelsea, Mass.
mobo Ww, Eon. H R.W — --2 = Middletown; N.Y.
Sa ee. eo 22h =. Nixeter, NH.
Bingneh AVY -aVV ie 2a =—- \2-- 1. Quebec.
MomaAurin-eobn =>. ak East Templeton, Quebee.
Manning, J. W. ----------- ---- Reading, Mass.
PME HICM yee A. Lt 8s Detroit, Mich:
* May, John Jay ---~_- - ..---.--Bostun, Mass.
Mninen GeV 2-2-2 tee Se Manrer ans
UME nTime ne Le Mobile 1a:
SECRETS 6g) 8 Bae ee ease ae Ambherstburgh, Ontario.
PIO CO. orl... Soo Se Burlington, Lowa.
3 Morton, Hon. J. Sterling --___ Nebraska City, Nebr.
wemer. Chis, Hoty. 3-2-2 Fond du Dac; Wis.
Northrop, Hon. B. G. ---~--. ----Clinton, Conn.
* Olmstead, Fred. Law ---------- Brookline, Mass.
Parsons, ©. J. 200-2 22s: Brooklyn; NX.
Hmarsons,htC: 220 = Natural Bridoey, Waa.
EASON) Me ets ee J Godirey, (Tl.
PeewDOGy. Glas. os ea Philadelphia, Pa.
Weeor, Geo. PS. 5. 5) Peewaukee, ‘Wis...
merellew, dlenty H.-2 25 fee New York.
gelsotereon, sPrs. 220.28 Chicago, Til.
mepore,wpen': rerley 2p Newburyport, Mass.
ivminbone Acors' 2-12-52 428A pany, N.Y:
peace. i 2 So ss =. _ dson} Ohio;
‘KR iley, Bor. Wet oo ____-- Washington, D. C., Entomologist U. 5. res Dep.
Robertson, D. R. -__- ST eaepae a Paul, Minn.
1 1olel!c5 1061 0 eae an San Jose, Cal.
Rollins, Wm. Herbert, -M. D.____ ‘Boston, Mass.
uCis.g) Nye! 8 ae Ross Mills, Quebec.
Beussell Hi, Gy-_s2:__- __ .._.-__. Narragansett, 1.
PauUnaers,—rot, Wams,-—..--.__- London, Ontario.
RVAe Oren wis os 2 2 2. = St. Pauls Minn
peotelieis, S52. Freeport, Til:
Sic ih yi Iii CAS La aa a Middlebury, Vt.
Raye AS 119,22 yee So St. Paul, Minn.
“5 Seen) 08 832) of Aa Cambridge, Mass.
DOM ONO Iie ne oo milton, ‘Olizo:
Southwick, HE. B..---_..___. .._.Central Park, New York.
* Life members. Sie

Pra setae YS =>. Peoria Lik: .
m. ©.___.----.- -----. Newton Highlands, Mass. s
5 nce A a a a Se a Ass’t Commissioner Crown Lands, Quebec. =
i See ---- Ottawa, Ontario. “a 2
fer, Dr. W. A._------------Cooperstown, N. Y. Hee
iW he 2 2 Ottawa; Ontario. .
Thomson, Lemon --__-_-___ .--- Albany, N. Y. “any
d ownsend, INES. = 226 o es Columbus, Ohio. s §
U1 nderwood, Bie les eee Be ti Lake City, Minn. F
Vasey, Dr. Soh ee Washington, D. C., Botanist, U.S. Dep’t of Agric. x;
Walker, Joseph B. _---__ -----. Concord, N. H. eS
Ward, a _____-Montreal, Can. ; 4
Warder, TG] ESS ae a ee Lafayette, Ind.
Pewasder, ete a So? North Bend, Ohio. 5 te
| Ware, Horace HE. 2_._.- ___. __. Milton, Mass. F
ey: * Waters, Mot) 2-2. Boston, Mass. p
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* Beeeudon; Wome We =~ Concord; Mads. : ic
age eo te SS St.Paul, Minn: 2%
tile LEGIT eS ee Columbus, Ohio. A
Bei. Peon os 4. +_ Sioux City, Iowa.
Sl St. Paul, Minn.

* Life members.

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5

OF THE

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS. °

a
E ArtIcLE I. This Association shall be known as the American F Fo! at
‘ estry Congress. ei.

ArtIcLE IT. The objects of this Congress shall bé the dicta ii
of subjects relating to tree-planting; the conservation, managem: ent,
. and renewal of forests; the climatic and other influences that af
y: their welfare; the eallechion of forest statistics, and the adyan
| ment of edieuonal, legislative, or other measures tending to
¥ promotion of these objects. It shall specially endeavor to centra

the work done and diffuse the knowledge gained.

ArticLeE III. Any person may be elected a member of this (
gress upon the recommendation of two members and the paymi

wad of two dollars. The annual dues — be two dollars.” a

‘Treasurer, and an Executive i consisting of these ; ers
5; and five members in addition. |

Articie V. The President shall preside at all meetings of
Congress in General Session, and deliver an annual address a
ia of his term. . me

ArticLte VI. The President, Vice-Presidents, Secretaria
urer, and five other persons to be chosen annually, shall eon
an Executive Committee for the transaction of such business as
be required by this Constitution or by a vote of the Congress. —

ArticLE VIi. The Recording Secretary shall keep a record |

- proceedings of the Congress, and shall be custodian of all ¢
ey ments, books, and collections ordered to preserved.
a ArticLe VIII. The Corresponding Secretary shall cond
L correspondence of the Congress.
; ArticLe LX. The Treasurer shall have charge of all fu
_ pay out the same on the direction of the Executive Comm if

_ The Congress at any Peruler. meeting, or its Execu-
Committee, in the intervals between its meetings, may appoint

lefine Pens duties.

ARTICLE XI. The annual meeting of the Congress shall be in
the month of August or September, or at such times and places as

sh all be determined by a vote in General Session.

F ~ Articte XII. At each annual meeting there shall be an election

of officers ior the ensuing vear, and they shall remain in office until

others are chosen. In cases of vacancies occurring in the intervals

between the annual meetings they may be filled by the Executive

mmittee until others are selected. In case of absence of an officer
a regular meeting his place may be deemed vacant. a
RTICLE XIII. The officers of States, Territories, Provinces, or 3
cal Forestry Associations, or their delegates, or the delegates of re,
Government, may participate in the proceedings of the Congress ¥
Honorary Members. fe
a ARTICLE XIV. This Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds #
vote of the members present at any annual meeting. ‘

BY-LAWS.
- ‘a Papers or abstracts of papers to be read must be sent two weeks ¥
a before any meeting, for classification, to the Corresponding Secretary.

| 2. The following classification of subjects is adopted for the read-
“a o r of papers:

‘Section A. Forest Planting, Forest Management, Forestry Proper,
Preservation of Forests.

Section B. Forest Economy, Technology, and Statistics.
Se tion C. Applied Science and Climatology, General Topics.

3. Contributors who are present shall have the preference in read-
Bareir papers.

. Any member shall be entitled te the privilege of using any
s or documents, not of record, at the discretion of the Record-

We earnestly appeal to all pattioht bitineris to join us in the er en-
deavor to arouse public sentiment to the necessity of reform in the
utilization of our timber supply and the treatment of our forest lan ds.

ne are actuated by the following considerations: .

1. The general and local climatological influence of forest areas,
though not yet clearly defined and numerically demonstrated, is
beyond doubt established by historical and experimental evidence.

2. The effect of wholesale clearing of forest-clad hills and moun
tains on the amount and distribution of meteoric precipitations
though not the only cause of waning or irregular water supply, 1 As
undoubtedly the principal one, and admits of no doubt.

3. The immediate benefit to agricultural interests derived Bite a
aapperlye distributed forest areas is understood by every intelligenifl
farmer.

4. The natural source of a yearly product of seven hundred mil-
lion dollars, which the forests at present represent, deserves carefu
husbanding with a view to its continuity, and calls for due consid-
eration of its interests by legislators as well as by the people at large.
Without joining in the cries of alarmists, we have good reasons and —
sufficient data to assert that the present policy, if continued, must—
seriously affect this factor of national wealth at no distant time. —

5. The excuse of the first settlers in regardlessly removing the
forest has no more existence. Wastefulness in the methods of lum-
bering, as in the reckless destruction by fires—the loss from this
cause amounting to more than ten million acres, or value of twenty-
five million dollars in one year—with regard to forest products and.
forest lands, has become criminal, in view of the far-reaching influ-
ences which the forests exert.

:
|

a
WHAT WE PROPOSE TO DO. as
To effect a reform in this line of economics, in which task we most
heartily invite you to co-operate with us, we advocate the following
as i
1. To bring the facts which form the basis of the foregoing con-
siderations before the public in an unequivocal manner.

2. To encourage further research and instruction in forestry mat-
ters by the establishment of experiment stations, the introduction.
of lectures or courses on forestry in schools and colleges, the assid-
uous employment of the press in disseminating correct practical
information. a

. To promote and assist the formation of Local Associations fe
fie purpose of furthering the true interests of forestry in every State,
teaching and encouraging a systematic use of her forests, and im-
buing her citizens w ith a “recognition of their importance. ,

4. To urge the Legislatures of the different States to enact and

ae the enforcement of effective laws for the prevention of fires S.

To urge the National Government to the enforcement of a sound
pally as to its own lands, treating the eighty-five million aeres of
public forest property as a valuable national treasure, insio
allowing its waste by depredators and fires.

6. To harmonize the interests of the lumberman and the forest er,

:
/

af
.
*
ba
&
ra
+
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a
“~
' *
wh
*
ws

und devise for the lumbering interest such protection as is not given
it the cost of the forest. 3 nh Hoss
7%. To create popular sentiment against waste, and a love and in- |
eentive for Arboriculture by the institution of Arbor-days, by favors .
to tree-planters in the form of premiums, bounties, or exemption
from taxes.
~ What has been done so far to advance the interest of our cause, in
many cases traceable, directly or indirectly, to the influence and work
of this Congress, can be shortly recited, as follows: :
1. Forestry Associations have been formed in Minnesota, Ohio,

Canada, Manitoba, Colorado, New York, while Horticultural and
_ Agricultural Societies have been led to give a prominent place in
their discussions to the subject of forestry.
___-2. Forestry Commissions or Commissioners, either to inquire into
_ the needs of or to manage the forest domain of their States, have
~ been appointed in Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsyl-
_ yania, Ohio, Colorado, California.

_ 3. Arbor-days have been instituted in fifteen States of the Union
_ and in the Canadas. Under this incentive in Nebraska, where this
_ observance originated, more than five million trees were planted the
past year. 7
_ 4. The effective fire-legislation now prevailing in Canada was en-V/
- acted directly upon the specific recommendation of this Congress.
5. The Congress of the United States, largely through the influ-
ence of our efforts, has under serious consideration most important
legislation with reference to the forests of our national domain.
_ 6. The Forestry Bureau, as a branch of the Agricultural Depart-
~ ment at Washington, has collected valuable material in furtherance

_ of the knowledge of our forest condition, in addition to Prof. C. §.
_ Sargent’s invaluable work of the census of 1880.

__ 7%. Whilst the publications of a “Journal of Forestry,” “ Forestry
Bulletins,” “ Forestry Manuals,” “Forestry Reports,’ have tried to
furnish the needed special information, the press throughout the
country, in all its branches, has done good work in creating a wide-
‘spread interest and a growing readiness for action. '
Yet whilst the need of a change of policy is admitted, the means
or accomplishing that change are still inadequate. Specific aims
and methods yet remain undetermined.
_ Here is a great problem of national economy worthy the thought
and active aid of the best men of the nation!

_ Here is a duty for every thinking and well-meaning citizen to help
preserve and hand over to our children, in full productive power,
‘one of our richest natural resources; nay, the most potent factor of
lational prosperity!
_ Here is the opportunity to exercise that duty, in joining those who
lave begun to open the road to reform!
_ Change of public sentiment is needed, and such a change can only
e effected by the united effort of the best elements.
_ We need the strongest utterances of the most influential men.
Ve desire the co-operation of every good citizen in the unselfish
vork which we have undertaken.
You are cordially invited to meet with us.

pat

Ba +

ery 5.
¥

PROCEEDINGS OF THE FOURTH ANNUAL MEETING

OF THE

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

wid
vet

The fourth annual meeting of the American Forestry Congress was held at Boston, —
Mass., September 22, 28, and 24, 1885. The meeting was one of great interest, and
very encouraging to the members. One of the local papers heralded the approaching | 1
assembly in the following words: ee

It is not long since America was a forest without any congress, For a little more —
than a hundred years it has had a congress, and now it has too little forest. People ~
are rapidly increasing, and trees are decreasing more rapidly. It is by no means true ~
that there is not room for trees to increase as fast as the people do. The hills and
mountains make it sure that there always will be. But they will soon be bare of
trees—have nothing to cover them from the burning sun but scrub. If the people do
not plant trees, and the right kind of trees, to grow on them, there is a possible desert
in the future, with neither men nor trees on it, where population is now most abund-
ant. A few thinking men and women, scattered all over North America, including —
the United States and Canada, have come to a realizing sense of this serious state of
facts, and elected themselves into a Congress to look after the health and prosperity of ©
the trees, which they correctly regard as the indispensable friends of men and animals. —
This Congress of scientific people from every part of Canada and about every State in-
this Union will meet at the invitation of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, and —
hold sessions in Horticultural Hall September 22, 23, and 24, which will be freely
open to the public. Bis

Massachusetts and our ewn dear over-crowded Boston will give this Congress the 7)
warmest possible welcome. It comes here because it is delighted to know that in ~
1882 the Legislature of this Commonwealth put on its statute-book a wise and well-
considered general forestry law, constituting the Board of Agriculture a board of for- —
estry, and authorizing the people of every town to devote land suitable to the purpose —
to be cared for as a public forest by that board. Under that law it is quite possible for ~
the people of Boston to have, within half an hour’s ride in a steam or horse car the ~
use of a public domain of 4,000 acres, covered with every variety of trees and com-
manding broad views of both salt and fresh water. If the people lend their ears to”
what this Congress has to say the thing is done. ae

caiert >

The sessions of the Congress were held in Horticultural Hall. No place could have
been more pleasant or better adapted to the use of the Congress. The Horticultural —
Society, so long and favorably known among similar societies and to the whole country
by its record, had generously placed its hall at the disposal of the Congress, and had~
also kindly assumed the office of a committee of arrangements for the occasion.
Beautiful plants and small evergreen trees in boxes stood along the stairway leading
to the assembly room, and seemed themselves to give a very appropriate welcome
the Congress of Forestry men. In the hall itself long tables were spread, which we
covered with specimens of forest products, some in their natural state and others ma
ufactured, showing the beauty of many of our woods and their adaptation to dee
tive purposes.

Although the meeting of the Congress was held in the extreme eastern part of t
country, there was a very good attendanee, not only of the members resident in ti
vicinity, but of others from a great distance. California and Nebraska were repre
sented, as well as Canada and the nearer States. Several of the States sent delegations ;

A Ain a ee

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6 ‘ ah ‘3
i Re?
cs ae ee:
2 Patan;

——
s 7

to the Congress, and the General Government was represented in the person of Com-
missioner Coleman of the Department of Agriculture.

Earnestness and enthusiasm characterized the meeting throughout its sessions. A
looker on must have felt that the members were full of interest in the subject which
they had in hand, and which had convened them at this time. The three days of the
meeting were fully occupied with the reading of papers and the discussion of them,
and some valuable papers which had been prepared for the occasion for lack of time
could only be read by their title.

Promptly at the designated time President Higley called the Congress to order and
introduced His Honor Mayor O’Brien, who welcomed the Congress to Boston very
cordially, and expressed his pleasure in meeting its members. He expressed the hope
also that the assembling of the Congress in Boston would have the effect of creating
in its citizens an enthusiasm in behalf of forestry which would lead them not only to
secure all needful planting of trees along the highways, but the carrying out of the
plan for the preservation of the Middlesex Fells, a project which our friend, Mr.
Elizur Wright, has so much at heart. The Mayor alluded to the progress which had
been made in Boston in the course of the last ten years in securing the ground for
several public parks, which, he said, in a few years more would make the city one of
the most beautiful in America. His Honor closed by repeating his welcome of the
Congress to the city, and expressing the hope that the body might find time to visit
some of the public institutions.

President Higley responded to the welcome of His Honor the Mayor, and at the
same time acknowledged the obligations of the Congress to the Agricultural and Hor-
ticultural Societies of Boston and vicinity for the interest which they had manifested
in the work of the Congress by providing Horticultural Hall as its place of meeting,
and in various ways providing for its success. The President then made his annual
address to the Congress as follows :

ADDRESS OF PRESIDENT HIGLEY.

The subject that brings us together on this occasion from various sections of the
United States and Canada has within the past few years grown to be recognized by
the leaders of public opinion in America and thinking men and women generally as
one of the greatest importance to the public welfare. The discussions of topics relating
to forestry and the timber supply, in farmers’ clubs, lumbermen’s conventions, horti-
cultural and agricultural societies, associations of scientists, and more than all in the
meetings of the American Forestry Congress, and in local forestry associations, have

_ awakened a deep and widespread interest in the subject, that in some sections has

found expression in important action, and throughout America has laid the founda-
tion, I believe, through the conviction of public opinion, for the sure and onward
progress of our cause. Its principles are bound to grow and strengthen until an Amer-
ican system of forestry, adapted to the conditions of the new world, shall be estab-
lished and shall prevail in all the essentials of successful working, because necessity

_ will compel it sooner or later. Ofsuch vital importance to the people of the United

_ States and Canada is the subject of cultivating and preserving the forests that it

_ must soon command the serious attention of the National and State governments.

__ Something, to be sure, has been done by way of legislation; a small start has been
made through the efforts of a few thoughtful and patriotic men. But before such
‘practical results can be obtained as we desire, the importance of forest preservation
and forestry administration must become apparent to the majority of the people. This

_ can be done only through public discussion, wise agitation, educating. Facts of his-

_ tory and personal experience are abundant and convincing as to the effects of deforest-

ing and again of reforesting large areas, upon the climate, the springs and streams,

the fertility of soil, the various industries, and the general prosperity.

CHINA.

_ With such a system of timber culture as Prussia possesses—perhaps the best in the
orld—China would have escaped those horrible famines which have in the past
_ attacked some of her most densely populated districts and caused the destruction of

millions of people, and imposed untold sufferings upon millions more, as well as the
loss of a vast amount of treasure to the state. Only last month came the news from

Canton of a great flood, the most serious in thirty years. ‘ More than ten thousand
persons lost their lives,’’ says the report, ‘“‘and a far greater number are left in astarv- r
ing condition. Entire villages were engulfed, and the rice and silk crops were almost

ruined.’’ These destructive floods are largely due to the absence of forests which were
long ago cut away from the mountain slopes and the headwaters of streams to give
place to the food crop for the support of her dense population. The natural office of _
the forests in securing moisture and productiveness to the country around was supplied
by an extensive system of irrigation and fertilization. Vegetables form the staple of
food in China, and this explains how it is that 400,000,000 people can exist in a coun- —
try only four or five times larger than France. We are told that Chinese horticulture
embraces eighty different kinds of vegetables, of which twenty-five, at least, constitute
valuable articles of food for man. The most important of these is rice, for the culti-
vation of which the Chinese spare no labor or expense. To aid in the cultivation of
this cereal they have stripped whole provinces of their original forests, dug immense
lakes, and even tunneled lofty mountains. For its sake they collect the waters of both
stream and river and direct its course from the mountain’s foot over the soil they wish
to irrigate. Agriculture to the Chinaman is almostareligion. He repeats to himself —
the words of the Persian law:

‘« Be thou just to the plant, to the bull, and to the horse; nor be thou unmindful of
the dog. The earth has a right to be sown: neglect it and it will curse thee; fertilize
it and it will be grateful to thee. It says to him who tills it from the right to the left,
and from the left to the right, may thy fields bring forth of all that is good to eat, and
may thy countless villages abound with prosperity.”’

Ceres, who at Thebes and at Athens brought men together and made the laws, was
considered but the reflecting mind of men who till the soil.

CENTRAL NEW YORK.

There is abundant evidence in America of the effects of cutting off the forests. In
Central New York streams that thirty or forty years ago kept the ponds well filled for
the saw-mill and grist-mill, and furnished a never-failing supply of running water for
the farm, are now dry in summer, with the exception of here and there a stagnant
pool; the dam is decayed and washed away, the mills gone, and the once picturesque
scene is changed to that of desolation. Yet, with the warm rains of spring and the
melting snows, the streams overflow their banks, the swift waters carry away fences,
bridges, and embankments. Spring opens later. The young cattle were wont to be
turned into the wood-sheltered pasture about the first of April; now they are kept
shut up until the middle of May. Peach orchards that were sure to be loaded every
year with luscious fruit have almost disappeared, and the crop is the exception rather
than the rule. The extremes of heat and cold are greater, and droughts in summer
and floods in springtime are more frequent and more destructive. Trace the stream
from its source and the cause of these things is apparent. The old tamarack swamp
that used to supply the boys and girls with aromatic gum, and in which the creek had
its source, has all been cut away. The thickly wooded black-ash swamps, through
which the stream ran in its course to the lake, have been cleared, and their marshy areas
have given place to cultivated fields and pastures. The cutting away the forests from
the headwaters and the banks of this stream accounts for thechanges I have noted, and
this picture, I doubt not, is a very familiar one in the New England and Middle States.
It is not difficult for men who know the effects of cutting the timber from small areas
around the headwaters of the smaller streams to understand why summer navigation
in the Mississippi, the Missouri, and the Ohio has become difficult and at times im-
possible where it was easy and constant a few years ago; or why the Hudson and
the Connecticut are much lower insummer and higher in spring than in former years.
The partial deforesting of the Adirondack region has materially affected the flow of
of the Hudson, the Mohawk, the Black, and other rivers, and sufficiently demonstrated
the fact that were this great watershed of New York stripped of its forest covering, —
the Empire State would lose her prestige and New York city her rank as the first com-
mercial city of the New World. :

Ce a em a,

THE SCHUYLKILL. .

For two years past the engineers of the water-works department of Philadelphia
have been making examinations of all possible sources of a suitable water supply for
their city, and have lately discovered how seriously the Schuylkill, from which the
water supply is now taken, has been affected by the destruction of forests around its

4 9

headwaters. Sixty years ago the Schuylkill’s summer flow was estimated at 500,000,000
gallons a day. Measurements made from time to time showed a gradual diminution,
until in 1874 the minimum flow was only 250,000,000 gallons per day. This is a well
authenticated fact, and it is shown that the diminution has been caused by cutting the
forests from the headwaters of the supplying streams.

THE FRENCH ALPS.

ra ae

In 1844 the eminent political economist, M. Blanqui, after visiting the provinces em-

_ bracing the French Alps, once densely populated and prosperous in agriculture and

' grazing, presented to the academy a detailed memoir of his journey and observations,
and, among other things, said :

‘The Alps of Provence present a terrible aspect. In the more equable climate of
northern France one can form no conception of those parched mountain gorges where
not even a bush can be found to shelter a bird, where, at most, the wanderer sees in
summer here and there a withered lavender, where all the springs were dried up, and
where a dead silence, hardly broken by the hum of an insect, prevails. But if astorm
bursts forth, masses of water suddenly shoot from the mountain heights into the shat-
tered gulfs, waste without irrigating, deluge without refreshing the soil they overflow
in their swift descent, and leave it even more scarred than it was from want of moist-
ure. Man at last retires from the fearful desert, and I have the present season found
not a living soul in districts where I remember to have enjoyed hospitality thirty
years ago.” ;

Such warnings of history are abundant. It is unnecessary to multiply them here.
They are familiar to you from their frequent repetition. And yet it is time the people
of America learn the sad history of suffering and desolation that have followed the
destruction of the forests in the earlier-settled portions of the earth—in China and
India, in Persia and Greece, in Switzerland, in portions of France and Italy, on the
Istrian coasts of the Adriatic and the extensive shores of the Mediterranean, in Spain
and in Palestine, whose rich fields, when her rugged hills and mountain sides were
crowned with the sacred cedar, ‘flowed with milk and honey;”’ in classic Sicily,
once the granary of Rome, and in many of the most beautiful islands of the sea—that
they may heed the warning, study the forest conditions, and take the necessary steps
to prevent the useless destruction now going on, and thereby escape the fate of those
nations and communities that have in the past so recklessly made the unfortunate ex-
periment of stripping the forests from valley and hill and mountain. From the his-
tory of these things, and the known data established by long-continued investigation
and repeated experiment, we are justified in asserting:

1. That the forest areas exercise a positive climatic influence upon the surrounding
country. They modify the extremes of heat and cold, and render the temperature
more equable throughout the year.

2. That the deforesting of large areas of hilly and mountainous country affects to a
very large extent the quantity of water that comes from springs and flows in rivers.
The more apparent is this when the deforesting occurs on the headwaters of important
streams. Then the water-power is destroyed or greatly impaired, navigation impeded,
commerce interfered with, and droughts and floods are more frequent and more
severe. ;

3. That the interests of agriculture and horticulture are greatly subserved by the
proper distribution of forest areas through their climatic and hydrographic influence.

§ 4. That a country, embracing within its borders the headwaters of all the streams
_ and rivers that interlace it, when stripped of its forest covering, becomes a barren
_ waste, incapable of supporting man or beast.

__ These general facts have been determined beyond question. But it remains for the
_ people of every State and district to decide upon the necessary area and distribution
be of forest trees for each general locality, and the details incident to their planting, care,
and preservation.

PROFITS IN FORESTRY.

The people naturally live and calculate for the present, and are disposed to use the
property belonging to themselves so as to derive from it the greatest’ present good.
For the good of neighbors, or the future welfare of the State, they will hardly be in-
duced to forego the advantages to be derived from the cutting of timber and the drain-
age of swamps, though they knew that such cutting and drainage will eventually
result in disaster to the country around; nor would it be fair and equitable for the

individual to suffer in his estate for the advantage that might accrue to others, either
in this or in future generations. The burden of sacrifice for the public good should
_be borne by all alike. But the true interests of forestry makes no such demand. On

the contrary, we claim that a wise management of the forest areas connected with the
farmers’ estates, and the maintenance of a due proportion of them through devoting
to forestry purposes the now waste places of the farm, insure to the owner excellent
returns for his labor and for the capital invested—a profit that compares favorably
with that derived from the ploughed field. This becomes apparent when a fair money
value is placed on all the wood and forest product used in many ways on the farm, as
well as the timber that is cut for market. The timbered lot is not the dead property
that it is often considered to be, and it is worthy the farmer’s intelligent care and pro-
tection as a source of income.

Until this question is answered affirmatively and demonstrated satisfactorily, Amer-
icans will be slow to engage in tree planting for business purposes. Actuated by a
sentiment for the beautiful, they will plant trees and adorn the landscape, and even
preserve the forest, but not. with a view to realize a profit thereby. Until settlements
were pushed out into the treeless plains of the West, the necessity for forestry pro-
ducts on the farm had hardly been realized in this country, but then, through the
want of them, their full value and countless blessings became apparent to the Kansas
and Nebraska emigrant and the dwellers on the prairies of the West. They soon
found it profitable to plant and care for trees. Twenty-five years ago cord-wood sold
in some of the towns of Kansas and Nebraska for seven, eight, and sometimes ten
dollars a cord, where it can now be purchased for from three to four dollars per cord,
and that, too, with a population many times greater. ‘‘ The reason for this,”’ says ex-
Governor Morton, “is simply from the fact that the natural groves have been protected
from fire, and the artificial groves are turning out an abundance of good wood, such
as the necessities of the country demand for fuel.’’? The cultivation of forest trees in
the prairie States has proved profitable, according to the testimony of those who have

engaged in it. J. W. Davidson, in an article on ‘‘ Timber Growing in Nebraska,” -

says: ‘‘ I estimate the cost of preparing an acre, and getting the cuttings of soft maple
and ash (they can be had by the thousands along our streams), at $3 per acre. A man
can plant 2} acres per day. That is all the cost for ten years, except interest and taxes
on land. I have 1,261 trees peracre. Seven years from planting I will cut one-fourth,
or 340 trees, equal to 15 cords of wood; the eighth year 15 cords more; the ninth the
same; the tenth year you see my profits. I should cut what is left, 456 trees. Allow
four trees to the cord, so as not to overestimate it. I have several trees only ten years
old which are 14 inches in diameter and 50 feet high. Four, I think, would make a
cord. Allowing six trees to the cord, we have 76 cords, and with 45 cords cut before,
121 cords. At $3 per cord, allowing $1 for cutting, I have $242. Asasource of profit,
the raising of trees in Nebraska ranks next to the raising of stock.’’ :

Many experiments of forest culture have been made in New York and in the New
England States with satisfactory results. The financial success of forest culture as a
business must depend upon the cost of the land, the adaptability of the trees to the
soil and climate, and the marketable value of the wood and timber when grown.
While it may be profitable to grow forests in those sections of the country where wood
and timber are scarce and high in price, it would be very far from profitable or desir-
able to plant in sections where lands covered with virgin forests of the most valuable
timber can be bought for from 31 to $5 per acre, as they can be in many of the States.
But even in these sections it is important that the principles of forestry should be en-
forced to prevent the destruction, so prevalent, by fire and the lumberman’s waste, for
at the present rate of cutting in the lumbering districts these virgin forests willin a few
years be laid under contribution to supply the great markets of the country. |

Forestry has proved remunerative in Europe, where it has been under government
patronage and protection for 150 years, and where wood and timber are in good de-
mand at high prices. There is no guesswork about the results there. The book-
keeping is thorough and the balance-sheet reliable. Prussia, from her 6,000,000 acres
of state forests, receives an annual net income of about $7,000,000. Saxony, from her
400,000 acres of forest lands, receives an annual net income of about $1,250,000. Ba-
varia, from her 3,000,000 acres, receives annually, after paying all expenses, a net
profit of $4,500,000.

ALSATIAN FORESTS.

The report of these forests, made the present year by United States Consul Ballow,
of Kehl, to the State Department at Washington, gives some important facts bearin
upon the profits realized from systematic, scientific forestry, to which I am indebte
for the following facts :

The forests of Alsace-Lorraine cover 35.59 per cent. of the whole territory. The
most important of these are in the Vosges mountains, the highest peak of which is
4,300 feet. They were the most important in France before the war of 1870, and are

fit

only excelled by the forests of Baden in Germany. The government and the communi-
ties are the principal owners of all these forest lands, amounting to 1,109,660 acres.
The government owns of these 336,600 acres—i. e., the government of Alsace-Lorraine ;
the government and the communities, 42,955; the communities, 496,040; and private
parties, 234,665 acres. The government forests are managed by a chief of foresters,
with a salary of $2,200, three conservators at $1,800, nine inspectors at $1,600, 63 chief
foresters at $1,200, and 275 common foresters and guards at $400 to $500 per annum.
Chief foresters and common foresters have free lodging and fuel in addition to their
ay.

All forests, no matter to whom they belong, are placed under the supervision of the
forest administration, and the latter regulates the cutting. Not even owners of pri-
vate forests are allowed to cut down their own wood without the consent of the gov-
ernment.

For the cutting and replanting of a forest in the Vosges a period of 120 years is re-
quired. During that time the forest is depopulated and renewed.

The average annual gross receipts of the government forests of Alsace-Lorraine, for
the last ten years, was $1,786,948, and the average annual expenditure for the same
time was $596,684, leaving an annual net income to the government of $1,192,114, or
$3.20 per acre.

A large proportion of the forest lands of Europe, and especially in Prussia, has been
reclaimed from almost barren wastes, or were lands naturally of little value for agri-
cultural purposes. Their administration furnishes employment to many thousands,
yields to the government a large annual income after paying all expenses, even to the
support of schools of forestry, experiment stations, etc., while by their climatic and
hydrographic influence they render the country more productive and better able to
support a dense population.

REFORESTING WASTE LANDS.

In the New England and middle States forests may be grown with little expense
and trouble. Fields worn out and abandoned or cleared lands not fit for agriculture
and yielding little or no pasture can often be renewed by simply protecting them from
browsing cattle and fires. Trees spring up naturally and thickly, and often of good
variety. A little expenditure of time and money in sowing or planting the seed of
valuable timber trees will insure the growth of a crop that is sure to yield a good re-
turn. The wooded area of some of the New England States has increased in the past
few years through the mere neglect of the worn out and apparently useless lands, and
the lumber product of second-growth white pine is now from 300,000,000 to 400,000,000
feet annually. Frequent examples in New England attest the fact that the rocky hill-
sides, when protected, soon become covered with a dense second growth of young trees
that hide the barrenness of the scene and afford a protecting shelter to the adjoining
fields.

But these embryo forests are worthy of more attention than to be simply let alone.
Intelligent care in thinning and pruning and utilizing as the growth warrants may
add a hundred fold to the value.

A farming country should have not less than 25 per cent. of its area in woodland.
In general, outside the prairie States, this proportion can be set aside from lands of
little ormo real value for agricultural purposes. There is hardly a farm in New Eng-

land of 100 acres that would not be greatly augmented in value by devoting this pro-

portion to the cultivation and maintenance of woodland, and the same may be safely
affirmed of every other portion of the country. And when farmers come to realize
this fact they will no longer look upon the wood lot as of little comparative worth,
ready to be cleared on the first demand, but will place a just estimate upon its value,
and will discern its influence on the rest of the farm in protecting from destructive
winds, in holding moisture against the droughts of summer, in modifying the ex-
tremes of heat and cold, in rendering the fruit crop surer, and in being, to a certain
extent, the conservator of health, while it yields abundantly of its product for the farm.

The words of the late Horace Greeley, in speaking of the available opportunity
for timber culture in Westchester county, N. Y., are well worth quoting here. He -
says:

‘Were all the rocky crests and rugged acclivities of our country bounteously
wooded once more, and kept so for a generation, our floods would be less injurious,
our springs unfailing, and our streams more constant and equable; our blasts would
be less bitter, and our gales less destructive to fruit; we should have vastly more
birds to delight us with their melody and aid us with our not very successful war
with devouring insects; we should grow peaches, cherries, and other delicate fruits,
which the violent caprices of our seasons and the remorseless devastations of our visi-

ble and insect enemies have all but annihilated ; and we should keep more cows and
make more milk on two-thirds of the land now devoted to grass than we actually do
from the whole of it. And what is true of Westchester is measurably true of every
county in the Union.”

FORESTRY ECONOMIES.

Statisticians have furnished us with alarming facts relating to the consumption of
forestry products in this country and the consequent rapid decrease of our forest area.
These facts have been widely published through official reports and commented upon
by the public press. Yet so important are they as the basis for urging upon the peo-
ple and the National and State governments the necessity for adopting and enforcing
measures looking to the prevention of timber waste and the preservation of necessary
forest areas that I venture to repeat some of them here.

Prof. Egleston, Chief of the Forestry Bureau at Washington, from the mass of
statistics gathered on the subject, estimates the total value of all the annual products
of our forests at not less than $800,000,000, outmeasuring the value of our great cereal
crop, that of corn; about double our wheat crop; more than that of our crops of hay,
rye, oats, barley, buckwheat, potatoes, and tobacco taken together, and ten times that
of all our mines of gold and silver. Prof. Sargeant made the estimate for 1880 of
more than $700,000,000.

The capital invested in the United States in the lumber business — i. e., in the busi-
ness of manufacturing lumber in 1880, was, according to the census return, $181,186, 122.
The total value of our lumber product for that year is given at $238,367,729, while the
estimated value of the cord-wood used for domestic purposes was $321,962,378.

The New England States had invested at the same time in the lumbering business
$16,641,326, and produced a lumber product valued at $19,271,914; and the value of
the cord wood consumed for domestic purposes that year amounts to $16,242,801.

FOREST FIRES.

In addition to the contribution of our forests as above indicated, they suffer an
enormous loss from fires and browsing animals. The forest area burned over in the
census year of 1880 in the United States, as estimated by Prof. Sargent, was 10,274,089
acres, involving a loss of $25,462,250, beside the incalculable injury done to the soil,
which in many instances rendered the burned region incapable of reforesting. ‘‘ Fire
and browsing animals,’ says Prof. Sargent, ‘inflict greater permanent injury upon
the forests of the country than the axe, recklessly and wastefully as it is generally
used against them.”

RAILROAD TIES.

The large and rapidly increasing demands made upon our forests in the supply of
railroad ties alone are impressively shown by Prof. Egleston in his report on forestry
issued last year, to which I am indebted for the facts following: There is now in use
in this country about 150,000 miles of railroads, which have required 396,000,000 ties,
or the wood supplied by 3,390,000 acres, an area larger than that of the States of
Rhode Island and Connecticut. Estimating that ties need to be renewed on an average
once in seyen years, there must be drawn from the forest annually 56,571,428 ties, re-
quiring the timber growing on 565,714 acres. Allowing 30 years as the time neces-
sary to produce trees of proper dimensions for ties, it will require 16,971,420 acres of
wood land to be kept constantly growing as a kind of railroad reserve in order to sup-
ply the annual needs of the existing roads. This constitutes an area larger than the —
States of New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts combined, or the States of
New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware, with the addition of Connecticut. It is more
than 4 per cent. of the total area of wood land in the United States, exclusive of the
Territories, and 8 per cent. of the area in the States and Territories together. With
the rapid extension of our railroad systems, these figures will be proportionately in-
creased. From these facts it would seem that the subject of forestry should receive
the most favorable consideration from railroad corporations.

THE WHITE-PINE SUPPLY. 5
The general awakening to the interests of forestry among the people of the origi-
nally wooded States came largely through the wide-spread publication a few years ago
of the alarming facts relating to the destruction and fast disappearing of white-pine
forests of the United States und Canadas. When the people were convinced by the
reports of the statisticians that the supply of this most valuable and extensively used

timber would last but a few years at the rate of consumption going on, and that they

_ would have to look ere long for other timber to take its place, active inquiry began as

as |
7

ee eh

to our whole timber supply, the comparative value of the different kinds in the me-
chanic arts, how long these would last on the present basis of demand, and what the
prospects were for the future.

When the forestry bulletins, issued by Prof. C. S. Sargent from the Census Depart-
ment, announced that in both the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan there
remained of standing white-pine timber, suitable for market, but 35,000,000,000 feet,
board measure, and that in the census year of 1880 there had been cut in the State
4,396,211,000 feet, requiring only eight years at this rate to exhaust the supply ; that
in Wisconsin there were standing 41,000,000,000 feet, with a cut of about three billions
(2,097,299,000) feet for that year, leaving a supply that would last but fourteen years ;
that in Minnesota there were remaining 8,170,000,000 feet, and that 541,000,000
(540,997,000) were cut in the census year, leaving a supply for fifteen years, that at
this rate the ‘supply of white-pine lumber would be exhausted in these three States in
the brief period of about twelve years, the question of the future supply of this most
valuable timber became serious to the business world.

The late James Little, of Montreal, in 1882, said of the supply of white pine in
Canada that he had consulted with the best authorities, and was pursuaded that, at
the rate of cutting then going on, the whole supply of the provinces of Quebec, On-
tario, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia would be used up in about ten years. Ac-
cording to these estimates, then, the supply of white pine will soon be exhausted, and
the mechanic arts will have to look to other fields for their supply of wood and timber.
In view of this vast industrial interest the protection and conservation of our forests
demands the earnest attention of our people and of the National and State Govern-
ments.

FORESTRY EDUCATION.

We have no schools as yet in this country which provide for a systematic training
in forestry. The time for this, perhaps, has not ripened. The foundation, however,
has been laid through the establishment of a few experiment stations, the general agi-
tation of the question by forestry, agricultural, and horticultural associations and the
public press. One of the most effective means employed thus far has been the institu-
tion of ;

ARBOR DAY.

Tree-planting on Arbor day, for economic purposes in the great West, has given to
the prairie States many thousand acres of new forests, and inspired the people with a
sense of their great value, not only for economi¢ purposes, but for climatic and mete-
orological purposes as well. The celebration of Arbor day by the public schools in
several of the older States by the planting of memorial trees, as originated at Cincin-
nati in the spring of 1882, and generally known as the “Cincinnati plan,’’ has done
much also to awaken a widespread interest in the study of trees; and this annual
celebration promises to become as general in the public schools and among the people
as the observance of May day in England. *‘ Whatever you would have appear in
the Nation’s life you must introduce into the public schools.’’ Train the youth into
a love for trees, instruct them in the elements of forestry, and the wisdom of this old
German proverb will be realized.

AGRICULTURAL COELEGES.

In 1862 the National Government donated to the several States 9,600,000 acres of
the public domain for the support of colleges of agriculture and the mechanic arts.
There are forty-two of these schools that have received their pro rata of these lands,
or the right to them. With a few notable exceptions the subject of forestry is not
known in their curriculum. Every agricultural school in the country should give a
prominent place to this study. While it is not feasible, nor perhaps advisable, yet to
give an extended course in forestry instruction, it seems to me inexcusable not to give
such general instruction as to lead the student to appreciate and care for the wood lot
as well as the tilled field. The growing of timber is like the growing of a crop, to be
eared for intelligently, to be utilized wisely, and to be cut and used when ripe for it.
In connection with every one of these colleges there should be a forestry experiment
station, conducted with a special view to the needs of the locality in which the school
is situated. The advantages of these stations are obvious when we consider the almost
absolute want of reliable scientifie data in this country on which to founda general
system of forestry management.

GOVERNMENT LANDS.

The National Government still owns about 85,000,000 acres of forest lands. These
are without effective protection against the depredations of lumbermen. Hundreds of
thousands of dollars’ worth of timber is stolen annually from the public domain, and
the destruction by fire is going on unchecked. Portions of these forests lie on the
headwaters of the most important rivers of the continent, and their destruction would
cause incalculable loss to the Nation. These forest lands should be promptly with-
drawn from sale, efficient measures should be adopted to protect them against loss by
theft and fire; such portions as are deemed necessary to the water supply and for
climatic purposes should be dedicated forever to forest preserves, and the balance put
back upon the market ata fair valuation. In the meantime, such timber should be
sold to the lumbermen as the business demand and the interests of forestry might re-
quire. This important interest should be placed, by law, in charge of the Forestry
Bureau of the Agricultural Department, with ample appropriations for attaining these
ends.

I have thus called your attention to some of the features of forestry that I deem most
worthy of consideration. Your papers and discussions will embrace a much wider
field, and I trust that we shall come to some definite conclusions, and take definite
action with reference to some things that should be done the coming year in further-
ance of our cause.

In this connection, and finally, I venture to suggest—

1. That action be taken by the Congress with regard to securing appropriate legis-
lation by the National and State Governments.

2. That plans be devised and methods adopted for promoting forestry education in
our institutions of learning, for the continued spread and still more efficient celebra-
tion of Arbor day, and the organization of local forestry associations.

3. That special consideration be given to the relation of forestry to commerece—i. e.,
railroads and navigable streams.

4. That steps be taken toward collecting and classifying reliable statistics in America
(the United States and Canada) relating to our forests, and making them a part of our
annual report, stamped with the authority of this Congress.

CONCLUSION.

‘‘T have written many verses,’’ says Holmes, ‘ but the best poems I have produced
are the trees I planted on the hillside which overlooks the broad meadows, scalloped
and rounded at their edges by loops of the sinuous Housatonic.’? May the work done
at this session of the American Forestry Congress result in adding many a like poem

to the landscape, and in adding a powerful impetus toward the protection, the conser-
vation, and wise utilization of our forest wealth.

At the close of the President’s address, the reading of the minutes of the last meet-
ing being next in order, on motion, the reading was dispensed with.

As the eall was next made for the report of the Recording Secretary, the absence of
Dr. Hough, hitherto always present at the meetings of the Congress, was perceptibly
felt. His recent death was announced by Mr. Egleston, and a committee was ap-
pointed for the purpose of making proper expression of the sentiments of the body in
view of his decease.

Mr. George Noyes, of Boston, was then chosen temporary Secretary in place of Dr.
Hough.

The report of the Corresponding Secretary, Mr. B. E. Fernow, was then read as
follows:

REPORT OF THE CORRESPONDING SECRETARY.

When a year ago it was your pleasure, against my strong advice, to entrust me
again with the office of Secretary to your Association, I undertook once more the task
with that diffidence which the magnitude of the work before me, as in comparison
with the insufficieney of means and facilities at my disposal, would naturally add toa-
proper conception of my own shortcomings.

I assured you that my good will would have to stand for what I could not bring to
the office, namely, experience in this class of work, a large personal acquaintance with
the workers in the field, and plenty of time for correspondence with them, in order to
bring about united direction of work, and to keep public sentiment warm to the in-
terests of our cause.

These requisites being more or less absent, as well as the funds necessary for any
diffusive propaganda, the slow progress in our work of reform must be understood.
We can only expect to work in a small way and very gradually break the ground,
until more means are at our disposal for specific work and the diffusicn of our publica-
tions to a larger extent.

It has been my suggestion that the proceedings of this Congress would find a wider
range of usefulness if, instead of being published in one volume, their publication would
be distributed through a series of bulletins, in which could at the same time be noted
the progress in the development of the forestry movement, and constant intercourse
could be kept up between our friends. It was also expected that the cost of such pub-
lication would be largely covered by subscription. With this in view, the January
bulletin was prepared in a rather more expensive style than at first contemplated.
But, while kind commendations of the work were not lacking, sufficient patronage
could not be secured to continue these issues on a subscription basis. In consequence,
the proceedings and papers read at the Saratoga meeting remain still unpublished ;
the same is true of those read at Montreal and Cincinnati, to a large extent. It is
suggested that these should be carefully sifted and the most valuable papers published,
together with the report of the present meeting.

As our work can bear fruit only by a liberal diffusion of our published proceedings the
most important problem for solution remains: How shall a more general and gener-
ous support be secured? In this we must keep in mind that our Congress is still more

or less a benevolent society, which must look for their financial support to the gener-

osity of their members and patrons. It will be different when this Congress repre-
sents an association of professional foresters, who in joining together advance their
own personal aims and the interests of their profession. At present we are only a
reform association, and cannot accomplish anything without expending on the educa-
tion of the large mass.

The next problem in importance is, ‘‘ How can we make our work most valuable?”
and in this the possibilities are only limited by our facility in solving the first. Allow
me, however, to point out a few possibilities of improvement. First of all we must
personally produce at our meeting only work of some special value. In view of the
still frequently vague writings on the subject of forestry I would repeat the injunction
not to rely on mere authoritative statements. Generalities on forest preservation or
forest destruction and forestal influences have become trite and their constant reitera-
tion withoutspositive data will dull the interest of listeners and readers, create suspicion
and defection. We need definite, well-authenticated local observations, arrived at by
well-described scientific methods; we need methodical work in establishing the con-
ditions of growth for different species, their behavior towards the soil and towards
each other in different soils, their rate of growth at different periods of life under dif-
ferent conditions. In fact, besides making propaganda, we should by concerted effort
establish the principles upon which the forestry we advocate is to be carried on.
Therefore, secondly, we ought to find means of engaging those men who by their pro-
fession are led to such studies as are germane to forestry problems to give more definite
attention to these problems; we ought to count them in our ranks, and whilst their

membership in our Congress will lift its work to a higher level their individual efforts _

—

will acquire that force and momentum which such an association will impart.

Thirdly. Our work in promoting proper legislation, in inducing the establishment
of Arbor days and procuring other means of advancing our cause, must be largely done
by committees during the intervals between our meetings. It is therefore of the high-
est moment that whoever accepts the appointment to such committee work should be
imbued with the importance of such a trust, and not undertake it unless he is willing
and can with sincerity devote himself to its discharge. Except for the committee on

Arbor day and the painstaking work of Mr. Elizur Wright on the Mississippi reser-

voir committee, we have not done well in this respect.

In conclusion I would point out that the more the question of forestry is appreci-
ated the more will grow a necessity of organizing local interests. In this question the
Eastern mountain regions have different conditions, and consequently different aims to
pursue from the treeless States of the West. The interests of the Northern States, with
a largely denuded and decreasing forest area, differ from those of the vast forest wealth
in the South.

We should as members of this Congress individually promote such association of
local interest, by which means a systematic forestry may be much sooner secured in
the aggregate than by an association which lacks the incentive of a direct benefit to a
particular locality. Eventually this Congress will then be made up of the delegates
from local associations, meeting to further the interests common to all.

Understanding this to be one of the duties of this Congress, your president and sec-
retary undertook in the beginning of the year to organize the forestry interests in the

—_—t

State of New York, taking advantage of the efforts that had been made in this diree-
tion by other parties without result. An enthusiastic meeting at Utica, called almost
on the spur of the moment, inaugurated the New York State Forestry Association,
which, but for some misunderstanding in its ranks, might have done better work in
promoting the Adirondack forest legislation.

The Forest Commission for the State of New York has at last been established, and,
with an appropriation of $15,000, should be able to show soon how a proper State
forest administration may be organized, and, with what is left of State timber lands,
should soon pay at least its own maintenance.

This year has also witnessed, under most favorable auspices, the formation of a For-

estry Association in Colorado. So promptly and so well was its work done that, after a-

propaganda of a few months, Colorado could boast of the first Forest Commissioner in
the States appointed to manage her forest reserves.

The Ohio Association has also succeeded in having a commission appointed for the
purpose of advising in the management of her forestry interests.

California, too, has established a Forest Commission to experiment and study the
requirements of different timber trees and similar questions of forest culture.

Thus it is shown that the agitation which we have carried on for now three years
has found its reward and expression in a practical manner in all parts of the country.

As to the status of our Association, a few remarks will suffice.

From our member-list I find that we have 21 life members. We carry on our Treas-
urer’s book 68 annual members, making a total of 89 members; but if we should apply
the test of paid-up dues, this number would shrink considerably. We are not strong
in numbers and must make up this deficiency in energy and earnest work. We mourn,
therefore, the more the loss of our Recording Secretary and of the active and vigor-
ous support of Dr. Hough. Perhaps no man in the Union deserves more eredit for
having not only invited timely attention to the needs of American forestry, but for
the indefatigable industry and persevering energy with which he gathered valuable
information and diffused it thronghout the Union. Though not a man of original
research, his name will lastingly be known among the pioneers of American forestry.

From the Treasurer’s statement you will learn the modest sums which have been
spent to pay for the issue of two bulletins of 2,000 copies each, the preparation for two
annual meetings, and the incidental expenses of correspondence.

Our last two annual meetings have largely lacked the local support which must
needs be enlisted to lend impressiveness to our proceedings. The weleqme which we
have met in this centre of intellectual life, and especially by the gentlemen of the
Massachusetts Horticultural Society, must be the more gratefully acknowledged.

From this meeting we hope and expect fresh life and new impulse by enlisting the
energetic and earnest work for which New England men have ever held the highest
reputation.
BERNHARD E. FERNOW,

Cor. Secretary.

In the absence of the Treasurer his report was read, as follows:

REPORT OF THE TREASURER.

John S. Hicks, Treasurer, in Account with American Forestry Congress.

SEPTEMBER 15, 1885.

Received by Chas. Mohr, treasurer's balance — .--.— ~-___ --_. .- 225 eee $203 47

life memberships 2225250 30 Seo oe eee 210 00

donation, Jos.'S. Fay 222.2. Oo 2 ee eee 10 00

members’ dues and fees’... 200.2 222). ee 83 00

bulletin subscriptions and advertisements --_. ~~~ --... ---- ---- 26 30

Expended :
Stenorrapher’s bill 2.052 oo. Li ae ee eee $65 00
Printer’s bile 52 Se ee
Stationery 2.22 2c 8 ee a ee 4

Olerk hire'!s 22 222) 522A. 8 Cs OY ee ee
Postage and expressape 5__ U2... 52220) 2 eke ee
487 06
Balance onl iand thes) oe eee eres sees. see - 46 21

533 27

17
Specification of Expenses.
mnenmocwne, printers bills 6 te Ce Se. «10 60
postagee. ©. ne ee ee ee eee, 19010
29 70
Boston meeting, printer’s bill and electrotypes ----..---.---------- 36 50
POStRSE + Se SS SS SY Se ee ee 34 80
71 30
Repent PR OO oy TIN LOT! =e 8 fy a eS etek St tS ON 6532
OR Lage ees ) eS ee Se as ee 8 50
— 71 82
Bulletin No. 3, printer and electrotypes__.___-..- ____________ _...__ (179 38
Osta eis steers Se ee ea eee aie so
> 196 73
Manliness and envelopes =o. 8s se. . Lee te ne ee 80 42
PRESTIGE SU et ee tee ee ee Ce Ee ee 1 50
Sa SEEM ROTEL ye Reet, yee ee ee PL eee 5 27
— 37 19
SLUG EST PDN ERG pega (a US ag 0) Ret ea a ene Pere = eee ee 5 32
ee ee ee 10 00
IIs See ad Se ns oo oe ee ee Se, |) Be OO
487 06

Showing a balance on hand of $46.21.

After the appointment of sundry committees, the Congress adjourned to 2 o’clock
p- m.

AFTERNOON SESSION.

The President called the Congress to order at 2 o’clock, when the Corresponding
Secretary read communications from several persons expressing their inability to be
present at the meeting of the Congress. The first was from Dy. Oliver Wendell
Holmes, who, while expressing his regret that he was unable to attend the Congress,
said he hoped the Congress would have influence sufficient to induce the country to
retain “‘leaves enough to hide its nakedness, of which it is already coming to be
ashamed.’’ Letter: of regret were also read from Prof. H. M. Seeley, of Middlebury
College, Vermont; Governor Harrison, of Connecticut; Senator Warner Miller, chair-
man of the Forestry Committee of the United States Congress; Gen. W. Ward; Hon.
Charles Francis Adams; Prof. C. K. Adams, of Cornell University ; the Governor of
Vermont, and Mr. H. C. Putnam. All expressed sympathy with the objects of the
Congress and the hope that the session would be a successful one.

RESOLUTIONS IN REGARD TO DR. HOUGH.

The committee appointed in the morning in view of the death of Dr. Hough re-
ported the following resolutions as expressive of the feelings of the Congress :

Resolved, That this Forestry Congress has heard with profound regret of the recent
death of Dr. Franklin B. Hough, its Recording Secretary, and desires to place on its
records its sense of obligation to him, not only as one of the founders of the Congress,
and one of its most efficient officers from its beginning, but as one by whose indefati-
gable labors and zealous interest in the cause of forestry that subject was brought to the
attention of the Congress of the United States, so as to secure favorable action by that
body tending to the preservation of our wood lands, and whose exhaustive inquiries and
comprehensive reports furnish a body of information on forestry unsurpassed for value
and interest by any publication in the English language. The whole country is in-
debted to him as one of the chief instruments in arousing the people to a sense of the
importance of maintaining a proper extent of forests, and for the interest in the sub-

_ ject which is already manifested.

Resolved, That this minute be placed upon the permanent records of this Congress,
and that a copy of the same be transmitted to the family of Mr. Hough.

temarks were made by several members in regard to the character and services of
Dr. Hough, and the resolutions were adopted unanimously.

FACTS IN REGARD TO THE PRESENT STATE OF OUR FORESTS.

A large colored chart was suspended on one side of the platform, which had been
prepared in the office of the Forestry Division of the Department of Agriculture at
Washington, for the purpose of showing at a glance, by means of different colors,
the extent of farmed lands, forests, and waste lands in each State and Territory.

Mr. Egleston, Chief of the Forestry Division, read a brief paper, in part explana-
tory of the chart, and giving some particular facts of special interest in connection
with the subject. He spoke of the great difficulty of obtaining exact and satisfactory
knowledge as to the extent of the forests, or the rate at which they are consumed. It
is a vast country with which we are concerned, portions of it yet but sparsely settled,
and much of it altogether unsurveyed. The Agricultural Report of the Census was
a report as to farms, and took no account of the large area lying outside of the appro-

priated farms of the country. The Census of 1880 was the first to undertake an in- -

quiry into the extent and character of the forests, and the volume prepared under the
direction of Professor Sargent would be resorted to often as a treasury of facts on this
important subject. Mr. Egleston gave some startling figures in regard to the con-
sumption of the forests which is taking place.

Mr. Little, of Montreal, the well-known lumberman, who is equally well known
for his intelligent views and his enthusiastic interest in forestry, while expressing his
pleasure in listening to the statements of Mr. Egleston, said that the lumbermen were to
blame for most of the forest fires. It was their careless and wasteful methods of lum-
bering that made forest fires possible. He himself had not lost more than one per
cent. by fire in all his lumbering operations. It was the limbs of the trees, left by the
lumbermen to wither and dry where the trees fell, instead of being removed, which
afforded the ready fuel for any chance spark that might fall from the smoker’s pipe or
the unextinguished camp fire.

Mr. Merriam, of New York, corroborated the opinions expressed by Mr. Little.

The remainder,of the afternoon was occupied in welcoming those who had come to
the Congress as accredited delegates from various States and listening to the reports
which they had to give in regard to the condition of forestry in the States represented
by them. All the New England States were thus represented, together with others
as distant as Nebraska and California. Applause broke out when ex-Governor Morton
announced that as the result of premiums offered in Nebraska for the greatest num-
ber of trees planted on Arbor day 7,000,000 trees were planted in a single day.

The venerable Elizur Wright, active and enthusiastic as though forty, instead of
eighty years old, made a very interesting statement in regard to the Middlesex Fells,
and hoped the Congress would influence the Legislature to make this forest the prop-
erty of Boston for the purposes of health and recreation.

EVENING MEETING.

The evening session of the Congress was designed to be of a more popular character
than those of the daytime. Governor Robinson was present, and, on being introduced
to the Congress by President Higley, addressed the body, as follows :

Mr. PRESIDENT AND GENTLEMEN OF THE Forestry Coneress: Invited some
wecks ago to be present here for a few moments to say something of greeting to you,
in reading over the journals of this evening I found the most worthy chief magistrate
of the city had already extended the welcome of the city of Boston to the Congress,

and, knowing her abundant hospitality, I felt it would be almost useless for me to bid —

you welcome to the larger people. But one is so soon out of the woods in Boston—I
do not mean politically—we feel like introducing you to something of the woodlands

: eal
19

outside, and so, speaking for the larger number of people outside the city, I bid you
welcome to the State. During last winter a resolve was passed by the Legislature ask-
ing me to appoint five gentlemen to attend this Congress. I assure you it wasa
pleasure to me to do so, and I wished they might be able to be of some use to you in
your deliberations. It is, therefore, with heartfelt satisfaction that I see these five
gentlemen are present to attend to their duties. [Applause.] Nor would you expect
_ anything different from Massachusetts or her subjects. She has the right to claim the
position of being the first State to take into consideration this question. At the be-
ginning of the present century the old State society of agriculture offered prizes for
the development of forest growth, and so it has continued. There is a gentleman here
who is credited with a magnificent sum for his devotion in planting trees. In 1837
the Government ordered a survey and inquiry into the growth of all the woodlands of
the State. You know it resulted in the report of Mr. G. B. Emerson in 1846 to Governor
Briggs, a work which deserves study at the present time. Indeed, it is a classic, as it
were. As early as 1818 our people thought it to be of interest to look to the ship-
ping interest, and so they provided that the Agricultural Department should provide
encouragement for the growth of the oak, and that provision remains on the statute
book to-day. Perhaps the agricultural societies do not know this at this time; per-
haps because ship-building is not now of such great importance. Then in this State
we have offered encouragement by the exemption of taxation, under certain condi-
tions, to the owners of trees. Then penalties have been imposed for the wanton destruc-
tion of trees by fire. In 1882 an act was passed authorizing the cities and towns to raise
money to make the forest lands public domain, so that the people may have the pleasure
of them perpetually. Nor is that all. In 1884 it was my privilege, in addressing the
Legislature, to bring the subject before the attention of that body, and it was deemed ad-
visable to get every fact of importance, and the officer now charged with the State census
is collecting all the statistics and data on this question, that it may be laid before
some future Legislature. -That is a most important step. Knowing the gentleman in
charge of the census bureau, you know the work will be well done, and that the results
will be entitled to confidence. Others far more at home on this subject than I am,
and very likely gentlemen who have had more leisure recently to devote to the question,
will address you and touch on these topics. But any man with eyes in his head and
brains to direct his intellect knows the value of growing forests, even in these thickly-
settled States. Time was when we were on the farm that we thought we were doing
the highest service by destroying the trees, and year by year farmers have done all they
could in reclaiming, as they call it, land that had better be left alone in the forest.
[Applause.] Agriculture is not the pastime in Massachusetts that it is in the Western
States. and those of us who began life with those days when we rode the horses to the
stump know what itis. I say all such land would have been better land if left alone
and the fallow kept away. Experience is proving the truth, because it is a fact that
the acreage of the forests in the States during the last halfcentury has not diminished.
Certain lands have been abandoned for tillage, although the capacity for production
of trees may have been seriously diminished. The whole question of water supply
only needs to be touched upon. Boston may well say we are most interested in some
practical solution of the question. Boston wants the clear water of the country from
the woody forest, from the shade of the forest, where the airsweeps from every breeze.
[Applause.] And we in the cities want life, energy, muscle, and spirit, and we expect
to get it from the pure air. Start some fine morning out of sultry Boston and go to
the woods of New Hampshire and Maine and try the effect, and you will come home
ready to demonstrate that the air of the forest is good. Transplant that forest as near
the city as you can, and let the young child and the old man breathe good air in the
_tmorning, at noon, and in the evening, and it will bea luxury. Then, in material
concerns, the manufacturer who depends on water power is interested, so we in New
England hope that out of this meeting the States will find they have a common in-
terest. There is something that we may do in all places. We may not make a forest,
for we may not own land enough for one, but wherever there is a dwelling, and wher-
ever there runs a road or stands a school.house, a church, or a railway station, or a
_ water trough beside the road where the animal stops to drink, there is a place fora
shade. Then, if the animals could speak, how they would bless the man who planted
the tree beside the water, so that he could enjoy the cool shade while he took his
draught. We are glad to welcome you to Massachusetts. The Commonwealth gives
; you greeting, and hopes fora great success. [Loud applause. ]

___ The Governor was followed by ex-Governor Morton, of Nebraska; Major Ben: Per-
Wy Poore, Hon. George ByLoring, and Dr. B. G. Northrop.

_ A letter from Hon. Warner Miller was read, expressing regret on account of his in-

ability to attend the Congress, and presenting for its consideration a bill which he had
prepared and proposed to introduce at the approaching session of the National Con-
gress, providing for the withholding from sale of all public lands which are timber
lands and the appointment of a commission to survey these lands so as to determine
which may properly be disposed of and which shall become permanent reservations.
The letter and bill were referred to a committee, who subsequently reported a recom-
mendation of the general provisions of the bill for adoption by the General Govern-
ment, and the report of the committee was adopted.

Colonel Merriam, of New York, offered a resolution recommending the planting
of memorial trees by the army posts of the country in connection with the commemo-
rative exercises of Decoration day. The resolution was unanimously adopted.

SECOND DAY.

That was a remarkable scene presented to view on the opening of the second day’s —
session of the Congress. The Hon. Marshall P. Wilder, known throughout the coun-
try and beyond it for his enthusiastic interest in horticulture, and who had recently
celebrated his eighty-seventh birthday, was on the platform. Close at hand were Hon.
Elizur Wright, in his eighty-second year, and Hon. Joseph S. Fay, who, not yet in
his eighties, had come to invite the Congress to take a practical lesson in forestry by
paying a visit to his planted forest of 200 acres and more on the southern shore of the
Cape. And there were the white beards of ex-Governor Morton, Hon. Mr. Joly, of Que-
bec, and others, who were the leaders and enthusiasts in this Forestry Congress. Indeed,
it might almost be said that the enthusiasm of the members and their manifest earnest-
ness in the cause of forestry were proportioned to their age. This was like a reversal
of the usual order of things, as we expect old men for counsel but young men for
action. Is it because, as the lives of the trees are measured by centuries and the in-
fluences of forestal agency are developed slowly and cover large spaces, so it requires
the observation of the larger part of man’s ordinary lifetime to give him a proper ap-
prehension of the importance that attaches to trees, and especially to forests ?

Mr. Wilder, on being introduced by President Higley, was received with applause.
Allusion having been made to his age in the President’s remarks, he said he would never
be so old as not to take interest in the object of this organization. He welcomed them to
the Massachusetts Horticultural Hall in Boston. This society, he said, was the first of
its kind incorporated in the country, and was the parent of many others. It had been
the means of introducing ornamental trees, which originally came from the forest, and
it was of the highest importance to protect the forests for the many useful purposes
the timber served mankind. He said: ‘*Go on; press on in your noble work, and
future millions shall remember you with gratitude long after you have passed away.”
[Applause.] He said he had been a lover of nature from his youth, and hence his
interest, and he loved everything in nature—the balmy spring, the glorious summer,
the mellow autumn—and he loved dearly to be remembered by those who had for their
object, as his hearers had, the health and happiness of the human race.

The first paper read this day was one by Mr. Egleston on “ Forestry Legislation in
the United States,’’ in which he traced its progress from the earliest settlements of the
country to the present time. He considered forestry legislation in the two aspects of
laws for the protection of forests, as property, from theft and depredation by fire, and
laws for the prgduction or extension of forests by bounties on tree planting. The
substance of the laws of each State was given, usually with the date of their enact-
ment.

‘The Hon. M. Joly, of Quebec, in speaking on the forest economy of Canada, bore
emphatic testimony to the practical usefulnesss of this Congress thus early in its his-
tory, showing how the Legislature of Canada had adopted the suggestions of the Con-.

gress, and had thus placed Canada in advance of the United States in respect to forestry.
In 1883 the Province of Quebec carried out the suggestion of this Congress by causing
all lands unfit for agriculture to be set apart for the cultivation of timber. The Govy-
ernment would not allow any of its land which is unfit for cultivation to be allotted
to the settler. It was a cruelty to allow him to settle on such land.

SMOKE-CONSUMING DEVICES.

A very interesting paper was read by Mr. Lander, superintendent of motive power
on the Old Colony railroad, on the subject of “‘Smoke-consuming Devices for Loco-
motives.’’ He gave a history of the attempts to arrest the sparks of locomotives as a
relief to passengers, and for the purpose of preventing fires liable to be occasioned by
them. He described the difficulties to be surmounted by any successful contrivance,
and affirmed that these had finally been overcome, and that there were now such effect-
ive appliances that there is no good reason why there should be any further annoyance
or danger from the sparks of locomotives.

This paper was of such interest and practical importance that it led to an animated
discussion, and to the reference of the subject to the Committee on Legislation, whe
were charged to gather information on the use of spark arresters, and lay it before
railroad commissioners in the several States and enjoin them to enforce the use of such
appliances on all locomotives running through wooded regions.

STANDING COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATION.

The President was directed to appoint a standing Committee on Legislation, for the
purpose of drafting bills touching forest legislation which are most desirable for the pres-
ent. The committee were authorized to associate with them in each State proper per-
sons who would co-operate with them.

ONTARIO COMMISSIONER’S REPORT.

An important report was received from the Hon. R. W. Phipps, forest commis-
sioner of Ontario, giving facts of much practical interest.

AFTERNOON SESSION.

In the afternoon a paper was read by Hon. John E. Hobbs, of Maine, on the des
pendence of the lumbering interests upon systematic forestry. The paper abounded
with interesting facts in regard to the production of lumber and the sources of future
supply. The necessity of planting and cultivating forests was strongly urged.

A paper of much practical interest on the cultivation of the red cedar and the osier
willow was read by Mr. Edmund Hersey, of Hingham. Mr. H. exhibited some shoots
of the willow grown the present year which were nearly ten feet in length. They
were grown on elevated and comparatively dry ground which had not been enriched.

Mr. Fernow read an interesting paper on the practicability of making use of the
waste material of the lumberman as a fertilizer for the agriculturist. He said the ex-
periment in Canada had already proved successful.

PLANTING OF EVERGREENS.

Mr. W. C. Strong read a paper on the transplanting of evergreens, giving his ex-
perience as to the best time of the year in which to do this work. This he has found
to be in August, rather than at an earlier or later period, and he gave some physio-
logical reasons in favor of summer planting.

))

—

ARBOR DAYs.,

The subject of Arbor days had a hearty reception this afternoon, being brought be-
fore the body in a paper by Mr. Egleston, who urged that the observance of Arbor
day was properly not for the prairie States alone, where it originated, but that it was
needed in all the States, and was one of the most efficient means of promoting the
cause of forestry throughout the country.

Mr. Peaslee, of Cincinnati, also sent a paper on the subject of Arbor day, in which
he treated of the Ohio plan of connecting its celebration with the public schools and
its happy results.

A standing committee on Arbor day was appointed, consisting of Dr. B. G. Nor-
throp, Mr. Egleston, and Mr. J. B. Peaslee.

EVENING SESSION.

At the evening session the committee, to whom was referred the proposed bill of
Senator Miller for national legislation to preserve a proper amount of the public tim-
ber lands, reported in the form of a resolution, commending the bill and referring it
to the committee on legislation. ;

Rev. Dr. Mayo then enlivened the meeting by reading a paper in a somewhat dif-
ferent vein from the ordinary discussions, entitled the modern ‘* Babes in the Woods.”

The Hon. Norman J. Coleman, Commissioner of Agriculture, was then called out,
and addressed the Congress for half an hour ina very earnest and spirited manner.
He avowed himself fully in sympathy with the objects of the Congress. He desired
the aid of the Congress. He wished to do some practical forestry work. But the De-
partment of Agriculture was hampered in its forestry work by lack of means. Con-
gress appropriated only $10,000 for the work needed throughout the whole country,
when the single State of New York appropriated $15,000 for her own needs alone.
He would have them urge their representatives in Congress to appropriate $50,000, and
if ten times that were appropriated it would return a hundred fold. The remarks of
the Commissioner were listened to with great attention, and at the close were ap-

plauded.
THURSDAY MORNING.

The two previous days, with their three sessions each, left - but little of the indoor
business of the Congress to be done, except that of a routine character and the choice
of officers for the ensuing year.

Officers were chosen as follows :

President, Hon. Warren Higley, of New York.

First Vice-President, Hon. H. G. Joly, of Quebec.

Second Vice-President, Hon. J. Sterling Morton, of Nebraska.

Corresponding Secretary, Mr. B. E. Fernow, of New York.

Recording Secretary, Dr. N. H. Egleston, of Washington.

Treasurer, Mr. J. S. Hicks, of Roslyn, L. I.

Hon. B. G. Northrop, of Connecticut ; Hon. William Little, of Montreal; Hon. J.
B. Grinnell, of Iowa; Hon. J. G. Knapp, of Florida, and Mr. R. H. Warder, of
Ohio, were chosen to be with the other officers of the Congress an Executive Com-
mittee.

MIDDLESEX FELLS.

Hon. Elizur Wright again urged the Congress to visit Middlesex Fells and see the
capabilitles of the tract from a forestal point of view. Here were 4,000 acres, the
forests on which and the now ample water supply were threatened with destruction
unless the tract could be purchased from the present proprietors and made a public
domain. Mr. Wright said this was the only place in the immediate neighborhood

where the woods can be preserved and the water kept pure. There was enough pure
water there to supply a million people with four and a half gallons daily.

PUBLISHING FUND.

Under the lead of the President an effort was made to secure a special fund for the
purpose of publishing the valuable papers which had been read and others which had
been prepared but could not be read for lack of time. In response to the President’s
invitation quite a number of those present subscribed $20 each to the proposed fund.

NEW ENGLAND LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE.

A committee of twelve was appointed with special reference to the forest interests of
the New England States. They were charged with the duty of memorializing the
Governors and Legislatures of the States and to do all that is reasonably possible to
secure a conservative forest policy which shall tend to mitigate the evils of forest fires
and to encourage land owners to cultivate trees, with a view to maintain the vast re-
sources of the lumber supply of the country. The following were appointed as mem-
bers of the committee: Gen. Charles Hamlin, Bangor, and Hon. John E. Hobbs,
North Berwick, for Maine; Mr. W. I. Ladd, Lancaster, and Mr. George B. Walker,
of Concord, for New Hampshire; Mr. T. S. Gold, West Cornwall, and Hon. B. G.
Northrop, Clinton, for Connecticut; Mr. W. C. Strong, Newton, and Mr. Francis
H. Appleton, Boston, for Massachusetts; Mr. Henry G. Russell, West Greenwich,
and Mr. Hathaway, for Rhode Island; Hon. Frederick Billings and Dr. Hiram Cut-
ting, for Vermont.

The remainder of the forenoon was occupied with the reading of some brief papers
and with statements in regard to the condition of forestry in various places. Major
Phinney spoke of the successful planting of the pitch pine in Barnstable county which
had ae enhanced the value of the land.

Mr. 8. W. Powell, of Brooklyn, N. Y., read a paper on the requisites of an effective
fire legislation, and Mr. E: B. Southwick, the botanist of the New York Central Park,
exhibited a very interesting collection of specimens illustrating forestry. It occupied
50 cases, and consisted of nearly 500 specimens, embracing sections of wood, seeds,
cones, acorns, wood fibres, fungi, galls, insect borings, cocoons, pith, bark, sawdust,
and various other products of the woods.

On motion of Mr. Elizur Wright, the Legislative Committee was instructed to take
into consideration the Middlesex Fells.

VOTES OF THANKS.

The usual vote of thanks was given to the reporters of the press, but in this case
with more than the usual heartiness, for the reporters had given very full and accu-
_ Tate accounts of the meetings and of the papers read. Their work was spoken of by
_ several members in connection with the passage of the vote of thanks. It was the
manifest feeling of the Congress that they were greatly indebted to the Boston press
for presenting the views of the Congress on forestal subjects to the public in such an
appreciative and effective manner.

The thanks of the Congress were also given most heartily to the officers of the Mas-
sachusetts Horticultural Society for the use of their hall and for the courtesy and
painstaking care with which they had made arrangements for the comfort and success
_ of the Congress at its present meeting, and especially to Hon. Wm. C. Strong, chair-
man of the Committee of Arrangements, and to Mr. F. W. Brewer, of Hingham.

_ After a hearty vote of thanks to Governor Robinson and his Honor Mayor O’Brien
the Congress adjourned to meet next year at such place as may be chosen by the Exe-
cutive Committee.

But though the formal sessions of the Congress were now ended, much that was
most enjoyable and of practical interest and utility in a forestry point of view yet re-
mained for the members. In compliance with the invitation of the Mayor most of the
members of the Congress and many of the ladies accompanying them took steamer at
2 o'clock in the afternoon for an excursion down the harbor and a visit to Deer Island,
the site of the city’s prison and reform school. The sail among the islands of the
harbor was delightful and the visit to Deer Island was very interesting, giving all a
favorable impression of the care and wisdom with which Boston watches over those
who have been led to take the first steps in vice and seeks to reclaim them. Two hun-
dred of the boys and girls were assembled in the neat chapel and welcomed the Con- —
gress with pleasant songs, accompanied by an organ and a band of instruments. After
an inspection of the buildings an excellent collation was served, and the members of
the Congress returned to the city about dusk.

EXCURSION TO WOOD'S HOLL.

The Forestry Congress, though a formal adjournment was made on Thursday, really
continued its meeting through Friday by engaging in an excursion to Wood’s Holl
to inspect the forest of 200 acres which Mr. J. S. Fay, of this city, has grown there
from seed planted at different times within the past twenty-five or thirty years. Not
the least valuable of the sessions of the Congress were those held in the special car
devoted to its use while on its way to Wood’s Holl and back. The subjects which
had been brought forward by the papers read in Horticultural Hall were discussed in
a free way, while objects of interest in connection with forestry were constantly pre-
sented from the car windows. But the great meeting of the day was that at Wood’s
Holl. Mr. Fay was at the station on the arrival of the train, with a sufficient num-
ber of carriages to contain the members of the Congress, and two hours were spent in
driving about the forest and hearing Mr. Fay’s explanation of the method of his
work. On as bare and wind-swept piece of ground as can be found, perhaps, along
our coast and on poor soil, Mr. Fay began, years ago, to scatter over the trodden-down
grass the seeds of our common yellow or pitch pine, and here to-day is a dense body
of wood, in places almost impenetrable. Many of the trees are fifty or more feet in
height. Having gained a foothold of pines, and thus raised a sereen against the driv-
ing winds from the ocean, Mr. Fay planted behind them the seeds of other trees,
evergreen and deciduous, and with unfailing success.

The members of the Congress were delighted to see this proof that forest trees can
be so easily raised from seed under such unfavorable circumstances. It was a confir-
mation of what they had believed and taught, and nothing more convincing and en-
couraging could be asked for. Mr. Fay said, emphatically, that farming had not
paid and would not pay in such a situation, but that raising of forests would.

After inspecting the forest the members of the Congress were invited into the house
to partake of an excellent collation.

An invitation had been received from Professor Baird, in charge of the United States
fish hatchery near by, to visit that establishment. The invitation was accepted, and
the Congress spent an hour in looking over that interesting place and listening to
Professor Baird’s explanations of the work going on under his direction, after which,
with hearty thanks given to Mr. Fay, who accompanied the members to the cars, they re-
turned to the city at 7 o’clock, and then finally separated, and the Congress was
closed.

Forest area.

‘Farm area.

Acres. eres,
200, 000 300, 000
112541 400 300, 000 S00, 000
necticut _3, 100, S00 650, 000 1, 700, 000
Jersey 4,771, 200 [ 2, 330, 000 2, 100, 000.
assachusetts 5, 145, 600 A 1,000/000) | -4;200; 00.
‘New Hampshire 5, 763, 200 3,000, 000 2, 350, 000
‘Vermont 5,846, 400 1,900, 000, 3) 300, 000
Maryland 6, 310, 400 2, 000, 000 3, 400, 000
West Virginia 15, 772, 800 : 9, 000, 000 4,000, 000
“Maine 19, 132, 800 12, 000, 000 3, 500, 000
~ South Carolina 19, 308, S00. 9, 000, 000 4, 500, 000
“Tniana 22, 982, 400 44,500,000 14, 000, 000
_ Kentucky 25, 600, 000 12, 800, 600 11, 000, 000
13, 000, 000 Q, 000, 000

Virginia

25, 680, 000

Ohio 26, 086, 400 4, 500, 000 18, 200, 000
Tennessee 26, 720, 000 11, 000, 000 $, 500, 000
Pennsylvania 28, 790, 400 7,000, 000 13, 500, 000
Louisiana 29, 063, S00 13, 000, 000 3, 000, 000.

13, 000, 000 5, 300, C00

Mississippi

New York

North Carolina

Alabama

Arkansas

Florida
Wisconsin

Towa

29, 657, 600

30, 476, 800

31, O91, 200

32, 985, G00

33, 948, S00

34,713, 600

34, 845, 000

$, 000, 000
18, 000, 000
17, 500, 000
19, 800, 060
20, 000, 000
17, 000, 000

2, 300, 000

1§, 000, 000
7,000, 000
6, 500, 000
4, 000, 000
1, 500, 000
10, 000, 000

20, C00, 000

Hinois Le 3) 500, 000 26, §00, 000
YY

gan Wy, i, - 14, 000, 000 7, 500, 000

Georgia 37,7471 200 Por rnin ys: 000,000 8, 500, 000

20, 000, 000 500, 000

Washington

muri

42, 803, 200

43,990, 400

16, 000, 000

17, 000, 000

Nebraska 48, 758, 400 1, 500, 000 6, 000, 000
Minnesota 50) $91, 200 30, 000, 000 7, 300, 000,
Kansas 52, 288, 000 3, 500, 000 11, 000, 000
. Utah 52, 601, 600 4, 000, 000 500, 000
Idaho 53.945, 600 i ji f U4, YE, d 10, 000, 000 200, 000
an Pees Ppa aor
Syyemidg 62, 448, 000 WY YY YY) LLL 7, $00, 000 100, 000
Colorado o y YY LMML 10, 000, 000 700, 000
New Mexico 78, 375) : Y y y Wy Yh Yi LY, J 8, 000, 000 300, 000,
Montana 92.999, 000 y e Ys y yh Hey MLM LE, 25, 000, 000 1, 400, 000
Tex 165, coo, COO 2 7 5 G y Y by Ys) Uy Yj yy WY Y 0, 000, 000 000, COO

EZ
Forest, Farms, Faun improved and Waste Land.

The Torat Areas are exclusive of Lakes and land embraced jn Cities.

E FACTS AND FIGURES IN RESPECT TO THE FORESTS OF THE
COUNTRY AND THEIR CONSUMPTION,

Pa BY N. H. EGLESTON,
Chief of the Division of Forestry, Department of Agriculture, Washington.

_ The census of 1880 embodies the results of the first attempt by the Government to
ertain the extent and character of the forests of the country as a whole. No pre-
vious census had undertaken to do more than to take note of the forests embraced in
and forming a part of the farms. The volume prepared under the direction of Prof.
Sargent 1s a most valuable compendium of information, and will often be resorted to
as a treasury of facts in regard to the forest condition of the country. Of course it is
not, and could not be, a complete account of the subject. The field of inquiry is too
large and other sources of information are too limited at present to make this possible.
Estimates must often be made where exact information cannot be obtained.

In the prosecution of its work the Forestry Division of the Department of Agri-
culture has been endeavoring from year to year to ascertain such additional facts as
would enable it to present a more complete view of the condition of the country in
respect to its forests than it had been possible to give before. To insure the utmost
accuracy the estimates made by the Division, from the reports of its agents and all
other sources of information, have been submitted for verification or correction to the
_ Governors or other officers of the several States and Territories, and the result arrived
at is given in the accompanying table:

irae Percentage
i The States. ee oe Forest area. of forest .
F ‘ to total area.
3 : Acres. Acres.
MER GRID eee een Tas dssnochasssonscasesocscsrscocscccdenssvecclesscsneascecesas 32,985,600 17,500,000 53.1
BEAM Nor arecacevessakai% sesecocasssssosesbas .| . 72,268,800 10,000,000 13.8
_ Arkansas ........ BS 33,948,800 20,000,000 58.9
- California sites see 99,827,200 20,000,000 20.0
_ Colorado....... re 66,332,800 8,000,000 12.1
_ Connecticut.. sens 3,100,800 650,000 21.0
94,528,000 3,000,000 3.0
1,254,400 300,000 23.9
34,713,600 20,000,000 57.6
37,747,200 18,000,000 47.7
53,945,600 10,000,000 18.5
35,840,000 3,500,000 9.8
22,982,400 4,500,000 19.6
Pon 35,504,000 2,300,000 12.7
sae ae, 52,288,000 3,500,000 6.7
Rasde ass cat 25,600,000 12,800,000 50.0
Beuibt soos ca lancoeneveonaseeesou=sscacceiee Hen 29,068,800 13,000,000 44.6
(rn CHE OTe CCEARCOCE: REPRE CER OCRE DOSE LEC OCH EO ADEE DCECELE ERE RE REEEEEIo 19,132,800 12,000,000 62.7
Graceeen 3 af 6,310,400 2,000,000 31.7
5,145.600 1,000,000 19.6
36,755,200 14,000,000 38.1
50,591,200 22,000,000 43.4
_ Mississippi ; ep 29,657,600 13,000,000 44.0
Missouri... .... mae sdessac a 43,990,400 16,000,000 36.4
..| 92,998,400 25,000,000 26.9
ae 48,758,400 1,300,000 sin
Nevaca.... 70,233,600 2,000,000 2.8
New -fampshir 5,763,200 3,000,000 52.0
New - ersey........ PG Be 4,771,200 2,330,000 48.8
a ERI CP ee oa aD soko stacaaCesne ck deewesuacsets 78,374,400 8,000,000 10.2
oe bis bie 30,476,800 8,000,000 26.2
ee 31,091,200 18,000,000 57.9
Les 26,086,400 4,500,000 17.3
sao 60,518,400 20,000,000 33.0
FS 28,790,400 7,000,000 24.3
a pe 694,400 200,000 23.8
PeMEAMEICEETIRY ELEC e = eco OS 2 ee ee eacacenoadees 19,308,800 9,000,000 46.6
MEME SEEN osc Pade eho Eo Asoo acca cdecbdpsessesissedessuasaocedsies 26,720,000 11,000,000 41.2
Ey 167,565,600 40,100,000 23.2
ae 52,601,600 4,000,000 7.6
5,846,400 1,900,000 32.5
25,680,000 12,000,000 50.6
S me 42,803,200 20,000,000 44.3
s 15,772,800 9,000,000 57.0
4 “] 342848;000 | 17,000,000 48.8
StU See eee s , Sarco tee ears 62,448,000 7,800,000 10.9
26.4

Seeeeesee ae Save cacttvoesstsea-vml]' 7h go00,070,400 479,080,000

—"

In this table, in order to show the comparative extent of forest, only the land Sk ;
available for use as farm or forest is given. The land occupied by towns and |
and that covered by large bodies of water, such as lakes, is excluded. Our le
available land surface, therefore, Alaska being left out of consideration, is 1,856,070,400°
acres. The total forest area is 479,080,000 acres. The total farm area is 301,000,000. —
Of unimproved and waste lands, including “ old fields,’’ there are 1,082,018,980 acres. —

In regard to the consumption of our forests, we have some very significant, if not —
startling, figures. We hadin 1884, as fepored in Poor’s Manual of Railroads, 156, 497
miles of track. The average number of ties used for each mile is 2,640, which woule
make the whole number used 413,152,080. As the roads generally demand the best
timber, choosing young, thrifty trees, which will not commonly make more than two
ties each, not more than one ure ties can ordinarily be cut from an acre of timber
land, thet with proper cultivation the yield should be much larger. To build mma
existing roads, then, has required the available timber on 4,131,520 acres. The averag
duration of ties is seven years. To keep the existing roads in repair, therefore,will require —
59,021,700 ties, or the product of 590,217 acres. The average length of new road built
every year is about 5,000 miles, requiring 13,200,000 ties, or the timber of 132 ,000 acres. —
If we allow twenty-five years as the time necessary for trees to attain a size suitable for
making ties, then it would require the annual growth of 14,755,425 acres to keep good ee
the existing roads, and 3,300,000 to supply the annual demand for new roads, to say -
nothing of keeping the latter in repair; so that we need to hold in reserve not less”
than 18,000,000 acres of woodland for the maintenance of the road-beds of our rail i
roads, aside from the additional demand for the building of cars, bridges, depots, and
platforms. In other words, it would require the timber growing on an area larger a
than the States of New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island com= 9
bined. The census also reports that in 1880 forest fires consumed the trees on 10,274, 089 ,
acres, or an area equal to that of Massachusetts and New Jersey. The consumption of
our forests for the supply of fuel for factories, locomotives, steamboats, stores, and dwell- —
ings requires the product of not less than 6,560,000 acres annually. Theestimated cut —
of lumber last year would lay bare 5,600,000 acres. All other products of the forest,
such as hewn timber, posts, telegraph poles, and miscellaneous articles, of which w
have no definite reports, it may reasonably be supposed would clear 4,260,000 acres—
making in all 27,416,306 acres of woodland. Making an allowance of 10 per cent. ‘for
any possible over-estimate, we still have 25,000,000 acres as the annual consumption of
our forests, or 68,493 for every passing day. This would clear the State of Rhode Island,
if it were meer wooded, in ten days, or the States of Kentucky or Virginia in a —
single year.

We may well inquire, and ask the country to inquire with us, most earnestly, What
can be done to lessen this drain upon our forests, by the prevention of the needless _
destruction occasioned by fires—two-fifths of all—and by a more economical use of —
those products of the forest which are legitimately called for? ,

ALARMING DESTRUCTION OF AMERICAN FORESTS.

BY WILLIAM LITTLE, OF MONTREAL, CANADA. Ee oe a.

I shall make no apology for appearing before you to-night, except to express regret
for my inability to properly impress upon your minds the importance of the subject
that I shall present for your consideration. I allude to the alarming destruction of —
the forests of the United States and Canada, especially in those descriptions of timber
that have furnished in the past—you may say three-fourths of the commercial timbers
of America—the White Pine and the Spruce. :

the constant drain made upon the forests of Ameriéa for supplies of these
able woods should at last occasion a scarcity and compel economists to point
me, in the very near future, when their total exhaustion may with confidence
edicted, unless prompt and intelligent measures be taken for their conservation,
net surprise those who have known the enormous demands made upon them,
it is questionable if many persons are prepared to realize how near at hand that

hinking men, aware of the facts and desirous of protecting the forests, have tried
to forewarn the public of the actual state of things, but have only been ridiculed for
their pains. Now, however, this matter has passed beyond the region of conjecture.

Booting a United States’ supply, Prof. Charles S. Sargent, Director of the
Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University, and special agént in charge of Forestry
Statistics of the United States Census, made the following statements three years ago,

‘in a paper read before the Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture:

_ ‘The entire supply (white pine) growing in the United States and ready for the
axe does not to-day greatly, if at all, exceed 80,000,000,000 feet, and this estimate
‘includes the small and inferior trees, which a few years ago would not have been
considered worth counting. The annual production of this lumber is not far from
-10,000,000,000 feet, and the demand is constantly and rapidly increasing.
4 “The publication of these facts a few months ago has greatly increased, and, in
some cases, more than doubled, the value of pine lands, and it does not require any
_ particular powers of foresight to be able to predict that the price must advance to still
higher figures. Enough is now known to permit the positive statement that no great
~ unexplored body of this pine remains, and that, with the exception of the narrow
redwood belt of the California coast, no North American forest can yield in quantity
any substitute for it.’’
eA

= _ And again, in the same article, as if to emphasize his remarks respecting the disap-
_ pearance of the white pine, he says:

__ Fatal inroads have already been made into the great pine forests of the North
Atlantic region. Its wealth has been lavished with an unsparing hand; it has been
wantonly and stupidly cut, as if its resources were endless; what has not been sacri-
ficed to the axe has been allowed to perish by fire. The pine of New England and

New York has already disappeared. Pennsylvania is nearly stripped of her pine, which
ily a few years ago appeared inexhaustible. The great northwestern pine States—
Lichigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota—can show only a few scattered remnants of the
noble forests to which they owe their greatest prosperity, and which not even self-
interest has saved from needless destruction.”

_ This is the condition of the United States forests as described by a gentleman who
was specially engaged by the Government, on account of his pre-eminent ability and
high character, to thoroughly investigate the subject, and which was made two years
after all reports had been given in, when any errors in calculations, if such existed,
would be fully known. What does it show but that there was then barely eight years’
ply of this timber? Since then three years’ cut has been removed; so that to-
there is standing in the forests less than five years’ stock of this timber, not only
t of merchantable quality, but of all kinds, good or bad, large or small, old or
ng—timber convenient and accessible, as well as that more remote and inaccessible.
erious indeed are the facts that actually before another census report could be
, there would not be a foot of this timber to take into account, if the present
ess cutting should continue!

And now, if we turn to Canada, what do we find is the condition of things there?
would, of course, be easy to give my own views or those of my father, the late Mr,

James Little, of Montreal, who took the deepest interest in the subject of — n
America ; but instead of this we will quote from the valuable report on the Canadian
forests submitted to the Government some seven years ago by the Hon. H. G. Jol Fe
our honored vice-president, as member of the Dominion Council of Agricul re a
report which is replete with most valuable information and suggestions. r 3 ;
In this report we find, under the heading ‘“State of our Ferests,” among other
remarks— ;

“They (the forests) contain,’’ says Mr. Joly, ‘‘a great variety of timber, but I will 7
eall your attention principally to the pine and spruce, as they form nearly all our ex- @
port to Europe, and are really the produce of our forests; while the hard-wood we ©
export, especially the fine oak, nearly all comes at present from the lake regions of f
the United States, as we have very little of our own left. Shit ak

‘For some years past,’? continues Mr. Joly, «the idea has been gaining ground
among men who take an interest in the future of the country that our great pine and ~
spruce forests are getting rapidly exhausted, and that before long a trade which ena- —
bles us to export annually over twenty million dollars’ worth of timber will shrink —
down to wofully reduced proportions.

‘Thinking men have begun to sound the note of alarm, and we owe it to them, but
especially to ourselves as a nation, to try and find out how far their previsions are
likely to prove true.”’ AA

7
;
y

Then, after showing what difficulty the inquiry presents, he says: ye

“Let us now try and make an inventory of the timber resources of the Dominion, -
beginning in the west. On the Pacific shores of the Dominion, in British Columbia,
the bountiful gifts of Providence are still stored up for us, and the forests have scarcely |
been attacked by the lumberman. How long these treasures will last us and what
advantages we shall derive from them depends in a great measure upon ourselves.

‘‘From the Rocky Mountains to the province of Ontario there are scattered here
and there certain tracts of well-timbered land, but they are the exception. That
timber will be required for the local wants of the people who are now only beginning
to settle on our fertile prairies.”’

*
ots

-
It is now known that this prairie country will require thousands of millions of feet

in excess of its own stock. The report goes on to say: is
“The great forest of Canada, par excellence, is spread over that vast territory watered
by the Ottawa, the St. Maurice, the Saguenay, and their tributaries, over one hun- —
dred thousand square miles in extent. Before drawing your attention more partic-
ularly to it I will mention our remaining timber limits, that cannot compare with it,
either for size or resources. They are found in the Georgian Bay country; the Mus- —
koka and Nipissing regions; the eastern townships of Quebec and south shore of the
St. Lawrence to the gulf; the region on the north shore of the St. Lawrence, from —
the Saguenay down to the Bersimis, and, perhaps, still lower down, as far as Mingan,
and the country watered by the St. John, the Miramichi, the Restigouche, and their —
tributaries. Those limits, in many places, are scattered and isolated ; they have, with
few exceptions one as the Bersimis at the east and some newly-discovered pine tracts —
at the west, on Lake Superior), been worked for a long time, and cannot be expected
to supply much longer any considerable quantity of first-quality pine; but they still
contain an immense quantity of spruce, principally in the east, sufficient for a great
many years’ supply, if carefully worked and protected. The spruce, unlike the pine,
reproduces itself with wonderful ease, and a good spruce country, carefully worked,
where you leave untouched all the trees under a certain size, say twelve or thirteen —
inches at the foot, can be worked and worked again, after a very few years’ rest, I
might say, almost forever. deg
“As a match to the timber wealth of British Columbia in the west there have been”
lately discovered at the extreme east of British North America, in the recent explora-
tions through the hitherto unknown interior of Newfoundland, magnificent forests.
Let us hope that before long they will take their place among our Canadian forests.
‘‘T will now return to the great Canadian forest—our great pine country—with its
wonderful network of streams and its three great arteries, the Ottawa, the St. Mauric e,
and the Saguenay. . : : im
‘Does it begin to show signs of exhaustion? Is it possible that in such a short
time man has been able to make an impression upon those millions and millions of

. oa

acres of forest? : _

there is no sign of exhaustion, what is the meaning of the complaints that come
the seas to us, every year louder and louder, about the falling off in quality and

our pine, hitherto considered as the finest in the world? Are they no more
the ordinary complaints of the purchaser? I leave it to our lumbermen to

er.

But, before they answer, I will ask them, why are they compelled to go now to

ch enormous distances for the really superior quality of pine they used to get so

ch nearer home a few years ago?

‘Look at the map of that great region and you will see how little of it is now left

touched. On the Ontario side, all the most accessible tributaries of the Ottawa, the

udawaska, the Bonnechére, Mississippi, Petewawa, and others have been worked for
s. The lumbermen are now round the eastern end of Lake Nipissing, with the

_ On the Quebec side they have nearly reached the headwaters of all the great trib-
utaries of the Ottawa, the Riviére Rouge, the Riviére du Liévre, the Gatineau, with
the Jean de Terre and Lake Kakebonga and the Lac des Rapides. They are now
rking three hundred miles higher up than Ottawa, as the river runs, on Lake Tem-
amingue and the Keepawa.
“On the St. Maurice they are as far up as Lake Manouan on the western side of
the river; its great tributaries on the eastern side—the Bostonnais and the Riviére
Croche—have been deprived of the greatest part of their fine pine; it is now sought
at the headwaters of those rivers.
As for the Saguenay region it still contains a good deal of spruce, but there is only
a limited extent of pine still untouched, or nearly so, south of Lake St. John, between
the Metabetchouan and the headwaters of the Riviére Croche, near Commissioner’s
lake and Bouchette’s lake. There is a little pine left north of Lake St. John, anda
certain quantity on the River Shipsha and in the lower Saguenay on the Ste. Mar-
guerite and Petit St. Jean, etc. As for the large rivers that flow into Lake St. John,
the Chamouchoua, Mistassine, and Peribonea, the pine that was on the lower part of
those rivers has been nearly all cut, and the remainder of their course, from their dis-
tant northern sources, is through an immense burnt-up wilderness, where the vegeta-
ble soil has been consumed by fire.
_ That huge tract of lumber country, between the Ottawa and the St. Maurice, that
separated (or rather appeared to separate) the lumbermen working on those two rivers
_ by what seemed an inexhaustible and endless forest—that huge tract is tapped through
and through, and the Ottawa lumberman has met the St. Maurice lumberman on the
shores of Lake Manouan. A glance at the map will show what that means.
_ “Those who think that there will never be an end to our timber may say: ‘ We
ean still go north.’
_ * Not very far north. From Lake Temiscamingue and the Montreal river, on the
shores of which the lumberman is plying his axe at this very moment, they cannot go
y far north before they strike the height of lands dividing the St. Lawrence water-
ed from the Hudson’s Bay, and the country is generally poor and barren. There is
1 some fine pine there, in what quantity is not known, along the headwaters of the
awa, but it cannot be brought down to market, at least as square timber, until
extensive and costly works have been executed for the improvement of the great
de des Quinze.
-*Once over the heights that divide the St. Lawrence and Hudson’s Bay water-
eds one from the other, the streams, without which timber cannot be brought to
ket, all run to the north to James’ Bay and Hudson’s Bay. Those regions are
rally represented as a huge barren wilderness, with little timber, and that mostly
fa stunted growth.
* While every one admits the great value of the timber trade to Canada, no one
ould complain, in a new and sparsely-peopled country like ours, if the finest pine
S$ were to disappear and make room for fine farms. But, unfortunately, we can+
not comfort ourselves with such hope, for the soil of the pine region is not generally
fa Bee to agriculture, and when the pine disappears the farm does not very often
ake its place.
‘*Men are the same all over the world. They never set much value upon the free
fts of Providence, and disregard them in proportion to their abundance. Timber,
ish, and game have been destroyed everywhere in the same way. When what ap-
ed to be inexhaustible becomes exhausted, it then begins to be valuable, and we
pay for our experience.
“Our neighbors in the United States have applied to the destruction of their for-
is their almost superhuman activity and energy, and they are now worse off than

time as the pine, if the same rate of cutting should continue. Although Mr. Joly

- <«.., ie tee ie! Ao 4 = i. « fa ua &. * os
; ee ANS alin iy ont og ay 4 ahs thers . r /
na ~ ‘a ' se ¥ 3 t md
= . L as de = 7 ied 7

30 ero > aa

we are for timber. But their eyes are being opened. The President, in his last mes
sage, has earnestly drawn the attention of Congress to the subject, and the following
quotation from the last annual report of the Secretary of the Interior shows how
thoroughly they appreciate the gravity of the situation :

““« The rapidity with which this country is stripped of its forests must alarm ‘every ;
thinking man. It has been estimated by good authority that if we go on at the pre
ent rate, the supply of timber in the United States will, in less than twenty years, fal
considerably short of our home necessities. 4

<<< Tt is time that we should turn our earnest attention to this subject, which so serie
ously concerns our national prosperity.’ ”’

And, after referring to the older settlements of the Province of Quebec being pain- .
fully bare of trees, Mr. Joly sums up his report on ‘ the present state of our forests in
by saying “that it is very far from satisfactory and leaves much room for improve-
ment.’’ But in his very able report he does not stop short at ‘the state of the for-—
ests,’’ but shows his clear insight into everything appertaining to the subject by ie
counting for the facts of a continued overproduction of wood side by side with rapidly
receding and diminishing supplies. In alluding to the overproduction he says:

‘There cannot be a greater waste of any marketable commodity than by overpro-
duction. It is unavoidable, as the extraordinary success of any given branch of in-
dustry is certain to produce it; but generally it does not take long after its fatal effects —
are felt before the evil cures itself. ‘Unfortunately our timber trade is an exception to
that rule. In the face of a glutted market we persist in our overproduction, as if we
expect to relieve the market by glutting it still more.

“Overproduction in the timber trade is a greater evil than in any other business,
as the raw material cannot be replaced for generations. With a few exceptions the
lumbermen of Canada, as a rule, cannot stop their production of timber; they a
searcely curtail it.

‘The lambermen have indicated the remedy for overproduction, but have not been’
able to apply it. Each one is ready to admit that he (or rather his neighbor) is eut-—
ting too much timber, and that he would make more profit with a less quantity.

“Tt is bad enough that so much money should be wasted away in cutting down
timber for no eood, but if there were an inexhaustible supply of timber on the Crown
lands, the Gove ernment, receiving a larger amount of timber dues than it might other-—
wise, ‘would not be likely to inter fere, to protect the lumberman against himself. But —
our forests are getting rapidly exhausted and their produce sacrificed, and it is a i ms
for Canada and for the lumberman.

“Of course the first result of a decrease in the production of timber, in so far as 4
the Government is concerned, would be a corresponding decrease in the Crown lands ~
receipts. I won’t call it the rev enue, because there is something deceptive in the |
use of that word. We are apt to fancy that it always means (as Worcester has it) the ~
income or annual profit received from lands or other property. It is nothing o the ]
kind in this case. We have not been spending the income or annual profits of our
forests, but the forests themselves—not the interest, but the capital.” ; i,

This is a picture drawn some seven years ago of the condition of the Canadian
forests by a gentleman thoroughly conversant with the timber trade, an enthusiast,
on the subject of forestry, and having recourse to every available source of informa- ;
tion on the subject. What can we gather from his statements but that Canada is
almost in the same deplorable condition as the United States with regard to its stock
of valuable pine timber? It may be here worthy of mention that, though Professor |
Sargent in his remarks made no reference to the condition of the spruce forests of his
country, yet an examination of the Forestry Bulletins published by his ae
shows that the existing amount of spruce timber will have disappeared in as short a

appears to consider that the spruce forests of Canada would supply the home con.
sumption for a great many years, yet it would supply for but a limited period the
thousands of millions of feet that will be required by the United States when it has
parted with its white pine and spruce timber, and when it has no other source of

ite eee “ § A . p ie =F
Paes ey es os
tear 7 i)
‘oC . as | ¢
=F
y for this description of wood than Canada, and from no other source can it be
ned so cheaply.

has often been said that there would be found a substitute for wood. If so, it is
time the discoverer brought it forward, for up to the present the ingenuity of
everlasting Yankee’’ has not even touched the subject. Notwithstanding the
es of wire, the use of iron in buildings, the terra cotta and straw lumber, the con-
iption of our old friend, wooden lumber, increased nearly 50 per cent. in the ten
s from 1870 to 1880, the former being 12,755,543,000 feet and the latter 18,091,-
856,000 feet (we are now informed by the Hon. Mr. Egleston, Chief of Forestry Division
at Washington, that the present production is not far from 28,000,000,000 feet); and
though it has always been claimed that iron and lumber keep together, cheap lumber
accompanying cheap iron, we now find iron so low that producers claim they are at
a lowest rung of the ladder, while lumber, notwithstanding the enormous produc-
tion, has Eyteed in price, with every prospect of still Geether increase ; and yet it
‘would appear that we are within five years of the time when the great bulk of sup-
plies of white pine and spruce (which are, in the North, the great stock of this
indispensable material) must cease. And this is not the statement of interested parties,
which might be open to suspicion, but of those specially employed by the Government
of the country to ascertain the true condition of the forests.
It will no doubt be said ‘‘ What of this? There are still vast forests in the South
to be drawn upon.’’ This may be a matter of great value to the South; but to the
people of the North, who now make and use four-fifths of the sawed lumber produced,
it is a matter of the most serious importance. The value of the lumber now produced
: ins the North exceeds $300,000,000 a year as it falls from the saw. ‘That it is all
‘wanted there is no better evidence than the fact that demand and price are both
_ inereasing, and to replace it would cost from two to three times this sum, even if the
same lumber could be obtained elsewhere, which it cannot be. Six handed million
dollars a year would not replace it; so that, in a very short time, this section of the
country, instead of having a great and profitable industry advancing and helping
_ every interest, will be called upon to pay out hundreds of millions of dollars annually
for such material.
_ But even our Southern friends are interested with us in the preservation of this
r imber, as the uses to which it is applied are so different from theirs that large quanti-
ties are annually sent South, and the government of Canada, recognizing this fact,
while imposing a retaliatory duty on the white pine, admits southern pine duty free.
t is further to be hoped that the governments of the Southern States may learn a

lesson from the prodigality of the North, and Pee their most valuable peice for

ulators, or to such an ignorant race of destructionists as have gobbled up ae
nber of the North, or they, too, will soon be dispossessed of one of the greatest
bles essings-that Providence has vouchsafed their country.

te pine, an amount equivalent to the entire production of the Dominion of Canada
during the same period.

ow be but little short of 30,000,000,000 feet. This of itself must show the enor-
s destruction of forests going on in the United States, and the serious result a loss

‘ f ‘ “t, 2 Ae a 146) ke
oI ge ois big eke 5 SiGe Sais is a a ee, aia cies

that the city of Chicago alone received in one year over 2,000,000,000 feet, principally .

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a Vy I Me dae aod i Pe ee eae
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economic question of the day—one before which all others sink into insignifican
comparison, for nothing can be more true than the remarks of the Glasgow Herald
reviewing an article on the subject in 1876, when it said: ‘‘ The knowledge we :

that would be De ence from a dearth of timber in Canada and the States. I
point of fact, both Canada and the States are busy sawing from under them the high
reaching, fortune-making branch, on which, like conquerors, they are now sitting and”
overlooking the world.”’ se
When we consider the importance that an abundance of the most valuable timber
has had on the past welfare of the country, and come to realize what ‘‘a dearth of
timber ’’ means, all will readily see that the foregoing is by no means an overdrawn
statement. If we also consider the fact that each human being in the country must —
have timber in one form or another for his protection or comfort—that our shelter is —
of timber, the floors we walk on, the chairs we sit on, the tables we eat from, the con-—
veyances we use, even to our cradles and coffins—we can readily see how overwhelm-_
ingly important is this great question of timber supply. Then, too, the numerous —
industries engaged in the various processes concerned in the use of this material, and —
the hundreds of thousands of laborers directly depending thereon for their livelihood,
prove that timber is an article required by every individual of the whole community,
and demonstrate that every means should be adopted for its preservation and protec-—
tion. \ +i ,
When England, which has cheap coal, cheap iron, and cheap labor, and which ean
get her supplies at the cheapest rates from the north of Europe, annually expends”
nearly $100,000,000 for timber, one can readily recognize how much it would cost the
United States (a country that has yet to be built up) to import its lumber from any for-_
eign source. It has been estimated that it would take the entire sailing tonnage of
the world to convey the amount of timber annually consumed in America from any
foreign lumber port. But where to get at any price the enormous’ quantities —
in this country is a question that would puzzle those best informed on the subjebte LO
determine. :
These considerations fully justify the remarks contained in a leader in the wey:
York Sun, when urging Congress some time ago to remove duties from Canadian
lumber, in which it said:

‘‘ No more vital question can come before Congress. Perhaps no Congress has ever —
been called on to decide an economic question of greater moment.” a

The Province of Quebec has, to some degree, acted prudently by restricting the cut-
ting of pine trees below 12 inches at the butt on the stump; and the
policy of charging the same timber dues on small logs as on larger ones has similarl y
had the effect of curtailing the cutting of the small spruce trees. But in the United
States even this small measure of wise economy does not operate, as all trees, both
large and small, are cut. “

The word ‘destruction ’’ has in the preceding remarks been used advisedly. Amer-
ican forests are not exploited as in Europe. To remove a large trunk sometimes fift
smaller trees are.cut down, and this ruthless destruction is resorted to simply to save
small amount of extra labor; whereas the trees needlessly felled, as well as the tops
and branches of the one actually required, are left to rot on the ground or, what is
worse, to lie as fuel for the flames. 4

And respecting forest fires, which the lumberman is constantly parading as an ex-
cuse for his reckless cutting of timber, it may be said that, from the condition i
which the woods are left during and after his operations, it would appear to require
almost the interposition of Providence to prevent their burning in case of an acci-

~~
G

+ Se tsa

: 32
2 FR =
spark falling among them. With proper legislation and an enlightened public
to lead Americans to look upon the tree as one of his best friends there should
t little danger from fire.
foreover, if the timber-land owner would annually expend the same percentage he
illing to spend to insure other property of like value towards putting his timber
erty in a safe condition he could so place it that it would be difficult to set it on
ire so as to do any serious injury.
_ Ishall not advert to the climatic or other effects claimed to be of an injurious char-
acter which the clearance of the forests is said to bring upon a country. These matters
are best treated by the scientific gentlemen assembled here. The commercial aspect
of the question is all I claim to possess a knowledge of, and this I believe is of such para-
mount importance that it should arrest the attention of all thinking people.
_ It may be said that the active American mind, always ready with expedients, ought
_to be alive to its importance; but the truth is that the American mind has, up to the
_ present time, been devoted towards getting rid of the timber, and in this, as in most
_ other efforts, it has been eminently successful; so the question is now how to change
_ the current of public opinion in America from that of antagonism against trees to
that of appreciation of them. In my humble opinion this can soonest be brought
~ about by constant agitation and reiteration of the true state of the facts. The forma-
_ tion of Forestry Associations and the institution of ‘“ Arbor Days’’ are having excel-
lent effects, and will no doubt be productive of a great amount of good in this direc-
tion.
To the American, whose great aim has been how most quickly to get rid of the for-
ests which, until recently, were the great obstacle in his way in providing himself and
_ family with a home, the familiar refrain of ‘‘ Woodman, spare that tree’? sounded as
the hollowest mockery ; to him the rapid stroke and sharp ring of the woodman’s axe,
_ or the thud of the forest monarch as it struck the earth in its fall, were sounds far
more pleasing to the ear. And it is only since the railways have spanned the conti-
nent and supplied the knowledge that his country is on the whole a prairie, and a tree-
__ less one rather than a wooded one—that the timber is only peculiar to the coasts, lakes,
and water-courses, while the vast interior is bare of timber—that such an idea has had
a chance of claiming his attention.

Atlas for the Census of 1870, writing of ‘‘ The Woodlands and Forest Systems of the
- United States,” says:

Be ‘A glance at the map shows large regions either treeless or very sparsely wooded,
and that it is possible to cross the continent from the Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico
without passing through a forest five miles in extent, or large enough to be indicated
_ on the map.”’

_ And he might also have said from the Canadian boundary line to the same point,
for he says:

The woodlands of the east are separated from those of the west by a broad treeless
plain from six to fifteen degrees wide.”’

33 .
__ And again, when mentioning the value of the ‘‘ sawed lumber” product, he says:

_ “Yet this gives but an imperfect idea of the part that wood and timber play in the
wants and industries of the people. The great majority of all the buildings of the
country are made of it, and it is an essential ingredient of nearly all those which are
‘nominally of brick or stone. It, too, is the principal ingredient in the vast majority
of ships, boats, ears, carriages, etc., for transportation ; so too of our furniture and of
“most of the tools and implements in use.

_ “Tt is the sole household fuel of two-thirds of the inhabitants of the country, and
the partial fuel of nine-tenths of the remaining third. For making steam, reducing
metals, and the various processes in the arts it is used in immense quantities. Enter-
ng, as it thus does, into the multiform uses of civilization, in every period of life from

Respecting this aspect of the country, Professor Wm. H. Brewer, in the Statistical

the cradle to the coffin, a constituent of so many of our manufactures, and nearly all
our structures, from a match or tooth-pick to the railroad or steamship, it forms ar

element in our needs and our industries which cannot be reached by statistics nor ex-
pressed by figures.’’ ; ;

Even then he threw out the hint, which has since been realized, when he said—

“That our large timber, suitable for sawing, is diminishing, there is no question; —
nor is there any question that this will go on until the price so much rises that new —
timber will be planted as the old is cut, and that a part of this diminution is due to —
prodigal use and needless waste.’’

Also referring to this same time (1870), our lamented friend the late Dr. Franklin —
B. Hough, when Chief of Forestry in the Department at Washington, in his “Third _
Report on Forestry,” p. 285, says: ;

“The United States, according to the last census, 1870, had an area of woodlands —
amounting to about 880,000,000 acres of land, belonging chiefly to individuals. It
was estimated that 10,000,000 acres are destroyed annually and that not more than
10,000 acres are planted. : "

“Tt is only in the United States the devastation of the forests is going on upon an
immense scale and made in some sense the order of the day.” :

Since then fifteen years have gone by, during which time the most terrible slaughter
of the forests has been kept up. The increase of cutting for commercial purposes has
more than doubled; so that, assuming these figures as correct, there can now remain _
but little more than one-half this area of woodland, for although, owing to five years —
of financial depression in the United States, from 1873 to 1878, the consumption of
wood may have fallen off during that period, since then the onward stride has been so
prodigious that the Northwestern States more than doubled their production of sawn ‘
woods from 1878 to 1884. : F

The 3,629 millions of 1878 become 8,000 millions in 1884, while a similarly large ~
increase took place in the Southern States, so that the total cut of the United States is
now over 50 per cent. greater than when the census was taken for 1880; but, consid-
ering the increase only 40 per cent. greater, we have for the entire cut of sawn lumber —
25,000 millions of feet, board measure, of sawn wood alone; and if to this is added
20 per cent., to include the squared, flatted, and round timber, the wood used in —
shingles, pulp, etc., and the railway ties, fence-posts, and other forest products, we
have a total of 30,000 million feet of wood used in commerce, besides the enormous
amount used for fuel, etc., which was valued in 1880 at $3821,962,000, and which
would to-day be worth not less than $400,000,000. To obtain this enormous
amount of material must have required the selection of the best trees from fully 20
million acres of land, equal to a strip of land 10 miles wide reaching from England
to America, or more than four times the area of your whole State of Massachusetts.

These figures give some idea of the extent of territory denuded annually, and —
I will now show the present value of this material. “

The value of “‘sawn lumber’’ returned for census year 1880 (actually the cut of
1879) was 233 million dollars; adding 40 per cent. to this, for increase since then,
makes this amount 326 millions, and an increased value at primary points of 50 per
cent. makes 489 millions, or, say, in round numbers, 500 million dollars for sawn wood
alone. Then adding 20 per cent. of this value for other wood products mentioned —
above, equal to 100 millions, and the value of the fire-wood, 400 millions, the whole y,
makes 1,000 million dollars as the present annual value of the forest products of the
United States at primary points of production or manufacture. a

Moreover, the production and consumption are steadily increasing, while the supply
is as steadily diminishing ; and when it is seen that this manufacture now stands at _
the head of the manufactures of the United States in value, as it has hitherto done in ©
the number of operatives employed, and that the white pine, which has been in the —
past, and is still, the most important factor in this great industry, is rapidly approach- —

extinction, I feel that we cannot be far astray in considering this, as regards
ca, what I have already called it, the most important economic question of the
—one before which all the others sink into insignificance.

The white pine, spruce, hemlock, and cedars form the bulk of the light woods of

America, and it is probably owing to this characteristic that the white pine and spruce,
notwithstanding their original great abundance, are so rapidly becoming exhausted,

for, being light and easily floated, they are taken with but little difficulty from the
most remote sections of the country, wherever water-courses exist.

_ It might be as well to remark, as opinions appear to prevail in some quarters that
_ the area of the white pine in Canada is of very great extent; that it covers but a limited
| area. That this is a fact is shown by Dr. Bell, assistant director of the Geological
_ Survey of Canada, in the report of the survey for 1880, in which he says, respecting
: the white pine, or what is known as the ‘yellow pine”’ of the British markets— Pinus
-strobus, L. :

_ “This and the next species have so nearly the same limit throughout the greater

_ part of their northward range that they are represented on the map both by one line.
_ The red pine, however, does not extend so far east as the white, so that in this direc-
_ tion the line represents only the boundary of the latter. Contrary to popular belief
_ the white pine is confined to a comparatively small part of the Dominion, as will be
observed by an inspection of the map. Its northern limit in Canada extends east as
_ far as Mingan, while to the west it does not reach Lake Winnipeg, or Red river. It
_ reaches its lowest latitude opposite to Ottawa City, about 483°, and its highest, about
_ 52°, in the Lonely Lake region. In the country immediately north of Lake St. John
_ the Messrs. Price have cut large quantities of fine white pine timber forexport. When
_ coming from Lake Mistassini to Ottawa, by way of the Gatineau river, Mr. Richard-
_ son, of the Geological Survey, first met this species at 230 miles north of that city. It
_ occurs of fair size on the headwaters of all the principal branches of the Moose river,

and in former times is said to have extended considerably further north along these

streams; but, having been entirely destroyed by extensive forest fires, it has been re-
___ placed by other trees. Owing to these fires it is now very scarce in most of the region
north of Lake Superior, but small groves of it have been observed as far north as rep-
S resented It is scattered over the country between Lake Superior and the Winnipeg

_ river and around Lonely Lake, but it is of rather small size. In approaehing Lake
Winnipeg the limiting line of this tree curves southwestward, and crosses the Winni-
_ peg river about fifteen miles above Fort Alexander, and then runs south to the United
_ States at some distance east of Red river.”’

___. In the foregoing remarks I have given the views of gentlemen in whose opinions I
_ have the greatest confidence, and however much they may conflict with the precon-
ceived notions of others, I believe them to be true.
= But even if it were to take fifteen years instead of five to use up the whole of the white
_ pine of the United States, or fifty years instead of twenty to use up the whole forests,
_ the matter would be sufficiently serious to justify us in calling public attention to
the facts.
In conclusion, I would add a few words written by Dr. Oswald on this most im-
_ portant subject:
“<The true basis of national wealth is not gold, but wood. Forest destruction is the
sin that has cost us our earthly paradise. War, pestilence, storms, fanaticism, and
intemperance, together with all other mistakes and misfortunes, have not caused half
“as much permanent damage as that fatal crime against the fertility of our mother
earth.”’ :
; 4 Mr. President and gentlemen, I fully appreciate the extent of the truth and the
seriousness of the warning contained in those forcible words. "We cannot too soon
take active and vigorous measures to prevent, or at least to mitigate, the calamity
1ich would befall our country if our timber, that great source of national wealth, is
aken from us. From an economic, from a national, and from a domestic point of

view I believe that the question of the preservation of our forests is the most important

= Sa Ee ie ae OF eee ee ee ee a ee
36 > eae

FOREST PRESERVATION IN CANADA.

BY A. T. DRUMMOND, MONTREAL,

Each of the provinces comprising the Dominion of Canada, excepting Manitoba, ;
has control of its own Crown lands, and hence it is difficult to secure one uniform —
series of measures for the protection of the timber upon these Crown lands. Cireum- —
stances are different in each province. In British Columbia the forests are largely
yet untouched, excepting along the Pacific coast, and there is thus the opportunity —
still there of carefully conserving the forests, so that they may be a continued source —
of revenue, instead of allowing ‘fires and the lumberman’s axe to have unrestricted
sway among them. Between the Rocky Mountains and the boundaries of Ontario it —
it rather a question of how far forests are to be created, as the country is chiefly open —
prairie. In Ontario and Quebec, along the streams which fall into the Georgian Bay, —
and at the sources of the Ottawa, St. Maurice, and other great rivers and their tribu-
taries, there is still a considerable area of white and red pine, but the trees are of di- —
minished size compared with the splendid trunks common on the Ottawa twenty years
ago. The lumbermen are fast approaching the northern limits of the growth of these —
trees. In Ontario the provincial finances are in good condition, and the Government
there can, if it will, readily curtail its revenues from timber and timber limits, in order
to prevent waste of its Crown lands, and to preserve them in condition to yield reve-
nues to the Governmentand profit to the lumbermen who may work them in years in the
future. In the Province of Quebec there is more difficulty in dealing with the ques-
tion, as the Province has a very heavy funded debt, the interest of which, in addition
to ordinary expenditure, has had to be provided for, and as a consequence every pos- —
sible source of revenue has been made available to the utmost. New Brunswick has im
still some forests of pine and spruce, but the area is, compared with the Ontario and —
Quebec forests, relatively small, whilst Nova Scotia has, on the whole, but little tim-
ber of good merchantable size left, and has correspondingly less interest in the question
of forest preservation. The Crown lands are under Dominion control only in Mani- —
toba and the Northwest Territories, and some steps have been taken to preserve what.
timber exists there.

“As is well known the system prevails in Canada of leasing from year to year ieee f
areas of Crown lands under the name of timber berths or timber limits, at an annual
rental per square mile. Though the lease is from year to year, ‘yet by custom it is _ y
understood that as long as the rent is paid the lessee may continue in possession indefi- —
nitely until he has cut off all the timber he desires. Sometimes the holder is merely
a speculator ; at other times he is a lumberman, who is keeping the limits in reserve _
for future working, and thus frequently large unworked areas are tied up from year
to year by parties who have a quasi right to continue this under the original lease.
This makes it difficult to apply new regulations to limits already under lease. Sec-—
tions of country not yet under lease—and considerable new tracts have in Ontario
been rendered accessible by the Canadian Pacific railway—are in a different position,
and governments can readily lay down rules for their future working as timber limits.

Ger many, France, Sw eden, and India have their forests cared for under more or less"
stringent regulations, and even the small Province of Cape Colony, in South Africa,
has its Forestry Department, under government control, and is doing a good work that
should put us to shame. The forests there are being arranged for scientific working,
the fundamental principle being, the conservator says, that the cutting shall not ex-
ceed the growth. Why should we in America, with a splendid heritage in the pine
forests of Maine, Quebec, Ontario, Michigan, and Wisconsin, have been so se te
and reckless, and have shown so little far-sightedness, as to have gone on from year to
year for half a century past allowing this heritage to be diminished gradually in value’
without even an attempt to prevent it? How often are we blind to the future! The
Cape Colony Report for 1884 very well puts it that the policy should be pursued of
setting our faces against forest destruction as firmly as other moral evils are faced.
Further than this, “with us here, each State and each Province has an interest in the —
action which its neighboring State or Province takes or neglects to take on this ques- 4 :
tion. Our great rivers have often their fountain heads, or the fountain heads of their —
tributaries, in one or more States or Provinces, and then course their way to the great, —
lakes, or the sea, through other States or Provinces. Have not those whose lands —
along the route are watered by these rivers, the cities, towns, and villages which are _
scattered along their banks, and the public which makes use of the steamboats and_
other craft which ply upon their surface, an undeniable interest in seeing that these —
waterways are not impaired by the burning or cutting away of the forests at these
fountain heads? It is the province of every State to legislate for itself, or to withhold

slation, but in this case the neighboring States have a clear right to ask that their
terways and water supplies shall not be impaired or cut off by its neglect to provide
oper legislation or proper oversight.

_ The remedial measures which I would suggest with a view to the preservation and
re had our forests are in some respects equally applicabie to the United States and
to Canada.

_ The leases of timber areas I would restrict to definite periods of five or, at most,
seven years, and when the lease expired the particular area covered by it should have
a rest of, say, twenty-five years, to allow of the young trees attaining merchantable
_ value. The effect of this would be to largely check speculation in timber limits and
' would give ample time to Jona-fide lumbermen to get out all large-sized timber. It
_ should be incumbent on each lessee to show his bona fides by erecting a mill within a
_ given time either at or convenient to the limits, unless he has a special permit to work
_ the limits for square timber.

_ This is now done in Manitoba by the Dominion Government. The parceling out of
_ the timber country into definite. limited areas would enable each Government to carry
- out more systematically the plan of alternate leases and rests for the forests.

The production of square timber should be discouraged on account of the great waste
of material in forming the square log and because of the additional food for forest fires
which this waste material creates. :

The cutting on Crown lands of trees under twelve inches at the stump should be pun-
_ishable by a heavy fine, which would be easily collectible at the mills when the drives
_ of logs come down after the spring freshets. This would have the effect of preserving
_ the younger trees until they attained a merchantable size.

_ he starting of forest fires should be made criminal. Nineteen-twentieths of the

_ forest fires are preventable. There is no reason why camp fires should not be put out,

_ and the knowledge that to allow them to spread was punished by imprisonment would

quickly make camp parties careful, more especially if every member of each party

were made responsible.

Not only in the forests which have been cut over by the lumbermen, but wherever
fires have swept through areas of Crown lands not specially suitable or available for
__ settlement, resowing or replanting should take place. Where burned areas are left to

themselves trees of a less desirable kind almost invariably spring up. How to effect

_ this resowing and replanting economically is a question of some importance. It can

__ be done in part by the forest-rangers, hereafter referred to, but I think that, as a con-

dition of every lease of timber limits, it should be made incumbent on the lessee either

to pay a given sum per square mile of territory included in his lease towards the
expenses of the Forestry Department of the Government or that he should actually
plant and care for a young tree for every trunk he fells. This would not be an expen-

_ sive proceeding. It would involve the cultivation of one or, perhaps, two acres as a

forest nursery and the subsequent setting out of the young trees, and to this might be

_ added the duty of collecting and sowing through the forest of seeds of desirable kinds

_ of trees. When it is remembered that each forester in Cape Colony is expected, with-

_ out assistance, to annually raise 40,000 young trees, and that his duties involve the

_ transplanting of these to the burned and other districts within his section, it will be

observed that the task thus proposed to be imposed on the American lumberman is

not formidable.

__ Lastly, each government, in the case of provinces still possessing forest areas of
importance, should organize a Forestry Department in connection with the manage-
ment of its Crown lands. The objects of the Department would be—

First. The general preservation of the forests from fires and from deterioration by
improper working. :

Second. The replanting of the Crown forests where burned or exhausted.

Third. The encouragement of tree-planting by land-owners generally, and the dis-

_ semination of information about trees and tree-culture.

There should be a Superintendent of Woods and Forests, whose duties should be

_ organization, general supervision, and frequent inspection. Under him would be forest

_ rangers or foresters, who would have given districts, in which they would reside, and

- for the oversight of which they would be responsible, their duties being to prevent

encroachment by lumbermen on unleased Crown lands; to see that small trees were

not cut; to investigate the cause of every tire happening within their districts and to

_ punish the guilty parties, for which purpose they should have certain magisterial

powers; to raise in a small plantation young trees for replanting the burned districts,

and to collect and sow the seeds of desirable kinds of trees. Each forester would
bably require the aid of an assistant. The administration of the department need

The timber limits themselves should be restricted in size to about fifty square miles.

5 } * ‘5 ue Ss Ry es ran a : wn
; 7 y a Py 5
38 se

not be expensive, and whilst the expense could be readily met by a small tax
square mile of timber limits under lease, or per thousand feet of lumber sawn, or eu
feet of square timber produced, the saving annually of timber trees from forest fires
alone would pay the cost of the department for many years. .

LUMBERING IN CANADA.
BY J. K. WARD, MONTREAL, CANADA. \ J

Mr. President, Ladies, and Gentlemen: I do not purpose on this occasion to take up
much of your time with preliminary remarks other than to say that the paper I have —
prepared will be better understood by practical lumbermen than by scientists or
amateurs. My aim will be to speak only of what it has been my fortune to learn in
the rough school of experience. A lumberman’s, life is not passed on a bed of roses, —
yet ‘there is a charm about it to those who have the stamina to endure its hardships
and enjoy its excitements that is not easily forgotten by those who have followed —
the log drive from early morn to sundown, never feeling the time long, kedging across _
the lake to the tune of the chanteur or breaking the jam in the roaring cascade, whose —
noise is drowned by the yells and shouts of the crew on seeing the great mass move _
off, each great log, as it were, trying to get ahead of its neighbor until they reach still _
water. What excitement after the risks run and efforts made! Old lumbermen can and
do look back to such scenes with as much pride as those who have faced battle. It _
has been said truly that peace hath its victories as well as war. The lumbermen can
reasonably say so. What other business has so many contingencies connected with -
it, apart from the ordinary mishaps in trade? Sometimes there is too much snow, —
again too little. On other occasions the ice or the floods carry away your booms and
scatter the logs, to be often stolen. Fires also cause much loss to the lumberman, and —
a great deal has yet to be done by legislation and by private effort to prevent the —
waste of such valuable property. .

I have often thought we might have companies who would make a specialty of in-
suring this class of property, making the conditions and restrictions so thorough that _
proprietors would be necessitated to look after all intruders on their lands, whether
hunters or careless settlers. a

The different Provinces of the Dominion make the regulations and conditions on —
which the timber lands can be worked. In Ontario and Quebec vacant territory is
usually sold by auction (in blocks varying in size from one to fifty square miles) at —
prices ranging from two to five hundred dollars per mile. In addition to this the
lessee pays two dollars annual ground-rent per mile, and also a stumpage on alltimber
cut on the territory occupied. Each Province has its tariff of prices. In Ontariored
and white pine are subject to 1} cents per cubic foot—other woods vary in price; pine,
bass-wood and cotton-wood saw-logs, 15 cents per 200 feet, B. M.; walnut, oak, and
maple logs, 25 cents per 200 feet ; hemlock, spruce, and other woods, 10 cents per 200 feet ;
railway timber, knees, &c., 15 per cent. ad valorem. In Quebec, oak and walnut pay
a duty of 4 cents per cubic foot; pine and other square timber, 2 cents; pine saw-logs
average about $1.25 per 1,000 feet, B. M.; spruce and hemlock saw-logs, about 60 cents —
per 1,000 feet; railroad ties, 2 cents each; all other woods, from telegraph poles to —
spruce spars, shingle woods, &c., pay different prices. All land owned by Ontario and-
Quebec is leased for lumbering purposes. Much of it, however, is of such poor quality —
that I doubt if it will be of any value except for producing timber. Lands considered
suitable for settlement are surveyed, and as fast as the lots are taken up by settlersand _
the Government conditions complied with—that is, a house built and ten acres cleared _
on each one hundred acres—the lot is taken out of the license, the Government, how-_
ever, reserving the pine, except what the settler requires for his own use on the land.
New Brunswick contains a large quantity of spruce, tamarac, cedar, hemlock, and hard-—
wood. The pine, for which this Province was once famous, has mostly disappeared.
The timber lands of this Province—about two-fifths of its area—are still vacant, and
the output of lumber and timber of various sorts cannot be less than 300,000,000 feet, —
B. M., perannum. The stumpage on spruce and pine logs is 80 cents per 1,000 feet, —
B. M.; on pine and hardwood timber, 80 cents per ton ; railway ties, 2 cents each—thisis
in addition to the prices paid for the right of cutting that may be realized at auction,
the upset price being $8 per square mile. Nova Scotia contains a good deal of spruce, —
hemlock, and hardwood. Much of the latter is exported. : :

Manitoba and the Northwest are not reputed to contain a great deal of timber,
and what there is is largely spruce and small pine, and not more than is required for

.
;

euse. Canada, west of the Rocky Mountains, contains vast quantities of valuable
ber, the manufacture of which is rapidly increasing to meet the wants of the Pa-
fic coasts and islands, and there is little doubt that when the Canada Pacific railroad
is finished much of this lumber will find its way east into the treeless prairies.
And now as to Canada’s method of lumbering. When circumstances will permit
_ we pile or skid before the snow becomes too deep. When the snow is deep we draw direc
from the stump to the lake or river. Our shanty living Is not, as a general thing, as
delicate as in American shanties, though perhaps as substantial—less apple-sauce,
tarts, and sweets and more pea-soup, pork, and bread and beans, with well-cooked
tea—less milk or sugar. The style of living and buildings differs in various parts of
the country, and until very recently, particularly on the lower St. Lawrence, the fare
of the shanty men was very primitive, the commonest tea being quite a luxury, and
the only variety in the bill of fare was that it consisted in pea-soup, bread, pork and
- beans for dinner; the same, with the addition of tea, for supper, and either, less the
pea-soup, for breakfast. On the St. Maurice, for many years, the living has been good
and substantial, with comfortable shanties provided with stoves, tables, and bunks,
the cooking being usually done in an outside apartment. The shanty man’s condi-
tion, however, is improving with the times. His lot, at best, is a hard one, and I do
not wonder at the Curé, whom I once knew, and who visited the shanties periodically,
when he said that it was penance enough for any poor fellow to be in the woods all
the winter.
Our shanty-men, whether English or French, as a rule, are as good axemen, and,
I believe, are as expert drivers and canoe-men as can be found in any country. The
improvement in driving tools within the last thirty years has been great. Our people are
also well up in dam-building as well as making slides and clearing away and blasting
bowlders to facilitate driving. Our rivers as a general thing, being very precipitous
and rapid, require extensive improvements, especially for the running of square timber.
The quantity of this made at present, I am glad to say, is much less than formerly.
Some years ago there were not less than eighteen million cubic feet made in one year,
while last year there were only five or six million feet, and the past winter not more
than two million feet. There are many reasons for this change. Good pine timber
is more difficult to get, and Southern pine is cheaper and better for some purposes,
while the British consumer is finding out the folly of paying for and freighting slabs,
sawdust, and the poor lumber that is found in the heart of almost every stick of timber.
The result is that the quantity of sawed pine has increased, giving more work to our
mill-men and others, as well as utilizing much valuable timber that would be left in
the forest to rot, or make fuel to burn that still standing. As to the manufacturing
of lumber in the saw-mills, it has been done until very recently in all large concerns
by gate saws, but of late years circulars have come largely into use. The prejudice
against lumber sawed by them was so great that it could not be sold except at a lower
price than that produced by gate saws. This was occasioned by the want of skill on
the part of sawyers, but this has been obviated to a great extent by workmen gaining
- experience in the management of rotary saws, so that some of the best sawed lumber
going to market is made by them. But I believe that, were manufacturers less am-
bitious to see how. much work could be done by a circular rather than to know how
well it could be done, much valuable timber would be saved by working round a log,
placing it properly on the carriage with regard to the cracks to be found in almost
every large pine log and cutting parallel with the outside of a tapering log instead of
- with the centre of it, thereby saving the good lumber found on the outside of most
logs and throwing away, if any, the poorer stuff found in the heart. The result would
be, as every practical lumberman knows, much wider and more valuable lumber, as
well as the conservation of that which cannot be reproduced in ourday. Iam not an
_ alarmist as to our supply of pine timber, but I cannot consider a wanton waste of it
_ other than a sin, when so much good lumber has been and is being thrown away,
much of which could be utilized, giving labor and profit to many. It is a pity that
_ more effort is not made todo so. I would suggest, what I have tried to practice for
many years, that a person building a mill should put into it fifty per cent. more sawing
capacity than some of the fast mills now in use possess.
Sawing, as they do, in twelve hours 40,000 or 50,000 feet with one circular saw, I

_ will not say how well this can be done with one gang of men, but I would venture to
say that it could be done, so as to get a good deal more money out of the same logs,
_ by employing two rotaries, with the necessary trimming machinery, and giving the
_ men sufficient time to set their logs properly on the carriage, turning them round as
often as necessary so as to get all the wide lumber possible. This could be done by
employing, say, one sawyer and three helpers for the additional saw, all the other
pbor being the same in either case, such as jacking and rousting logs, trimming,
tulling, and piling lumber by motive-power, almost the same, but this costs noth-
-

Meee. ‘ie te, a Se ta ak icc ihe bi)

TAs mals iY omes oe

t=
a be

40 J ae ay nee

ing, sawdust supplying the fuel. The interest on extra capital employed wo
small, and the result would be not to exceed ten dollars per day for wages and i
est on cost of extra plant, while there can be no question but that there would be
increased value of from one to two dollars per thousand feet on the output, or fro
forty to eighty dollars per day saved. It does seem as if the lumbermen of the past,
as well as many of the present day, entertained the idea that the supply of pine in
Canada is inexhaustible, and were anxious to get rid of it as quickly as possible. Now,
as a means of making our timber hold out as long as possible, I am decidedly of the
opinion that the United States Government should gratify the lumber manufacturers —
and stick to protection, though a free-trader myself in ull commodities, lumber in-
cluded. é

Now, a few words on the question of the influence of forests on rainfall. In the
absence of satisfactory statistics on this point I think there can be no doubt as to the —
influence of forests in regulating the flow of water and preventing evaporation, thus”
lessening the danger arising from sudden and often destructive floods, the swamps —
and glades serving as reservoirs in bringing about this result. In reference to the —
propagation of timber I am quite satisfied that woods indigenous to our soil and eli-
mate require only space, of which we have plenty, and protection from fire and cattle, —
in order to be reproduced to almost any extent. I have seen lands that have been —
abandoned because they have been exhausted grow in a few years a good crop of —
thrifty timber. Fett t

Mr. Chairman, in conclusion, allow me to say that if I have said anything that will —
provoke discussion and tend to further the object we have in meeting here, or will be —
the means of contributing towards the protection of the material that adds so much to
the beautifying and prosperity of our country, my efforts will not have been in vain. —

é d
ry

LUMBER INTERESTS—THEIR DEPENDENCE ON SYSTEMATIC
FORESTRY.

BY MR. JOHN E. HOBBS, OF NORTH BERWICK, MAINE.
Early Lumbering in Maine and New Hampshire. Tl
On the 18th of July, 1634, the ship Pied Céowe, from London, arrived in the Pisca- —
taqua, having as a part of her cargo two saw-mills, and as passengers a party of car- —
penters to set them up. Both the material and the men were sent by Capt. John —
Mason, one of the earliest promoters of colonization on the New England coast. =
One of these mills was erected at the falls of Newichawannock, at the head of tide- if
water, near the mouth of the river of that name, in South Berwick, Maine. After. ~
discharging her cargo and taking part of her lading on this river, the ship sailed for
Saco, on the 18th of August, where she completed her loading with “ cloave-boards ’”
[clap-boards ] and pipe-staves. This ship, with the barque Warwicke, had made a
voyage to the Piscataqua in 1631, returning, probably, with a similar cargo. — 4
Thus early had the settlers begun to cut and utilize the forests} with which they —
found the land covered. Saw-mills soon began to multiply, and their capacity was —
larged. a
Tn 1650, a mill carrying eighteen saws, moved by one wheel, was erected near the ©
mouth of the Newichawannock, about one mile above the one erected in 1634. We ;
learn that in this later year Richard Leader was granted by a court held at Kittery, |
on the 11th day of March, ‘‘all the right to the privilege or mill-power on the little x
river known as Newichawannock, with the liberty and like property in all timber not —
yet appropriated to any town or person.” It is said that the magnitude of Mr. a
‘Leader’s operations gave the name of “Great Works ”’ to the place, which afterwards . |
became the name of the river. ; 7 “a
In 1654 there was granted to him “all the pine trees up the little river, so far as the —
town bounds went, for the accommodation of his mill.”” “For the privilege of cutting —
all this pine timber he was to pay the town an annual tax or royalty of £15 currency. —
About 1640 Major Richard Waldron, from whom I am proud to claim descent,
built saw-mills at Dover, N. H.; also other mills in 1648, and about this period grants —
were made of timber lands on all the branches of the Piscataqua. Just then there was —
great activity manifested in the development of lumbering as an industry, so much —
so that laws were required for the protection of the forests. To provide against waste, —
in 1656 it was ordered that if any inhabitant should “ fallany pipe-stave or clap-boa d's
timber, and let it lay unused up one month, any other inhabitant might improve —

it as his own property.”’ =i

At a town meeting of the inhabitants of Portsmouth in 1660 ‘‘a penalty of five

illings for every tree was imposed upon any inhabitant for cutting timber or
- other wood from off the common, except for their own building, fencing, or fire-
-wood.”’

_ Stringent regulations, designed to guard against damage to the woods by fire, were
made by several of the New England Colonies previous to 1650. Belknap tells us
‘that as early as 1668 the government of Massachusetts, under which the provinces of
_ Maine and New Hampshire then were, had reserved for the public use all white pine
trees of twenty-four inches in diameter at three feet from the ground. In King Wil-
_liam’s reign a surveyor of the woods was appointed by the crown, and an order was
_ sent to the Earl of Bellomont to cause acts to be passed in his several governments for
_ the preservation of the white pines. In 1708 a law made in New Hampshire pro-
hibited the cutting of such trees as were twenty-four inches in diameter at twelve
- inches from the ground without leave of the surveyor, who was instructed by the
Queen to mark with the broad arrow those which were or might be fit for the use of
the navy, and to keep a register of them. These regulations, however, were easily
evaded by those who knew the woods and were concerned in lumbering, though some-
_ times they were detected and fined.’”’ If the wise laws so early established by the first
_ settlers had been continued and enforced by their successors to the present day there
_ would be no necessity for this organization.

Since those early days the vast forests that then covered and adorned the continent,
and which had often been renewed by the processes of nature, have been largely
_ displaced by the hand of man, and the agency of man in hewing down these forests has
_ so far outstripped their natural reproduction that the present generation is compelled

_to consider the best methods of conserving what now remains.

The interest which this wasteful destruction of the forests has aroused has produced
_ nothing more valuable than Prof. Sargent’s masterly report on the Forest Trees of
_ North America, issued by the Census Office at Washington.
We learn from this report that the pine and spruce standing in the timber regions
of this country in 1880, not including Oregon, Washington Territory, and Alaska,
was estimated at about 300,000,000,000 feet, board measure.

This, if evenly distributed over the country in ratio to the population, would supply
our present consumption of lumber, estimated at about 20,000,000,000 feet per annum,
for fifteen years.

(No estimate is made of the hard-wood lumber or of the second growth of pine and
spruce. )
> But it so happens that more than one-half of our population, or 26,795,626, are
found in the sixteen States north of the Potomac and Ohio and east of the Mississippi

_ rivers. The amount of pine, spruce, and hemlock standing in the timber districts of
_ this region of country in 1880 was estimated at about 111,000,000,000 feet, and we
_ estimate the cut of lumber, including laths and shingles, for 1880 in these districts to
_ have been about 7,434,000,000 feet. The total product in these States was about

_—18,648,000,000 feet.

__. This estimate is obtained by a computation confined to the sixteen States, based upon

Prof. Sargent’s report, which report applies to the entire country.

__ Thus we see that 6,214,000,000 feet of the entire product must have been cut from

. the woodlands contained in the farms of these States. These amount to 47,016,767
_ acres, showing an average product of 131 feet per acre.

This is far above the annual yield per acre of the spruce forests of Maine at the
_ present time. '

An annual cut of about 7,500,000,000 feet in the timber sections of Wisconsin,
© Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and Maine will exhaust the

_ estimated amount standing in these States in less than ten years, allowing nothing for
_ growth. A continued supply of lumber from the woodlands contained in farms to
- the present extent cannot safely be counted upon.

a some of the States these wooded areas are rapidly diminishing, notably so in

A io.

In this State the actual condition of the forests from year to year is better known,
_ perhaps, than in any: of the other States.

. The assessors report annually, since 1873, the number of acres covered with wood,
pend from a comparison of these reports a constant diminution of these forest areas is
shown.

___In 1853 the woodlands covered 55.27 per cent. of the total area of the State. In
1870 they had fallen off to 38.51 per cent., and in 1881 they occupied only 22.53 per
cent. These are awkward facts, which may be true to a somewhat less extent of
many, if not all the other, States we have been considering.

The rapid rate at which the old forests are disappearing and the constantly diminisI h

ing area of woodlands contained in the farms of these States, as shown by these statis-
tics, emphasize the fact that the present annual consumption of wood and lumber is
far greater than the annual increment, and that the time is not far distant when these
sources of supply will be entirely exhausted.
To prevent such a calamity, as far as possible, we should at once set about cultivat-
ing the forests we have, so as to increase to the utinost their productivity, and the
reinvesture of all land now lying waste. AS
According to the census of 1870 12,755,543,000 feet, board measure, with other
lumber products, were produced, valued at $210,159,327. In 1880 the product of
lumber had increased to 18,091,386,000 feet of long lumber, and with other lumber
products was valued at $233,367,729. i
It must be borne in mind, however, that the average premium on gold in 1870 was
25.3 per cent.; consequently the value of the product of 1870 should be reduced 20 per —
cent. in order to make it compare with the value of the product of 1880, and thus ©
diminished it will be $168,127,462, showing an increase in the value for that decade of —
38 per cent., while the increase in population was 30 per cent. for the same time. The —
increase in the quantity of lumber manufactured was more than 41 per cent. in that 7
of long lumber, and 70 per cent. in that of shingles, showing that the price of lumber,
owing to overproduction, had diminished more than the premium on gold. a
The timber lands remaining in the possession of the Government in 1880 amounted 4
to 84,564,207 acres, being a small fraction of what once belonged to the public domain,
and this is rapidly diminishing. Y.
In California the destruction of the timber districts is swift, wasteful, and criminal
on the part of the Government by permission. Occasionally some poor fellow is prose- —
cuted for cutting trees for ‘‘shakes’’ (a rude kind of shingles used in the mountains), —
just to give out the appearance of zeal on the part of the officers charged with the —
duty of enforcing the laws, while the great combinations, constantly tormed for the
purchase of timber lands, continue their fraudulent entries and wrongful purchases of
millions of acres of the best of it, and hold it in large tracts, and cut it up to suit the
demands of the lumber trade. é
Large tracts in Washington Territory, Oregon, and California have been thus
entered under the various acts of Congress the present year, and this is all now in the ©
hands of a few holders and mill-owners through secret contracts. Then, the sheep and
cattle men set the forests on fire about the first of September every year to make larger —
the area of grazing in the forests for the following years, and leave the valuable forests —
of sugar pine covering the mountain slopes to inevitable destruction. : san
The law in reference to small holdings of timber is violated by most mill men.
Their methods is to get their employees, or any one else who is willing, to enter what —
one individual only can enter, and then they purchase of that individual. a=
We find it stated from official sources that the total net revenue to the Government
for the many millions of dollars’ worth of lumber stolen from the public domain, and
for which damages were sought to be recovered, amounted, from the beginning of
records down to January, 1877, to but $154,373.74. a
In strong contrast with the destructive and wicked policy prevailing in California
is that of the present systematic working of the extensive timber lands of Northern —
Maine, which, as a recent writer says, * ‘‘still cover an extent seven times that of the
famous Black Forest of Germany at its largest expansion in modern times. The States —
of Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Delaware could be lost together in our northern —
forests and still have about each a margin of wilderness sufficiently wide to make its
exploration without a compass a work of desperate adventure.’’ oy
The reckless and wasteful methods of cutting the timber which once prevailed in —
these forests have given place to a more sensible and conservative management, which
insures the continuity of the present lumber supply, with a possible large increase.
Maine, whose escutcheon bears the image of the tree which has been the theme of —
the poet and the admiration of lovers of the beautiful, has also upon that eseutcheon —
the word Dirigo. May we not hope that she will in this matter of systematic forestry —
point the way. a
It is proper to state that the hopeful increase will be to a greater or less extent the
result of the construction of railroads opening up timber lands in the past inaccessible ~
for lumber operations. a x
The last commission for the valuation of the lands of the State increased the valu-—
ation of wild lands nearly $11,000,000, and the construction of the Megantie and —
International railroad through 130 miles of unbroken forest will add immensely to
the value of those lands. Re:

‘

* Prof. Walter Wells.—* Water Power of Maine,” Second Report, p. 24.

See er ee eee Sa ee ee or

system of cutting only the large trees and leaving the small ones to grow, allows
yruce forests to be profitably worked at stated periods, varying from ten to twenty
, and producing an amount equal to 100 feet per acre per annum. The land
ers, generally, are not the ‘‘operators’’ in cutting and hauling the timber, but
mit ’’ the right to cut at so much per 1,000 feet, retaining a lien upon the lumber
the price of stumpage. The licensee often assigns his ‘‘permit’’ to the merchant
ishing goods or supplies, as security, and generally sells his logs to manufacturers
who own or lease the mills.
_ The ‘‘permits”’ to cut are restricted to some well-defined portion of the township,
and the balance is undisturbed. The supervision of the lands is generally accomplished
‘through the agency of the scaler, in winter months, while the cutting is going on;
‘but large land owners keep surveyors employed at other times exploring and looking
after trespassers.
Maine has stringent laws against fires, but private interest has generally proved a
_ better preventive than litigation or severe penalties.
___ Along the rivers in Northern and Eastern Maine, which are the route of the logs to
the mills, one can see signs posted warning persons to extinguish their fires. Hunters,
fishing parties, and tourists, who were formerly careless, have learned better in late
years.
_ Forest fires, which formerly caused serious damage every year, are now much less
frequent in Maine and are the result of carelessness on the part of those who set them.
Tornadoes, which blow down trees, generally have been followed by fires in this
State after the lapse of one or two years; and fires are sometimes caused by sparks
from locomotives along the line of railroads in dry seasons, and they would be more
_ frequent were it not for the naturally damp nature of the soil. Spark arresters have
largely diminished this risk, however.

The best judges estimate that less than one-third of the wild lands of Maine has
been cleared of original forest growth. That the reproductive power of our Maine
_ forests is outstripping the axe-man at the present time there can be no doubt.

_ These forests were first worked for the pine timber, which is now nearly exhausted,
_ large bodies of it remaining only in localities at present inaccessible. The townships

_ in which this pine grew, for a number of years after the pine had been cut away were
left unmolested. The pine in these townships was very generally followed by spruce

?‘
.

and hard woods. These forests are now worked for the spruce and are yielding larger
fortunes to their owners than were made from the pine.

_ The history of one township will illustrate the renascent power of these timber
lands.

About sixty years ago, or about 1825, township No. 7, R. 5, Aroostook county,
was sold for the pine to Gen. Hastings by Massachusetts for $7.50 per acre.

_ This land reverted to the State after the pine was removed and was sold about twenty
years later for 25 cents peracre. It is now worth $2 an acre and has upon it 70,000,000
eet (board measure) of spruce. Cutting of an average of 100 feet per acre per annum
s regurlarly carried on there.

As the cost of transportation to market enters largely into the question of profit, the
mstruction of railroads in Northern Maine will add immensely to the value of her
orests and make hard woods yield greater fortunes for their owners than either pine
or spruce have done.

Systematic forestry involves a knowledge of the best systems of preserving the great
natural timber areas of the land, together with an acquaintance with the conditions
best adapted to the cultivation of forest trees.

Let us now turn our attention to the latter branch of our subject.

__ We have already stated that the present average product per acre from the wood-
_ lands contained in farms in the States lying north of the Ohio and east of the Missis-
sippi rivers is 131 feet per acre.

_ This product can be increased from two to four fold by systematic cultivation.

In the State forests of Europe it is found that an acre of pine will produce on an

average thirty thousand feet, board measure, in a century, which is equal to 300 feet
_ per acre per annum.
___ Authorities can be multiplied to prove that 50,000 feet of white pine can be grown
on one acre in from seventy-five to one hundred years here in New England by having
the ground well stocked with trees in the start and by judicious thinning afterwards
‘The thinnings will pay a profit after-the trees are twenty-five years old.

Natural Succession.

‘The principle of the rotation of crops, and this is found to produce the best results
in agriculture, is believed by many to apply equally well to forestry, and so it is

Va ee wee Ls Se ee oe Oe See - hy —
‘ “7 oo Se : j

thought that the alternation of the different species of trees is a law of nat
that this is her method of renovating a forest. oa
It is well known by European foresters, however, that some species of trees have
been propagated on the same land for centuries, and that the production increases with
each succeeding crop. ie
That land is made richer by the growth of forest trees upon it is a fact well known
everywhere, and every one knows that it is made poorer by the growth of field ero D3.
These live largely upon the mineral products of the soil, while forest trees tax the
ground to the minimum. ‘
The inorganic elements of the soil vary considerably in the quantities and qualities
that enter into the composition of the different plants we cultivate, while these ele-—
ments differ but little in the different species of trees. The alternation of species in~
tree growth, therefore, which is often observed, must be assigned to some other cause —
than exhaustion of the soil, for like begets like in the forest as everywhere else in
nature, and such changes will be found, upon examination, generally to be due to
causes external to the forests themselves. =
The spontaneous renewal of a patch of forest that has been cut clean should not be
expected, unless the ground has been seeded by the trees before their removal, or
unless the seeds for a new growth can be readily supplied from an external source.
There are many isolated patches of forest, scattered over the farms of the Northern —
States and Canada, enclosed with pasture land, which are sometimes composed en- —
tirely of white pine trees, but more frequently they are a mixture of white pines and
deciduous trees.

Such forests are often cut clean when they have come to maturity or before that
time, and it frequently happens that only a sparse growth, if any, succeeds. i
Occasionally, however, a dense growth of white pine immediately follows the forest
removed, be it all or partly of white pine. : ee
And this will always be so when the forest is cut in the winter following an abun-
dant seeding of the white pines, and for this reason: Most of the deciduous trees seed —
annually—the soft maples and elms in May and June—and these vegetate in the
season of their growth, if at all, and the seedlings of all, with few exceptions, 2 e
browsed by animals as soon as they spring up. . P:

On the other hand, the white pines, which seed less frequently, mature their seeds
in the autumn, and these will germinate in the spring, following the clearing of the —
forests, if the conditions be favorable thereto. But if such forests as above described
are cut in a non-seeding year of the pines the natural reseeding of the land is pre-
cluded, or at least doubtful, and its seeding must come from an external source, and
the character of the succeeding growth, if any, will be governed thereby. Hence the
importance of the common practice in Europe of clearing narrow strips th ha
forest, the reseeding of the land being expected from the strips left standing on either
side. In order to adapt this plan to the small woodlands found upon our farms it
would be advisable to commence the clearing on the leeward side of a pine growth,
leaving a strip standing on the windward side until the land cleared has been seeded
from it, when that can be removed, excepting the fringe or outside trees, which should
_ be left to complete the seeding of the last clearing. :

Every one must have noticed how much more thickly the young pines come up on —
the leeward side of a pine growth or of a large pine tree standing alone than on other —
sides. 7

The westerly winds seem to do the most of the seed sowing for these trees. :

By this plan an uniform growth, without vacancies, is quickly secured, which only
occurs, as before stated, when the forest is cut in the winter following the seeding of —
the white pines in the autumn.

In forests that are composed of contiguous patches of white-pine trees and of decid-
uous and other trees, which completely shade the ground and from which live stock is
excluded, the seedlings of the deciduous trees and those of the fir, spruce, and hem-—
lock may be found growing in the shade of all the trees in the forest; but the seed-
ling pines will be found growing only in the shade of the deciduous, and never in -
the shade of the parent trees, so long as the roof of the patch of pine forest remains”
unbroken. , yy

Now, if such a forest be removed in a non-seeding year of the pines, the succeeding
growth would be largely composed, if not wholly, of the other kinds of trees.

From these facts we infer that the alternation of white-pine forests and forests of
deciduous trees, which is so often observed, is dependent upon the frequency of the
seeding of the different kinds, the shade they require or can exist under in early life,
together with the agency of man in cutting them, of animals in browsing them, and
of fire in destroying both seedlings and seeds, rather than upon the exhaustion of any
elements in the soil such as is produced by field crops. ;

.
c

“a

om the fact that, although seedlings may spring up in the shade of their parent
while the roof of the forest remains unbroken they will soon die, the working of a
white-pine forest requires different management from that of a spruce forest. The
spruce, while young, grows best in the shade.

Total clearance of a pine forest when the trees have come to maturity is better than
‘partial, which leaves the tall and slender trees to be easily overturned by the wind.
ca That white-pine forests do succeed each other without any diminution in the vigor
_of their growth is evidenced in my own town, some sections of which have been noted
for the production of this noble tree ever since the first settlement of the country.
The most valuable lot of white-pine timber cut within my remembrance was upon
_ the homestead farm and the birthplace of the late Governor Goodwin, of New Hamp-
‘shire. There yet remain on this land stumps of white-pine trees, which stumps were
- old one hundred years ago.

_ There is good reason for believing that some of them are the stumps of the pine
_ trees reserved for masts for the navy, and marked with the broad arrow in Queen
_ Anne’s reign. To-day the entire tract where these growths stood is thickly covered
_ with young pines that have sprung up since the removal of the last growth, there
_ having been an abundant crop of cones on the trees in the autumn of 1879, the trees
having been cut the following winter.

Failure of Succession.

Having spoken of the natural succession of forests I will next allude to the failure
of succession. Large tracts of land can be found scattered throughout the Northern
_ States of this country, given over to mosses and bushes. Not infrequently these patches
_ of waste land are in the neighborhood of extensive growths of pine, hemlock, spruce,
and the maples and other hard wood trees ; but in spite of this propinquity these tracts
_ of worthless vegetation will continue to be waste unless they are planted. In many
eases the moss is so dense that there is hardly a cranny in which the seed of trees could
find alodgment. The difficulty does not lie in the soil, which is entirely adapted to
_ the growth of pines; for it will be found wherever a tree has succeeded in getting a
_ foothold that it grows as rapidly as the trees of the same kind grow in the surround-
ing forest.

Waste Lands Profitable for Lumber.

A), There are few soils so unsuited to vegetation or the raising of crops that they cannot
be devoted with profit to the cultivation of forest trees. There are large tracts of land
_ in the forest regions of this country, or where forests, within the memory of man, have
been abundant, which are now lying entirely waste.
No farmer would be wise in selecting his arable land for the plantation of a forest;
for the investment would be an injudicious one and would be attended with loss. But
it is these waste places which can be utilized so as, we believe, to prove a sound in-
vestment. All of these facts are of the first importance in dealing with the systematic
cultivation of forests and deserve our thorough consideration as fundamental elements
_ in that business.

Increase of White Pines.

__ The White or Weymouth pine (Pinus Strobus) stands at the head of the list of all
__ the timber trees of the Northern States and Canada. It is adapted to a greater variety
_ of soils than any other tree, and it succeeds well on dry, sandy soils where no other
_ than the pines will ever make valuable timber. Such land should always be devoted
_ to the growth of pine forests. There are large tracts of such land in New England,
a now producing nothing of value, that would yield a good income ta their owners if
__ planted with this tree. We can take a hint from nature as to the best conditions for
____ the germinating of the seeds of the white pine on moss-covered land or run-out pasture
___and field lands that we wish to afforest. None of us can have failed to notice, when
riding along a highway through a pine forest, how much more thickly the seeds spring
up on the broken edge of the roadside ditch than anywhere else. From this fact we
_ may learn that the scratching of the ground with a harrow before or after the sowing
__ of the seed would furnish the proper conditions for their germination and growth.

___ The seeds, as is well known, require two years for their maturity, and are ripe in
_ September and October. The cones should be gathered as soon as they are ripe and
_ before the scales have opened. This may be easily done by felling the trees then whicn
_ are intended for cutting the following winter. In regard to the time for sowing the
_ seed we think it is best always to follow nature in that respect.

_ The reader will do well to refer to the experience of Mr. Joseph Story Fay, of
Wood’s Holl, Mass., well known for his successful’ labors in tree planting on Cape

46 oa

Cod, which he will find in the first U.S. Forestry Report, 1877, in the Forestry Report
by Hon. R. W. Phipps, Forest Conservator of Ontario, 1884, and in several of the
Reports of the Massachusetts Board of Agriculture. “=
Time forbids my undertaking to describe the different modes of planting and sowing
the seeds of other forest trees in drills or in hills, where drills are precludéd by the
nature of the ground, or of the different modes of transplanting seedlings from the
forest and nursery—all of which may be found fully treated in works on forestry and
in the reports of the Commissioners of Forestry of the States that have such officers. —
Among them we would cite the Report of the Forestry Commission of New Hampshire —
for 1885, und the Forestry Report by Hon. R. W. Phipps, Forest Conservator of ©
Ontario, 1884, and in the admirable Reports upon Forestry by Prof. N. H. Egleston —
and by the late Dr. Franklin B. Hough, prepared under the direction of the Commis-_
sioner of Agriculture at Washington. Al! of these methods, described by these authori- —
ties, have been attended with success when properly conducted and are more or less
adapted to the different sections of the country.

Thin the Forest.

We now come to the consideration of the most important thing connected with —
forestal operations—that of thinning the trees, so as to have the requisite amount of —
light and shade—in order that they may make the most rapid growth consistent with —
their design for timber. This work has heretofore been sadly neglected by most owners —
of forest land. Nature has been left to do it in her own way, which is a very slow and
unsatisfactory process. The work of thinning should be begun whenever there is too —
dense a collection of trees on the land. The sooner this is done the better for the trees.
Until three or four years old the surplus trees can be pulled up as easily as weeds. —
Those which remain should have room to develop lateral branches and to assume a —
conical shape. When three feet high, they should be three to four feet apart. From
beginning to end, or to the maturity of the crop, the thinning should be limited to the —
removal of those trees that have been outgrown by their more successful neighbors
and to such as give no promise of making valuable timber—the most vigorous trees”
always being left to occupy the ground. The due proportion should constantly be
preserved between the numerical strength of the trees and the protection to be derived —
from their mutual shading. Hon. John D. Lyman, of Exeter, N. H., who has given
much attention to the subject of thinning, says that when thirty-five feet high at least —
one-third of the stem should be covered with living branches and should never have ~
less than that in order to make rapid growth. :-

Modes of Encouraging Forestry.

The discussion of our subject cannot be complete without a consideration of methods
by which the destruction of our forests can be modified and of the means which can —
be adopted to induce men to cultivate forest trees. We know that in the matter of
economy nothing can be expected of the individual farmer; and that to engage in
forestry as an enterprise, an inducement must be held out to him which shall make
him prefer forest culture. A way to accomplish this is by State legislation—one _
method of which may be the exempting from taxation, or from the full rate thereof, —
of land which the farmer shall devote to the growth of forests.

Several of the States, those of Nebraska, Kansas, and Iowa, at one time offered con- —
siderable premiums for planting trees upon prairie land, but after a while they —
abandoned this policy. Nebraska, however, has returned to a system of encourage- —
ment, but in somewhat different form, giving a moderate premium for a limited time, —
and exempting from taxation the increase in value of the land derived from cultivating —

trees thereon. ‘

The American Association for the Advancement of Science, in their memorial to
he Governors of the States, adopted at their meeting held in Boston in August, 1880, —
proposed ‘‘a law that shall exempt from taxation the increased value of land from the —
planting of trees where none were growing, for such period as may appear proper, or —
until some profit may be realized from the plantation.”’ ‘

Maine, the pioneer, and until a comparatively recent period the leader, among the
States in the lumber business, having forty-one per cent. of her farms covered with —
forests, early saw the necessity of inaugurating a State policy for encouraging the —
preservation and production of forest trees. Her Board of Agriculture in January, —
1869, appointed a committee, consisting of Mr. Calvin Chamberlain and Stephen L.
Goodale, Secretary of the Board, to present to the Legislature such suggestions as they _
might deem important to that end and to call the attention of Congress to the same
subject. The memorial, drawn up by Mr. Chamberlain, is well worthy of perusal, but |

length prevents our insertion of it here. This action of the State Board of Agri-
ture was followed, three years after, by the passage of a law. This law provided
‘exemption from taxation for twenty years of land which should be planted or set
art for the growth and production of forest trees, and from which the primitive
forest had been removed. Since the passage of this act the constitution of the State
has been amended, and under that amendment it is a question for lawyers to what
extent, if at all, this act is now operative.
_ We believe that without legislation, either in the form of premium or in the form
_ of exemption from taxation, partial or total, tree culture is a profitable industry. It
is the opinion of the Chief of the Division of Forestry, as expressed in his report sub-
mitted to Congress in 1882 “ That, with due forethought and intelligent care, there is
‘no cultivation that better repays the attention bestowed upon it than that of forest
_ trees.’? To the extensive evidence tending to show the profitableness of forestry I
_ will add the facts known to me concerning a piece of land in my own town. The land
is that of Mr. James Junkins, who sold in 1881 the pine timber standing on about six
acres in one body, amounting to 300,000 feet, which netted him $3,300, or about $550
_ per acre on the stump. This tract originally contained about nine acres.

The Boston and Maine railroad was built through it in 1873, and this cut off a por-
tion of the lot. Mr. Junkins’ father settled upon the farm, of which this tract was a
part; about 1809. At that time this was the only patch of woodland on the farm, and
some of the trees were large enough to split for fence poles. During the intervening
period, and for about twenty-five years, ending about 1860, a large part of the fire-
wood consumed and all the lumber used in repairing the fences and buildings on a
_ well-managed one-hundred-acre farm were furnished from the thinnings of this lot.

_ About thirty years ago, $200 worth of timber was sold from the thinnings at one time,
and there have been sales at other times. This lot had been systematically thinned
and trimmed for the seventy-two years, care having been taken to break off the dead
limbs, and a long pole was used upon the lot, with a hook on the end, for the
purpose. These trees had increased in diameter slowly the last twenty years. Some
had made only two inches in seventeen years, or one inch in thickness all around the
_ tree. They were twelve to thirty inches or more in diameter at the stump. As to the
height of the trees, Mr. Junkins mentions one that he cut for shingles some years ago
which was eighteen inches through on the stump and 115 feet long.

Mr. Junkins is of the opinion that 5,000 feet per annum had been cut from the lot
for about thirty-five years previous to its final clearing. The data here given show,
we think, that this lot must have paid a large interest on twenty dollars an acre, in the
wood and lumber used on the farm. I will mention here, in passing, that while the
year 1879, as above shown, was a seeding year of the white pine, the year 1881, when
_ this lot was cut over, was a non-seeding year in that region, and that the young trees

_ that have sprung up since on this land are few and far between.

If anybody be distrustful of the profitableness of thinning a forest as an enterprise
devoted to the end of obtaining a lumber supply, let him consider the same measures
from another point of view. Let his attention be directed to the cutting, using, and
_ selling of the less valuable trees in his woodland, leaving the more valuable to grow
into timber. If he will judiciously select his trees for wood, he will succeed in thin-
ning his trees, whatever his purpose may be in doing so; and should he be unable to
_ realize from his wood more than enough to pay for the labor involved, he will all the
while, and without any cost to him, be improving his property, as a timber lot, ina
_ high ratio.

As the great importance of forest culture is becoming constantly more fully realized,
we heartily sympathize with all movements which tend to encourage it. But we be-
_ lieve that if the farmers should feel the force of the reasons which have led the Fores-
_ try Department to recommend so strongly the cultivation of trees, there would be less
necessity for its stimulation by legislative aid. That the State should do all that is
_ reasonably in its power to encourage forestry, is evidenced by the great importance

attached to the subject throughout the Continent of Europe, every government of

which has established a system of forest management; and in forests owned by gen-
_ eral and local governments, and by institutions, a provision has been made to some
_ extent for a perpetual supply, to the full limit of their capacity for timber growth.
_ __ In dealing with the subject of Systematic Forestry in its bearing on the ‘ Lumber
_ Interests,’ the enormous waste suffered from great fires deserves mention. One vital
- step in the prevention of this pest is the cultivation of an enlarged sentiment in re-
_ spect to the worth of our forests. Many a one who would hesitate to trample down
growing grain or tall grass, will wantonly expose to fire unbounded tracts of valuable
odland. It is hoped that our efforts in increasing the growing interest in the sub-
of forestry, will have a tendency to create a more tender care than has hitherto
en felt for our woods. But if we cannot prevent the setting of forest fires, we may

be able to recommend methods by which their destructiveness will be diminished, and
the loss to the individual owner rendered less severe. Thus an encouragement to the
planting and fostering of our forests will arise. :

In the first place, in planting tracts which shall constitute, either alone or in con-—
nection with other forests, alarge area of woodland, we would recommend that roads —
be laid around and through the growth, and that at the early stages of planting the
plow should be used around the plantation ; and it has been recommended to double —
this furrow, burning over the intervening space when there is no wind. And the time —
suggested is a few days after the first heavy frost of autumn. These measures, we are
aware, are not practicable in the great lumber regions of the country; but we regard —
them as expedient upon farms and large plantations. We think that such measures —
are advisable, likewise, along the lines of railways.

In some of the States there has been legislation exposing to liability for damages
any railroad company whose engines shall set fire to woodlands. In some of these
legislations this liability has been limited to the case in which proper preventions had
not been taken in respect to the smoke-stacks of the engines and the like. * We think
that legislation tending to a higher degree of care on the part of railroad companies
whose roads lie through farms with tree growth upon them, or through lumber regions,
is of great importance to the lumber business of this country, not only in diminishing
the destruction of timber, but in lessening a cause of discouragement to systematic
forestry. :

Another means of encouraging men to cultivate trees is that of forest-fire insurance. —
The business of insurance has proved an indispensable element in the civilization of
mankind ; without it commerce upon the seas upon a large scale would have been im-
possible. The perils to be incurred would have deterred the individual owner from
the enterprise but for the protection afforded him by insurance.

But the same system has become almost universal in respect to risks upon land, and,
of late years, has been extended on an enormous scale to lives and to accidents. We
confidently anticipate that as the business of forestry shall become more attended to a
great impetus will be given it by forest-fire insurance. The enlarged interest which —
the important subject of forest cultivation has awakened in our country within very
recent years points unmistakably to the gravity of the subject which I have been —
discussing. )

The framers of our Federal Constitution appreciated the necessity of conferring the
power to regulate commerce upon the National Legislature, and could the great public
importance of the preservation and cultivation of our forests have been appreciated —
by the fathers as clearly as they saw the necessity that intercourse between the States
should be controlled by the central power, they would probably have recognized this —
necessity in the Constitution. But the matter has been left to be dealt with by the —
States individually, and it is hoped that the defect in the law will be supplied by a
wide-spread and intelligent public sentiment. :

ARBOR DAY OR TREE-PLANTING CELEBRATION.
BY JOHN B. PEASLEE, CINCINNATI. oe

“Arbor day,” for the planting of trees for economic purposes, originated in Nebraska —
about twelve years ago, but the celebration of ‘Arbor Day’? by planting memorial —
trees with literary and other exercises originated in Cincinnati,* at the organization
of the American Forestry Congress, in 1882, at which time the Cincinnati publie
schools had the honor of introducing tree-planting celebrations into the public schools —
of our country; and it is a source of congratulation that our example has been ex- —
tensively followed by the public schools of the United States and the Dominion of —
Canada. Through the efforts of State school superintendents Butcher, of West Vir- —
ginia, and his successor, Prof. Morgan; Holcombe, of Indiana; Apgar, of New Jer-
sey; Higbee, of Pennsylvania, and the school inspector of the Dominion of Canada,
“Arbor Days” are designated, and the great school systems of these States and of the —

* On the first Ohio “ Arbor Day,” April 27th, 1882, a great tree-planting celebration took plac@in —
Eden Park. The exercises consisted of a procession, of singing, of instrumental music, and of
recitations, and speeches on trees and forestry, ete. On that day the following groves were planted |
and dedicated: “President’s Grove,” “ Citizens’ Memorial Grove,” ‘ Battle Grove,” “ Pioneers’ —
Grove,” and “Authors’ Grove.” The former by citizens of Cincinnati and members of the Congress,
the latter by the public schools. : se

“These were the first memorial groves ever planted in America—the first poll planting trees
in honor and in memory of authors, statesmen, soldiers, pioneers, and other distinguished citi-
zens,”’—Higley. 4

ok Blebtats the ae after the ‘‘ Cincinnati plan,’”’ as Dr. B. G. Northrop calls
Two years ago the Governor of Nebraska, the State in which ‘Arbor Day”
se in his proclamation, naming the day and offering the State reward to the
n who would plant the greatest number of trees, called upon the schools ‘ to
memorial trees after the plan of some of the Eastern States ’’—i. e., the ‘‘ Cin-
nati plan;’’ and last year Kansas followed. The schools in many places outside
the States named above have adopted this beautiful custom of planting memorial
es, attended by appropriate literary exercises.
In these celebrations not only teachers and pupils take part but also thousands of
other citizens. In this way myriads of trees are planted and dedicated to authors,
ao soldiers, pioneers, and other distinguished citizens; but above all, through
_ these celebrations, not only the children but the public at large are being educated to
Dic durceinte the great importance to the climate, soil productions, and to the health and
beauty of the country, of the planting of trees, and the cultivation and conservation
; eee forests.
Except in a few of the Western States that are almost destitute of natural forests,
where the planting of groves and forests is a necessity on economic grounds, very
little attention will be paid to ‘Arbor Days,’’ however eloquently their objects are set
- forth i in the proclamations of governors and in the circulars and addresses of forestry
é associations, unless the celebration feature is adopted, and this will most easily be
_ done by having the public schools take hold of it. How important, therefore, that
“Arbor Day ”’ ‘celebrations be kept up, year after year, by the public schools of the
- country.
As an aid to such celebrations, and for further information on the subject, I may be
_ permitted to refer to a pamphlet prepared by me, with a preface by President Higley,
entitled “‘ Trees and tree planting, with exercises for the celebration of ‘Arbor Day.’

e pamphlet contains, besides the exercises for celebration, many important facts re-
lating tu forestry, such as the influence of forests upon the water supply and floods,
the mechanism of a tree, proportionate area of woodland, famous trees, constitution
- of village improvement societies, &c. The pamphlet is now published by the National
Bureau of Education at Washington, and may be had without cost by applying to
we Commissioner of Education. Its distribution was the means of inducing the
Grand Army Post of New York to plant memorial trees last spring in honor of their
dead companions.

ARBOR DAY.
3 a BY J. STERLING MORTON, LINCOLN, NEBRASKA.

~ No invention to speed steamships across the Atlantic has originated among the
j Ss of inland States, and no machinery for felling forests, extracting their stumps
_ from the earth, and manufacturing lumber, has been created by the native dwellers
upon tlie treeless plains of the West. The stimuli which have ‘impelled, the human
ind to inventive and useful thought have always heen’ the physical environments of

_ Hence, forestry—tree planting, esthetic and economic—has received its greatest im-
-petus from the prairies of the Northwest. Treelessness caused us all to think of trees
_just as poverty makes one woyk for wealth, or as sickness impels a desire and effort for
A health. The undulating and majestic meadows which reached from the west bank of
; issouri river to the foot-hills of the Rocky Mountains, when Kansas and Ne-
ka were first opened to settlement, in 1854, contained in all their millions upon
ions of acres not a single forest. "Phe soil, good and fat in food for all plant life,
onded to the labor of the home-building pioneers with abundant and generous
“4 But the shade and beauty of trees was everywhere absent, and so—just as the

coming winter tells the provident man to lay in fiel—our conditions impelled us to
_ plant trees, stimulated us to evolve laws encouraging forestry and conserving timber
lands, and, finally, to originate and establish Arbor Day, to make it an anniversary
for setting out orchards and forests, and to consecrate it by statutory enactment a legal
holiday, and award premiums to those who best celebrated it by putting out the most
trees in its observance. It has worked well in Nebraska, and we have growing in
at State to-day more than 700,000 acres of trees which have been planted by human

ds.
But, while we have local laws to protect forests and conserve timber lands, the
ational laws stimulate destruction of forests and protect the denuders of timber lands
a prohibitive minimum duty of two dollars a thousand feet upon all foreign forest

products. What single act of legislation can do so much immediate and ‘effective
service in behalf of forests in the United States as the absolute repeal of the high
duties upon imported lumber of every variety? And why should Congress delay such
legislation a single day? Protective duties for the lumber lords of Michigan and
Wisconsin are destructive drains upon all the forests of the timbered States and upon
all the pockets of the prairie States. What can a forestry congress do to preserve for-
ests more effectually than to demand of the United States Congress the immediate
and complete annihilation of those high and exorbitant duties upon foreign lumber —
which now stimulate forest destruction in every portion of the United States? 4
Observe the inconsistency of our national legislation upon this vital question. By
the present tariff we pay a bounty for the cutting down and manufacturing into lum-—
ber of almost every variety of tree. And by the timber-culture act we pay bounties —
in millions of acres of the public domain every year for the sham planting of counter-
feit forests—forests which no more resemble in value, in beauty, and in sanitary influ- —
ences the primeval pines and‘oaks which we tariff to their destruction than a five-cent
nickel resembles a twenty-dollar gold piece. And if such repealing legislation be not —
enacted—if the present duties on lumber be continued—how long will it be before the
treelessness of the whole country shall so environ all the people that every American
shall be stimulated by surrounding conditions, by those climatic changes, those con-—
stantly recurring swelling floods of the great rivers—such as Cincinnati has so recently —
experienced in the Ohio—by long-continued droughts and by cyclones careening over
the shorn earth, each year with more and more frequency and more and more de-
structive foree—how long, I say, before every citizen shall curse the giant system of —
legalized spoliation which the existing tariff has vitalized and energized against the —
woodlands of this fair and fertile country? While we on the prairies make miniature —
forests, you in the older States, by your daily consumption of forest products, make —
mighty and magnificent wastes and sustain tariff taxes in Congressional enactments —
which render impossible any amelioration by the importation of foreign lumber, and —
hasten inevitably and resistlessly the calamitous end of woodlands.
The inter-dependence of animal and vegetable life is undeviating and perpetual.
We declare the animal kingdom superior to the vegetable, and proclaim man emperor —
of both. But time at last tells the real truth in that terse language whose yocabulary —
is made up in seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years, decades, centuries,
and eons. It is the constant and tireless vocation of all animal kind, from the lowest
organism up to man, to tear down and destroy the forms of vegetation. The animal ~
subsists and grows, during all its career, upon the destruction, consumption, and as-
similation of some variety of vegetable life. The physical individualism of every
man, woman, and child around us—in this world—was, not long since, animate in —
rowing fields of grain, in gardens of succulent and nutritious root, and in orchards
of brilliant and delicious fruit. Every muscle, fiber, and tissue in these hands, in
your hands, was once animate in plant form and growth. So dependent is man upon |
plants, foliage, and fruit that the intermission of a single summer, the skipping ofa 4
single year of plant life, would turn from life into death every animal organism on
the globe.
Each particle of vegetable growth is a part of the wonderful dynamic in the deft |
and occult chemistry of nature—a portion of the constantly absorbing, assimilating, —
transmuting, and transforming process, which molds into form, beauty, and utility
the crude plant food of the earth, and colors and embellishes it with the prismatic —
glories of the sunlight. The vernal verdure of the opening buds, the luxuriant lim-
ning with crimson and scarlet of the flowers of May and June, the yellow gold of
the harvest-fields in July, and the blazing colors of orchard fruits and gorgeous au- —
tumnal forests in October are only so much of rehabilitated animal life baptized and —
glorified by the light of the sun. a
Plants, leaves, flowers, trees, catch and invisibly imprison in the cells of their growth —
light itself, and hold it captive for centuries. There is no light which did not origi-
nate in the sun. From the blaze of the taper to the flame of the furnace there ema-_
nates not a single ray which was not born in the solar system. The oil in the lamp
gives up, after uncounted generations, the light which some sort of plant, some time —
in the misty past, during its period of animate growth, took captive by absorption
from the sun. The roaring fires of red and glowing coals which warm us in the winte “iy
are merely the emancipators of sunbeams incarcerated ages upon ages ago, when those
coals were parts of vast submarine meadows, or of gigantic primeval forests. And-
before they were either parts of sea-weed fields or of waving trees they were each and
all portions of some kind of animal existence. * os

Had there been no decay and death ordained for man, no life could have been de-
creed for flowers and foliage, forests and orchards. Man and the beasts of the field
destroy the forms of plant life, and seem, for the time, victors over the vegetal e@

;

|
.

dom. But the years and the centuries flow on, like a great and resistless river,
eping into earthly sepulture all flesh and blood, generation after generation.” Then
grass and the flowers send their tentacles, and the trees their rootlets, like detec-
es, with the keen and unerring instinct of nature’s recouping laws, down into our
graves to repossess and reuse every jot and tittle of each organism, in rebuilding
the kingdom whence it was ravaged. And giant trees stretching their limbs towards
the clouds, their leaves shimmering in the sunlight, whispering and murmuring in
the breeze, lure back, even from the atmosphere, the unseen and impalpable fluids
which have exhaled from the dead and dying races of all animal forms, and again
and again embody them in flowers, forests, and fruits. Ages come and go over this
_ globe, as shadows and sorrows come and go over each individual life. The animal
_ kingdom of this age was the vegetable kingdom of some age which has been. The
_ physical men—all the animals—of to-day will be the plants, flowers, fruits, and forests

_ in some age yet to come. These metamorphoses will succeed each other, with inex-

orable precision, as long as the sun shines and death remains, as now, the logical re-
sult of life. The cycles of transmutation from vegetable to animal life, and from
_ animal back again to vegetable, will roll on forever with the seasons and the sun, in-
_ evitable as death, and wonderful in mystery as the depths of eternity itself. Nothing
is, however, finally lost—nothing destroyed, for, in her most extravagantly luxuriant
_ moods, Nature is frugal, and permits no waste. Forms change, forms disintegrate
and disappear; but substance, both mental and material, is imperishable and lives on
_ forever, defying decay and death with a conscious and ineffable immortality.
_ Each generation of humanity takes the habitable globe as its trustees to hold until,
by order of the court of Death, their relations are dissolved, and the property turned
- Over to their successors in trust. It is, therefore, the duty of each generation of
_ trustees for this great estate of the family of man, and of all the animals, to take care
_ that they pass the property over to their successors in trust in as good and tenantable
condition as they took it from their predecessors.

_ And now, having shown how dependent is animal life upon contemporaneous plant
life, we readily perceive that to leave the world in as good condition as we found it:
upon our entrance thereinto, we ought to bequeath to posterity as much of plant life,
and as many forests and orchards, as we have exhausted and consumed. __.

: During her two hundred years of active timber consuming what has Boston done
towards reafforesting the country? Imagine some forceful magic which could at once
replace in sylvan beauty every tree which Boston, in her sea-going vessels, in her
__ marts of business, in her beautiful homes, has cut down and consumed during the two
__ centuries of her active and successful career, and how grand a forest should be gilded
by to-morrow’s sun! And yet, with all her culture, her practical utilitarianism, and
her philanthrophy, what has Boston, or all New England, accomplished, as trustee
‘in charge of the woodlands, for its descendants ?
It has aided largely and thriftily in constructing railways to the West, and through
_ all meat and bread producing sections of the Union. One hundred and twenty-six
thousand miles of railway are.now resonant with commerce in the United States.
_ Each mile contains 3,000 wooden ties—the average life of the tie is ten years; each
_ year ten per cent. of the ties is renewed—at sixty cents apiece, the annual cost is more
‘than twenty millions of dollars, and ten years from date every tie now in use will
_ haye been renewed. Think of the forests thus destroyed, and of the other means of
- consumption of timber products in bridges, cars, warehouses. depots, and fuel, which
_ the voracious and insatiable railroads also employ, and do they replace any trees ?
_ Notas yet. But the courts have declared the rights of the States to regulate rail-
roads in many ways, and why not as to their utilization for tree planting along their
_ lines on their one hundred feet of right of way? What objection can there be to
compelling, either by national or State legislation, every railroad company in the
_ Union to plant trees forty feet apart on the outer limits—either side of its tracks—of
__itsright of way? And the law may prescribe that the trees planted shall be of use-

_ ful varieties, adapted to the soil and climate which the road traverses. Why cannot
_ this be accomplished? And is it not fair that these great consumers should be made
_ also restorers of forests? Cannot this law be made justifiable on sanitary grounds, on
_ the highest reason for all law, the public welfare—the greatest good to the greatest
number? Having such a law faithfully administered for fifty years—even for half
that period—and the tourist by rail shall journey from Georgia to Maine and from
Boston to San Francisco between continuous avenues of elms and oaks, sheltered from
summer dust and heat, and from winter snow and storm. Let us try it.

_ A painstaking statistician, from seemingly reliable data, declares that the fifty-five
millions of Americans cut down and use up, in various ways of manufacture, railroad
ties and fuel, each day in the year, an average of 25,000 acres of timber—of forests.
Therefore, when we go to bed at night there are 25,000 acres less of woodlands in the

— *

‘ of humane concerted action for the conservation of our woodlands and forests. They |

eg +s i? a OP NM sees eit Du eg OR te ae - va f a ”
4 ah diets . . Ye « bd

United States than there were when we got up in the morning. One month foun tod
day there will be, at the same rare of use, 750,000 acres less; and 1886—one
hence—there will be 9,000,000 acres less of forest lands than there are now. This Pp
statement of practical fact may startle into beneficial activity a class of men who, —
otherwise, would declare ‘Arbor Day’ a merely sentimental anniversary, a useless
holiday, and even deride its statutory legalization. ‘

The denudation of woodlands proceeds with relentless and tireless energy in all the
pine-bearing sections of the northwest. The ax of the woodsman and the puff of —
the steam-engine join, with the hissing of swiftly-revolving saws, in a death song
for the fated forests, more foreboding of evil to our race than were those of the say
tribes who originally domiciled in their verdant fastnesses. The latter presaged on a
individual deaths ; but the former portends floods and droughts, infertility, barren a
and the extinction of entire communities.

Mr. Geo. W. Hotchkiss, secretary of the Chicago Lumberman’s Exchange, a montis
reputable and entirely credible gentleman, officially declares that, during the six years
ending January 1, 1885, the receipts of lumber at Chicago alone “amounted to
10, 728,941, 322 feet. Computing that amount at common board measure it would —
closely, tightly, and completely cover, as a floor, with one inch thickness, 246, 301 _—
acres of land. Manufactured exclusively into fencing, it would circumference the —
globe with an enclosure five boards high, each board six inches wide, fifteen times.
It would make a single line of such fence 677,332 miles in length. It would construct —
225 just such fences from the Atlantic to the Pacific, reckoning the distance from ocean —
to ocean at 3,000 miles. Estimated at a value of 13 cents per foot the same amount —
of lumber equals in cash $160,934,120. During the same six years ending January 1,
1885, there were 5,235,509 shingles also received in Chicago. At $2 a thousand their —
cash value reaches $10,471,531, allowing ten shingles to be used to cover a square foot.
and they would roof more than 12,000 : acres of land. A

What is the lesson of present denudation? These figures, showing the enormous —
consumption of forest products, as indexed by the business of Chicago alone, are.
enough to incisively suggest the speedy total denudation of all the woodlands in ~
Ameriea. Such startling statistics appeal to those who are exclusively devoted to |
vocations which use up timber and lumber directly, and address facts to those purely —
practical men who entertain no fancies, and regard life as merely a prose essay upon
economic subjects. They go further; and to those who study climatology and sani-— fa
tary conditions as affecting crop productions and human life, convey the importance —

teach us all the imperative necessity of tree planting, and the retention of tree growth
in every State of the American Union, for the welfare of our race.

But, to my mind, over and above mere dollar getting, higher even than mere phiydis @
eal health, stands the love of the beautiful in nature, beseeching us to plant trees, and —
renew dead landscapes with the shadow of plant life, ‘flitting amidst the pendant limbs,
the willowy boughs, and the waving foliage of sturdy woods. That is a wholesome
and commendatory ambition which ‘inspires one to endeavor to make the world better
because he has been a dweller therein. And as our ancestors planted orchards to bear
fruit for us, and embellished homes to shelter us, so should we, by the law of gratitude
and compensation for these who come after—in the long procession of humanity,
which laughs and weeps, and sings and sorrows, in that little journey from the cradle ~
to the grave which we call life—leave similar souvenirs of our affectionate regard and
solicitude. In some countriés of Europe it is a family custom to plant a tree forevery
new-born child; and, in others, to set apart a few acres and devote them to trees, —
which, upon the infant becoming of age, shall be its heritage. Thus, the beautiful
and the useful, the sentimental and the. practical, are welded “together in a good and
vital deed. Thus, the tree planter of to-day ‘ ’arborphones ’? his good wishes, his i
name, his character and taste to generations yet unborn. rr

And we are yet in the early days of forestry—in its January—and it is not too ide, 4
for all who will, to join the “Argonauts” and embark with us in pursuit of those
golden fleeces of autumn-dyed foliage which shall clothe with undimmed lustre from
year to year the grand forests with which the waste places are yet to be crowned and —
glorified. In no system of religion—in no form of belief—can be found a ceremonial —
which vitalizes faith as does the act of tree planting. Composing the roots and fibers
in their soft and loamy bed, confident that each of the chemical agents of the earth ©
will do its complete and perfect work of nourishment, and then looking upward to.
the sapphire sky, and the Source of All Light, with the serene certainty that the sun's
rays shall warm and color into loveliness every leaflet, and that the mists and rain
drops shall water and cleanse each from year to year, is an act of devotion to the Su-—
preme Law, to Nature—the declaration of a sublime faith. It is faith expressed i in ag
deed ; and it is a deed which conveys health, happiness, and consolation to other g
erations besides our own.

all the sacred books of all ages of civilization, the life for which man is con-
ntly Jonging—the immortal, mental life beyond the grave—is portrayed as by still
ters, and amidst all the luxuriant splendors of tropical woods and ever-blooming
ens, filled with the fragrance of exquisitely beautiful flowers. A monk of the
enteenth century has spoken of it as ‘a substantial world, where grass will grow,
wers will bloom, fruits will ripen, forests will wave, rivers and rivulets will roll,
gh hills will tower, valleys will wind, and vales expand, and beyond them all, as
ras the eye can reach, vast blue oceans will forever heave and sigh and swell—
where such as we shall go to enjoy the faculties we carry with us.’’ The fact that,
from its portrayal of the first home of our common parents amidst the pensive shades
_ of the garden of Eden, up to its grandest and most realistic visions of heaven—in all
its concepts of supreme satisfaction—the human mind has interwoven ideal happiness
and consummate contentment with gardens and flowers, and forests and foliage, shows
__ how the brain of man has always depended for its imagery and metaphor upon man’s
_ vegetable cotenants of the globe. This being the concept of consummate content-
‘ment in all ages, let us endeavor, then, by our works on ‘‘Arbor Day,” and upon all
opportune occasions,:to so embellish this world with plant life, trees, flowers, and foliage
_ that our temporary homes shall simulate in beauty that eternal home which the prophets,
poets, and seers of all ages have depicted as a restful and refreshing paradise.

ADDRESS OF HON. GEO. B. LORING.

Dr. Loring commenced by referring to the peculiar and unusual position of forests
and woodlands in this country as distinguished from the other countries of the world.
_ The forests with their savage inhabitants were an obstacle in the way of advancing
‘ civilization and were the most discouraging difficulty which the early settlers were
_ obliged to remove. The land was to them an untrodden wilderness, occupied by a
_ gloomy and towering growth of trees—the ‘‘ primeval forests,’ which have. always
eonveyed the idea of untamed and often untamable nature. To substitute homesteads
and cultivated fields for this wide-spread desolation was a work requiring great force,
courage, and patience, and arrayed an enterprising and hardy people against the un-
cleared lands which lay all around them. The feelings engendered in those early days
have hardly yet died out. The American people are tenacious of opinions, methods,
and policy, and the warfare begun by their ancestors on the forests which stood in
_ their way, and which have been violently removed to make room for the teeming
_ towns and fair fields of a cultivated continent, has left an impression on the public
_ mind which no theory of economy and no fear of loss have yet been able to remove
entirely. To the careful and intelligent observer of our industries the value of our
forest growth appears to be so great as to require the most careful legislation and the
most thoroughly well-conducted private enterprise. But to the occupants of new
lands, to the dwellers in those vast regions but just now occupied by an industrious
people, this great timber growth presents itself as an antagonist to be speedily and
ruthlessly removed, and as a people we have yet to learn that the wealth of wood with
which our lands are clothed is entitled to the same care and protection as is bestowed
on the cultivated crops, on our fields and orchards.
_ The organization of this Association, the constant search after judicious and appli-
_ cable legislation, the introduction of forestry investigation into our educational insti-
tutions, the establishment of commissions to take charge of this great industry, all
_ indicate the present estimate of the importance of forestry investigation, and the
_ €arnest, popular desire to restore and protect our timber land. The question is one
_ of a purely practical character, and belongs to that class of economic subjects which
_ occupy the minds of those who are interested in the growth and prosperity of our
_ country. It is of the utmost importance that the business of forestry should be thor-
oughly understood. We would know how to use existing forests with economy and
_ the largest profit to the owner. We would know the best methods of protecting the
_ forests against natural decay, against accident and deliberate waste. We would
_ know the best methods of encouraging nature in the work of renewing the forests, in
_ which she is so busily engaged. We would know the best system of tree-planting—
the trees best suited to each locality. We would know when and how to resign land
once cultivated to the encroachments of the forest and what land to select for forest
growths. The cultivation of a taste for ornamental tree-planting should never be
lected. The occupation of the Arbor-Day in many of our States, the work of the
age improvement societies in all parts of our country, the study of landscape-gar-
ling as a part of the necessary information of a tasteful community, deserve and

r as .
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TRAE e Sis wo at LS Cee A) oh ee

Se eT el te ey Sa ewes Ct wee eS

54 . “ae
, a
demand our most liberal encouragement. But, confident that this «esthetic work hav-
ing been begun will never be neglected, we turn to that vast industry which within
the last fifty years has risen into an importance not surpassed by our textile manufs
tures or our mechanic arts. er
Notwithstanding the excessive forest supply with which this country was burthened —
in the early days, suggestions were made many years ago with regard to the protection —
of our woodlands, or ‘‘ wood-lots,”’ as they were called in New England, where every —
farm has this important attachment. As long ago as 1826 one of the brightest writers
on agricultural topics in Massachusetts recommended very strongly the fencing of —
woodlands as a matter of economy. The question has now become broader, and, in a
commercial point of view, much more important, including as it does not only the ~
timber and lumber supply, but that vast consumption of wood in the manufacture of -
furniture, boxes, pegs, agricultural implements, vehicles of all kinds, pulp, and a long ©
list of articles which enter into our domestic economy. The trade fae an estimated
value of $350,000,000 annually, in some of the States amounting to $40,000,000, and
in the State of Maine, the pioneer in the business, to $7,000,000, notwithstanding |
the carelessness and waste which have attended the work for year. a
It is fortunate, indeed, that while man has been reckless and extravagant in the de- —
velopment of the forest business to this important point, nature has been busy in ~
restoring what he has destroyed. No sooner is a tree removed than the earth rallies —
to supply its place. The laws of creation seem to be opposed to an unoccupied piece —
of land; and there is no doubt that between the deserted farms of the older States and
the newly-stripped forest lands which are engaged in producing a new growth of trees
there is a larger supply of growing wood in New England and all the other States —
than there was fifty years ago. To him, however, who would secure from his waste
lands a forest crop, as he would a hay or a corn crop from his cultivated acres, the —
choice of trees, the modes of planting, the best methods of handling are all im-—
portant. The trees that grow most rapidly and vigorously are those which spring up—
spontaneously in some favorable spot from a chance-sown seed. Is it too much to say —
that a tree standing on the spot where it sprang up and where all its surroundings are
genial—the spot where it sprang up, because it found every encouragement of soil and ~
climate—will make more wood in ten years than its transplanted neighbor is likely to
make in fifteen? Consider, then, the seeding of the forest as you would the seeding —
of the hay-field, and apply the same judgment in selecting the variety of seed for the ~
one as you do for the other. If the choice is wise and appropriate, nature will do the
rest of the work. That a tree crop is the most sensitive of all crops there can be no ~
doubt. Corn can be made to grow on almost every variety of soil, and by artificial —
means can be made to yield a fair crop. Grass of some one variety will growin almost —
every latitude. The crops of the garden flourish in Maine and Florida alike—each in
its due season. But not so with trees. The pine will not flourish on every soil. The “=
chestnut will withdraw from the seaside and find food for its rapid growth along the
inland hillsides. The Norway spruce dislikes the hard, salt gales of the ocean shore.
The monarch of the forest, standing on some favorable spot, towers above its fellows
standing not far off, but dwarfed and stunted by the absence of that food which has
fed the great proportions of the fortunate plant: How seldom do we see a forest of
uniform growth—how seldom a nursery of forest trees presenting one type of size,
shape, and thrift! Of a hundred trees transplanted we hardly expect to save more —
than two-thirds or three-quarters. Of a hundred cabbage-plants set out we expect to —
lose none. It is not easy to tell why one plantation of trees will make ten times as much ~
wood in ten years as another plantation not many rods away. The sensitiveness of ~
the tree makes its management most difficult—that sensitiveness which prevents its _
being planted indiscriminately with any hope of success. It should not be forgotten
that nature is the best guide in the selection of varieties for each locality. a
The natural renewal of forests, however, is one of the most interesting of all the
important questions relating to this important subject. The spontaneous growth of
the white pine on the sandy plains of the Northern States, the luxuriant up-springing
groves of spruce which give such a vital beauty to the secluded swamps and hillsides —
of our extreme North, the rich verdure of the vigorous young chestnut forests, which ~
adorn the inland hillsides—all bear witness to the diligence with which nature wor
in clothing the earth with its most attractive and useful product. To co-operate with —
this work of nature is certainly one of the most imperative of all agricultural duties—
a duty which belongs to the individual and the State. In the oldercountries of Europe —
the value of the forest crop has been so thoroughly recognized that all the power of the
State is exercised in preserving and developing it; and while the landowner is al-
lowed to manage his annual crops in his own way, this growth of years is placed under
the most careful and stringent protection of thelaws. Alarmed by the waste of forest
product and by the growing scarcity of timber, the most important of the European

<n a

Re iat

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tes adopted long ago a system of forestry which has rescued them from the very
ger which now threatens us. It was exactly the forest condition of America to-day
hich enlisted the most careful consideration of these continental governments. To
tore this valuable possession private rights in land were extinguished, permanent
ests were laid out and placed under the direct care of the Government, departments
of forestry were organized, regulations with regard to cutting the timber were laid
down, and every measure was adopted to increase the profit of lands devoted to timber-
growth. The result has been all that was anticipated. And I can conceive of no
more useful legislation than that which would enable every owner of timber-lands to
_ realize that he is protected against all encroachments—that he is not exposed to the
_ usual thoughtless causes of forest-fires—that his domain of forest is as well enclosed as
his domain of corn—that his forest property belongs to an interest of which the State
is particularly watchful, and that the development of his waste lands into woodlands
_ will receive all the encouragement the State can bestow without creating invidious
distinctions. Considering the amount of public and private timber-land in this coun-
_ try, and the foremost importance of this industry among all its industries, the Govern-
_ ment should promptly enter upon a system of forest legislation which will protect all
our national forest domain and encourage the landowner to enlist in this as he would
in any other branch of agricultural industry.
The destruction of forests, to which our attention is now so earnestly called, and for
_ the prevention of which State and National Legislatures are appealed to, and delibera-
tive associations are liberally organized, has been an object of solicitude for a long time.
Weare in the habit of presenting a startling array of figures to show the rapid waste
- going on in this country at the present time, and to indicate what we may anticipate
_ for the future, should this waste continue. To be told that, at the rate the cutting is now
_ going on, even the spruce forests of New Hampshire and Vermont will be exhausted in a
very few years, and that the pine forests of Maine will be destroyed in four years, and those
of Wisconsin in twenty years, and those of Michigan in ten years, and those of Minnesota
in ten years, is enough to startle the most indifferent observer of the industries and re-
sources of ourcountry. But this warning is not neworunusual. More than two hun-
dred years ago it was predicted by one of the most eminent statesmen of France that the
kingdom ‘ would perish for want of wood.”’ It took acentury and a half to impress this
fact upon the mind of France, and she was roused to action by the increasing destruction
of her forests and by the disastrous consequences which ensued. Her necessities be-
came great, and her exertions to remedy the evil were great in proportion. An appro-
- priation amounting to $250,000 a year for ten years was provided by the government,
and the work of restoration began with great energy. Along the banks of streams and
on the borders of ravines trees were planted and protected, and a nucleus of forest
growth formed which is now of inestimable value, and which, if commenced when
the first warning was given, would have made France the richest forest-growing coun-
try of Europe both in quantity and quality. }
This example of France should give us a warning and teach us a lesson. Not that
_ this country is likely ‘‘ to decay for want of wood,’’ but the emergency seems to be
fast approaching which will require remedies as heroic and expensive as those to which
I have alluded. The efforts already made in this direction on a small scale have met
with abundant success. Many a barren waste has been clothed with pines, and along
_ the Western river valleys, formerly stripped, are now growing belts of trees increasing
in extent as they are protected from prairie fires by advancing civilization, the natural
_forest-growth of the region. Here and there an illustration of the success which
attends properly-managed seeding may be found. The well-known wooded hillside of
Major Poore, from whom we have heard this evening, is too familiar to all interested
in the cultivation of deciduous trees as a crop to require any additional description.
The pine forest of Mr. Fay, at Falmouth, Mass., consisting now of nearly a hundred
and fifty acres, is so successful an experiment in this kind of tree-planting that I ven-
___ ture to present it as stated by himself. He says that when he came into possession of
_ the tract of land he has so successfully cultivated ‘‘it was a barren waste, the soil dry
and worn out. On a hundred acres there was not a tree of any kind, unless an oak
sprang out of the huckleberry bushes here and there, but hardly lifting its head above
_ them. Indeed, when I bought my place in 1853, except a few stunted cedars on
_ Parker’s Point and in the swamps, there was not an evergreen tree within three miles
_ of my house and hardly any tree of any kind in sight of it. It was maintained that
_ trees could not be made to grow there. The seeds sown were of the native pitch-pine,
_ with some white pine, the Austrian, Scotch, and Corsican pine, the Norway spruce,
and the European larch, in all about thirty-five thousand imported plants and many
thousand native pines. As to the kinds which have done the best the Scotch pine
‘om the seed, including prompt germination, has proved the best grower and very

urdy. The Norway spruce and English oak have done well. The larch did not

start well from the seed, but from the nursery or as imported it has grown remar kabl:
The hardy Scotch pine does finely, either from seed or the nursery. All these importe
trees have done better than the native pitch-pine. The larches are about forty feet
high and fourteen inches in diameter one foot from the ground. Some Scetch pines,
from seed sown in 1861, well situated and in good soil, are thirty feet high and te 1
inches through a foot from the ground. As to profits one thing is sure, the land, orig-_
inally poor, has been enriched by the deposit of thousands of loads of leaves upon it
and by the shade afforded, while the soil has been lightened and lifted by the perme-
ation of the roots of the trees, and though no present profit has been realized (which
already might have been done by sales of the wood) it should be considered as an
investment for future results. Considering the position of my place, on a coast exposed
to violent sea winds permeated with salt spray, the vigorous growth and promising
appearance of my forest plantations are very encouraging to those more favorably
placed. Not only may the destruction of our forests be partially remedied at a cheap —
cost, but the waste and sterility of our land by long cultivating be replaced with —
fertility by the simple process of nature.”’ ;
The planting of pines on Cape Cod has been pursued with great success, and the —
groves of Major S. B. Phinney, of Barnstable, are an admirable illustration of the
beauty and profit of this branch of tree-culture. : oh
When we remember the long-continued efforts in Europe and the smaller enterprise
in this country to cultivate forest trees, almost all of which have been successful, it —
seems surprising that any argument should be necessary to prove the importance of —
this industry vr to demonstrate its value as a profitable enterprise. We survey the —
apparently inexhaustible forests of the United States, and, notwithstanding the local
destruction which is going on, we persuade ourselves that they will not fail to supply —
the increasing wants of our people. We rely largely on nature to restore the exhausted
regions, and we turn to the vast wooded regions still untouched with confidence tha
they will respond liberally to every call. The temptations to the lumberman have
been and are great; but there is no reason why tke work of the lumberman should —
not be followed by a systematic, well-organized, and well-endowed effort to restore
what he has destroyed. 3
In no better way could a portion of the idle capital of the country be employed
than in the cultivation of forests on denuded lands. The returns may indeed be slow, —
but the investment is secure; and if Government is ever to stretch forth its hand for
the encouragement of private enterprise it may with propriety assist and protect
a work upon which so much industry, health, and comfort depend. The United
States, of all nations, has almost alone neglected its forests. Great Britain has adopted =
measures to restore the forest-growth of India, whose mountain sides she stripped in
her wars of conquest and in the industrial enterprises which followed. The forest —
system of Canada, on our very borders, is an example well worthy of study and imi- ~
tation. Every country of continental Europe considers a forestry commission an im=
portant branch of government and every European people look upon schools of forestry _
as an important part of a system of popular education.
It must be evident to all that forestry legislation will be of no avail witheut forestry
education. The protection of forests against destruction by cattle, against fires, against —
wasteful cutting, and the encouragement of tree-planting and forest cultivation Es
legislative enactments can only be properly carried out by the co-operation of skill —
and knowledge. It is only through a thorough understanding of the habits of trees —
and of the best modes of producing them and a full appreciation of the importance of
a judicious selection for each locality that the true value of the forest industry can be-
acquired. <A forester well equipped with the knowledge of physiological botagy, of
climatology, of entomology, so far as it relates to the protection of trees against destruc-_
tive insects and of the foreign literature of the subject, might, if employed as a teacher
in a conspicuous and influential industrial school, open the way to a systematie and
intelligent organization, which would elevate forestry to the rank of the great industries ~
of our country. Asa guide to judicious and effective legislation and an instructor of
the best practical methods, he might soon bring the laws of the land and the labor of —
the investigator and planter up to a standard of the best and most thoroughly organize 1
forestry in the world, and place them beyond the reach of pseudo-science and imperfect
legislation. Were every agricultural college endowed by Federal land grant supplied
with a teacher of this description and an arboretum sufficient for his work the way
would be opened to a great improvement in the business of tree-planting for use and
ornament and to a system of State and national forestry which would commend i
to a practical business community.
It is to be regretted that the suggestions made in 1880 by a Committee of the Ame
can Association for the Advancement of Science have not been carried into effect.
After stating that we are to look to the owners of land “for the adoption of Bo es

:
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:

ing to avert the injuries in prospect”? they urged upon the legislative bodies of
country the passage of laws protecting trees planted along highways, exempting
taxation the increased value of land from the planting of trees, endowing of Agri-
tural and Horticultural Societies to enable them to offer liberal premiums for forest
lture and to publish prize essays on forestry, encouraging forestry education in
hools and colleges, tending to prevent forest fires, establishing model plantations,
nd appointing commissioners of forestry. These measures would lay the founda-
tion of a forestry system in this country which would render forest property com-
paratively secure and would put an end to the wasteful and destructive use of standing
wood and timber now existing throughout the country.
_ The discussion of all questions relating to forestry has been so long and so elaborately
mtinued in this country that hardly a point remains unexplored. Of the importance
_of preserving and restoring the forests no one now entertains a doubt. Their value,
_ in an economic view, is perfectly apparent. It is generally accepted that they have
_ a great influence on the climate—the heat and cold, the droughts and rainfall—of every
-eountry. Their contribution to the mechanic arts and to the implements and utensils
of life is great and important. That their management should be systematic and
_ business-like is everywhere recognized; and yet there is no property in this country
in such doubtful condition. In one section the forest product is hastily crowded into
the market in order ‘‘to escape the taxation’’ levied on woodland and in order to
_ *tyealize”? upon it as promptly as possible. In another section no market exists for
~ most valuable timber lands on account of unorganized lumber industry and absence of
-eonvenient transportation. In another section thrifty growing forests are cut down
_ to supply a cheap and common article of trade—forests which by their growth alone
_ would earn large interest upon their money value. The axe and fire continue their
-desolating work. True ornamental tree-planting increases everywhere. Trees along
village streets, trees along highways, trees along our city avenues, trees in parks, and
_ groves on estates increase and flourish under man’s care and protection. Arbor days
have in many States become legalized holidays. And so far as taste and sentiment
are concerned the tree receives its full appreciation. But it cannot be said that either
on our national domain or on State reservations or on private lands do our forests re-
ceive that systematic care to which they are entitled. The application of laws long
since adopted in other countries seems to be impossible in our own. Institutions de-
yoted to education in forestry have not yet been transplanted from the old world to the
new. Thesystem under which the public lands of the United States have been managed
has thus far admitted no measures of economy with regard to the various resources of
_ those lands in mineral agriculture or forestry wealth. The tenure of land in the States
hardly allows statute interference with the methods by which it is managed, and
the difficulties which lie in the way of an organized forest economy, State and national,
are not easily removed. We have computed to a fraction the amount of wood con-
sumed in railroad sleepers, in shoe pegs and pill boxes, and machinery and implements,
and building materials annually, and how much oak and hemlock bark is required to
supply our tan-yards; but how best to obtain and care for and increase the supply of
raw material we have not yet ascertained. It is interesting to contemplate the efforts
which have been made in this direction. Our attention is called to proposed systems
of management of “forest lands in mountain regions,’’ to ‘“‘ proposed reservations of
timber land,” to the “different modes of payment for privileges,”’ to ‘timber manage-
ment in Canada,’’ to the advantages of ‘‘experiment stations,’’ to the ‘‘ prevention of
_ forest fires’? by legislation. It is provided by law that any railroad company shall be
_ liable for damage by fires along its line, but ‘said company shall not be held so liable”
_ if it can prove that its fire-boxes, smoke-stacks, We., are in good order. It is also pro-
_ vided in the same statute book that a justice of the peace shall call out the people to
_ extinguish field and forest fires, and said people shall be fined if they fail to obey. It
__ is provided by law also that no person shall ‘ willingly, intentionally, negligently, or
earelessly ’’ set fire to woods under a penalty of from five to a hundred dollars, unless
he shall have given his neighbors one day’s notice of his intention to start a fire on his
_ own premises. By law we are warned not to set fires, but we are not prevented from
_ setting fires on wild and unappropriated lands between the first of February and the
_ first of May, ‘“ or from setting on fire rubbish, leaves, or brush on the farm or plantation
_ of any person or persons as often as occasion may require, if the same be done without
the intention of setting on fire the adjacent woods, marshes, or prairies not owned,
possessed, or occupied by such person.’’ The ‘‘meshes of the law” are so large in
Jegislation like this that any offender can easily escape, and this is an illustration of
the difficulties under which we labor in all directions. . .
Nothing can provide a remedy for these evils and difficulties, both in practice and
law, but an enlightened and determined public opinion. That this country is en-
ed to all the benefits to be derived from forestry legislation and forestry manage-

ment no one can doubt. True, the power of private interests may ultimately dey
all necessary remedies for existing evils, but etre and attendant upon these priy
interests must go a popular understanding of the importance of the questions involy
and a consequent popular readiness to support measures necessary to accomplish the
desired object. For the education of the popular mind to this standard all the efforts
of colleges, schools, scientific investigators, and associations should be encouraged in
their work. In this direction the American Forestry Congress may well continue
the valuable work upon which they are engaged. a

THE STATE OF LEGISLATION IN REGARD TO FORESTS.
BY N. H. EGLESTON,

Legislation in respect to forests takes the two general forms of laws for the protee-
tion and preservation of existing forests and laws to encourage the planting of new
ones. By far the greater amount of legislation is of the former kind, it being only —
within a few years that any noticeable provision of law has been made to promote the —
planting and cultivation of new forest areas. ;

It is remarkable also, that almost from the beginning of our history as a nation —
there was more or less anxiety on account of the early inroads made upon the timber. |
Among the earliest enactments of the Colonies, particularly the northern ones, we —
find some designed for the preservation of the trees, and there are records of numerous |
votes of towns for the same purpose. For instance, the Provincial Assembiy of New —
Hampshire, as early as 1708, forbade the cutting of mast-trees on ungranted lands
under a penalty of £100 sterling. The Province had at that early time also a surveyor-—
general of forests. appointed by royal authority, for the purpose of preventing depre-_
dations upon timber. The office was held at one time by Benning Wentworth, sub-_
sequently the well-known Governor of the Province. In 1640, only two years after —
its settlement, the inhabitants of Exeter adopted a general order for the regulation of —
the cutting of oak timber. Other towns manifested a like concern for the preservation —
of their forests, and adopted similar measures. F.

In Pennsylvania, well wooded as its very name assures us it was at the time of its
settlement, and well wooded as it still is, ranking as the third State of the Union in ~
the amount of lumber which it produces, in an instrument entitled ‘‘ Conditions and
concessions agreed upon by William Penn, Proprietary and Governor of the Province,
and those who are the adventurers and purchasers in the said Province,’’ dated July —
11, 1681, and intended as a charter of rights to the colonists, the following provision —
was made in reference to the maintenance of the timber supply :

“XVIII. That in clearing the ground care be taken to leave one acre of trees for
every five acres cleared, especially to preserve oak and mulberries for silk and ship-
ping.”

In Massachusetts a similar care for the trees was manifested, and towns, as well as
the General Court, took action for their protection.

As the early action for the protection of trees, by the Colonies and.by individual
towns under the colonial government, was caused principally by the apprehension of a_
searcity of timber for marine and naval construction, so’ the same apprehension,
after the country had passed out of the colonial condition, led to the adoption of —
measures by the Federal Government for the protection of such trees especially as were —
most desirable for ship building. The well-known searcity of such timber in Europe —
led to the fear that the countries across the Atlantic would make such large demands
upon the forests here as would render it difficult to procure an adequate supply for our |
own wants. Accordingly, it was only a few years after the action of the Federal Goy-_
ernment, in 1794, authorizing the construction of four ships of forty-four guns and_
two of thirty-six guns, for the protection of American commerce against the Algerines,
that a vote was passed appropriating $200,000 for the purchase of growing or other
timber, or of lands on which timber is growing, suitable for the Navy, and for its
preservation for future use. a

Florida and the Gulf coast, where grew that specially valuable tree for ship-build-
ing, the live oak, did not belong to us at this time, and the amount of that timber
growing within the limits of the Union was comparatively small. Some purchases
were made along the coast of Georgia under the act of 1799, but nothing more was done
by the General Government for the preservation of timber until the year 1817, when an _
act was passed directing the reservation of such public lands having a growth of live oak
or cedar suitable for the use of the Navy as might be selected by the President. Under

act commissioners were appointed, and two islands on the coast of Louisiana, con-
ing about 20,000 acres, and supposed to have growing upon them 37,000 live-oak
; were reserved for the use of the Government. Ten years later, it having been
d that an extensive exportation of live oak, averaging one hundred and fifty car-
es annually, had been going on for several years, the sum of $10,000 was granted
w the purpose of purchasing live oak and other timber lands for the Navy, and a
fract on Santa Rosa Sound was purchased, and for a time considerable was done in the
yay of planting and cultivating the live oak. :

_ By another act—that of March 3d, 1827—the President was authorized to tuke proper
“measures to preserve the live-oak timber growing on the lands of the United States,
and to reserve such lands in sufficient quantitities to render the same valuable for naval
at oses.
> By an act of March 2d, 1831, provision was made for the punishment of persons for
eutting or destroying any live oak, red cedar, or other trees growing on any lands of
_ the United States, by a fine of not less than three times the value of the timber cut
and imprisonment not exceeding twelve months.
_ Under the act of 1817 and subsequent acts there have been reserved in Florida, Ala-
bama, Mississippi, and Louisiana about 250,000 acres of timber land.
__ Aside from these reservations of timber for naval purposes, no action has been taken
for the preservation of timber until quite recently, when the Yellowstone Park was
made a reservation. With this exception the Government has been strangely neglect-
ful of the timber land in its possession. It has scarcely given sufficient attention to it
_to ascertain its location with definiteness or the character and value of the trees grow-
- ing upon it. It has allowed trees to be cut and burned almost with impunity. It has
made enactments, indeed, forbidding the destruction or theft of its timber, but has
adopted such feeble and irresolute measures to enforce its laws that they have had little
“practical efficacy. At the present time the timber on the public domain is being
plundered both by individuals and corporations, and hardly any check is put upon it.
_ _ Of the several States, in distinction from the General Government, it may be said
_ that all of them have recognized the forests as having some value as property and
_ have protected them on this account to a certain extent. Most, if not all of them, have
_ made enactments against the cutting or injuring of timber growing upon the land of
_ another or belonging to the State. But in making these enactments they have esti-
mated the trees only according to their value for lumber or firewood, except the com-
_ paratively few planted along the roadsides or in parks and other public inclosures for
- purposes of shade and ornament. In these instances a somewhat higher value has

been assigned and a heavier penalty decreed for their destruction. In all the legisla-
_ tion that has taken place in regard to forests, however, it may be said there has been
_ no recognition of their importance from a sanitary or climatic point of view—their
_ influence upon the distribution of moisture, upon the growth of crops, or upon the
_ flow of streams and the consequent effect upon commerce and manufactures. Only in
‘the lowest view of their importance have the forests been taken into account or efforts
made for their protection and preservation. This is the general fact. ‘2
In all the States and Territories, and from an early date in their history, there have
been laws designed to prevent injuries resulting from forest fires. Injuries from this
cause have been so great at times, and are so constantly threatened, that protection
from them becomes one of the earliest subjects to receive attention and to gain the aid
of legal enactments. As might be expected, there is a general similarity in the laws
enacted on this subject. The willful setting on fire the woods of another commonly
_ exposes the offender to a fine or imprisoment, and in some cases to both, while it also
_ renders him liable for all damage that his act may occasion. As willfulness can be
_ proved, however, only in rare cases, laws of this class are operative, if at all, by their
_ threat rather than their execution.
_ Another class of laws are those which inflict a penalty upon persons who set fire
upon their own premises and allow it to extend to the premises of another. Such per-
_ sons are usually made liable for all damages thus occasioned, unless they use all means
_ in their power to prevent the extension of the fire beyond their own grounds, and, in
_ some cases, unless they give notice beforehand to adjacent proprietors of their inten-

tion to kindle the tire. Persons are also made liable for the acts of their servants in
this respect and to pay damages which they may occasion, and the servants themselves
are also made liable to punishment. In some cases constables or other officers are au-
rized or required to call upon citizens to aid in extinguishing forest fires, and per-
Sons so called upon are liable to a fine if they refuse to give their aid. In some cases
double damages may be claimed. Whipping has also been inflicted by many States
in the case of servants or others unable or refusing to pay fines.

From the earliest period to the present the laws for the protection of forests from
ires have been modified more or less with the purpose of making them more effective,

“ia

but the general testimony is that they have had but little efficacy. The forests are
consumed now as frequently and extensively as ever. One reason of this is to be
found in the difficulty of proving either malice or criminal neglect or carelessnes
But another reason is the inadequate sense of the value of the forests and of the great
loss involved in their destruction which is possessed by the mass of the community.
The laws will be inefficient until the public sentiment in regard to the forests”
changed. When old and young, educated and uneducated, understand and feel th:
the trees-have a value for something else than as lumber or fuel; that they have a close”
connection with human welfare, with the health and comfort of man and beast, and are -
among the most precious possessions we have, then, and not till then, will forest fires
be suppressed or kept within such narrow limits and made so infrequent that they will
not be a serious concern to us. Then the school-boy, the sportsman, the poorest day
laborer, will all alike look upon the trees with friendly interest and be their protectors,
even without the incitement of law and penalty. aoe
If we turn now from what has been done for the protection and preservation of the
forests to what has been done to extend the wooded area by planting new ones, we
shall find it but little and of recent date. While the desirableness of planting trees —
may have been felt here and there from a very early period, especially where trees
have been somewhat deficient, or for the sake of securing new varieties, the first reeom=
mendatien of tree-planting by any society or public body of men, so far as I am aware, —
was made in 1791 by the New York Society for the Promotion of Agriculture, Arts,
and Manufactures. A committee was appointed for the purpose of considering the
best mode of preserving and increasing the growth of wood and valuable timber. —
The committee reported in favor of devoting the lands least valuable for agri-—
culture to the growth of trees, and that they should be stocked for this purpose.
They insisted upon the importance of fencing out cattle, and, in short, advanced
opinions and made recommendations on the subject which show a very enlightened
understanding of it, quite in accordance with much of the best judgment and knowl-
edge of our own times. If the recommendations of this society had been, to any con-
siderable extent, adopted and carried out in corresponding action, the result would
have been a great addition to the wealth of the State. By an act of the Legislature of ©
New York, passed in 1869, tree planting is encouraged by allowing the overseers of
highways to abate from the highway taxes of any land-owner the sum of $1 for eve yo
four trees set out along the highway opposite his land, the abatement, however, not~
to exceed in any year more than one-quarter of the highway tax. In the present
year the Legislature has appointed a Forest Commission, to which are given extensive |
powers of control over the public lands of the State. Provision is made for introducing —
instruction in forestry in the schools and for publishing tracts and circulars on trees —
and tree-planting. More effective laws have been made also for the protection of
forests from fire. es
Colorado is in advance of all other States in having a constitutional provision in —
behalf of the forests. The eighteenth article of her constitution provides that ‘“‘ The
General Assembly shall enact laws in order to prevent the destruction of and to keep
in good preservation the forests upon the lands of the State or upon the lands of the
public domain, the control of which shall be conferred by Congress upon the State.” —
The appointment of a Forest Commissioner this year was the first decisive action taken —
in compliance with this mandatory provision of the constitution. The Forest Commis-
sioner has the care of all woodlands owned or controlled by the State. He is to make
rules and regulations for the prevention of trespass upon such lands, for the preven |
tion and extinguishment of fires, and the conservation of forest growth. He is also,
so far as possible, to promote the extension of the forest area, encourage the planting
of trees. and preserve the sources of water-supply. The County Commissioners are also-
enjoined to encourage the planting of trees along water-courses and irrigating ditch
and in other proper places. By other acts persons are made liable in sae damag
for any injury to the trees of another, whether on enclosed lands or on the highway.
The increased value of land, oceasioned by planting fruit or forest trees upon it, is not
to be assessed for the period of ten years after the trees are planted. A premium is”
also offered, for six consecutive years, for every one hundred forest trees planted along:
irrigating ditches. a
In California the Board of Supervisors of any county of the State are empowered to
authorize the planting of shade and fruit trees along the public roads by persons own=
ing the adjacent lands, and persons planting such trees, according to the regulations of
the Board, are entitled to one dollar for each tree so planted and growing thriftily f
years after the time of planting. na
In Connecticut a law was passed in 1877 to encourage tree-planting. It was pro
vided by this act that planted woodlands which, at the time of planting, were not
worth more than fifteen dollars an acre should be exempt from taxation for ten years.
By an act of 1881 a bounty was offered for planting trees on the highways. =

)

rs
4 *

the so-called Prairie States, lacking trees toa great extent at the time of their
ent, the people became tree-planters almost from necessity, and those States
been among the earliest to encourage tree-planting by offering bounties directly,
by the exemption from taxation for a certain number of years of land devoted to
. They have been the first also to adopt Arbor Day and to prove its efficacy.
fore than ten years ago (1874) Illinois passed a law for the encouragement of the
iting and growing of timber, by allowing the Board of Supervisors or the County
nmissioners’ court in any county to offer a bounty, to any person who should plant
or more acres of forest trees and properly cultivate the same for three years, of a
sum not exceeding ten dollars per annum for three years for each acre so planted.
_ Towa in 1868 passed an act exempting from taxation the real and personal property
of each tax-payer, who should plant and suitably cultivate one or more acres of
forest trees for timber, to the amount of $100 for ten years for each acre so planted and
Itivated.
‘Kansas in 1868 passed a similar law, offering a bounty of two dollars for every acre
of prairie land that might be planted, within ten years, with any kind of forest trees,
excepting black locust, and successfully grown and cultivated for three years. A like
_ bounty was offered for each half mile of trees planted along any highway and culti-
-yated and protected for three years. The bounty was to continue twenty-five years if
the plartation was continued in growing condition so long. This act was subse-
quently repealed, not because the people of Kansas did not continue to favor the
_ planting of trees, but because the further offering of bounties was not needful.
_ The Legislature of Nebraska in 1869 provided an exemption of $100 a year for five
_ years on every acre of trees planted and suitably, cultivated. The constitution subse-
_ quently adopted forbade the exemption of private property from taxation, but made
it allowable that the increase in value of land, by reason of its being planted with trees
_ or live fences, should not be taken into account in the assessment of the same. Towns
are required to plant shade-trees, and taxes are levied on this account. Arbor Day,
_ which originated in this State, has been heartily adopted by it, and more than 500,000
_ aeres of planted forests are now beautifying and enriching the plains of Nebraska.
__ In Missouri, by an act of 1870, every person planting one acre or more of prairie
_ land, within ten years from the passage of the act, with any kind of forest trees except
_ black locust, and successfully growing and cultivating the same three years, and every
_ person planting, protecting, and cultivating for three years one-quarter of a mile or
More of forest trees upon his own land, to be set not more than one rod apart and to
_ stand at the end of three years not more than two rods apart, shall be entitled to
receive for fifteen years an annual bounty of two dollars per acre and two dollars for
_ each quarter of a mile so planted. This act was amended in 1876 by extending the
_ time to ten years from that date as the limit within which planting might be begun. -
Michigan, which is cutting off her rich growth of forest with fearful rapidity, has
_ done nothing to replace the trees removed. She has, however, encouraged the plant-
_ ing of trees along the roadside by allowing any one to pay twenty-five per cent. of his
highway tax by planting trees on the margin of the road adjacent to his own land.
_ By an act of 1881 any one injuring such trees is made liable to an action for damages
om $1 to $25 for each offense.
In 1871 Minnesota passed ‘‘an act to encourage the planting and growing of timber
and shade trees.” This has been modified and amended at various times since. It
provides that every one planting and cultivating from one to ten acres of forest trees
for six years, and every one planting and keeping in growing condition half a mile or
_ more of trees along the highway, shall be entitled to three dollars annually for each
acre and two dollars for each half mile of such line of trees for six years. This State
has also appropriated $5,000 to its State Forestry Association, to enable it to publish a
: _ manual of tree-planting and to secure lectures and experimental cultivation of trees,
_ todistribute trees and tree seeds, to give information as to the best method of pre-
_ venting forest fires, &c.
_ Nevada, ranking among the lowest of our States in respect to timber supply, and
_ Tapidly wasting that supply, has passed an act similar to that of Minnesota for the
encouragement of tree-planting. Every person planting one acre or more of land,
within ten years after the passage of the act in 1877, with any kind of forest or shade
trees, and cultivating the same for three years, and planting and cultivating for the
ne time one-half mile or more of trees along the highway, is entitled to receive for
nty years, commencing two years after the trees are planted, an annual bounty of
dollars per acre and ten dollars for each half mile so planted. The taxable value
f the land is not to be increased by such planting, and stringent penalties are pro-
rided to protect the trees from injury.
Maine, the Pine Tree State, has been one of the first of our States to legislate for
@ preservation and extension of forests. In 1872 the Legislature enacted a law, pro-

viding that any landholder who should plant or set apart any cleared lands for th
growth and protection of forest trees, within ten years after the passage of the act, an
cultivate the same for three years, the trees being not less than two thousand ta, the
acre, the lands so planted should be exempt from taxation for twenty years. The aet
also encouraged the planting of trees along highways by a similar exemption from
taxes, and provided proper penalties for the removal or injury of trees thus planted. —

The general statutes of Massachusetts prescribe that the Agricultural Societies r
ceiving the bounty of the State shall offer premiums, at their discretion, for the raisi
and preserving of oaks and other trees bet adapted to perpetuate a supply of ship-
timbers. They also encourage the formation of societies for the purpose of improving
streets and public squares by planting ornamental trees thereon. Massachusetts was
the first State in the Union to institute a special survey of its forest resources. This
was in 1837, and the Report of Mr. Geo. B. Emerson on the Trees and Shrubs of
Massachusetts, in two volumes, is not only an honor to the State but a treasury of
information in regard to a large portion of the trees with which our country abounds.
The subject of forestry has been discussed by the Agricultural Societies and the publi¢
journals more amply and for a longer time, perhaps, than in any other State, as a re
sult of which, or at least coincident with which, numerous tracts of land, especially in_
the eastern portion of the State, have been planted with forest trees and are to-day the
most conspicuous instances of successful forest-tree planting to be found in the country. —
As long ago as 1804 the State Society for Promoting Agriculture offered, among other
prizes, one ‘*To the person who shall produce from seed the best growth of trees, not
less than 600 in the whole, and in the proportion of 2,400 to the acree, of any of the
following kinds of forest trees, viz: Oak, ash, elm, sugar-maple, beech, black or yellow
birch, chestnut, walnut, or hickory, $25; if all of oak, $50. In 1876 this Society —
offered premiums, ranging in amount from $400 to $1,000, for the best plantations on
poor or worn-out land, not less than five acres in extent, of European larch, Scotch
pine, and Corsican fir. Prizes were also offered for plantations of the white ash. In_
1882 the State passed an act authorizing towns and cities to provide for the preserva-—
tion and reproduction of forests. They may take or purchase any land and make
public domain of it. The title of all such land vests in the Commonwealth, and is to’
be held in perpetuity for the benefit of the town. The State Board of Agriculture is_
also to act as a Board of Forestry and have the supervision and management of all
such public domains.

New Hampshire in 1881 appointed 'a Board of Commissioners to inquire as to the
extent of the destruction of the forests, the effect of forests on rainfall and the con-
dition of streams, and in regard to the wisdom or necessity of forest laws. The Com-
missioners have attended to their duties faithfully and haye made an extended report
of the result of their inquiries. They deplore the rapid and inconsiderate manner in—
which the forests have been destroyed and urge the adoption of effective measures to ~
secure the preservation of what remain and their proper management. They set forth —
the fact that the mountainous character of the State adapts it especially to the growth —
o trees rather than of agricultural crops, and that the most profitable use of a large
part of the land in New Hampshire will be found in devoting it to the cultivation of
forests. No action has been taken in regard to this report, but by existing law towns
may raise money to set out shade trees and abate taxes to persons who do so. E

Ohio established in 1882 an Agricultural Experimental Station, part of the opera-
tions of which are to be the planting and testing of trees in an arboretum and the
encouragement of tree-planting throughout the State. Later a Forestry Bureau has
been created in connection with the State University at Columbus. This bureau is
engaged in establishing forestry experiment stations. %

Vermont is similarly situated to New Hampshire, and takes her name from her
green, forest-covered mountain ranges. She has more land of an arable character
than her neighbor State, and a considerable portion of her surface is adapted to the
purpose of grazing, but the cultivation of her crops and of her flocks will be most
successful only as her forests are cherished and protected. In 1882 commissioners
were appointed ‘to inquire into the subject of the forests of Vermont as to their
extent and condition, and what, if any, measures should be taken in respect to their
preservation.’”’ The committee made a carefully-prepared and instructive report to
the Legislature in October of last year, recommending certain enactments for the
better protection of the forests, but no action has yet been taken by the Legislature.

It is not necessary to make mention further and specifically of the existing condi-
tion of forest legislation in the several States. In most of the older States, especially
those of the North, there has arisen within a few years past a sense of the value 0
forests for something besides their lumber products, and some measures have beet
taken to guard the existing forests from too rapid destruction and to encourage fore
planting. The Southern States, most of them being heavily wooded and with les:

<Pee Bt i Ad a te oa, Sh 4 5 ef nie ye Oe Liz et tal “7% —
- "4 nf FE Oe =e ul oe Lene:

emand made upon their forests than has been made upon those at the North for
lumber products, have not felt as yet the necessity of planting trees, and their legisla-
tion has been limited, for the most part, to guarding the existing woodlands against
the ravages of fire and from the plundering of thieves. The newer States, many of
them comparatively treeless, have been the most forward to promote forest-tree plant-
ing. This they have done by offering liberal premiums—by exemption of planted
forests from taxation for a term of years and by the adoption of Arbor Day, which
from year to year appeals to all the people of the State to unite in the simultaneous
_ work of tree-planting.

The condition of legislation on the part of the General Government in distinction
_ from that of the individual States may be given in few words. We have seen already
_ that in the early years of our history measures were taken by the Government to pro-
tect such timber as was suitable for the construction of naval vessels, and to acquire a
_ larger supply than it then had, by purchasing certain islands and land upon the sea-
_ coast where such timber was to be found. In recent years the Goyernment has made
_ various enactments for the purpose of preventing depredations upon its timber lands
_ by thieves. These enactments have been suitable to the case, but, like other enact-
_ ments, they will not execute themselves or inflict the proper penalty upon evil-doers,
and the appropriations made by Congress for the purpose of guarding the public for-
ests, or bringing the depredators upon them to conviction and punishment and recoy-
ering the stolen property, have been quite inadequate, and so the plundering goes on
_ to the extent of millions annually in value.

The Government has also sought to promote the planting of new forests by means
of the Timber-culture Act, in itself most commendable and promising great benefit
to the country, but which has been so often evaded, with the result of the acquisition

of land without cost and under false pretenses, that many are of the opinion that the
~ aet should be repealed. E

Largely through the efforts of a recently-deceased member of this congress and one
of its officers, the attention of the National Congress has been directed, within a few
years past, to the general subject of forestry, and an inquiry has been set on foot, in
connection with the Department of Agriculture, in regard to the existing condition of
the forests of the United States; the annual amount of consumption, importation, and
exportation of timber and other forest products ; the probable supply for future wants ;
the means best adapted to the preservation and renewal of forests ; the influence of
forests upon climate, and the measures that have been successfully applied in various
countries for the preservation and restoration or planting of forests. A Forestry Divis-
ion of the Department of Agriculture has been created for the purpose of prosecuting
these inquiries, and four volumes of reports from this Division have been published,
embodying a large mass of information in regard to the subjects embraced in the scope
of its inquiries. It may be said without hesitation that nowhere else within an equal
compass is there to be found in the English language such an amount of information
in regard to the subject of forestry. Facts of the utmost importance have thus been
_ brought within the reach of the people, and if appropriate action is taken by them it
will be of immeasurable value to the country, evils and disasters which have fallen
upon other countries as the result of the loss of their forests may be avoided by us, and
_ the trees may be converted into the most important means of our continued prosperity.

WHAT ARE THE ESSENTIAL FEATURES OF AN EFFICIENT FOREST-
FIRE LEGISLATION ?

BY S. W. POWELL.

In the nature of the case answers to this question can be definite and specific only
upon the negative side. There has been sufficient experiment to ascertain some fea-
tures which are not desirable. We know several things that will not work, but do not,
as yet, know exactly what will work. The object of this paper is merely to indicate,
_ upon the positive side, some of the general features or characteristics of any success-
_ ful legislation designed to prevent forest fires or, when they do occur, to limit their
_ range as much as possible.
_ The first point that suggests itself is this: Such legislation must be framed with

4 proper understanding of its importance. As we are not now considering the need of
such legislation—a large subject in itself— it will serve the present purpose merely to al-
lude to the fact that the direct damage done by forest fires is probably not less than three
hundred million dollars a year, and that the indirect damage in the way of denuding
p slopes and sending the ashes resulting from burning the soil, and what grew out

are ey eee
; :

el nd! tah ihee ith tet Ga ko a

of it, down stream, to the lasting detriment of navigation and manufactures, and :
in the way of discouraging efforts to plant new ana develop old woodland, is, in
long run, perhaps as great as the direct, or even greater. Only those who have
proper notion of the size and power of an enemy can plan a successful campai
against it; and right here comes in the importance of such statisties as only the Gen-
eral and State Governments can collect. Much has been done, but those who know
most of what has been accomplished are the most desirous of something far moré
complete. ye
In the second place such legislation should not be so far in advance of public
sentiment as to produce reaction. While those who draft the laws should know the
importance of what they are after, they should have balance enough to recognize the
fact that enactments that are not enforeed—especially when the failure results fror
the apathy or the opposition of the public—generally weaken rather than help a cause.
Again, these laws should discriminate between localities where the damage is
mainly direct and immediate and those in which it is remote and cumulative. E. g.,
in the level coast-pine regions of Georgia and the Carolinas the damage done by —
fires is measured mainly by the value of the timber and forest products consumed, and —
by the injury done to the soil by burning up its vegetable substance and the tree-seeds
it contained. In the Adirondacks, on the contrary, the loss is likely to be indireet —
for the most part. The damage to the Hudson, the Mohawk, the Erie Canal, and to —
hundreds of small streams which.will be capricious and irregular in their flow, and to —
the great and rapidly increasing interests connected with summer travel, and besides —
all this, the permanent injury done to the climate of Eastern New York—all these are —
likely to vastly outweigh the direct value of the timber burnt, or of that which would —
afterwards grow upon those steep slopes. Once change the Upper Hudson toa torrent —
and no one can measure the harm that it will occasion. =

;
)
|
Another feature of such laws is that while making free use of the experience of |
other countries where forest administration—both public and private—is so much more —
developed than in America, they should not attempt to adopt foreign systems without —
the modifications rendered necessary by the different conditions of climate, density of —
population, price of forest products, cost of labor, and habits of thought. ava
Again such legislation should be devised and often largely administered and su- —
pervised by Commissioners or special officers who give their entire time to the neces- —
sary experiments and investigations, and those who are charged with these duties
should be so appointed and the tentire of their office should be such, that they will
be entirely above the influences of partisan politics. oe
Another important feature in such legislation is this: it should distinguish every- —
where between enforced and aided fire-prevention, as the French Reboisement Law of —
1860 did between enforced and aided reboisements. In some cases proprietors may —
have so much at stake, may be so intelligent and be possessed of such resources, that
all they need will be help. The administration and enforcement of the laws canin —
such cases be largely entrusted to them. J. g., in the Adirondacks the business of
entertaining summer travelers and serving them may become so lucrative and at the
same time be so put in jeopardy by fires, that the hotel keepers and guides will need
nothing but the authority afforded by suitable laws, to prevent or arrest fires. The
same may become true of more thickly settled regions. In them farmers may come
to appreciate the advantages of timber culture and the extent to which forest fires —
hinder success in it. In such cases nothing will be needed but enactments which such —
communities can mostly enforce and administer through the ordinary courts and —
officers. ee
In other regions the immediate and direct damage likely to be done by fires may be
slight as compared with those which are indirect and consequential, while at the same
time the local proprietors may be few in number, poor, and unintelligent. -In such_
localities the State or even the National Governments may fitly charge themselves —
with the execution of the necessary preventive measures. Such a case may arise upon
the headwaters of the streams tributary to the Ohio. Residents of Western Pennsyl-
vania, West Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, as well as those of Ohio, Indiana, and —
Illinois, may be chargeable with acts and neglects which occasioned, or at least aggra-—
vated, the floods of 1882-’83-’84. In many cases these residents may be scattered over
wide areas, few in any one locality, and at the same time be poor, ignorant, and law=—
less. It would be folly to expect them to appreciate the importance of cutting timber
and preventing fires in such a way as to minimize the likelihood of floods, whose ch
damage would be done hundreds of miles down-stream. The State governments mig t
not feel able or willing to expend the sums necessary to instruct and restrain these
people and to induce them to co-operate with, rather than to oppose, the needed regu-
lations, and yet it might be a grand economy for the National Government, with the
cordial consent of the States concerned, to charge itself with the needed outlay of
money and labor, ; iy

ee OR Ps ih ere ete ee oe Ee

It may be in time that, with the consent of the Northwestern States, the General
_ Government will carry out a system of forest administration that will make it reason-
ably certain that fires shall not rage in the woodlands covering the mountains, hills,
and bluffs of the regions drained by the Upper Mississippi and Missouri rivers.
Another example of aided prevention has reference to the vexed question of leaving
_ the tops of trees and the other débris of logging to feed—and, indeed, invite—forest
_ fires. Among the lumbermen themselves there are two opinions. Some advocate—
and upon their own lands practice—such a disposal of this rubbish that fires are not
_ the almost inevitable sequel of logging. The Northwestern Lumberman—which, how-
ever, is not always consistent with itself—has warmly advocated the enforcement of
such treatment of this stuff. Now the time may come when conservative lumber-
_ men will be glad to have the power to compel their more reckless associates to do
what the common good demands. In such case it is clear that the wisest thing
might be to pass a law merely aiding and enabling the prudent to restrain the reckless.
‘But I will go no further with these general statements. As to specific details they
must vary so much with change of conditions that to prescribe them here and now
would savor of quackery.

LETTER FROM H.C. PUTNAM, ESQ., OF EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN.

Mr. Putnam, being detained in London and so prevented from attending our meet-
ing, as he expected to do, wrote at the last moment to express his keen regret and to
testify his great interest in the object and work of the Congress. He gives an interest-
ing account of what he had seen during the summer, in a quite extensive tour
among the forests of France and Germany. He was especially impressed by the care
with which diseased and wind-fallen trees were removed and their places filled by
young and vigorous ones. In the little province of Baden, which is about as large as
a medium-sized county in Wisconsin, he found one hundred carefully-trained foresters.
High upon the mountains, in almost inaccessible places, trees that were blown down
were cut and saved. He thought that great emphasis should be given to the fact that
all over the continent of Europe rainfall and other climatic conditions are much more
favorable to tree-culture than they are in our own country, and besides, stone, brick-
elay, and other building materials are much more plentiful than in most of our prairie
States. In Europe also, most of the buildings needed are already in existence. Yet
they seem much more desirous to avoid extreme denudation than we do, who have an
immense and rapidly-filling treeless region, while the stores upon which it must depend
are swiftly vanishing before the reckless destruction of our white pine. We may, and
should, cut the merchantable pine, but should take care to preserve an ample area of
forest for a future supply. The most important means to this end, he thought, is the
careful removal of the débris of logging, since white-pine-land, especially when once
_ burnt over, will produce nothing but deciduous trees for a long time afterwards.
In econelusion, Mr. Putnam urged thorough organization for work, to secure needed
- legislation and to arouse and direct public sentiment. We may, said he, meet to read
_ papers and pass resolutions for a thousand years, but unless we do something more
_ definite we do not make progress.

i j SMOKE-CONSUMING DEVICES FOR LOCOMOTIVES.
BY J. N. LAUDER, SUPERINTENDENT OF MOTIVE POWER, OLD COLONY RAILROAD.

In presenting this paper on smoke-consuming devices for locomotives it is not my
purpose to enter into the details of the mechanical construction of the various devices
that have been experimented with in a practical way during the last thirty years, or,
_ to speak more accurately, ever since the locomotive was brought into existence, but to
_ give, in a general way, what has been done in the past and what is being done at the
present time to mitigate the evils of the discharge of unconsumed products of com-
_ bustion from the chimney of the locomotive.

_ The smoke and sparks that are discharged from the locomotive are so annoying to
sengers that on some of our lines a trip by rail on a hot day is something to be

66 3 “ae

dreaded, and the danger to forests and other property from fires set by these sparks is
in the aggregate enormous. ‘

- To the novice the remedy for all this would seem to be toso arrange the furnace that!
perfect combustion would take place. This may be done on stationary or marine en-_
gines, where heating surface enough can be provided to allow of slow and perfect combus- —
tion, but in the locomotive the weight and size of boiler is limited, and artificial means —
must be used to provide for such rapid combustion as is required when the engine is —
developing its full power.

The attention of locomotive mechanics has been drawn to this question of fvel-com- —
bustion ever since the birth of the locomotive, but their efforts to make it perfeethave
been only partially successful, and while the heating surface of our boilers is so small —
in comparison with the requirements of the engines a forced draft will have to be re- —
sorted to. This fact being recognized, it necessarily follows that when the engine is —

developing its full power the artificial draft is so strong that small particles of coal will —
be lifted from the fire and drawn through the flues unconsumed and discharged out of |
the chimney in the form of what is called sparks. The fact that some solid matter
will be drawn through the flues from the fire being established, I will now briefly con-
sider the various mechanical contrivances that have from time to time been brought —
forward to arrest and dispose of these solids. ‘

Among the earliest contrivances (when wood was the universal fuel used in this _
country) | was a chimney shaped like a funnel placed with the broad mouth upward.
This broad end was covered with a wire screen, and inside of this chimney was lace
a straight pipe somewhat smaller than the smallest diameter of the chimney, its peight S
being about two-thirds that of the chimney. Over this, and near the wire screen, was
mounted a deflecting plate with edges curving downward. A spark reservoir was 7
placed in some suitable position near the smoke- box, and pipes were made to lead —
from the annular space between the chimney and the inside pipe to this reservoir. _
The operation of this arrangement was as follows: rr

The unconsumed products of combustion that were drawn through the flues were
driven by the exhaust steam upwards against the curved deflector at the top of the —
chimney, and the larger and heavier ‘particles were forced down and into the spark
reservoir. The lighter particles would pass to the atmosphere through the wire sereen,
but would rarely ‘have life enough to set anything on fire. The reservoir, however,
was soon abandoned, as it was found in practice that with wood for fuel the sparks —
were so reduced in size by friction in their passage through the flues and chimney that
they could all pass through the screen to the atmosphere “with little danger of setting a
fires.

When coal came to be used as fuel the old arrangement of chimney was found to be
unsuitable, and new appliances had to be devised. A new and annoying element had
to be met—that of gas and smoke, caused by imperfect combustion in the furnce. —
When fresh coal is added to the fire a vast quantity of gas is evolved, and unless a ©
sufficient quantity of atmospheric air is brought into immediate contact with it it will —
pass off in the form of smoke.

Various plans to furnish the requisite amount of air, and at the proper time, have
been tried, but the varying conditions under which the engine is working have so far —
made it practically a failure. :

Letting air into the furnace over the fire, while it will prevent the formation of
smoke if let in in sufficient quantity, will also lower the steam- producing qualities of
the boiler. Air mixed with a jet of steam driven into the furnace over the fire has
been tried at various times and in various ways, but it has always ended in failure.
D. K. Clark, the eminent English engineer and author, in his work on the locomo- —
tive, describes a method of injecting air and steam mixed into the furnace of a loco-
motive boiler to promote the combustion of the gases.

Recent so-called inventions brought out in this country are almost exact duplicates —
of appliances described by Clark long ago. a

Rotary blowers have been used to drive the products of combustion from the smoke-_
box back to and into the furnace to be subjected to a reburning process, but such methods —
never got beyond the experimental stage. Double or twin “furnaces have been tried,
but while producing good combustion the mechanical difficulties to be overcome have
thus far interfered with their success. Mechanical devices in various forms for driving —
the solid, unconsumed products of combustion from the smoke-box back through suit- _
able tubes to the furnace were several years ago quite largely used, but they have -
nearly all given way to more modern and better “methods.

I will now proceed to discuss the most approved methods of promoting combustion, ;
and also the mechanical means employed to prevent the escape of sparks from the —
chimney, drawings of which will accompany this paper.* Asa here let me say, curi- —

q
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|
|
|
|

‘at may seem, the wonderful discoveries made in the last twenty years in the
sroduction of steel have a direct bearing on the question under discussion. -
_ The substitution of steel for iron in rails and tires has made it possible to so increase
the weight of the locomotive that larger boilers can be used, and therefore a very much
ater heating surface in proportion to the cylinder area. This fact makes it possible
do what could not be done were soft iron rails and tires still in use.
_ The modern locomotive boiler has little to distinguish it from its prototype of thirty
years ago. All combustion chambers, water tables, and complications of all kinds
have been discarded, and we have the plain rectangular furnace, with plenty of tubes
_ to freely carry off the products of combustion. Its leading feature is its size and large
_ heating surtace. Its enormous evaporative power will be recognized when I say that
_ this boiler, when pushed to its full capacity, will convert three thousand gallons of
_ water per hour into steam. To accomplish this amount of work on a grate surface of
only eighteen square feet very rapid combustion must be maintained, and this can
_ only be done by a forced draft. A forced draft means imperfect combustion, and im-
__ perfect combustion means particles of unconsumed coal drawn through the tubes.
_ These unconsumed solids must be arrested in their course to the atmosphere and de-
_ posited in receptacles where their presence will not be harmful. This is measurably
_ accomplished by the use of the appliances shown in the drawings.* The smoke-box
_ is made twice the usual length; a coarse wire screen is drawn across high enough to
__ be above all the boiler flues; the chimney is a plain, open pipe, smooth and free from
_ obstructions ; the exhaust pipes are carried-up through the screen, terminating in a
_ single nozzle. In front of the flues a deflecting plate is placed at a suitable distance
from the ends of the flues, and is set at an angle of about twenty degrees. The func-
tions of this plate are twofold—first, it equalizes the draft through the flues; and,

_ second, it deflects the sparks downward, and instead of their being shot upward through
_ the chimney they are banked up in the forward end of the smoke-box, there to remain
_ until they are removed at the end of the trip. In the furnace is placed a fire-brick
_ arch, extending entirely across the furnace and from the fliue-sheet under the flues
back about two-thirds of the length of the furnace. The gases, as they arise from the
coal, are forced to travel back and over this arch on their passage to the flues, and by
the delay thus caused, and also by their contact with the intensely hot fire-brick com-
__ posing the arch, are very thoroughly consumed. The unburned solids lifted from the
fire are also prevented from being drawn directly into the flues, the force of the draft
___ ¢aused by the exhaust steam in the chimney causing them to impinge against the hot

brick, where the heat is so intense that a large percentage of them are consumed that
would otherwise be drawn through the flues in a solid state. The brick arch is sup-
ported on four iron tubes, placed diagonally in the furnace, connecting the water-
Space under the flues with the water over the furnace crown. These tubes not only
_ make a reliable support for the brick, but best promote the circulation of the water in
the boiler.

_ The arrangement of smoke-arch described is not of recent design, but was patented
in substantially its present form about twenty years ago by Mr. John Thompson, of
East Boston, who was then connected with the Eastern railroad in the capacity of
master mechanic. It was tried thoroughly by him at that time, but was abandoned,
for the reason that a comparatively few miles’ run would fill up the smoke-arch with
sparks and so interfere with the draft that the capacity of the boiler to generate steam
in sufficient quantities to supply the wants of the engine was destroyed. The small

—

_ furnaces used at that time and the powerful artificial draft made necessary thereby
_ produced this result.
___ As I stated in a former paragraph, the introduction of steel for rails and tires made
_ the use of larger boilers possible, and with their introduction came the successful use
_ of the sparkjconsuming and arresting devices described. The railroad with which I
am connected has had these appliances in use on a limited number of engines for the
past two years, and in no case has a forest or other fire been set by them, and if kept
In proper order I believe they are absolutely safe.

In conclusion, I wish to say that careful and intelligent manipulation of the fire
by the fireman is imperative, and will do more to prevent the formation of smoke than
_ any mechanical contrivances.

Ss * The illustrations being familiar to our readers, it is not thought necessary to reproduce them.
oz

68 | ae

THE FUTURE OF THE FORESTS OF THE LOWER SOUTHERN STATE! |
AND THEIR PROBABLE TIMBER SUPPLIES.

BY CHARLES MOHR, OF MOBILE, ALA.

It is a well-known fact that the tree-growth of a forest is, in the course of time, —
sueceeded by another of a different kind. Such a change in the character of the forest
vegetation proceeds either slowly, by the gradual encroachment of the invading species —
until those occupying the ground originally have disappeared or are rapidly disappear- —
ing, or by the more or less sudden destruction of the original forest-growth. From a—
closer study of the struggle going on amongst the trees for the possession of the soil —
important inferences can be drawn, first, as to the species which succeed best in
adapting themselves most readily to the change of the conditions involved in the
gradual or more or less sudden removal of the original growth, and, secondly, as to —
the resources of timber and other forest products to be expected from those by which —
it is succeeded. 4

In view of the changes which have taken place in the forests of the Northern States —
by the clearing away of the largest part of the original tree-covering, and which begin
to affect seriously the industrial and commercial interests of large populations as well
as those of agriculture, it might be well to consider the facts which in this respect
present themselves in the lower Southern States, and especially in those of the eastern
gulf region, with their great timber districts, the seats of important and vastly inereas-
ing industries, based upon their resources.

That the rapid depletion and final destruction of the forests of this section, by the
devastation attending the existing methods of management of their resources, is inev-
itable, with little or no hope for their restoration, can be regarded as certain, and in |
contemplating this grave fact the questions in regard to the future prospects offered
by the second forest-growth suggest themselves forcibly to the mind. ta

Considering, first, the supplies existing’in one of the most extensive and important _
timber regions of the South, the maritime pine-belt of the Eastern Gulf States, we —
cannot fail to arrive at facts fraught with important results, pointing to the measures
to be adopted for the maintenance of its timber resources, and well caleulated to —
arouse the attention of the intelligent citizen who, looking beyond the narrow limits —
of self-interest, bestows a thought upon the present and future general welfare of
his country.

This coast pine-belt, reaching from the Chattahooche river to the lowlands of the
Mississippi river, covers about 38,000 square miles, inclusive of the lands covered by
water, cleared or otherwise, not covered by the long-leaf pine. In its extent enrctiee ae
Alabama and Mississippi the merchantable timber of long-leaf pine standing at the
end of 1880, according to the estimates made for the tenth census, amounted in the
first of these States to 16,055,000,000 feet, board measure, and in the latter to 18,200,-
000,000. In the light of the scanty information obtainable the annual cut during
the past five years, beginning with the close of the census year, can be estimated to
have averaged 140,000,000 feet, board measure, in Alabama and 102,000,000 feet in
Mississippi.

This cut reduces the amount of the supplies standing in this pine-belt at the end of _
the present business year in the first of these States to 15,855,000,000 feet, and in
the latter to 17,660,000,000 feet, board measure. ee

Under such present strain the timber supply of Mississippi will last a little over 170 —
years, a period of sufficient length to afford the time needed for the production of the —
same kind of timber equal in quality to that of the original growth. The long-leaf —
pine can be said to furnish in from 150 to 175 years timber of the size and quality
required. Hence, if care were taken to restock the denuded acres by natural seeding,
and to protect the new growth from the invasion of objectionable species and from the
inroads of fire and cattle, the resources of the pine forests of Mississippi could be fully —
restored before the exhaustion of the original stock. With the stock on hand their —
maintenance would be a matter of comparatively small expense, if managed properly _
under the guidance and protection of laws enacted by the State and upheld by an —
intelligent and patriotic community. 22

Nature has wisely provided that timber will flourish on lands the soil of which is —
too poor to yield profitable returns under cultivation for any other crop, and lands of |
this class should be forever devoted to the purposes for which they are naturally best
adapted and. intended. To that class of lands belong by far the greater part of those |
covered with the long-leaf pine forests. Deprived of their timber-wealth, these lands —
are rendered entirely valueless. They will, however, under the system indicated soon —

me valuable, and thereby the prosperity of the State and the individual, both for
1e present and future, would be greatly advanced.
In Alabama, where at present rates of consumption the timber supply will last, to- all
appearance, but little over a century—that is, about two-thirds of the time required
for its restoration—no wiser policy could be adopted than to reduce the cost accordingly.
_ Such reduction‘alone, in conformity with the natural law of reproduction, would
have a tendency to advance the prices of all kinds of timber and other products of the
forest to a height more in accordance with their intrinsic value, based on the cost of
production, if it had to be effected at the expense of time and labor of men, and, fur-
thermore, offer a safeguard against over production leading to the ruinous de-
pressions in the trade by glutting the markets. Any one engaged in the lumber busi-
“ness, timber trade, or the production of naval stores will have to admit that thousands
ipon thousands of acres of the best timber lands have been uselessly destroyed and
_ their products wasted in having been disposed of at prices affording no profit whatever
to any one connected with the business, not to mention the irretrievable destruction of
_ yalues, which has caused the financial ruin of many.
_ ~ It must not be overlooked that the drain of these forest resources will rapidly in-
_ erease with the increase of population in the timberless regions and with the impend-
ing depletion of the white pine of the Northwest.
According to the above statements, the demands made during the last five years upon
_ the timber supplies in this pine belt within the two States cited, required the depletion
_ of over 400,000 acres, tending to a total destruction of the original timber growth of
that area. The restoration of its tree covering being left here as elsewhere solely to
the effort of nature, the second growth, uncared for by man, must be expected to sat-
isfy the requirements of the future.
_ Beginning in the tidewater region with the examination of the resources held thus
_ in prospect in the different districts of the Lower South, and particularly the Eastern
Gulf region, it is found that in the coast plain there is no prospect for the spontaneous
» restoration of the long-leaf pine. The offspring of this tree, in the struggle for the
_ possession of the soil, has to succumb to that of its allied species, the Cuban pine (Pi-
_ nus Cubensis) and the loblolly pine (Pinus teda), the first supplanting it to the |
largest extent in the openings made in the original forest, the latter gaining a foothold
in the exhausted fields abandoned by the settler. The Cuban pine, most frequent in
the flatwoods of Florida, extends along the coast westward to Eastern Louisiana; it
is never found to ascend to the pine uplands or to enter the banks of the water-courses
intersecting them, above the level of the tide. In the coast plain it is found in all
stages of growth on the land not originally occupied by the long-leaf pine, showing a
_ remarkable rapidity and thrift of growth. Stately groves of trees seventy to eighty
_ feet high, and from sixteen to twenty inches and over in diameter, perfectly clear of
_ knots for fully two-thirds of their height, furnish supplies of fuel of good quality in
_ the surroundings of Mobile. None of these trees of second growth have been found to
_ show over fifty rings of annual growth.
__ The wood of the Cuban pine is less resinous than that of the long-leaf and the
loblolly pine, compact, but of a coarse grain, and the timber is inferior to that of the
long-leaf pine. The specific gravity of the wood is 0.750, exceeding that of the latter
"species, and, according to the experiments recorded in volume IX of the Tenth Census,
it is not inferior in its relative fuel value and its ultimate power of resistance under
pressure ; hence, entitled to more consideration than it receives at present by the trade.
In view of its quick growth and the qualities of its timber the fostering of the young
growth in the unpromising soil of the low pine barrens or flat woods, not improperly
called in this district pine meadows, which extend over many hundreds of square miles
_ along the eastern gulf shores, cannot be too strongly recommended.
Amongst the prominent resources of valuable timber found in the overflowed lands
of the coast and in the wide alluvial river valleys with low-water level, the mighty
+ eypress (Taxcdium distichum) takes a conspicuous place. On account of the excellent
_ qualities of its timber, of late years eagerly sought for, this tree is rapidly disappear-
_ ing in all localities easy of access. In such the exhaustion of the supplies is a ques-
tion of very short time. Those existing a few years ago in the delta of the Mobile
iver are almost depleted, and to meet the demand of the mills on the Tensaw river
have to be brought from the distant swamp lands along the Alabama and Tombigbee
rivers. The same can be said of those but a short time ago abounding in the alluvial
forests of the Mississippi and Yazoo delta. It is only in the remote and at present
practically inaccessible cypress-brakes in the upper parts of this alluvial region that
ese supplies are yet untouched. The time is, however, rapidly approaching when
will be brought into requisition, and when capital and the skill of the engineer
ansporting. the gigantic trunks to the streams will find proper returns for over-

70 | . a

a
coming the difficulties presented in making them available. It is almost impossible
to get the data upon which an approximate estimate of the cypress timber standing i1
the Gulf States could be based. Certain, however, it is, that the existing supplies ar
rapidly brought under the control of capital. There can be no doubt that with their
depletion cypress lumber will nearly disappear from the markets. Comparatively”
few trees below the size demanded for the manufacture of lumber are found in thes
alluvial forests. A young growth of this tree is found on the borders of the eypress
“swamps, and its seedlings spring up in the greatest abundance whenever the rays
of the sun can reach the patches laid bare after a long season of drought by the —
receding of the water which, most of the time, covers the ground in these forests.
Sound trees beyond the first stages of growth, approaching medium size, are rarely:
seen in the eastern gulf region. A tree felled at that stage, measuring eighty feet in’
height and little over thirteen inches in diameter, judging from the rings of annual.
growth, seemed nearly a century otd. The logs rafted to the mills average thirty-two
inches in diameter and fifty feet in length, equal to 2,400 feet of lumber. Trees of
dimensions to furnish logs of such size have required not less than from 200 to 250 —
years for their growth. a

The white cedar or juniper (Chamecyparis spheroidea) is equally threatened with ex- —
tinction asa source of timber. Much in demand for its light, durable wood, this timber- —
tree is rapidly disappearing in the Gulf States, with little prospect of its restoration.
Both of the trees last mentioned are easily raised from the seed and grow without
difficulty in almost any soil, in cool, damp situations, from the banks of the Ohio to-
the Gulf shore, their growth making considerable headway during the first twenty-
five years. “2

Amongst the enormous quantities of hard-wood timber of inferior quality, found in ~
the gloomy forests of the alluvial lands of the tide-water districts and commanding at ~
present but little attention, turnished by the water oak, tupelo gum, green ash, —
white bay, water hickory, the water elm or wahoe is to be mentioned as one of the —
more valuable trees, being quite abundant and attaining here its best development, —
trees from two and a half to three feet in diameter, furnishing timber of excellent —
quality, being frequently found in these low forests. 5

Entering the rolling pine uplands or pine-hills, the changes caused by the removal —
of the primeval forest of long-leaf pine present a more striking and totally different —
aspect. a

The seedlings of the long-leaf pine are rarely found to occupy the places of the
parent tree. It is a growth of deciduous hard-wood trees which chiefly takes posses- _
sion of the soil, forever excluding the offspring of the original forest tree. The blue-
jack or upland willow oak (Quercus cinerea), Spanish oak (Q. falcata), black-jack
(Q. nigra), with the mockernut hickory (Carya tomentosa), if undisturbed by fire, —
make a rapid growth, presenting on the better class of these pine lands, in the pei ;
of from forty to fifty years, copses of trees above medium size. The ridges of utmost
sterility, with a soil of pure white sand, are soon covered with a dense growth of the
turkey oak (Q. catesbei), forming coppices, which, in the vicinity of larger towns,
are every ten to twelve years cut over, furnishing fuel of good quality. The second
growth of the long-leaf pine is only found in the localities accidentally protected from —
the invasion of the fires which scourge these woods season after season. It is found to”
sueceed best in the broad expanse of uplands, where the porous, sandy, or gravelly —
soil, with but a slight admixture of clay, presents no obstacles to its deeply-penetrating”
taproot. z

This tree shows, in the earliest stage of its development, the remarkable peculiarity —
that up to the fifth year of its existence it remains almost stationary in its vertical
growth, until the stem has attained a certain thickness. Until the end of that period —
exceeding scarcely the surrounding herbage in height, and being full of resinous —
juices, the young trees have no chance of surviving the ever-recurring conflagrations
to which they are exposed or the tramping down by the herds of cattle ranging
through the woods. Protection against these destructive agencies during this stage ~
of their growth is absolutely required for the preservation of the species. This having —
been afforded, the trees show a most thrifty and rapid growth up to the third and
fourth decade of their life; after that period the growth proceeds slowly. Trees fur-—
nishing logs from sixteen to twenty inches in diameter seem to require not less than fr@ mn
150 to 175 years to attain such dimensions. No greater benefit could be bestowed —
upon this section than to assist in every way the attempts of nature to renew the orig-
inal tree-covering of these pine uplands, upon the existence of which depends unques -
tionably in such a large measure the welfare of future generations, not only through
a supply of timber and other indispensable forest products, but also the preservation
of conditions of climate which favor so highly the agricultural interests of these States.

ox In the upper division of this pine belt or region of a mixed growth, made up of
‘arious pines and hard-wood trees, the struggle for the possession of the soil among
the different species is most evident. The long-leaf pine, occupying the sandy and
rocky ridges, can be said to cover fully half of the area of this region. Here its
progeny is brought into competition with innumerable and most aggressive foes in-
_ vading its territory, to which it is sure to succumb. Of its final disappearance from
these hills there can be little doubt. The most formidable and aggressive amongst
them is the short-leaf pine (Pinus mitis). Numberless seedlings of this tree sprout up
every spring; by their rapidity of growth they easily suppress the seedlings of the
_ long-leafed species, encroaching not less upon the forests of hard woods on the more
productive soil of these uplands, and taking immediate possession of any opening
- made in the forest and the exhausted fields thrown out of cultivation. Extensive
tracts, less than half a century ago covered with magnificent forests of white,
‘Spanish, red and black oak, brought under cultivation, and by constant cropping, fora
succession of years, finally exhausted, afford in these districts good opportunities to
observe the work of nature going on in the restoration of the forest.” The saplings of
the short-leaf pine form at first dense thickets, absolutely impenetrable. Before arriv-
ing at the tenth year the work of thinning out begins actively in this growth, by the
death of the weaker saplings. Favored by the access of light and air thus gained, the
surviving growth shoots rapidly upwards, the young, aspiring trees spreading out
their crowns; in the meantime those lagging behind die, one after another, under the
increasing shade. Having reached the age of fifty years the trees average sixty to
_ sixty-five feet in height, from twelve to fifteen inches in diameter, standing from fif-
teen to twenty feet apart, with no undergrowth whatever between them. Before
__ arriving at the age of one hundred years the trees are found to be eighty feet and over
_ in height, with a diameter of twenty to twenty-two inches and more, the trunks clear
- for about one-third of their height, furnishing timber of fine quality, particularly
esteemed by the house-carpenter and fully as durable as that of the long-leaf pine.
Spreading with surprising rapidity over every clearing made in these uplands, from
the upper part of the pine belt, through Central and North Alabama, over the rolling,
loamy uplands of the northern half of Mississippi, throughout the whole of Northern
Louisiana and Northeastern Texas, this pine can be emphatically called the timber
tree of the future in the States of the Lower South.
It is only the loblolly pine that can be said to compete successfully with this tree in
the contest for the possession of the soil, and only on the lands greatly impoverished
by cultivation and in localities with moisture and a more sterile soil. One of these
lobloilies growing with the short-leaf pine on the highlands of North Alabama,
- measured, when felled, one hundred and twelve feet in height, and twenty-one inches
in diameter, showing ninety-two rings of annual growth.

The loblolly pine in the lower division of the pine belt takes possession, almost ex-
_clusively, of the worn-out and abandoned lands. If less esteemed on account of the
‘inferior quality of its timber, which quickly decays when exposed to the weather, it
_ gains in importance if it is considered that this tree, in the near future, is to be depended
upon as the earliest available resource of.crude turpentine from the second growth of
this section.

_ On the rocky summits.of the mountains and on the arid ridges in North Alabama,
as is also the case in the Southern Atlantic States, the worthless scrub pine or Jersey
‘pine (Pinus inops) replaces the hard-wood growth. In the limestone hills and the
valleys and ridges of Central and South Alabama, with a rocky calcareous soil, the
young growth of the red cedar (Juniperus Virginiana) suppresses almost completely
that of any other tree wherever the upland oaks, hickories, chestnuts, &c., have been
eut down. The most advanced of this second growth furnishes an ample supply of
- small timber, on account of its durability suitable for posts, poles, and other inferior
_ purposes, but unfit for the higher uses for which that of the first growth is so much
esteemed.

_ The cedar brakes in Alabama and Western Florida are rapidly disappearing.

_ The clearings madein the more or less extensive patches of hard-wood in the dry,
_ sandy lands throughout Western Florida are taken possession of by the sand pine or
hammock pine (Pinus clawsa), a tree of no value—the Southern spruce pine (P. gla-
Ee) occupying the ground in the same section of country in the richer low hammock
lands.

__ Less striking are the alterations in the character of the woods which take place in
e forests of deciduous leaved trees in the bottom lands, fertile plains, and the up-
ds, with the most fertile soil. The hard-wood forests in the central and upper parts
the Eastern Gulf States, harboring yet large supplies of valuable timber of white
ak, sweet gum, yellow poplar, hickory, white ash, and some black walnut, willsurely

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melt away with a rapidity that can scarcely be realized now, under the heavy dems d
of the near future created by the needs of this whole country. With the steady in-
crease of population, the fertile lands bearing these resources, Wherever they can be
brought under the plow, are certain to be devoted before long, to the raising of the
staple crops of this section in the same way as has happened with the rich forest lands
throughout the North, where their timber supplies of a little more than a generation
past had been deemed almost inexhaustible. The second growth of the rich alluvial
woods, as observed in the upper part of the Mississippi and Yazoo delta, has been found
to consist principally of sweet gum, red elm, water elm, honey-locust, box elder, and —
hackberry. Young black walnuts are frequently found springing up in all the open-—
ings in the river bottoms. None of the valuable white oaks have been seen amongst —
the second growth. “%

It would exceed the limits of this paper to dwell any further upon the details of
these alterations in the character of the forests of the lower Southern States. One fact
observed in this section, as elsewhere in this country, important in its practical bear-—
ings, stands forth prominently—that is, that the kinds of greatest economic value are —
giving way before those inferior in quality, demonstrating that the resources of our —
most valuable kinds of timber can only be restored by the establishment of forest plan:
tations.

That such plantations of our most valuable timber trees, found originally only on —
the richest lands, can successfully be established on poorer lands of comparatively but
little value is evident from the thrifty growth such trees as the black walnut, the —
yellow poplar, the live oak, the cow or basket oak (Q. Michauzii), the white ash, and —
others are found to make under the influences of the climate of the lower South. o

Whatever is effected by the spontaneous efforts of nature in the way of the restora- —
tion of the forests, the aid of man is required to secure that which is of most value to”
him.

RECLAMATION OF WASTE LANDS.
BY B. G. NORTHROP, L.L. D.

There are four kinds of waste lands in the Atlantic States, including ten Southern —
States— oa
1. Swamps and marshes.
2. Sand barrens. : ae
3. Exhausted lands, once arable and fertile. oh,
4. Rough hill-sides, formerly good grazing ground, now overrun with worthless _
weeds and brush. ake? |
The reclamation of marshes by drainage, both surface and subsoil, has been carried on
so long, extensively and successfully as to need no detailed discussion here. England, —
Treland, and Holland contain millions of acres of such reclaimed land. Lakes, from ten _
to fifteen miles in length, have been thoroughly drained, and such bottoms are usually —
very fertile. The drainage of the Lake of Haarlem, in Holland, was completed more —
than thirty years ago. The lands thus reclaimed have since been sold for nearly three
and a half million dollars. The success of this grand experiment has prompted many _
others, like the draining of the Zuid Plas, a lake covering over 11,000 acres ; an arm-
of the Sheld, covering 35,000 acres; the enlarging and deepening the tunnel, origina
cut by the Emperor Claudius, 1800 years ago, to drain Lake Celano in Italy, a work
costing the Italian government over $6,000,000 and recovering 42,000 acres. Though
this work of Claudius, the wonder of that age, employing 30,000 men for eleven yea
was successful during his reign, it afterwards fell into disrepair, and was neglected for
centuries. It is one of the many proofs of the revived enterprise of the present goy-—
ernment, rivalling their historic ancestors, that they have restored and surpassed thi
old Roman work. While in our country, with vast areas of virgin soil, sweh expen
itures would be unwise, there are large tracts of marshes that may be easily and eco-
nomically drained. Much has already been done in this direction on the New Jersey
seacoast, along the shores of Lake Michigan, on the Massachusetts seacoast, as at
Marshfield, and still more in California, where over 200,000 acres have been improved
by protection from overflow. The improvement of low lands by layers of sand is
familiar to need description. ;
But, will it pay to plant trees on a barren, sandy plain, is the practical questio:
Here experience is our best guide. Over 10,000 acres on Cape Cod, which thirty y:
ago were barren sandy plains, are now covered with thriving planted forests. I
visited the Cape in order to inspect these forests and observe this great transformation

.
|
|

ye ee 8 ey eee

have asked many farmers the question, Does it pay? and always received an
mative answer. The seeds were sometimes sown broadcast, but usually dropped
rows. The following statement of one farmer will illustrate the replies of many
hers. ‘‘ When I came to this spot, twenty-five years ago, not a tree could be seen
from my house-lot, and the land could be bought for twenty-five or fifty cents an
Now, covered with trees, it is worth twenty dollars an acre. Besides, it has
nid me over and over in the enjoyment of the improved looks of my place.”’
_ An interesting, and so far successful, experiment in reclaiming barrens by tree-
planting was begun eight years ago by Mr. H. G. Russell, at East Greenwich, R. L.,
onan arm of Narragansett Bay. I have recently visited this forest plantation to
learn Mr. Russell’s methods and their results. His previous attempts to cultivate this
and were failures. ‘‘ For every dollar expended in trying to fertilize for crops I could
not get a return of ten cents,’’? said Mr. Russell. Here are now over three hundred
_ acres of planted trees. More than 500,000 trees have been ‘‘set out,’’ and many bush-
_ els of acorns. chestnuts, and other nuts or tree-seeds have been planted in the fields
_ where they are to grow. Sixty acres of this land were a worthless and unsightly ©
“sand blow ’”’ drifting before the winds which sweep over these barren reaches. At
first these waving sands could be held in place only by brush or other rubbish till the
_ thickly planted trees fastened them with their intertwining, rootlets or dropping and
_ decaying foliage. While Mr. Russell’s primary motive was not pecuniary profit, but
_ to transform those unsightly barrens into an attractive forest and form extensive wind-
_ breaks to shelter his estate of nearly seven hundred acres, he is greatly gratified by the
_ success of his experiment, and confident that all his expenditures in tree-planting will
_ prove a remunerative investment. At a fair valuation, present and prospective, of his
_ plantation, the accurate account kept from the beginning of all outgoes for trees, nuts,
_ seeds, and labor gives a balance on the right side of the ledger. This plantation is a
_ sort of Forest School, or rather an object-lesson for New England. Already his. young
_ forest has proved a source of great and constantly growing enjoyment, and taught him
_ that there is a peculiar pleasure in the parentage of trees—a pleasure that never cloys,
but grows with their growth.

The question has often come to me, ‘*‘ What kinds of forest trees will thrive best on
sandy plains or hills?’’ The answer must vary with the climatic conditions of each
State or country. Experience is here our best guide. For the reclamation of the
sand barrens of Plymouth and Barnstable counties, Massachusetts, referred to above,

_ the common pitch pine was at first generally used. Recently the Scotch pine and
Si European larch haye been widely planted. Said one of the Cape Cod farmers, who
_ has planted over a hundred acres, ‘‘ My plan, carried on for some forty years, has
__ proved a successful and profitable experiment. Fresh pitch pine seeds, carefully gath-
. ered and worth two dollars a pound, are as sure to vegetate as corn. I have planted
_ seeds both with a ‘“ planter”? and by hand. On our light sands a man and a boy will
plant three acres in a day. It will take about half a pound of seed to the acre.”
_ Another farmer said that he found the total expense of planting the pine seed to be
o dollars and twenty-five cents per acre. The cost of setting out young trees, twelve
eighteen inches high, is about eight dollars per acre.
Douglas & Sons, of Waukegan, L[llinois, six years ago began the work of reclaiming
en sand-ridges near the shore of Lake Michigan, trying pitch pine, white pine,
ustrian pine, and Scotch pine. Here, as on Cape Cod, the Scotch pine proved the
best for reclaiming sandy barrens.
_ Another very successful experiment has been tried by J. S. Fay, near Wood’s Holl,
Ym Falmouth, Mass. Mr. Fay says: ‘‘ Thirty years ago this was a barren waste—the
soil dry and worn out. When I bought my place, I was told that trees could not be
_ made to grow there, and hardly any tree could be seen from my house. The Scotch
- ae from the seed did the best. The European larch did not start well from the seed,
ut from the nursery it has grown remarkably.’’? Mr. Fay imported 35,000 plants, of
_ which the larch has proved the most rapid grower and is the most valuable tree. He
has now a fine forest of two hundred acres, which the members of the American Con-
gress of Forestry were invited to inspect the day after its late meeting in Boston. It
was regarded by all as a demonstration of the practicability of reclaiming barrens by
tree-planting. In the language of the official report—
_ “On as bare and wind-swept piece of ground, perhaps, as can be found on our coast,
and on poor soil, Mr. Fay began to plant tree-seeds thirty years ago, and here to-day
is a dense body of wood, in places almost impenetrable. Many of the trees are fifty
or more feet in height, The members of the Congress were delighted to see this proof
forest trees can be so easily raised from seed under such unfavorable circum-
tances. It wasa confirmation of what they had believed and taught, and nothing
e convincing or encouraging could be asked for. Said Mr. Fay, ‘‘ Farming would
pay in such a situation, but raising of forests would.”

—

SA ar

74 ae

There is no longer any need of importing larch, or any economic trees. Douglas &
Sons, above named, furnish the two-year-old plants for four or five dollars per thou-—
sand. G. H. Wright,a nurseryman of Sioux City, lowa, who sold over ten millions of —
trees last spring, offers the seedlings or yearlings uf white ash, soft maple, or box elder |
at one dollar and a half per thousand; white or red elm at two dollars per thousand; _
catalpa speciosa at six dollars, provided that not less than 10,000 are in one order, the —
purchaser to have the right to select such varieties of trees from his full list as he may a
desire to make up the 10,000. 2

An extensive experiment for the reclamation of beach sand lands was tried most —
successfully nearly a hundred years ago, along the coast of the Buy of Biscay, where
the sand-hills, or dunes, as they are called, stretch over a hundred miles. These dunes,
ranging fromm 180 to 320 feet above the level of the sea, are composed of white, sili-
cious sand, rounded and reduced to minute grains by trituration. These grains are —
still too heavy to be borne aloft by the winds and scattered afar like the ashes of vol- —
eanoes. On the Atlantic shore of France the prevailing winds are from the west and —
southwest. Hence, at low tide, the sands, dried by the sun and the wind, aredrivenas
along an inclined plane, up the slopes which descend seaward, and thus form these
growing dunes, which, moving inland, have created great desolation. ~

The practicability and even the possibility of reclaiming such sand barrens is 80%, a9
generally doubted, that it is needful to show what has been done in this direction under
conditions the most unfavorable and where it was confidently predicted nothing could”
be made to grow. The feasibility of reclaiming our barren wastes is proved by many —
facts abroad and at home. Our Atlantic sand-planes were once covered with forests.
The now bare, white sand-hills of Provincetown were described by the Pilgrims on
their landing there as well wooded. The sand-hills on the coast of Prussia were for-
merly wooded down to the water’s edge, and ‘‘it was only in the last century” (says
Geo. P. Marsh) ‘‘that, in consequence of the destruction of their forests, they became _
moving sands.’’ The history of the dunes of Michigan is the same. Fifty years ago,
when that region was scarcely inhabited, they were generally covered with a thick
growth of trees, and there was little appearance of undermining and washing on the
land side or of shifting of the sands, except where the trees had been cut or turned _
up by the roots. The sand dunes of Denmark cover over 160,000 acres; those ee
Prussia, 110,000; those of the single province of Gascony, in France, over 200,000;
and in all Europe the drifting sands, according to Pannewitz, cover 7,000,000 acres.
Says Marsh, ‘There is no question that most of this waste is capable of reclamation
by simple tree-planting, and no mode of physical improvement is better worth the -
attention of civilized governments than this. There are often serious objections to
extensive forest-planting on soils capable of being otherwise made productive, but
they do not apply to sand wastes, which, until they are covered by woods, are not only
a useless incumbrance, but a source of serious danger to all human improvements in
their neighborhood.”

This is a subject of practical interest to us, because we have along our coast, as in
Massachusetts, in Connecticut, in New Jersey, in Delaware, in Maryland, and other
Atlantic States, on the gulf coast, on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan and else-
where, long tracts of drifting sands that have done serious local damage. To stop —
their extension considerable expenditures have already been made in several States to ~
cover their surface with a vegetable growth. But this reclamation of barrens and —
sand dunes has been carried on most extensively and successfully in Europe. Nearly —
a century ago Bremontier published a memoir on the reclamation of sand dunes.
Under the patronage of the French government, he successfully introduced the plant- —
ing of the maritime pine along the Atlantic coast of Gascony. These plantations —
have been perseveringly continued from that time to the present, and now cover over —
100,000 acres in the single district between the rivers Adour and Gironde. Not only ©
has this wide area been reclaimed and made productive soil, but a still greater extent —
of fertile land has been rescued from the destruction threatened by the advancing sand- —
hills. In speaking of the monument erected to Bremontier, in this now stately forest,

Marsh says: ‘He deserves to be reckoned among the greatest benefactors of the race.” ss:

In planting the dunes, a barrier along the shore was found necessary at first to pro-
tect the young trees from the rolling sands, which otherwise would bury them. A
double line of paling was erected parallel to the shore and a hundred meters from ny
high-water mark, the second line being a hundred meters further inland. This paling |
is made of planks sharpened at the lower end and driven into the sand. Spaces of a
inch between the planks, allow sand enough to pass through to bank up equally o
both sides and relieve somewhat the force of the wind by allowing it to pass through
these openings. As the paling is covered by the sands, the planks are raised, one at a
time. A movable frame, with a long lever and mounted on runners, so that it can be
slid along the top of the fence, and having pinchers and a chain, is easily carried and

4 tg) yh td ea laa a la eal al

Bevan
rated by one man. France now draws an annual revenue of 130,000 francs from
the resinous products of these forests. But in this case, the greater profit comes from
the consequent protection of the adjoining country from the encroaching sands, which
jad formerly sterilized fertile regions and buried thriving villages. M.Samanos says
at “in all France nearly one million acres (400,000 hectares) of desolate land, sup-
ed to be doomed to everlasting sterility, hdve been reclaimed, and these savage
deserts are now stocked with maritime pines, which will become for the country a
fruitful source of wealth and supply some day the wants of the whole of France.”’
_ I will name a few illustrations of the extent of this work. Hummel attributes the
‘devastation of the Karst, the high plateau lying north of Trieste—until recently one
_of the most parched and barren wastes in Europe—to the felling of its woods, centu-
ries ago, to build the navies of Venice. The Austrian government is now making
energetic, and thus far successful, efforts for the reclamation of this desolate waste,
__ having planted over half a million of young trees and sown great quantities of seed.
In the vicinity of Antwerp, less than fifty years ago, was a vast desolate plain. Look-
ing to-day in the same direction, from the spire of the cathedral, one can see nothing
but a forest whose limits seem lost in the horizon. Forest plantations have trans-
_ formed these barren lands into fertile fields. On the Adriatic, Baltic, Mediterranean,
as well as the Biscayan coasts, the disastrous encroachments of the sea have been
checked by forest plantations. Extensive plains, once barren sands, south of Berlin,
- about Odessa, and north of the Black Sea, and vast steppes in Russia are now well
wooded.
All sand wastes are by no means alike. Trees which will grow luxuriantly on one
_ will pine away and die on another. The climate, too, varies as well as the soil. The
_ soil of Cape Cod and Nantucket is well fitted for the maritime pine, where it has been
amply tried. It grows well for a season or two, but is sure to winter-kill in a few
years. It suffers from the severity of the winter in Holland and Germany. Sea-spray
_ and saline constituents in the soil or air are fatal to some trees and favorable to others.
_ A knowledge of the natural growths of each vicinity will favor adaptation to local
conditions.

Though dry at the top, sand dunes and most sand plains and hillocks are moist a
little below the surface, by reason of evaporization from the lower strata, retention of
____rain-water, and capillary attraction. The latter cause depends upon the size of the
grains of sand. The finer the grains the greater is the capacity for receiving moisture
. and the longer is the moisture retained.

The benefits that may accrue to our country from the discussion of tree-planting,
were strikingly exhibited 220 years ago, when Sir John Evelyn published his
celebrated work, entitled ‘“‘Sylva; or, A Discourse on Forest Trees and the Propaga-
_ tion of Timber.’’ It was at once received with great popular favor and honored with
_ royal commendation. He had remarkable success in awakening general interest in
_ sylviculture. It was written while he was employed in an entirely different branch of
oat service, but, as he says, ‘‘from an earnest desire to support the credit of the
_ Royal Society, and to convince the world that philosophy was not barely an amuse-
ment, fit only to employ the time of melancholy and speculative people, but a high
and useful science, worthy the attention of men of the greatest parts and capable of
contributing in a supreme degree to the welfare of the nation.’? He was one of the
founders of the Royal Society, and wrote this book at its special request, and that
_ society has originated few books in the last 200 years more useful than this one,
_which still survives, in its grand results, although his other works on painting, sculp-
_ ture, architecture, and medals have long since been forgotten. In many ways Eng-
_ land has recognized her great obligations to the man who-worked so lovingly and so
_ effectively for the good of his countrymen. Disraeli, in his ‘‘ Curiosities of Litera-
ture,” fittingly says: ‘‘Had Evelyn only composed the great work of his Sylva, his
_ name would have excited the gratitude of posterity. The voice of the patriot exults
_ in the dedication to Charles II, prefixed to one of the later editions, in which he says:
*T need not acquaint your majesty how many millions of trees have been planted
_ throughout your vast dominions at the instigation of this work, because your majesty
has been pleased to own it publicly for my encouragement.’ Surely, while Britain
_ retains her position among the nations of Europe the Sylva of Evelyn will endure
among her triumphant oaks. It was a retired philosopher who aroused the genius of
e nation, and who, casting a prophetic eye towards the age in which we live, con-
buted to secure our sovereignty of the seas, for the navy of Great Britain was
astructed with the oaks which the genius of John Evelyn planted.”’

These successful experiments, tried in so many European countries, on so broad a
seale and for so long a period, and even on the most unpromising beach-sands, show
@ practicability of reclaiming our barrens, not necessarily by planting the same trees,

_ or by the same methods, but by those plans which the study of local conditions may

suggest. Aside from direct profit, what can add so much to the attractions and, thane
fore, the worth of the farmer’s home, as that recuperation of any surrounding barrens —
which shall literally make the desert “bud and blossom as the rose? ’’ 5

If one is to be commended who makes two blades of grass grow where but one grew _
before, how much more the farmer who makes forests thrive, where nothing now _
grows ?

SEA-COAST PLANTING: ITS IMPORTANCE, PRACTICABILITY, AND |
METHODS. ae

BY WM. C. STRONG, NEWTON HIGHLANDS, MASS. 3
Our visitors from the fertile regions of the West undoubtedly receive the impression -%4
that the soil of New England is thin and poor—that the hills are barren and the —
growth of wood is meager and stunted. They n@tice intervals and selected spots —
which are highly cultivated and enriched. But the prevailing aspect, it must be con- —
fessed, is that of an impoverished soil. ~.
Very different was the impression produced upon the early voyagers to these shores.
Though accustomed to the luxuriant growth and the stately forests of Old England,
yet they uniformly report in glowing terms of this goodly land.
Gosnold, who is believed to have been the first Englishman who set foot on the soil
of Massachusetts, describes the island which he named Martha’s Vineyard as “ full of
most pleasant wood, vines, gooseberry bushes, hurt-berries, raspberries, eglantine,” &e.
Of one of the Elizabeth Islands he speaks as ‘overgrown with wood, viz., oaks, ash; .
beech, walnut,” &c.
In 1603 Captain Martin Pring writes of the ‘goodly groves and wood” along the 2 PD:
coast at what is now Saco, Kennebunk, and York, in Maine. Twenty years laterthe
Pilgrim settlers confirmed the fact that the land was well wooded and ‘the few open —
open spaces were rich and productive.
Emerson is warranted in saying that ‘‘a few generations ago an almost unbroken —
forest covered the continent.’’ (This is true at least of New England. ) ‘The smoke
of the Indian’s wigwam rose only at distant intervals, and to one looking from Wachu-
set or Mt. Washington the small patches laid open for the cultivation of maize inter- —
cepted not perceptibly the dark green of the woods.”’ Be
And this growth of trees was extended even down to the sea. ae
The company sent out from the Mayflower, when at anchor in the roadstead of watt ta
is now Provincetown, reported of Cape Cod that it was “well wooded and the: ap-
pearance of the soil was promising.’’ In Mourt’s Relation, printed two years later, — 4
this same Cape is described as “ wooded to the brink of the sea,’’ “ compassed about. ‘
to the very sea with oaks, pines, junipers, ,sassafras, and other sweet-wood ;”” and |
again, ‘ all wooded with oaks, pines, sassafras, juniper, birch, holly, vines, some ash,
walnut—the wood for the most part open and without underwood, fit either to goe or
ride in;’’ and of Clark’s Island and Plymouth harbor, ‘‘ fine islands, wherein are |
nothing but wood—oaks, pine, walnut, beech,’’ &c. Of Nantasket (now Middleboro)
he says ‘‘ there is much good timber, both oaks, walnut, fir, beech, and exceeding great
chestnut trees; and although the country be wild and ov ergrown with woods, yet the —
trees stand not thicke, but aman may well ride a horse amongst them.’”’ The Pied a
report Plymouth harbor as ‘ compassed with a goodly land and the country was well |
wooded.’? Eleven years later Wm. Wood describes Boston as * being a neck which ~
hath very good land, affording rich corn-fields and fruitful gardens, but as being bare —
of wood. Their greatest wants be wood and meadow eround, which never were in}
that place, being constrained to fetch their building timber and fire wood from the i is-
lands in boats.’’? To relieve the good people of Boston an order was passed in 1632 ©
allowing them to take wood from Dorchester (now South cae for twenty years. —
The same author describes the islands near Boston as follows n any of these har
bours, the seamen having spent their old store of wood and water, may have fresh
supplies from the adjacent islands, with good timber to repair their wenther-beaten 1
ships. Here, likewise, may be had masts or yards, being store of such trees as are
useful for the same purpose.”’ ‘‘And whereas it is generally conceived that the wood
grow so thick that there is no more cleared ground than is hewed out by labour of
man, it is nothing so; in many places divers acres being clear, so that one may ride a *.
hunting in most places of the land, if he will venture himself for being lost. Th ;
is no underwood saving in swamps ‘and low grounds that are wet.” Pp
The early records of Charlestown speak of it as ‘‘an uncouth wilderness full of
timber.”’ Of the shores of Cape Ann, in 1630, Winthrop says ‘ we might see | eehe
trees in all places very plainly.”

estnut, pine, cedar, cypress, spruce,’ &c. Josselyn’s Rarities, in 1672, states that
the country is extremely overgrown with wood.”
_ Thus we see there are abundant authorities confirming the current traditions that
ot only the inland, but also the islands and the shores were heavily wooded to the
very brink of the sea.
_ It is foreign from my purpose to consider the climatic changes which have resulted
from the destruction of these forests. Neither can we stop to consider the waste to the
soil by reason of the exposure of wide stretches of country to the sun, the winds,
and the rain, with no fresh deposits of vegetable matter to counterbalance the loss. It
is enough for our present purpose that we recognize a vast change in the productive-
ness, especially on the islands and headlands of our seacoast. So poor is the soil and
_ so bleak are the positions, that the impression prevails that it would be useless to at-
_ tempt to replant and restore these shores to their former verdure. But the efforts of
nature to cover every naked spot with vegetation are so universal and so persistent
_ that we may well believe she would herself, if left undisturbed, in process of time,
supplant the lower forms of vegetable growth until she could restare the stately
monarchs of the wood. And we cannot doubt that by a judicious observance of the
_ laws of nature, and by a persistent and systematic protection, forest belts may be suc-
cessfully restored, even upon the bleakest shores, in a comparatively short time. Upon
_ this point we are not left to conjecture. There are abundant experiments which prove
the practicability of reforesting these shores.
Referring to the utterly barren sands of Cape Cod and Nantucket, Emerson cites
_ the examples on the west coast of the continent of Europe, particularly in Holland
_ and in Gascony, in France, where are ‘‘ similar and more extensive wastes of drifting
~ sands, called dunes or downs, which from time immemorial had been barren. These
__were tossed about by the winds like the waves of the sea, the whole aspect of the desert
_ being sometimes changed by storin—valleys taking the place of hills, and hills of val-
- leys.’”’ Quoting from Decandolle, he says (Physiologie Végétale, p. 1236, vol. 3):
_ * The Dutch had for a long time been in the habit of sowing these downs with beech-
grass, that its long matted roots might fix thesand. But if this takes from the sand its
_ power of injuring, it leaves it wholly useless. I was struck with this defect and pointed
out the advantage of planting trees there. I was not then aware that the engineer,
Bremontier, had, as early as 1789, made trials of this very expedient on the downs of
Gascony. Its success has since been made public, and I had the pleasure of witnessing
it with unaffected admiration. The process of Bremontier is remarkable for its sim-
_plicity. He sows in the loosest and dryest sand the seeds of broom (Genista scoparia)
with those of the maritime pine, and covers the surface sown with branehes taken
_ from the nearest pine forest. The object of the branches is to arrest the sand for a
_ time and keep it from blowing away. The plants of the broom spring up first and
_ by their rapid growth serve to retain the sand in its place and to shelter the young
pines. These continue to grow for seven or eight years under the shelter of the broom,
the leaves of which annually mingle with the soil and fertilize it. After this the pines
_ overtop the broom and often kill it by their shade. At the age of ten or twelve years
___ they begin to thin the forest to make tar and to get branches for continuing the process
_ of sowing. In about twenty years they begin to cut down the trees to extract the
_ resin. These forests, situated on the downs along the sea, protect from the continual
_ action of the west wind the whole space situated behind them, and thus at the same
_ time that they themselves furnish an important product they secure those of the rest
of the country.”’
4 Ihave quoted this extract at length because it covers the question so fully, and
shows conclusively that the bleakest and poorest shores may be reclaimed. Other
_ instances of success might be cited, and it is proposed that you should personally
_ Inspect the extensive and successful plantation of one of our enterprising citizens in
this direction. Of course it is evident that our islands and shores are not to be re<
___ claimed by the ordinary methods of tree-planting. They are tuo poor in soil and too
__ much exposed to the fierce ocean winds to warrant the promiscuous planting of trees
of any size. But we may with all confidence follow the example of Bremontier. It
is safe to say that we have no more discouraging spots on our entire coast than he
_ found on the shores of Gascony. In most cases we might advance from seeds to seed-
_ lings of two or three years’ growth as the commencement of the shelter. And we have
_a native growth in the common pitch-pine (pinus rigida), a tree equally as hardy, as
_ valuable, and quite as well adapted for this purpose as the maritime pine. It will
not only endure the bleakest ocean exposure, but also the dashing of spray and the
temporary saturation of the soil with salt water. It may, therefore, safely be consid-
_ ered the advance guard for all other trees along our northern coast, and it will thrive
‘in the poorest soils, where scarcely anything else will grow.

The average growth of pitch-pine on sandy plains, too poor for cultivation, is from —
twelve to eighteen inches per annum, and it is found that such soils, in a period of
about fifty years, may be covered with pines a foot in diameter and forty or fifty feet
high. It cannot be doubted that beginning with seedling pines two or three years _
old, together with sweet fern (comptonia) and our native white birch, a narrow belt
might be established along the coast which would soon afford protection for other
hardy trees of more rapid growth. The late Frederick Tudor erected a high lattice-
work on the bleak promontory of Nahant, behind which, sifting as it were the ocean
blasts, he was able to raise all our fruits with eminent success. The Scotch, Austrian,’
and white pines would require but slight shelter to join the ranks and speedily cover
our sandy coasts. For the stronger soils the oaks, the white spruce, and numerous —
other varieties would speédily follow. Thus, by a wise, patient, and persistent method,
from small beginnings, we may with certainty and in a moderate number of years-
convert the bare and desolate islands and headlands of our harbors and the sandy —
barrens along the coast into groves of luxuriant verdure. What a protection such a
belt would be to the inland country! What a protection to such a harbor as Boston! —
And especially what a transforming effect in the beauty of scenery! The general im-
pression of the islands in our harbor is that of barrenness and desolation, with here
und there a small group of trees as a slight relief. But how exceedingly beautiful
might these numerous islands and inlets and vistas be made, if relieved by a healthy
growth of pines and oaks and arching elms. It is no wonder that the early voyagers
to. these shores were enthusiastic in their description of the abundant woods of this
goodly land. Even to.the brink of the sea they suffered not in comparison with the
stately forests of old England.

It is not to be doubted that the extent of forest had not only an effect upon the dis-
tribution of rain, upon the humidity of the atmosphere and of the soil, and upon the
currents of wind, but that also the soil was annually enriched by fresh deposits of
vegetable matter, which was protected by the shade, and not allowed to dry and blow
or wash away. The process of deterioration has been going on for more than two
centuries and it is true that we now have to start as at the beginning. Yet in manifold
ways the end is so desirable that it is worthy of all effort to attain it. It is a slow
process to restore the soil to its pristine fertility. But it is by no means such a task to—
clothe our coasts with the verdure of forest-growth. In a single generation the whole —
aspect may be changed. And if this were the sole object to be gained, the beautify-
ing of the harbor and the coast, it would yet be worthy of all effort to attain it. The
yearly-increasing taste for sea-side residences, the popularity of steamboat excursions
and public resorts, the vast amount of coast and ocean travel, is making it correspond-
ingly important that our shores should be made attractive. When such marked im-
provement might be obtained at slight cost of money, time, and co-operation—when =
manifold other advantages are also apparent—does it not seem to be wise to secure
combined enterprise, and possibly State encouragement, to the end that our shores may
again wave with verdure ?

TRANSPLANTING EVERGREEN TREES.
BY WM. C. STRONG, NEWTON HIGHLANDS, MASS.

In the northern belt of the United States the time for the successful transplanting
of trees is so limited that the work is necessarily hurried. In this respect the western
shores of Europe, which are affected by the warm breath of the Gulf Stream, present
a great contrast. In England, for example, the work of transplanting proceeds in
every month from October until May. y

We, on the contrary, have a brief limit of about a month in the fall, and but little
more time in the spring. For evergreens, the month of May has generally been con-
sidered the only suitable timé. It is agreed by all that they should not be moved late _
in the fall, nor even in early spring. As their name implies, evergreens are always in
foliage, and consequently are at all seasons demanding a supply of sap from the soil,
If a spruce tree, for example, is planted in March or April, when the ground is wet _ a
and cold, the roots will remain inactive, while the dry winds are searching through the
branches, and in order to supply the evaporation the leaves are making a severe and
oftentimes fatal draft upon the sap of the tree. The case is still worse when a tree is
transplanted late in the fall, for the roots cannot take hold until the ground becomes” —
warm in the spring, and yet the leaves are in action to some extent, evenin winter. It —
would therefore seem essential to plant at a time when the roots can speedily moy
and obtain a supply for the demand from above. In May the ground is becoming
warm—the dormant life of the tree is aroused—the roots are coming into action and

‘ ‘rapidly. It is therefore a good month for planting. But the young growth in
June is soft, the days are hot, evaporation is excessive, and as a consequence trans-
nting is often a severe check. It is well known that most kinds of evergreens make
ttle growth for the first season after planting.
aire we, then, limited mainly to the month of May for doing this work? I amsure that
yth theory and results will answer No. A consideration of the nature and habits of
evergreens will indicate that in some respects even more favorable conditions may be
obtained in August and early September than in May. The roots of most evergreens
continue to grow throughout the summer. If they are summer pruned with a “spade
‘new roots are freely thrown out. On the contrary the growth of branches of most
_ kinds is in June and early July. After this the only process is the maturing and hard-
_ ening of the growth. Now it would seem, upon this statement, that‘all the conditions
for removal are obtained in August. The ‘wood is now fairly hardened and evapora-
a tion is much less than in June. There is to be no immediate tax for new growth. At
this season the earth is thoroughly heated, and when well pulverized gives a gentle
_ moisture and warmth, which greatly encourages the formation of new roots. More-
_ over, the nights are cooler and dewy, so that the tree has, as it were, a gentle bottom
heat, with coolness and moisture at the top. These are the precise conditions for the
_ propagation of evergreens from cuttings. It is well known that cuttings taken in
_ August will root more speedily than at any other season. And a young tree being
_ only an advanced cutting, it stands to reason that it will as readily form new roots in
_ August and become established in its new quarters.
But may we expect that it will get such hold in the soil as to be able to endure the
winter drain? This is a question to be settled only by experiments. In the year 1870
- I made a trial so extensive and so severe that I have since considered the question as
~ fully answered. I will state the facts. Having a tract of land which I decided to
- convert into a pond for the purpose of cutting i ice, it became necessary to transplant
about 40,000 spruce, hemlock, arbor vite, and other evergreens in the month of August.
These trees were of the usual nursery size, from two to five or six feet in height. “The
_ field to which they were removed was about half a mile distant, rather exposed, and
on the north side of ahill. It had been previously well ploughed, with furrows opened
as for potatoes. But August proved to be an exceedingly hot, dry, and cloudless
month, the sun glaring like a ball of fire day after day and week after week.
Yet the work must proceed i in spite of the opinion of an eminent planter that every
tree would die. At the commencement each tree received the third of a pailful of
_ water after planting; but this process was laborious and was not continued for the
_ bulk of the trees. The work proceeded for weeks in the broiling heat, without a drop
of rain, until it was finished about September 15th. I had occasion well to remember
» the remarkable fall drouth which followed—the projected ice-pond receiving no water
_untillatein November. Yet the result was a complete success, with scarcely the loss of
‘atree. It was a pleasure to take up samples in November and see the mass of young
roots which had formed in the soft, virgin soil. The fact that they had received no
‘rain was more favorable to the formation of roots than cold and excessive autumn
‘rains would have been. And I felt sure that, though the trees had been taken from a
sheltered valley and placed on a cold north exposure, yet they had such new root-vigor
- that they could well endure the drafts of winter. This proved to be so—scarcely a
tree being injured in the following winter, and the growth during the next summer
: “was as vigorous as though the trees had not been removed. This trial was so extensive
- and under such severe tests, resulting in such complete success, that I have since re-
_ garded the month from August 15th to September 15th as eminently suited for trans-
os planting evergreens. Of course the usual conditions to protect the roots from sun and
_ air are to be carefully observed, and also a word of caution may be added: that if for-
_ warded in boxes for any considerable distance when the weather is hot, some precau-
‘es tion should be taken to prevent heating.

CULTURE OF THE BLACK WALNUT IN NORTHERN LATITUDES.
BY HON. H. G. JOLY, OF QUEBEC.

_ I have been asked more than once what induced me to choose, of all trees, the black
walnut, which does not grow spontaneously here, being only found as a native tree
further South, and why I should risk the expense and trouble of making large planta-
tions of it.

_ I chose it on account of its great commercial value, so much above that of all our

I ative trees, either oak, pine, or spruce, and I do not regret my choice, as the black

wy eae Sy a, CO eee oer
., i

walnut grows more rapidly than any of those trees, and is as easy to cultivate f
seed, easier in fact, than the pine. :
But will it stand our winters? On that point my experience may be of some use,
and I hope it will encourage the culture of such a valuable tree as the black walnut in-
such high latitude as ours, forty-six degrees forty minutes north, near Quebec. Bors
Until this last summer, 1885, the result of the last twelve years appeared to justify
the conclusion that the black walnut can stand even our Quebee winters, with impu- —
nity. The effect of last winter’s exceptional severity compels me to speak with more —
reserve, as it killed about three hundred of my young black walnuts which had safely —
stood the ordeal of several winters. However, I do not regret the loss, as it has shown
me how to prevent its recurrence and provide against more serious loss in the future. —
When the spring opened, those young trees showed no signs of distress. Their buds —
began to swell, like the buds of other trees; a few even opened. It took some time —
to realize that vegetation was at a-standstill with them. The stem and branches —
looked healthy, the bark fresh, the under bark green. A few bore marks of sunburn,
but the same marks were found on some of the growing trees. I was quite puzzled, —
as long as I looked above ground. te
And here I must express my sense of the great benefits rendered by the Horticultural —
Associations, whose members generously place at the disposal of the public, in their —
printed reports, the results. of their labors. _ I found in the Report of the Transactions —
of the Mississippi Valley Horticultural Society for the year 1884 the explanation, —
which I had long sought in vain, in the remarks of Mr. Peffer, of Wisconsin, as—
reported on page 187 of said Transactions. He says: ‘‘I could not see how my trees
were damaged until I looked below the surface of the ground.”’ 2
Up to that moment I had hesitated to dig up my trees, hoping that they might still —
escape. But I followed Mr. Peffer’s lead—dug up some of the trees, and found out —
what was the matter with them. They were completely gone. The bark of the roots
was all mildewed, burst, and completely separated from the wood for a depth of from
twelve to fourteen inches from the surface ; below that it was quite sound, adhering —
closely to the roots. It was evidently the result of the frost acting on the water con- —
tained in the soil and in the roots. ry;
But why, out of several thousand black walnut trees growing on the same soil, and
with the same conditions of moisture, did I lose such a small proportion as only three —
hundred? The answer was easily found. All the trees killed by the frost were stand-
ing in parts of the plantation where the first snow had not rested, as there happened —
to be there no obstruction to prevent its being swept away by the wind, and where the
unusually heavy rains of last December left a coating of ice round the foot of the tree. —
The trees growing where fences and hedges arrested the snow and caused it to remai ee
on the ground, escaped, without one single exception, though many were just as much 4
exposed to the force of the wind as those that were killed, as they stood on the same
side of the hedge, but where the ground was covered with snow. That made all the ~
difference. The snow had protected the roots from the frost and prevented the forma- —
tion of ice round the foot of the trees. Three different plantations, widely apartfrom
one another and on different soils, gave exactly the same results.
It is easy enough ‘to cause the snow to remain where it is wanted, especially by
means of hedges. A willow hedge costs next to nothing—just the trouble of sticking
the cuttings into the ground at the proper season, when they will never fail. Those —
hedges are as useful in summer for the young trees as they are in winter. A knowl- —
edge of the direction of the prevailing winds will help to place them where they can —
be most effective in collecting the snow, which I consider as the real protection for ~
young trees, orchard trees as well as forest trees, against the severity of our winters;
fences, rails, branches, stones, any temporary obstacle that will arrest the snow will —
answer the purpose until the permanent hedges are ready to do their part. —
I am new taking those precautions, for the purpose of sheltering the young walnuts —
transplanted last spring, and will make you acquaifited with the results at our next
annual meeting.

THE RED CEDAR AND OSIER WILLOW.
BY EDMUND HERSEY, HINGHAM, MASS.

Among the valuable trees that are indigenous to Eastern Massachusetts may be —
classed the Red Cedar. Few, if any, of our native trees possess so many points of exsi
cellence as this. It is valuable as a timber tree, highly ornamental as a shade tree, —
and surpassed by few trees or shrubs for a hedge when kept properly trimmed. It may

a wi?

> trimmed so as to make a wind-break, or it may be kept low simply for an orna-
ntal hedge. It possesses the important qualities of hardiness and freedom from
structive insects. It will grow not only on the rich intervals but also on the sandy
plains or barren hill-tops, in the most sheltered nooks, and on the bluffs that are
sprinkled by the ocean spray.
It is the opinion of too many, whose opportunities should have taught them better,
‘that it requires nearly a century for a red cedar to grow from the seed large enough to
make a fence-post, but there is abundant evidence to prove that it requires but from
thirty to forty years for a tree to grow large enough to be worth for this purpose one
dollar. As 500 trees can be grown on an acre of land, it is evident that on land that
ean be bought for ten dollars per acre it would be a profitable tree to grow, simply for
posts.
_ The bright red color and the spicy odor of the heart-wood of this tree renders it very
- valuable for cabinet work. especially for chests or drawers in which to keep clothing
_ from destruction by insects; but to grow trees for this purpose, like the black walnut,
requires some years to ripen the wood after it has grown. To obtain lumber of a rich
_ dark color requires from fifty to seventy-five years. The most profitable way to grow
it for this purpose would undoubtedly be to permit not more than fifty trees to grow
onan acre, and use the land for a pasture, as this number would not injure the feed
_ but very little, if any, the red cedar being a tree which, on dry land, increases the
amount of grass over which its shadow passes, and decreases it only on a very small
_ space directly around the trunk of the tree.

Whenever division fences are to be made of wire, the red cedar will make one of the
_ best line-posts of any tree we have. It grows upright, with a very straight trunk,
_ shades but little, is of medium size, does not extend its roots to a great distance, and
will grow well on a great variety of soils; all of which are desirable qualities in a line

_ fence-post.

If farmers, when they put up a wire fence and attach it to posts such as are usually
used, would set a small cedar tree between the posts, by the time the posts decay the
trees would be large enough to attach the wires to them, thus making a very cheap fence
that would last for generations. and when changes required its removal the trees could
be utilized for lumber.

There are varieties of the red cedar which, when set in groups a few rods from the

_ dwelling, possess a natural beauty which is not surpassed by any of our native
= trees. Without any effort to shape their form, there are varieties which will growa per- -
fect cone twenty to twenty-five feet high, and not more than six or eight feet in diam-
eter at the base, the lower branches growing very closely to the ground.

The variety that will thus grow may be known when small by the cone form, fine
_ branches, and bluish cast of the foliage. No doubt the want of the knowledge of how to
__ select, when small, the right varieties of this tree for ornamental purposes, has kept it out
of the list of trees most desirable for ornamenting public and private parks. The variety
which has open branches, extending widely from the trunk, with foliage of light green
color, is not desirable as an ornamental tree. The two varieties can be very easily dis-

tinguished when very small by those who have informed themselves of the difference
_ between the two. The specimens which I here offer for your inspection show the
_ two varieties; these are the extremes; they cross with each other and produce all
_ shades between them.
For a hedge, the red cedar has the advantage of hardiness, beauty of form and color,
and its wonderful power to adapt itself to any soil. It has been made to grow on a
gravelly knoll, a sand hill, and in both a northern and asouthern exposure ; bears trim-
‘ming very closely, and will grow so thick that a fly cannot pass through it, providing
the variety with fine branches and blue cast of foliage be selected.
) The red cedar ripens its seed in October and November, which should be gathered

_ during the winter and planted as early in the spring as the frost leaves the surface of
_ the ground. Ifsown on the surface of even grass land, and harrowed in witha heavy
harrow, it will grow; or it may be sown in rows on ploughed land, covering lightly
or just deep enough to keep the soil moist.

When small trees can be readily obtained, as they can in many towns in Eastern
_ Massachusetts, several years may be gained by transplanting the young seedlings when
_ six to eighteen inches in height. Trees growing in loamy land that is free from rocks
and stones, can be more readily lifted without disturbing the roots from the soil that
_ surrounds them than if they grow in a stony or gravelly soil. To properly lift a tree,
_ a pointed shovel should be used to cut the sod and earth around it, cutting ina
_ circle about the diameter of the height of the tree—the ball of earth, when carefully
_ lifted with the tree, to be in the form of a bowl. For large plantations, or for hedges,
trees not more than twelve inches in height should be selected. When not larger than
is, and transplanted in cloudy weather, some time in the month of May, by one who

89 ae . “4 2 na | ‘

understands it, not more than two per cent. will fail to grow. When, in lifting, the
roots of a tree separate from the soil that surrounds them, the tree should be at once
rejected, as it is very difficult indeed to make a cedar, or, in fact, any other everg
tree of any size above six inches in height, live when once the roots have been exposed
to the light and air.

When only a few trees are to be removed but a short distance, with care, trees from
two to three feet in height may be transplanted with success ; but, as a rule,.it is best
to select trees less than twelve inches in height; then there will be but little, if any, —
check in their growth, providing the trees be selected, as they should be, growing —
singly in grass land, where they have had the unobstructed rays of the sun. Trees —
growing in the shade and trees which do not have limbs in vigorous condition grow- —
ing close to the surface of the ground, should be rejected as unfit to transplant. +4

THE OSIER,

Very few who have attempted to cultivate this variety of willow have understood its -
characteristics, and so have failed to realize fully its value. Nearly every cultivator
has attempted to grow it on moist, cold land, and has failed to obtain the best, or even —
satisfactory, results—it not being a tree that is adapted to low land, but grows naturally —
on high, warm land, where it makes a wonderful growth even when left to gather its.
substance from a thin, unfertilized soil. As it grows quite as well from cuttings as _
from roots, it is very easy to start a plantation. The cuttings, when set on good corn _
land, will make a growth of from two to four feet the first year. That the roots may be-
come well established, the osiers should not be cut until the second year, whenearly in
March they should be cut close to the ground. The first product is of but little value —
except for cuttings for new plantations. The following season the osiers will grow from _
four to nine feet in length, surpassing in quality the best imported European willow.

To give you an opportunity to examine and judge for yourselves how well this
variety of willow will grow on very light land I have brought these specimens, which
are the growth of the present season. The longest one measures nine feet and three
and one-half inches in length, and less than one-half an inch in diameter at the large
end, after the bark is taken off. The roots from which these were cut have been set —
about twenty years; the soil is a light, sandy loam, good mason sand being within a
few feet of the surface. The land has never heen cultivated or manured within many —
rods of where they grew until within three years; since then the land north of them —
has been plowed and a peach orchard set. The first year the land was manured with —
barn manure, the second year nothing was applied, and this year a few pounds of muriate
of potash was applied to each peach tree; but no fertilizer was applied within ten feet
of where the willows grow. When desired for basket-work, the osiers should be eut
the next March after they have made one year’s growth from roots more than two
years old, and peeled as soon as the bark will readily slip. If not ina locality where
they are wanted for basket-work, the osiers should be thinned out by cutting one-half
of the smallest, and as soon as the leaves begin to show on the stems of those left
uncut they should be removed by passing the thumb and finger from within afew _
inches of the top down to the ground, thus leaving only a tuft of leaves on the top,
and preventing the growth of lateral branches. If the osiers thus stripped be per-
mitted to grow two years longer they will be large enough for hoop poles, and being —
very smooth, straight, and of uniform size, they make one of the best materials for —
hoops for kegs and for binders for boxes in which merchandise is shipped. . Se

Where there is a market for the willow for baskets and the method of peeling is —
understood, it is more profitable to cut every year for basket-work than to cut only once
in three years for hoop poles; but in many localities it would be difficuit to find men —
ready to buy the osiers for basket-work or to find those who understand the process of —
peeling them, though the process is very simple and requires but little time to learn it. —

On good land three tons of peeled and dried osiers can be obtained from an acre, —
worth in the market $125 per ton. To peel the osiers by hand: labor costs sixty
dollars per ton, but by machinery much less, though as yet I have seen no machine ©
that has been perfected which will do the work as well as it can be done by hand-_
labor; but no doubt there will be, A fair crop, on ordinary soil, is about one ton to
the acre, thus giving a yearly profit of more than sixty dollars.

As the demand for osiers for basket-work is somewhat limited and confined to the —
cities, if very large quantities should be grown the market might be overstocked; but
the demand for hoop poles is so large in all parts of the country that there is no prob-
ability that it will be overstocked for many years to come, and the profits for this pur-
pose will exceed that of almost any crop which the farmer can grow. . Vs

In setting a plantation of willows, the land should be prepared by plowing and ma- —
nuring as for Indian corn, and if it be grass-land it would be better to plant it one —
year tocorn. The cuttings should be about twelve inches long, cut early in the season —

the sap starts, and set as soon as the ground will work easily; the cuttings
be set well down, so as to leave not more than two inches above ground, and
angle of about forty-five degrees. If for basket-work, set in rows two feet apart
h way ; if for hoop poles, three feet each way. The land should be kept well pul-
ed the first two years, and the weeds and grass kept out, after which no further
ivation will be needed, as the crop will so shade the land that nothing else will
Unless the land be very poor, no manure will be needed after the first year ;
eaves falling among the willows, which cover the ground so thickly as to prevent
m from blowing away, gradually decay, and enrich the land the same as they do
in a thick forest.
When the best methods of growing this tree or shrub are fully understood, a new
and very profitable industry will be added to those which we now have.

ta SOME PRACTICAL HINTS ON TREE-RAISING.*
, BY JOSEPH STORY FAY, WOOD’S HOLL, MASS.
a
_ There is a great attraction in watching the growth of trees. Children often plant
peach or cherry-stones, apple-seeds or horse chestnuts for the sake of seeing them sprout
and grow. There is no object in nature more generally admired than a thrifty tree.
Then, too, there are many inducements to plant them. Like money at interest they
grow while we sleep, and they are always a good investment. As the larger trees and
' finer timber are cut down, and the prices of lumber and wood in all their forms in-
_erease, we see a value in the smaller and more inferior ones, and realize the necessity
of caring for them. On almost every farm and garden there are neglected corners and
rough patches that are unused—too rough and stony to plow, too poor for pasture—where
the spade cannot penetrate, but into which a tree-seed once planted sends down its
roots and makes a home for itself. Nature is availing herself of these opportunities all
_ the time, but the intelligent helper can hasten the work.
__ A good deal of labor is involved in the transplanting of a hundred trees, but little
_ time is required to plant a hundred acorns, hickory-nuts, chestnuts, butter-nuts, beech-
nuts, or black walnuts. It is necessary to put the seed away in fall for spring plant-
ing. Nature plants these various nuts or seeds in the fall, by dropping them among
the fallen leaves in the little depressions of the earth, and there, if they were undis-
_ turbed, many would germinate and grow. But the mice and squirrels and worms
_ devour many, while others fall under the trees, so that if they grow they are not in the
_ right place and are shaded out. Thus but asmall proportion of the seeds or nuts become
_ trees. Mr. John Kenrick, of South Orleans, in this State, has made extensive tree-
_ plantings, both of pine and of deciduous trees. The seed of the pine, protected by its
_ shell, preserves its germinating power very well through the winter and can be planted
inthe spring. Acorns and the various nuts, unless cared for, dry up and mould and
lose their vitality. To remedy this Mr. Kenrick puts his acorns or nuts, mixed with
and, or in layers, in a box or barrel, the bottom of which is bored full of holes. He
then covers the top of the barrel or box with wire cloth to keep out rats and mice and,
_ digging a hole in the earth, buries it five or six inches below the surface and covers it
up. When the frost is out of the ground in the spring, he exhumes the box or barrel
and finds all his acorns or nuts sprouted and ready to plant out. With a trowel they
can be set just below the surface of any rough or stony ground, lightly covered, and
they will grow with great certainty. Many hundreds can be planted ina day. This
_ is a work that any one can do, and it is very practical and valuable. As we have said,

now is the time to get the acorns or chestnuts or other nuts and tu put them away for
_ spring planting.

___ The fall would do equally well for planting but for the ravages of squirrels and mice.
_ The seeds of the various kinds of pine and spruce do not require the samecare. If kept
_ ina dry place they will germinate without fail when sowed or planted in the spring.
_ As most people know, these seeds are borne in a cone, which, when ripe, generally
_ opens under the action of a sharp frost and the seeds fly out. Having wings, these are
often carried to a considerable distance, and plant themselves in the open fields. After
a cold, frosty day in autumn, with a strong northwest wind, the air to the leeward of
a pine grove may be seen full of these flying seeds, and so the forests are enlarged.
This is nature’s process, and being very irregular, there are many parts of the open

bag a
-*These notes have been written by the well-known pioneer of forest planting on the Massachu-
s coast, and at his request find a proper place in this report.

Pie ila. SAN ea NE be We a tl 48

out the seed and plants them in one of two methods. The first and simplest is, ¥
there is a light fall of snow in the spring, to scatter the seed on the surface of th
ground, so that it may be seen where it falls. Seeds are then not sown too thickly
The second method is either to plow shallow furrows about five feet apart, running
around the hills rather than over them, following with a common vegetable seed.
planter, or a man may, with a common corn-hoe, dig flat holes about four or five feet
apart, a boy with a pail of seed passing along with him and dropping three or four
each hole. The man then flaps his hoe on the seed or treads his foot on it. Pine seeds
need very slight covering. From six to eight acres can be planted in a day with a
plowed furrow—three or four by the hoe. The work should be done as early in the
spring as the frost will admit. Early planting does the best—that the seed may ger-
minate before hot, dry weather sets in. If the season is very dry it may not all
germinate the first season, and sometimes, when it does, the hot midsummer sun will
wither it. ‘'

The method of broadcast sowing has been successfully practiced by me at Wood’s
Holl, while planting by the plow or hoe has been for the most part just as succes sfully,
earried on by Mr. John Kenrick, of South Orleans, and by others in the eastern part
of Barnstable county. Perhaps the former method would be less laborious on very
rough land. For the cape and the seashore the Scotch pine seems to have done
best in its vigorous and thrifty growth and its freedom from the insects and diseg
which attack the native pitch pine. It makes a good shelter for other trees, but its
value as timber or lumber has yet to be tested or its usefulness as a forest tree. It is,
perhaps, too sappy and coarse-grained, but as a cover to oak or other deciduous trees —
in their early growth it is excellent and of undoubted use. The white pine does not
do well where the salt wind touches it. It needs shelter on the coast, and so it is with —
the larch. For the interior the white pine is the most desirable, but probably the
chestnut would pay better in the long run than any other tree. Pine seeds may be
obtained of our principal seedsmen, who import them. oz:

Much planting is done on a limited scale with trees raised in nurseries at the West,
where, when the trees are six to twelve inches high, they are sold at about one cent
each, but this requires more outlay of momey at the start and more time and labor to
do the work. Planting trees from the seed is like money put in savings banks and left
te accumulate by compound interest. The land improves in value, as the crop grows,
quite as rapidly as money is multiplied by the addition of interest, and probably more
so. As the trees grow up from the seed they may be too near together, and from time
to time will need thinning, and here will be found a supply of fuel which, in these
days of open fireplaces, is always of value. Pic, -

Mr. John M. Forbes, of Naushon, has fenced in this fall upwards of 300 acres of old
pasture land on his island, which he proposes to plant in the coming spring with pine
seed. It is well to remark that cattle and sheep should be kept off land thus planted, —
especially in the winter. Indeed, it is a well-accepted axiom that cattle should always:
be kept out of woodland, if it is to do its best.

“PRUNING THE FOREST.”

BY B. E. FERNOW, OF NEW YORK CITY. + Vee

In a recent hearing of testimony before a committee appointed by the controller of -
the State of New York to investigate the needs of forestry in the Adirondack Moun
tains, it is reported that the lumbermen, besides laying all the blame of forest destrue-
tion and devastation of the hillsides to the ravages of fires, described their own ope a
tions as harmless and without any detriment to a continuance of forest growth ;
nay, some one advanced the cheering proposition that the lumberman was doing noth-
ing but ‘‘ pruning the forest.’’ This most happy expression for the work which the
and saw are performing in our forests has since been seized upon on all sides by those
who have an object in shielding the operator of logging and saw-mill enterprises, rep:
resenting them as benefactors rather than enemies of the forest. a

We, on the other hand, can only consider the use of the term pruning, in this con-
nection, as the grossest misapplication. ‘ Pruning,’ derived from the French prov
ner, and closely allied to the verb “to propagate,” means ‘to trim or lop off the |
perfluous,”’ with the implied purpose of benetiting the remaining.

Now, not even a lumberman will nowadays maintain that he is removing fro
forest only what is superfluous. From our statistics it would almost appear that we
have not much of forest left that is superfluous, and if it is to apply to the single spe-
cies which the lumberman finds it his duty to remove we would point out th Mb nyt

“4

fuity of white oak, the most valuable hardwood, is not apparent anywhere ;
the white pine has been removed in some regions—Pennsylvania notably—almost
e last stick; that the hemlock is following fast; that good ash growth is becoming
arce in the North as ‘“‘to make it too expensive to be commonly used for oars ; ”’
the better qualities of walnut are commanding excessive prices; that, to sum up,
e advancing prices of high grade and the diminished price of low grade lumber of
y kind are a sure indication that the former grades are growing scarce and scarcer,
d that the lower grades must be resorted to by the mills in-order to keep them at
ork. Wemay agree, then, that the lumberman does not operate on waste and super-
~ fluous material, but that he takes the very best he can take hold of.
Now let us see whether the remainder is benefited. Taking the forest as a producer
f valuable material we do not perceive that by leaving the inferior kinds and the in-
ferior individuals of valuable kinds the aspect, after the lumbering, is improved.
_ The methods of lumbering now in vogue, necessitating the leaving of top ends and
brush in the forest, increase the danger from fires to a greater extent than is even ad-
mitted. Often where the fire, under natural circumstances, would be confined to what
is termed a “running fire,” quickly consuming the fallen leaves without injury to
the growth, the dry rubbish left, when kindled, will intensify the heat so as to damage
and kill the standing timber.
As to any benefit to be expected from the present methods of lumbering in regard to a
‘renewal of the forests, by allowing the aftergrowth and younger trees to fill up the
gaps, this may be true with some species which are capable of sustaining the shade of
_ the surrounding timber; but European experience of more than a century tends to
prove that this method of renewal has rarely the desired effect, and resorting to it
_ for the purposes of benefiting the forests can only be excused by the impossibility of
_ applying other methods.
_ ‘The last argument which the lumberman may advance to strengthen his position
_ would be, that by not removing the entire forest cover fromthe surface he avoids in-
terference with the meteorological and hydraulic influences of the forest with which
he has been charged so extensively.
We are sorry that even on this point we cannot accept the defense.
Leaving aside the question whether the forests exercise the influence on the water
R supply of streams claimed for them, or on the amount and distribution of rainfall
over adjacent fields, which is undeniable, we will here only compare the effects of the
system of selection, as I will call the lumberman’s operation, and of those systems which
_ contemplate the simultaneous rejuvenation of the whole forest by natural or artificial
_ reseeding or planting, which I will call timber forest.
_ That the amount of the atmospheric precipitations which reach the soil in the tim-
ber forest is larger—much larger than in the other case—does not allow of doubt. In
the forest, resulting from the method of selection, soon the crowns of the old timber
_ develop largely and denser as effect of the increased access of light, and the amount of
_ evaporation from the increased foliage increases proportionately. Whatever of
- rain does not evaporate from the taller, densely foliaged trees drops onto the lower
_ growth and there evaporates, so that of a slight rain either nothing reaches the ground
_ or else so little that it soon evaporates from the moss and humus cover without pene-
trating. In the same way the snow reaches the soil in less amount, and, deposited on
_ the lower growth, especially where the wind has no power to shake it off, it evaporates
without increasing the moisture of the soil. This is especially the case in evergreens,
and is the more detrimental as it is the hydrometeors of the winter which furnish the
_ reserve of moisture to alleviate the summer droughts.

To this add that where the young growth is distributed through the forest in batches
under the older timber, the temperature being higher on account of impeded circula-
_ tion of the air, a greater amount of moisture is evaporated during the period of vege-
_ tation and the drying up of the soil thus accelerated.

In the timber forest not only a larger amount of meteoric precipitations reaches the

soil, but the mould cover condenses and absorbs more moisture, when the colder more
_ nearly saturated air enters the forest at night.
We abstain from adducing here a further accumulation of reasons which tend to
_ condemn the system of selection from every standpoint of rational forestry.
We find nothing that will warrant this system as a benefit to the soil or the forest:
and its influences, except in the rarest cases in high mountain ranges, where the me-
chanical effects of the forest as barriers against avalanches and torrents must be
maintained to the exclusion of all other considerations.

Do not let us hide the truth. The present system of lumbering is in every respect
Beerenial to a continuance of forest growth. It is excusable only on the plea that
_ the lumber business is a legitimate business; that those who engage in it cannot be
expected to care for more than immediate financial returns; that peculiar cireum-

beet.

ee ee ae, WSR ee fed, Sen een Ores lg ee oe ee :
“he ¥ > eee by ¥ ‘¥
* ~) rm 6 os x4 oer :
86 By

“ss
stances and conditions of this country have inaugurated the system in vogue, and th:
ignorance of better methods and the antiolpatet danger of feos valuable property
by incendiarism will tend to continue it until conditions of lumber supply cha
until better protection is offered, or until the Government itself steps in and protects
those forests which it seems desirable to preserve in continuance. a
The object of this paper originally had not been to expose so lengthily the mistaken
idea of the lumberman’s “ pruning of the forest.’’ It was rather to lay down the prin-
ciples involved in the eorrect pruning of the forest. I do not allude to the pruning
of forest trees individually—a subject I wish to discuss at some other time—but to the
interlucation or thinning of growing forests, with the purpose of improving the
remaining growth; a subject which is worthy of the whole attention of a beginning
forest-grower, on which more has been said, and is being said at present in European
forestry literature, than on any other; one which in this country seems to be little un-
derstood, and even in Europe, though thinning has been practiced for a long time, the -
opinions as to particulars are still divided. RL ce.
As every question in forestal operations, so that of thinning or interlucation has to —
be considered from two points of view, the financial and the mere forestal. The object
of interlucation being an increase of yearly accretion to the single individuals remain-
ing, and thus an increase of the aggregate crop of wood, as is claimed, it is evident —
that if this primary object be attained the secondary, consequential one, of increased —
financial value will also be arrived at, if the operation either pays for itself at the —
time from the extracted material or if the cost, considered as a principal, with com- —
pound interest up to the time of clearing added, represents a sum smaller than the —
consequential increase in value of the remaining growth. Ps
In this paper, however, it is not our intention to discuss the financial aspect of the —
question, but to explain the rules which should guide the forester in the operation and —
the principles upon which it rests. + ie
First, jet us consider what interlucation purposes to accomplish and what its effects
are physiologically. ; ie
If we compare single specimens of trees grown in the full enjoyment of light along _
avenues and fields with their equals grown up in the density of the forest, other con-
ditions being alike, we perceive, in ascertaining their yearly accretion, that whilst the -
former have in the same number of years attained a greater circumferential accretion,
the latter excel in the length of their shafts. In dense, evenly-grown plantations the —
growth of height is favored at the cost of sidewise expansion of the crown and ci =k
cumferential accretion. Undersuch conditions the stems attain a greater total height,
longer, straighter, more cylindrical, and easily-splitting shafts, and thus make mor ue
valuable wood; but at the same time the single individual does not attain the same
diameter and mass of wood as the isolated tree. : pore
As the nourishment of the tree and the formation of wood is almost wholly depend-
ent on the functions of the leaves, it is natural that the trees with the largest amount
of foliage should make the most wood; and as, again, the functions of the leaves are _
dependent on the direct influence of the sunlight and are performed in proportion to
the amount of direct light available; and, again, the amount of foliage itself is greatly _
dependent on this life-inciting influence of light, it is natural that those trees which
enjoy the greatest amount of light make the most wood. Then, we find that the yearly —
circumferential accretion of trees, ceteris paribus, stands in direct proportion to the —
extent of their crown in breadth and height and to the mass of their foliage. a
The first object of interlucation, then, is to give more light and room for the —
development of the crown to those specimens which we want to favor by removing —
others. = 3
In this operation, as in all others of forestal management, the first requirement is a —
thorough knowledge of the laws which govern forest-growth (such as I have partly —
described in a paper read before the American Forestry Congress at Montreal). In —
this operation, above all others, the judgment of the forester and due consideration —
of all influences is called for, as, by a misapplication, serious injuries may be inflicted —
upon a promising growth. are
We may here shortly repeat that the greater amount of their food, the carbon, is
derived by the trees from the carbonic acid of the air through assimilation by the
leaves; that the chemical constitution of the soil is almost irrelevant; that the office of |
the soil is mainly to furnish the great bulk of the water, of which almost fifty per
cent. enters into the composition of the wood. It is, therefore, the physical proper- —
ties of the soil which are of the greatest importance, above all its humidity influenced —
by different degrees of depth and looseness, nature of subsoil, surface-covering, and —
its humosity (depth of vegetable mold), which tends to mitigate extremes of these
properties, and is, therefore, a most desirable accessory to a forest soil. The formation
of this Awmus, or vegetable mold, from decaying leaves is favored, as well as the

rag

s.
For the forest cultivator, then, the whole problem of forestry lies in this precept :
“that his principal effort must be directed to the conservation and increase of the ‘ soil-
quality,’ calling all the requisites just cited by one word, since upon it depends the
productivity of the forest, and this can only be done by depriving as little as possible
any portion of the soil of the protecting cover of the crowns.”
_ We have, then, in our thinning to balance the requirements of a careful forestry for
continuancy and the desire to promote the accretion of the individual components of
the forest, and to take care that, whilst we try to gain an advantage for the present, we
do not do so at the expense of the future.

We see in any young growth from an early age a natural thinning out going on,
_ when those parts of a tree which are shut out from a sufficient enjoyment of light die
_ off, and some trees, in the struggle of life, gaining supremacy, exclude from this nec-
essary factor of existence and shade out their neighbors. In this respect we may group
the trees of a forest, as regards their access to light, into two classes :

1. The foregrown; which might be graded again into

a, predominant ;
6, codominant, and
c, followers.

4 : 2. The overgrown; with the grades of—

fd, overshadowed ;
Le, suppressed.

_ We imitate, assist, anticipate nature in this process by interlucations ; and according
_ to the grades into which we extend our cutting, we speak of a dark interlucation, in
_ which only the suppressed, dead, or dying stems are removed ; a moderate one, which
takes all the overgrown, and a strong one, which attacks even the last grades of the
foregrown and interrupts somewhat the upper crown-cover.
The degree of the thinning depends greatly on the soil and the exposure. In accord-
ance with the rule given above in regard to the conservation of the soil-quality a dark
J interlucation only is in most cases permissible and sufficient. The necessity of a stronger
--_ interlucation offers itself in a growth with an unusually large number of stems of uni-
form calibre, where sometimes the struggle for supremacy is unduly prolonged and the
extraction of overstock is needed to assist the development of larger dimensions. Pre-
dominant stems ought only to be taken exceptionally, when a more valuable kind which
we want to favor—as, for instance, white oak—is threatened to be overwhelmed by a less
valuable overgrowing neighbor, or when, on account of some peculiarities of a fore-
grown kind, detrimental consequences must be anticipated, as, for instance, when the
_ birch (which only too easily finds entrance into our plantations), with its whipping
_ branches, may injure and strip the young buds of the pine or fir.
A deep, rich soil, with abundant moisture, on north and northeastern exposure,
_ will suffer a strong interlucation with less injury, because the vigorous growth due to
- its favorable conditions will soonest close any gaps in the crown-cover. On the
other hand it will be aimost always well to leave even subdued stems on thin and dry
‘soils and such exposures, where, by their removal, entrance is given to drying winds.
__ The degree of thinning depends also a great deal on the species forming the forest.
_ On a former occasion I have pointed out the importance of a classification of the dif-
' ferent species, with reference to their relation towards light and shade, in shade-lov-
ing, light-enduring, and light-needing. This classification has some bearing on the
_. degree of interlucation. Those kinds which, for their development, require a larger
- amount of light would naturally show in a dense growth a greater amount of sup-
pressed stems, and consequently a stronger interlucation would be indicated. On the
other hand, these very species are those which are least capable of preserving the soil-
_ quality, because their naturally thin foliage not only does little toward the increase of
_ the layer of humus, but does not efficiently exclude the rays of the sun, especially as
they have the tendency with increasing age to thin out by themselves. They are,
_ therefore, the most difficult to manage, and the continuity of their crowns must be
most carefully preserved.
_ The time when the first thinning should take place is generally determined by the
_ possibility of marketing the extracted material at a price which will cover atleast the
expense of the operation. This is, however, not always possible; and the considera-
tion of the increase in value of the remaining growth, or rather of the detriment to
the same by omission of timely thinning, may then be conclusive.
_ On good soil and on mild exposures interlucation may take place earliest, because
e the growth is ranker, and a difference in the development of the different stems is

SDE engl Ae pane a hea oie

sooner noticeable. Light-needing and quick-growing kinds offer a similar aspect
those grown on good soil; and hére, therefore, early thinnings are indicated. —
these cases the thinnings have also to be repeated oftenest, especially during the
riod of prevalent height accretion. ; 4S
Absolute rules as to the time for interlucations and their periodical reiteration can a
evidently not be given; the peculiar conditions of each individual case alone can
determine this. re
The golden rule, however, is: Early, often, moderately. {
The right time for the beginning of these regular and periodical interlucati
generally considered to have arrived when the natural thinning out, mentioned be
commences and shows the need of the operation. But it may be urged that the den-
sity of the growth before its maximum, evinced by the dying of some parts, would
present an optimum for the most advantageous development, which it would be wise —
to maintain. This optimum would be different for different localities and. conditions,
and its evidence will be difficult to determine ; at present, at least, the data for the de-
termination are still lacking. 4
Different from these interlucations, which begin, say, at the fifteenth year of
growth, the need and value of which for the better development of dimension timber _
is now generally recognized, are the thinnings during the earlier stages of the growth.
Here we touch the realm of controversy and unfinished history of a theory which jot 1
in our time strives after completion by gathering experimental and statistical data
which up to this time were lacking. | oo» {aa
It may be of interest to review briefly the history of the theory of interluecation in
Germany. rast
Since the middle of last century thinning out of older growths was known ¢ nd 44:
practiced, but it was rather the economic utilization of those trees that had succumbed
in the struggle for supremacy—not the shortening and determination of the crisis—
which recommended the measure. The theory of the promotion of the remaini
growth by means of interlucations was only developed in 1802; but though von C
one of the old masters of forestry, recommended this measure as a means of educati
from the earliest stages of the growth, the practice, even until to-day, has been
luctant to accept it so broadly—partly because the extracted material did not find
ready market—partly because the dangers to the preservation of the soil-quality by this —
early interference seemed too great and the effect of the measure in the end too a $
certain. ; F z
Cotta recommended these thinnings as a means of accelerating the growth to be in 4
when the most dangerous period of young plant-life and all fear of injuries by fros or
heat was removed, then to take away those stems which had fallen behind, and allo
to remain only as many ‘ascould grow without injury or interfering with each ot!
the branches should touch, but not interlock.’’ These ‘‘cleanings’’ were to berepeated
as often as the plants impeded each other’s growth. The practice confines these early
extractions to the removal of inferior and injurious kinds, to extraordinarily dense
growths and poor soils, where the development of predominant stems is retarded too —
long. Cae
Lately, however, the necessity of a more energetic. advancement of dimension tim-
ber has raised the question of educational forestry again, and though no definite an-
swer may be expected in the near future, the necessary experiments have been instituted
to determine the effect of thinnings on the remaining growth as well as on the soil
uality. ie
: In ee I may mention two methods which are growing more and more berets
favor for the production of dimension timber—the so-called ‘‘ modified timber forest,”
in which at the age of seventy to eighty years—i. e., when the height accretion iste
mostly completed—the number of stems is gradually, with a view of seeding the —
ground, reduced to such an extent that the continuity of crowns may be expected to
be re-established in thirty to forty years, during which time the trees have had a full sy
enjoyment of light inducive to cireumferential accretion. To counteract the detri-
ment of thus laying bare the soil the eventual undergrowth of young beeches is re-
pleted by sowing or planting different shade-enduring species, which soon cover the
round. ee
e The other method found its origin in the peculiarity of some light-needing species, —
which in unmixed forests cannot attain the most valuable age and size without thinning | :
out by themselves, and which, without soil cover, are liable to deterioration themselves —
as well as to allow the soil to deteriorate. To prevent this the inferior individ
are removed and a soil cover created by sowing or planting species which will end
the shade of the foregrown forest. The oak especially is thus undergrown with be
From the foregoing remarks on the principles of interlucation, it will have app
that many important questions of forestry are still in the field of con t
a
i

a
« hs) °°
me!

estry, though practiced abroad for centuries, is by no means an abstract and finished
ence, but, depending largely on the development of natural sciences, has, like those,
ly of late taken a more progressive start. Its progress is, besides, so much slower
an that of any other science, because the answers to many of its questions and ex-
riments are given only in decades and centuries ; and, therefore, were even the time
hen necessity demands attention to this subject in this country further removed than
seems to be, it would be wise and provident to prepare for the coming need without

delay.

LUMBERMAN’S WASTE AS A FERTILIZER.
BY B. E. FERNOW, OF NEW YORK CITY.

When we assert that there exists an undeniable relation between agriculture and
forestry, our thoughts at once are led to the discussions on the mitigating influence of
forests on the surrounding climate, their equalizing effect on the distribution and
amount of meteoric precipitations. We may also think of the employment which
the wood-lot gives during the winter to unemployed rural labor.
But it may be that besides these benefits, accruing from natural conditions, a more
immediate and tangible interdependence might be established which would benefit the
two economies. bi
Such relation has existed for some time in the European countries, but to the detri-
ment of agriculture as well as forestry, while it was maintained as affording relief at
least to the former.
_ he practice of using the fallen foliage for bedding and manuring purposes largely
_ prevailing in the poorer agricultural regions of Germany, whilst it has impoverished
_ to ruin large areas of timber forest, has not in the same degree benefited agriculture ;
it has tended to deteriorate the already slovenly management of the small tenant, who,
unable to feed stock, sold his straw, whilst using the easily-appropriated gift of the
forest with minimum fertilizing qualities.

The effect of withdrawing the foliage covering from the forest soil, which forms its
most potent protection against drying influences of sun and wind and against extreme
changes of soil temperature, and which presents the best and only fertilizer of the
forest, has shown itself in diminished growth, difficulty of rejuvenation, disappear-

ance of more fastidious species, and at last total devastation of forest areas. In the
following notes I wish to indicate only, how a reciprocal, beneficial relation between
the farmer, the lumberman, and the forester might be established, which, while fur-
nishing a desirable fertilizer to the one, will help the other pay his expenses without
experiencing the objections of the third.

The use of sawdust for bedding purposes has long been known. I read in a Ger-
‘man ‘agricultural authority of 1853: ‘‘That sawdust, like straw, may be used for
humification, need not be specially proved, since it substantially contains the same

_ elements as straw, only its decomposition is slower, and it should, therefore, be mixed
peyth substances facilitating decomposition, like the liquid and solid excrements of
cattle.”

_ But the proposition is now made not only to extend the use of sawdust, but to pre-
eee a material for bedding and manuring purposes by disintegrating the inferior
dimensions and brushwood left in the woods, generally called lumberman’s waste.

___ If this could be done in a practical manner on an extended scale the advantages to
the farmer as well as to the lumberman would be immense. The vexatious question
of the lumberman’s leavings would be largely disposed of, and the additional receipts
from the hitherto unprofitable product would enable the lumberman to look with more
equanimity at the demands of the foresters.

That agriculture would welcome such a cheap fertilizer, especially in the Eastern
States—in fact is in great need of some such manuring material—may be estimated from

_ the yearly-increasing number of worn-out farms and from such statements as I read
in agricultural reports: ‘That, after all, for a permanently-improved condition of
the farm, we must rely upon old-fashioned, barn-yard manure as against he vol-
_ atile, short-lived commercial fertilizers,’ or ‘‘that the best yields are reported from
‘mixtures of mineral fertilizers with barn-yard manure.”
_ To bring about such a happy solution of two difficulties we will have to show
whether a practical, inexpensive method of preparing and shipping wood-litter can
be devised for the lumberman, and whether the mechanical and chemical properties
of such wood-litter, compared with the price, will recommend it to the farmer. I
am aware that sawdust has been recommended for manuring purposes and condemned,
it I cannot find any convincing proofs that such objection is more than an assertion
ed on a misapplication of this material.

Spar ne pe:

It is, on the other hand, asserted, upon experiments on an extensive scale— ie
1. That wood-litter furnishes a better, especially cleaner, bedding for cattle than
straw; the liquids are at once absorbed and the dry excrements are quickly enveloped —
with wood fibre, preventing soiling of the cattle. The cleaning of cows requires only
ubout one-quarter the time it does where straw is used. The removal of the bedding
requires less time, as only parts of it need be changed. The air of the stables is less
damp, and kept purer in consequence of total absorption of all moisture and slower
decomposition of the urine, which, especially in horse-stables, where ammonia is
quickly formed, seems to be of importance, and a guard against sore eyes and other
diseases.
2. That the manure from wood-litter is better than from straw, because it binds
better, especially the liquid excrements, and retards the decomposition and loss of —
valuable plant-food, especially the nitrogenous compounds. The mechanical effect 4
on the soil is said to be in no way inferior to that of straw manure. That humifica-
tion of wood manure goes on more slowly cannot be denied, but this may often prove: -
an additional benefit, when the process of decomposition takes place in the soil instead
of on the manure heap, and the soil profits from the heat due to the chemical action
and retains the ammonia developed. ao
As the testimony of European experience, from which the above conclusions were _
drawn, may not be acceptable to you, I have tried to get some on this side of the
water. My opportunity has not been very large. I find, however, specific testimony _
before the Ontario Agricultural Commission, in 1881, charged with ascertaining the
practice and possibilities of agriculture in the province.
Says Mr. Matheson, of Perth: t
‘7 do not use any straw for bedding ; sawdust is the cheapest thing I can get for —
the purpose, and it soaks everything up, increases the bulk of the manure, and makes
its quality very fine. One load of this manure is equal to two or three loads of what —

I formerly turned out. I have had from it 500 bushels of roots (turnips, mangolds,
carrots, and sugar beets) to the acre.” P ;
Mr. Benson, of Cardinal, says: i

‘‘T bed my cattle on sawdust, which is an absorbent and makes a vast pile of ma-
nure. The sawdust I use is not common sawdust from a saw-mill, but the shavings —
and sawdust of seasoned lumber from a stave and box factory ; the lumber is kiln-_
dried. The sawdust, therefore, absorbs all the moisture that comes from the cattle
more rapidly tlian straw. I never use pine or cedar sawdust, because it is difficult to
rot; but I confine myself to basswood and elm, which decompose quickly. Very
few people have equal facilities for getting such a pile of manure from such good
material.’’ 2 ee

These experiences have been with sawdust; but our proposition is to use a litter —
made of disintegrated brushwood, which would greatly surpass the former. The more
fibrous condition of such material would augment its absorbing capacity ; besides,
those parts of the tree contain in larger amount the important plant-food which we
desire in a manure.

I find, from analyses of Wolff & Stoeckhard, in 1,000 parts of air-dried substance—

re aa

Potash. Phos, acid. Nitrogen.
S ;

ye straw, Containing’: 2.) os eee ee ee cee 8.6 2.5
Spruce fitter, containing 20-522 s see Se a eee 7.4 3 6
Wihertistra w,.containing/—- 5. Ss es Se © eee eeu iOs 2.2 4.8

Taking four, nine, and twenty cents as the price of the ingredients, respectively, the
mere intrinsic fertilizing value of the straw would average $2.78 per ton, whilst the
wood-litter figures at $5.53 per ton. ;

This would show the wood-litter by twenty-seven per cent. superior to straw as a
fertilizer. But in both materials their mechanical properties are the most essential,
and these appear to be more favorable in wood-litter, unless it should be found that —
the amount of tannin in the bark is sufficient to act injuriously on the valuable plant-
food contained in the excrements and on the crops, which has been denied. Sem

To make a comparison between the fertilizing and the feeding value of straw suffi-
cient data are still absent, but it isapparent that a considerable gain must accrue tothe —
economy of the farmer who can extract from his straw the animal food before it goes
into the manure heap. I see it stated in a German paper that whilst the value of —
plant-food in straw is equal to three dollars, the value of animal food is equal to $8.40
per ton (straw selling at twenty dollars). But those figures cannot be applied to ow
circumstances here, though they would lead us to believe that the value of straw for _
fodder exceeds its fertilizing value, and that even at ten dollars per ton we pay a con-
siderable amount for its bedding value, which may give an acceptable margin for the —
preparation of a wood-litter. ee

he other side of the question, namely, the practicability of preparing this mate-
, I regret not to be able to present as fully-and convincingly as the advisability of
ng it.
At first sight the difficulties of manipulation would seem to indicate a financial im-
ibility, yet I have faith in American ingenuity to overcome such diffieulties and
devise economical methods as soon as it can be demonstrated beyond doubt that a
luable material with an almost unlimited market may be produced out of waste.
__If it is possible to manufacture and ship over a distance of more than 300 miles
_ charcoal at a price of six dollars per ton, or to haul bark for fifteen to twenty miles at
four to five dollars per ton, I cannot see any practical objection to handling the leav-
_ ings as economically, and, when an eight-horse power ore-breaker reduces two tons of
_ ore per hour, why an economical preparation of wood-litter should not be possible.
_ From the scant experiments. made in Germany not sufficient data could be gath-
_ ered to make practical inferences for this country. A factory in Hesse offers pine-litter
in bales at $4.50 per ton, which is half-price of straw. A disintegrator of Carter’s, in
_ England, is said to be a good producer, but the quality of material was not acceptable.
_ A machine, of German invention, with automatic feeder, which promises to use up
any brushwood up to one and three-fourths inches in diameter, full length, requires
five to six horse power to make three tons per day ; first cost, without motor, $135.
__ It is probable that a division of the operation into several stages will be most advan-
_ tageous and allow a more extensive use as to sizes of raw material. I should propose
_ the employment of a cutter preparatory to the disintegrator.
_ Shortly before finishing this paper I find that in New York city a planing-mill has
~ at work a machine, consisting of two cylinders with rows of cutting-teeth, revolving
in opposite directions, which grind the shavings coming from the planer to suitable
- meal.
_ This material is sold in bags containing thirty-five pounds each, at one dollar per
_ bag, or $5.70 per ton. This factory sells about five tons daily, whilst other factories,
_ selling unground shavings, may double this amount of daily use.
_ My friend, Mr. Hicks, of Roslyn, tells me that he and his neighbors have been using
_ the sawdust from his mill for years, at five dollars per ton, to their entire satisfaction
__- In the stable and on the field..
___ There seems, then, a fair prospect of utilizing the inferior material left now to waste
___ by the lumberman, and the importance of the problem to both agriculture and forestry
___ should be sufficient to invite close investigation without prejudice. Regretting that I
b __ have not been able to present more fully the experiences thus far had on the subject, I
would hand over the suggestion to experimenters and inventors.

his grounds, planted by himself from 1840 to 1860, the trees being now from twenty-
five to forty-five years old and from fifteen to sixty feet high.

_ As the age of the several trees and the conditions of growth were not given a repro-
_ duction of the list here would not be specially serviceable to the interests of forestry.

FOREST ENTOMOLOGY.
BY E. B. SOUTHWICK, OF NEW YORK.

_ Prof. Southwick interested the congress by a finely-prepared exhibit of forest
botany and forest entomology, and in a short paper pointed out the necessity of study-

RELATION OF FORESTS TO FLOODS.*

BY THOMAS P. ROBERTS, PITTSBURGH, PA.

When, at the request of the Secretary of the American Forestry Congress, I prom-
ised to prepare a paper on the subject of the destruction of forests as affecting th ts
floods of our great rivers, I confidently relied upon finding ample time at my disposal
So, now, after havi ing been an almost incessant traveler for several weeks, and ae a} iss
few days left before the convention, I hesitate to lay before so distinguished a body my —
hastily prepared contribution ; and 'T would not do so if I did not realize that eae. ig
ology and the kindred department of sciences into which your discussions nat
drift, are progressive—that no writer is expected to exhaust_them, and that errors re
pardonable. me

Your estimable Secretary in his note intimated that as I had read a paper last_y
bearing on this subject before the Engineers’ Society of Western Pennsylvania,
which he thought I had antagonized the views of the great majority of the friend
of tree culture, an excellent opportunity would be now offered for a larger hearing:
more animated discussions. ne

I accepted the intimation as a kind warning. There is one minority man on scientific
subjects still living—the Rev. Jasper, of the Baptist church in Richmond, Va. H
also was invited to discuss his views before an adversely thinking andience. Ne
theless, the newspapers report that the “jury ”’ decided he was right, and “ D
sun do move around the earth.” .

But the pre-eminence of being “alone with your views ”’ is a most undesirable f po-
sition, and the pride it could engender could affect only peculiar minds. as

But I will hasten to say that I have said nothing nor advanced any ideas which can €
used to refute the arguments in favor of forestal ‘laws and regulations. I have si:
taken the ground that the destruction of forests from the light of records, both in t
country and in Europe, has had no appreciable effect in increasing the height and |
quency of our great river floods.

The phenomena of the discharge of rivers vary greatly in different parts. of
world according to the areas of their valleys, geographical positions, mean altitu
rain-fall, climate, and the flora of the region which they traverse. Their low-w:
discharges are the most interesting and important as bearing upon the question un
discussion, and I desire now to remark that I have and will confine my statement
rivers, which must be distinguished as under more widespread and prevailing natur:
laws than apply to springs, brooks, and creeks. Creeks and brooks are affected b
every passing shower or storm-cloud, and I will not undertake to deny that the co
vation of the rain-fall in such local districts is aided by forests; but I must dis af
guish between local rains and general storms, and between summer, fall, winter, an a a
spring floods. Rivers draining five thousand square miles or upwards, so far as ] r
know of them in the interior of the United States, are not appreciably increase =.
in their low-water discharge by local storms. Even the disastrous cloud-burst
of July 9th, 1874, which desolated Allegheny city and parts of Pittsburgh, sweeping
down Butcher's Run, covering the lamp-posts in the streets, occupying the narrow
file of the w ater-course, washing away buildings, and drowning over two hundred
people, was scarcely noticeable in the waters of the Allegheny and Ohio rivers, int Lo , :
which it poured. Such storms are rare, indeed, and nearly always develop upon a
narrow opty ay seldom exceeding a mile in width ; so that when we come ‘6, consid

eps

*This elaborate and valuable paper, for which the Congress is indebted isa M
Roberts, was presented at the Boston meeting, but not read on account of the abse1
of the author and the lack of time for its discussion. By placing it in this report
Congress does in no way indorse the views of the author, but, gives opportunity
prepare—as so technical a paper demands and deserves—a discussion of his conel
sions at the next meeting.

While the paper shows, at least, that the question of foreign influences, scientifiea
speaking, appears still an open one, the empirist has a right to his theory, based.
historical and seemingly logical inferences, even if the scientist cannot explain:
phenomena of cause and effect satisfactorily to himself. Meanwhile, German iny
gators have set to work systematically to determine by scientific methods the numerie:
influence of forests on temperature and rain-fall, and conclusions have been arrive
at greatly at variance with the ideas advanced in ‘this paper. xitee

great areas drained by rivers, and construct diagrams of their annual low-water rec-
-ords, we need not be surprised at their comparative uniformity year after year.
A river of large drainage area is made up, to be sure, from a multitude of tributa-
‘ries. Over an area of 20,000 square miles, which is the basin of the Ohio at Pitts-
burgh, there are, even in the seasons of the most protracted droughts, almost daily
_ thunder storms, of limited area, perhaps, but each deluging in turn one or more of
_ the minor tributary valleys and causing local freshets. No rain-fall may be observed
at any designated station for two or more weeks at a time ; nevertheless the river rep-
resents the aggregate of their effect, its low-water discharge being in reality made up
of numerous miniature freshets. In other words, I argue that the low-water discharge
_ of the Ohio river is to a very great extent maintained by a circulating series of minor
_ freshets. A dry-weather spring yielding two gallons of water per minute, making
_ seventy-five barrels daily, would be accounted enough even for the maintenance of a
large stock farm.

The lowest stage of water ever known upon the upper Ohio was in 1838, when
for several days the least discharge of the river was 552,000 gallons per minute,
to maintain which it would require the united tribute of 276,000 such springs. For
the average season of drought it would require more than 500,000 such springs to
maintain the low-water discharge of the Ohio river.

On the other hand it would require that only ninety-seven square miles of the entire
territory of 20,000 square miles be daily visited with a storm yielding for discharge a
little over half an inch of rain-fall.

These figures are presented merely to set forth very briefly how great rivers may
maintain their low-water discharge. I am persuaded that if absolutely no rains visited
the Ohio valley for several weeks at a time during the summer, the river would liter-
ally dry up, for I have no faith that the perennial springs of the forests, supposing the
region were a virgin forest, would support the loss due from evaporation in the long,
wide, and shallow pools which exist in the main water-course. Therefore it matters
little if the ‘‘saw-mill’’ man’s creek has been dried up by the denudation of forests ;
the river will preserve its constant average. Occasionally the saw-mill creek may
burst its banks, rising possibly more suddenly and higher than before its banks were
denuded; the river accepts it as just one of those ‘‘ ninety-seven square-mile floods ”’
due for one day.
| I myself know of many streams where saw-mills have been abandoned on account

of the increasing irregularity of the seasons during which they could be operated, and
_ Jattribute the cause to the wholesale and wanton destruction of the timber; but in
saying this I will not admit that such destrvction of the timber has any appreciable
___ effect upon the rain-fall or climate of the regions in question. So far as I have read
the writers dwelling upon this intricate subject advance only theories, unsupported by
_ statistics. I may be in error, through ignorance, regarding this matter, but I have
_ thought it strange that with so many writers upon a popular subject none of them,
which have fallen under my observation, excepting the German engineer, Gustav
'Wex, have attempted to prove by records that the river floods are higher and the rain-
falls less and more fitful than formerly, either in this country or Europe, following
the destruction of forests.
_ I will venture to quote from an anonymous writer, the author of a series of articles
on ‘ Forests and Forestry ’’? recently published in ‘‘ Forest and Stream: ”’

‘The asserted influence of forest clearance in determining irregularities in river
flow has long been transferred from the region of speculation to that of exact science.
European nations plant forests for the express purpose of regulating river flow, with
as full confidence in the result as the farmer feels when he drains a swampy meadow.
The Swiss government has just made a large appropriation for this object. We have
not merely the evidence that wholesale forest clearance is invariably followed by irreg-
ularity of flow in all the streams and rivers of the region, exhibiting destructive floods
at one season, followed by dry beds or a sluggish flow at another season, but we have
the positive evidence afforded by the reafforesting of the slopes bordering the Rhone
and other European rivers, that with the growth of the forests the rivers are restored
to their original regularity of flow, and the fact of the supposed connection having
been thus demonstrated by experience, the mode in which forests exert their influence
in this direction has been investigated and rendered familiar to all who have made the
subject their study.”

The writer of the above, I am inclined to think, has not consulted the official
records of the German and French engineers, upon whom has devolved the care and
improvement of the navigable streams of their respective countries.

Mr. Wex, the German engineer referred to, strangely enough, published tables ex-
hibiting flood records, hereafter discussed, in support of his views that the destruction

94 [a

of forests was causing lower water in summer and more destructive winter and spring |
floods in these rivers. ine

Unknown to me at the time I prepared my first paper, previously alluded to, his —
arguments, even from his own data, had been quite severely handled by his fellow-
engineers, and I might have drawn from the highest professional authority additional
data in support of my own conclusions.

Allow me to briefly state some of the conclusions I drew at the time of first reading
Mr. Wex’s book.*

The Rhine—Period 1770 to 1835.—Mr. Wex divides the sixty-six years into two
periods of thirty-three years each, and finds that the mean height of floods in the
second period has increased .086 of a foot, or about one inch, It is unfortunate for
his theory in this instance that the individual highest flood, viz., that of 1799, when
the Rhine rose to the twenty-five foot mark, was in the first period.

The Elbe—1728 to 1869.—As far as experience on the Elbe is concerned it appears
to have been proved that the floods in this country have twice exceeded the highest
waters recorded previously, viz: in 1845, nine inches, and in 1862 six inches higher
than the flood of 1785. During the first half of this long period of 141 years twenty-
two floods reached to or exceeded the seventeen-foot mark, and during the second half
twenty-three floods reached or exceeded the same horizon. Nature’s division, I
thought, was remarkably even.

The Vistula-—-1809 to 1878.—In 1858, or three years after the disastrous flood of

1855 on the Vistula, Mr. Schmid, royal Prussian privy counsellor, published detail *

records of the fluctuations of the Vistula at Kurzebrack during a period of forty-eight
years, from 1809 to 1856, inclusive, and gives the opinion ‘that the apprehensions which
were created in the country by the extraordinary flood of 1855, that larger quantities
of water flow into the Vistula during recent than former years, are not well grounded,
and that the tables rather indicate that a decrease in the quantities and stages of the
water may have taken place.’

Mr. Wex then takes up the subject and supplements the tables by the records to
1878. He divides the sixty-three years into two nearly equal periods. Taking his’
own diagram we discover that in the first period of thirty-two years the river on nine ~
occasions rose above the twenty-foot mark, and that once in 1829 it reached twenty-
four feet. In the second period it rose also nine times above the twenty-foot mark, but
at no time did it reach twenty-four feet, except during the extraordinary flood of
1855, when it rose to 28.5 feet; but,even with this unusual rise included, the mean of
high water in the second period is not by one inch as high as the mean of the first

eriod. a
J But Mr. Wex differs from Mr. Schmid, for he says: ‘A much larger quantity of ©
waters flow into the Vistula, and these now produce more numerous, higher, and con-
sequently more destructive, floods than in former times.’ Mr. Wex probably does not’
desire to be considered as an alarmist, but I think he reached this conclusion from a
misapprehension of his own records.

The Danube at Vienna—1826 to 1874.—Mr. Wex presents the records of the Dan-
ube at Vienna from 1826 to 1874, inclusive. Dividing this into two equal periods I
find that during the first, ten floods exceeded eight feet and include several produced
by ice gorges. The highest rose to 9/ 3/7, and the mean of the high water was 77 _
9.387//. -ag

During the second period only six floods exceeded eight feet, but two of them
were exceptionally high, one rising to 12’ 2’// and the other to eleven feet, notwith-

standing which the mean height of floods for this period was over nine inches lower

than for the first period.

Ice gorges are, Mr. Wex says, very frequent on the unimproved portions of the
Danube above Vienna, and these exceptional floods, one of which occurred on Febru- —
ary 5, 1862, and the other January 21, , were possibly augmented by them. A
gorge breaks sometimes and acts like a broken dam in creating a pulsation which —

every gauge below will record merely as a passing flood. In searching the records of |

the Vienna floods, I find that of the fourteen summer floods during the 1826-42 period,
when rains would have most to do with them, the highest rise was 9/ 3/7, and that —
three of the fourteen exceeded nine feet. During the second period there were sixteen
summer floods, one of them being 9/ 5/’, and none of the other fifteen floods reached
so much as nine feet.

Mr. Wex says: ‘‘The seven hydrotechnical experts who were invited by the Com-
mission on the improvement of the Danube to give an opinion on this matter did not —

* 23 Ne aca by the late General Godfrey Weitzel, published by the Engineers’ Depart-
ment, U.S. A.

r ca ay AT ; 7

_ consider that the decrease in the annual discharge of the Danube at Vienna mentioned
_ by me as yet a clearly-proven fact.”
No one can question Mr. Wex’s candor and honesty. Nevertheless he is the ‘‘lone
man with his theory’”’ among the engineers, both of this country and Europe.
‘The Danube at Orsova—1840 to 1871.—Mr. Wex’s diagram of the floods of the
Danube at Orsova is very unfortunate for his theories. Divided into two equal periods
‘it is shown that in the first there were eight floods exceeding fifteen feet, two of which
_ rose to nineteen feet. In the second period there were also eight floods exceeding fif-
_ teen feet, but none of them exceeded 17 feet 9 inches. The mean of flood-height was
in the second period one foot lower than in the first period.
_ The Oder—1778 to 1835.—Lastly, Mr. Wex tabulates the record of the Oder river
_ at Kustrin, but does not speak at length upon it. The annual records extend from
1778 to 1835, divided into two equal periods of twenty-nine years each. During the
first period eleven floods exceeded ten feet rise, one of which was 13.8 feet and another
15.6 feet; but during the second period there were only six floods exceeding ten feet,
and the highest individual flood rose to only 13.4 feet. Mr. Wex certainly took no
mean advantage of silence, nor did he commit the ‘‘sin of omission” in this case.

The above, in brief, is the substance of Mr. Wex’s patient researches, and he cer-
tainly deserves great credit for placing in convenient form extremely valuable data to
refute the arguments of the essayists who so confidently assert that the floods upon the
European rivers are increasing in height and frequency.

As a matter of interest, in connection with the European river record, I may be
pardoned in quoting from the discussion in our Engineer's Society at Pittsburgh, the

- language at length of one of our most talented members, Mr. C. L. Strobel, C. E. M. E.

‘The particular point of Mr. Roberts’ paper seems to be this: That the cutting
down of forests, which has been going on so extensively for a century or so, has not
resulted in higher floods than were formerly known; his statistics show this. Fora
number of years our newspapers have been calling attention to the importance of
maintaining our forests, a society has been formed to promote forest-culture, and Con-
gress has taken measures in this direction. The chief argument has been that forests
prevent the occurrence of very high and very low stages of water in our rivers, and
that unless steps are taken to protect our trees from the rapid destruction now going
on the country will periodically be affected with devastating floods and scarceley less

disastrous droughts. Now. it seems to me there is nothing to prove that such will be
_ the case, and much more to show that such results need not be expected.

“Mr. Roberts’ interesting paper is a valuable contribution in this direction. Mr.
_ Wex is, I believe, considered one of the strongest exponents of the forest theory, and
I think Mr. Roberts has shown that he does not prove what he asserts. Wex’s book
__ has been severely criticized in other quarters and his own statistics used to refute the
_ theories he advances. This has been done by a German writer named Herrich, in the
proceedings of the Hungarian Society of Architects and Engineers, a resumé of which
can be found in the proceedings of the Society of Architects and Engineers of Han-

over for 1876, from which I have extracted the following notes:

““¢ Herrich shows that this subject has received much attention, in France partic-

ularly ; that Wex’s theories are old, but have not been generally shared by the most
competent students of the subject. As regards the theory that the destruction of for-
_ ests has increased the high waters of rivers, the flood records of the Seine are cited,
which are authentic and-very complete. They show a gradual lowering of the high-
water mark much more pronounced than the cases cited by Mr. Roberts, as will be
seen from the following :

. Year 1615. 1649. 1651. 1751. 1799. 1807. 1850.
Meters. Meters. Meters. Meters. Meters. Meters. Meters.
High REO E eee 9.14 7.65 7.85 6.70 6.97 6.66 6.07

_ “This is a gradual lowering of the highest flood-marks of this river of three meters

‘in 235 years. Mr. Roberts in his paper treats of only one of Mr. Wex’s theories, viz.,

_ the effect of forests upon the high and low water stage of rivers and streams. Wex
does not rest his case here. He also claims that forests induce atmospheric precipita-
_ tion so as to increase the amount of rain-fall, and further, that they bring about a
more equable temperature by moderating the extreme cold of the winter. Herrich
shows that proof is lacking for these theories also, and that rather the reverse appears
tohave taken place. As regards the rain-fall Monesthier Savignat, a defender of forest-
culture, and Volles, an opponent, both concur that an increase of atmospheric precip-
_ itation has taken place in France, the average for the last century being 480 to 550
_ millimeters and for the present century 560 to 620 millimeters, and Flanguerges states

el DN. ee Oe es,

the rain-fall at Verviers for the last century to have been 842 to 899 millimeters and 4
the present 926 to 1,012 millimeters. We have, therefore, here also the direct opposite
of the result claimed by Mr. Wex.”’

FLOODS ON THE OHIO RIVER.

The great and disastrous floods on the Ohio river of 1883 and 1884 , having exceeded
in height all previous records, naturally attracted wide-spread attention, and we find
them sometimes alluded to in support of the theory that the destruction of forests
increases the height of floods.

The writer was in the service of the Government as an assistant engineer on the
improvement of this river fora number of years, so that the phenomena attendant
upon its floods has, since 1866, been something of a study with him. He will seek to
prove that a study of the river records should excite no alarm for the future.

AT PITTSBURGH.

It will be observed from the records that the flood of 1884 was only four inches
higher than that of 1832, fifty-two years previous. Between the years 1851 and 1867, ©
inclusive (omitting two. years of which records are not known to exist), there were
eight floods reaching twenty-five feet or over, five of which were over the 30-foot mark.
The mean high water for the sixteen years was 24.7 7 feet.

During the second period, viz., from 1868 to 1884, inclusive, there were but four floods
reaching as high as twenty-five feet, and not until the recent great flood did the river —
rise to thirty feet or over. The high-water mean for the period is 23.6 feet.

The low-water mean appears from the records from 1855 to date, when divided into
two equal periods, to have been the same for both, viz., eight inches. The lowest water
in the Ohio river at Pittsburgh, known to have been gauged, was in 1838, when Cap- —

tain John Saunders, U.S. A., in charge of works of improvement, stated it to have | +
been 85,000 cubic feet per minute. Captain F. A. Mahan, U.S. engineer in charge
of the Davis Island dam, has on various occasions gauged the low-water discharge of
the Ohio in periods of drought within the past few years. The lowest he reports was
during the year 1879, viz. , 96, 000 cubic feet per minute, but Mr. Wm. Martin, Cap-—
tain Mahan’s assistant, reports that in 1881 the water was evidently lower, though it.
was not determined that year what the least discharge was. Be

There seems to me to be nothing in the river records of Pittsburgh on which to es-
tablish any theory either of increase in the height of floods or for less low-water dis- ae
charge due to the destruction of forests ov to any other cause. Sr

The Ohio at Pittsburgh receives the drainage of about 13,000 square miles from we :
Allegheny river branch, with about 7,000 square miles tributary from the Mononga-
hela, the two united making about 20, 000 square miles. The Monongahela has been,
since 1844, improved to the Virginia State line by a system of locks and dams. The
records of the Navigation Company during this period do not indicate a tendeney to-—
wards a decline, year by year, of the low-water discharge, notwithstanding the fact
that probably more than half of its area has been stripped of timber.

I know from reliable information that quite a number of its tributaries in Washing-
ton, Fayette, and Greene counties, highly productive agricultural regions, now, as a
ceneral ‘rule, fail or become dry earlier in the season than formerly, and that saw-mills —
located upon them have been abandoned from this cause or converted to the use ee i
steam. The highest flood on this branch of the Ohio was in 1852, and during the ne
interval of thirty -three years :no flood has risen to within four feet of that one.

The characteristics of some of the tributaries both of this and the Allegheny rivers
are somewhat anomalous and worth particularizing. Thus the West Fork of the Mo- —
nongahela river, in West Virginia, draining approximately seven hundred square “
miles, is still heavily timbered, yet this branch becomes in season of drought a little —
brook that one could at places in its ripples easily step over. Its entire loss at such a_ a
period would be inappreciable in the main stream; whereas the Cheat and Youghio- |
gheny branches are always powerful streams, yet they originate and traverse open
glades for miles where no trees have ever grown. The explanation of the apparent
anomaly is quite simple when we come to understand it. The West Fork river has a
remarkably slight fall, abounding in long shallow pools, which in the low lying coun-
try along its course is subjected to the excessive evaporation of an almost tropical sun. —
On the other hand the glades of the Cheat and Youghiogheny lie in highly elevated
regions favored with cool mountain breezes. HS

The largest tributary of the Allegheny river, the Kiskiminetas, draining 1,300 square iat
miles, also rises in the mountains, its sinuous course lying in the deepest secu =

nd
ns
C7
—
4?

ns “id

id the shade of forests, but being extraordinarily wide at many places, its low-water
arge dwindles to less than 35,000 gallons per minute ; whereas French creek, not
ch in excess of 1,000 square miles drainage area, at the lowest stage I have known,
ischarges about 250,000 gallons per minute, or fully one-half of the Allegheny river.
ese gaugings were made by myself in 1879, French creek originates in an elevated
lateau nearly 2,000 feet above the tide water. The country about its sources was always
yen, and was called by early French explorers the Beef Plains (from buffalo having
een found there). It has a climate greatly modified and cooled by the winds from
Lake Erie. If it be urged that its discharge might be even greater with a forest, what
can we say for the Kiskiminetas and the West Fork, which still possess most of their
_ original forests and which dry up practically ?
I cite these instances not to dispute or prove any theory, but merely to emphasize
_ the importance of considering the topography, and particularly the elevation and mean
mperature, of regions before empirically asserting that the equable discharge of
‘streams originating therein may be seriously deranged by human agencies.

THE OHIO AT CINCINNATI.

The river record of Cincinnati extends only from 1858 to 1884, inclusive. During
the first period, viz., from 1858 to 1870, inclusive, five floods exceeded fifty-five feet in
_ height, the highest being in 1862, when the water reached to fifty-seven feet four
inches. Mean of the period, forty-nine feet eleven inches.

_ During the second period, viz., 1871 to 1883, inclusive, only three floods exceeded
_ fifty-five feet (or four with the late flood included).
_ ‘The mean of high waters was forty-nine feet and nine-tenths, or, including the late
_ flood, the mean would be fifty-one feet three inches, as compared with forty-nine feet
eleven inches of the first period. Twosuch phenomenally high floods occurring in
a: two successive years seriously affects the average for a period as short as seventeen
years. They stand alone, however, and unless wonderful works by the hand of man
_ in two years can be shown to have changed the face of nature in the Ohio valleyI can
_ see no propriety in introducing them as factors in this discussion. We cannot, it is
true, ignore the record they make, but in the light of the thirty-five years’ record pre-
__ ceeding, I cannot see that any one would have been safe in predicting their appearance.

The mean annual and low-water depths indicate a slight decline in the last period,
as compared with the first, in this respect supporting the theory of Mr. Wex; but in
__ the low-water record the difference, two inches, is so slight that it might be offset by
_ even one year’s time of water slightly better than the average. Iam not aware of the
fact, if it be true, that any guagings of the actual low-water discharge of the Ohio

e have been made at Cincinnati.
ay

RAINFALL AND CLIMATIC CHANGES.
‘ . % % s

What I have heretofore said and argued I believe has the solid foundation of actual
_ records for its support, and until the accuracy of the figures is called in question, I
_ believe I can add_ no more to strengthen my statements regarding floods on our great
_ interior rivers. Freshets superinduced by the destruction of forests on small water-
_ courses may work great injury in certain neighborhoods, and the American Forestry
_ Congress should in its wisdom devise means, to be enforced by the law-making powers
_ of Canada and the United States, to remedy the evil complained of.

There remains a review of some of the curious statements and arguments put forth
_ that the rain-fall is decreasing and that our climate is changing on account of the
_ destruction of forests, which, if granted, would show at once on our river guages.
___ Tean, of course, grant nothing of the sort regarding at least the country east of the
_ Mississippi, but there are important reasons for believing that human agency is pos-
_ sibly affecting the climate west of the 100th meridian.

__ Up to about 1874 all west of the 100th meridian to the Rocky Mountains, excepting
__ narrow strips along large tributaries of the Missouri and Mississippi, were generally
_ regarded as veritable desert lands, entirely too arid for settlement. It was about this
_ time that settlements had advanced to, but not encroached much beyend, the magical
‘meridional line. Beyond were to be seen the blanched bones of the California overland
emigrants, with those of their horses and cattle, as they had died from hunger, thirst,
-and exhaustion, with here and there the graves of the brave soldiers of Donephan,
Albert Sidney Johnson, and other leaders of military expeditions against Mexicans,
Indians, or Mormons. Truly our geographies until recent times were entitled to
designate it as the Great American Desert. Nevertheless we have lived to see this
so-called desert made to smile with verdure.

* — = WOR As ek” ay oll >
‘ - UA de <4, > Pade - = ie de
“- pit ry = ay. .A e .
Py é ~~“ , 7 >
; 98 ‘iii na
i %

In an address delivered before the Third N ational Agricultural Convention fn 1888
Professor Wilbur stated as follows : “aie

‘“‘T have on many occasions taken the contrary position, viz., that we have no des-
erts in the United States except by our permission; that the march of moisture west-
ward from the Missouri year by year indicates that the time is not far distant when —
there will be no need of any irrigating ditches tn Colorado. I have watched this—
progress of moisture and have observed its increase from the Missouri river for 150 —
miles west.’’

* =

Clarence King, United States geologist, in a paper states :

‘‘The cycle of moisture which has recorded itself in the increased volume of Salt
Lake is also evident in many other localities and in different ways. Mono and —
Owen’s lakes, at the east base of the Sierras, show a corresponding rise, ete. From it }
these facts it would appear that the existing climatic oscillation began before the year
1870 and was the first of the kind for over 270 years, because the deposition of snows —
in the mountains is greater than since the earliest growth of the present forests. The
year 1866 is about the date of the increase of Salt Lake. Mono lake shows a rise
1864 and the destructive avalanches began about 1860.”

I visited Salt Lake in 1871 and again in 1872, and observed myself that fenced apie
fields, formerly plowed, had been submerged, and it has since occurred to me that there
was a connection between agricultural operations and an increase of moisture from the a
deposit of dew, but scarcely from rain-fall. I have been an attentive observer of the
progress of settlement in the far West, and I believe from the statements of friends in
Montana, where I have seen irrigation practiced, that farming can in some places be —
conducted now without such adventitious aid where formerly it was necessary ; but, Pe,
for the main part, I am convinced that the eastern side of the Great Desert always was
tillable. General Custer seems to have thought so in 1874. =

It simply was not tried. Expeditions usually crossed the regicn late in the season, — aa
whereas farmers plow up the land with the first opening of spring, and the rapidly- :
growing grain soon shades the ground and retards the evaporation of moisture.* .

Farmers in Montana, even in 1871-2, sometimes only flooded their lands once ae
get the crops started, averring that that was all that was necessary to secure its matur- —
ing. I do not desire to discuss this branch of the question very far, rather preferring
to wait for Signal Office reports a few years hence to verify the statement of Prof. —
Wilbur that natural moisture or rain-fall is increasing in the West. 3

Many friends of forestry regulations assert quite ‘positively, however, that the de-
struction of timber decreases the rain-fall. I have spoken of the far West to show
there are possible compensations for this decrease in agricultural operations, whic
usually follow the destruction of the timber. But here again I would call upon these
gentlemen for the authority for their oft-repeated assertions that the destruction of
forests decreases or has one particle of effect upon the rain-fall. My figuring, so far,
leads to quite the contrary conclusions. Official rain-gauge records for many stations
throughout the country are not obtainable previous to 1871. To assist in arriving at
the facts, I have selected thirty-seven of these stations for the decade between 1870 and
1880, and taking them by halves, the second half exhibits an increase of 1.68 inches —
of rainfall per annum over the first half. In making the selections of stations, I pur-_
posely took a greater percentage from the regions “where lumbering operations are
carried on most extensively. Every one of the Michigan and Wisconsin stations re.
reports more rain-fall in the last than in the first half of the decade.

By combining the rain-gauge records of Pittsburgh and Cannonsburg, a town in
the vicinity of Pittsburgh, , (Pittsburgh records not being obtainable before 1871), I —
have prepared a table exhibiting the rain-fall for thirty-nine years, viz: from 1845 to ©
1884. Divided into two nearly equal periods, the second shows an average increase —
over the first of 2.67 inches rain-fall perannum. Taking the record of the city of ;

Philadelphia, from 1810 to 1875, the average rain-fall by decades is as follows: tee
LOST P yee LVN A eae SF aie EOE a ee ps ba EA es 32.79 inches.
eet Piate e ae ts ee e
PRSON AS ees Soe ne Oe oe
Heise Wiha Ss 2S eee a re i ee 44.57%

LBD IRG0. Sos Sein el ee 44.09 ¢
TOGA SURG wee SS So aes Se eS hs 2) eee 49.37.
soar (US hie ES SR DS SE a Se CE _-:) ACES aae

The above figures appear to indicate, with the settlement of the country, that the
ain-fall is increasing. These tables are by no means exhaustive, and it might not be
safe to venture an opinion based upon them.

_ The anonymous writer, whom I previously quoted from the columns of ‘“ Forest
and Stream,” produces what he calls figures, but which I think hedesires us to con-
sider figures of speech, on this very point They are curious and interesting at all

events, and I quote them:

_ ‘A few figures will render the influence of forests in the maintenance of rain-fall
_ over the great central region of this continent strikingly apparent.
“Supposing the rain-fall of this region dependent directly on ocean currents,
- amounts to a general average of twenty inches; if there were no forests nor other vege-
tation creating a retentive soil, the rivers would annually discharge a volume of water
- equal to the rain-fall; but if it were dotted with forests, the floor of which retained
_ only one inch of the twenty, the river discharge would be reduced to nineteen inches,
a saving which, if it could be maintained, would be equal to more than eight feet of
_ water over the whole region in a century. Of the water thus retained by vegetation,
a portion is employed in keeping the soil constantly, moist and another portion is con-
stantly suspended in the atmosphere, falling as rain or dew, and being continuously
re-evaporated and reprecipitated. Forests may thus raise the rain-fall to double or
three times the amount due to ocean currents, and, following their destruction, the
_ whole surplus is borne into the rivers, which overfiow their banks in their efforts to
_ discharge it into the sea. Every great flood reduces the interior reservoir, thus induc-
_ ing a gradually-diminishing rain-fall, with a gradual diminution in the violence of
_ the floods, until finally the region is dependent on ocean currents only for its moisture ;
and it may be safely argued that when the great region lying between the Appalach-
ian and Rocky Mountain chain shall have its rain-fall limited to the supply inborne
by ocean currents it will cease to be an agricultural country.”

rf
5
__ I do not understand how moist air can be suspended over woodlands to be continu-
ously precipitated and re-evaporated. I believe that every drop of moisture eastward,
across the northern part of the continent to the Allegheny range, comes from the
th Pacific ocean. The average annual wind-mileage at Pittsburgh is 55,000 miles, very
____ little of which comes from the east. East winds west of the mountains are simply the
_ undertow, or air set in motion backwards for a short time, as an eddy under a rapidly-
advancing, powerful, and high westerly or northwesterly wind.
_ “The east wind brings the storm,’’ but the great rain clouds unceasingly float east-
wardly. Lewis and Clarke, as early as 1803, observed, when on the Missouri river,
that every cloud passed over them from the west, being undoubtedly the first recorders
___ of the great natural phenomena. Such being the case our anonymous friend’s moisture
must be borne with it at the average rate of fully 125 miles per day, giving it not
_ much time to coquet with the tree-tops in a given locality. Just how all this rain
_ erosses the almost rainless interior, through a generally cloudless sky, is an interesting
_ speculation. Undoubtedly it travels faster over the plains and accumulates over us
_ more frequently to the point of saturation.
The editor of ‘‘ Forest and Stream” indulges in the following, which the writer,
_ with due respect, considers an incautious argument in a good cause:

The forests of the National Park protect the heads of two of the most important
_ rivers of North America, one, the Snake, flowing into the Pacific, and the other, the
_ Yellowstone, finding its way into the Atlantic. These streams, after leaving the
_ mountains, flow for long distances through arid regions which are only cultivable by
means of irrigation, and should the forests about the head of these rivers be cleared
_ away their volume would be so dimished that the farmers, who now and in the future
__will depend on them for their water-supply, whould be absolutely unable to raise
-* > [erops.””
Se
__ The writer traveled several thousand miles during two years through the Rocky
. Mountain region in various directions, including a portion of the country adjacent to
_ the National Park, and in all the distance traversed never saw a living stream after
_ July first dependent in any degree upon rain-water for its supply. After that date

_ and melts in gulches above the tree-line. Powell’s and other peaks in Montana, Mts.
Hood and Ranier have everlasting snows upon them above arborescent growth. Many
_of the mountain streams, like the Judith and the Muscleshell in Eastern Montana,
_ actually disappear by loss from evaporation in the lower parts of their course, while
_ Strong streams difficult to ford are higher up. The Missouri, I believe, after Septem-
_ ber first until the first snow, discharges more water at Fort Benton than it does 500
_ miles below at its junction with the Yellowstone, its tributaries not nearly supplying
he loss due to evaporation. The entire Missouri, according to Humphrey and Abbot,
ining 514,000 square miles, discharges into the Mississippi only 3.7 trillion cubic

_ their unfailing source of supply, where they exist at all, is snow, which usually lies-

us P Y a ae Tey “ es: i , 5 :
’ 100: ee Beis rate es
a rd ei at a Lod is

; « z& b

feet per annum as compared with five trillion cubic feet for the Ohio, which h
200,000 square miles in its basin.

The diversities in the characteristics of the two streams are very great. The Mice :
will in the near future afford the friends of tree-culture a field for experiment on : pe ‘
grandest scale to test the effect of settlement and agricultural operations over an im=-
mense treeless plain upon its natural regimen, and I would look for more pronoune
results in the Missouri than appears to have rewarded the labors of observers in east-
ern streams in support of their favorite theory.

As it may be interesting to note the grounds on which Mr. Wex and others bas
their theories that the destruction of forests affects the high and low water stages. o
rivers, I will here introduce some paragraphs from various authorities : :

Berghaus mentions in his Hydrography, heretofore cited by me, that the deer
in the. “discharge of the Elbe since 1782 is caused by the decrease of the rain-fall }
has taken place i in its basin since that time. The cause of this is stated, both by B
haus and Malte Brun, to be in the clearing of forests, since the attraction of the
draws electricity and ‘water from the clouds and increases the amount of the rain

Tt is acommon source of wonder with Germans in this country that our forests
not protected and renewed as they are in Germany; but if we can believe Bergha
and Malte Brun, the German laws on this subject cannot be universally _ le
throughout the empire.

“Tt is a fixed fact which has been proven by numerous observations that the cle es
ing of forests dries up springs, and that when they again grow the latter flow mor
abundantly and regularly. * * * Boussingault says: “Tis my opinion that th
clearing of forests over a large area has always the effect of diminishing the ann
rain-fall.’”? The learned Coultas makes the following comparison: ‘The ocean wine
and forests may be considered as the different parts of a great distillery. The se
the boiler in which the steam is created by heat of the sun. The winds are the p
which lead the steam to the forests where a lower temperature exists. For this re
the steam is condensed, and in this manner forests distill showers of rain,” &e. —

Observations with a rain-guage before and after the clearing of a particular fi
region would have been an admirable indorsement of Boussingault’s views.

‘Mildrum, the director of the observatory on Mauritius Island, has found that since
1852, when at least 44,155 acres had been cleared, the rain-fall, humidity, and pr
sure of Vi apor had decreased, and, on the contrary, ‘the floods and dry periods have
creased.

The clearing of less than seventy square miles producing such decided effects. ‘is
markable. Seventy square miles represent about the one-ninth of the island, but s
areas have frequently been cleared in the United States without in the least decres
the rain-fall.

The report of Mr. Matthieu, professor of the Imperial School of Forestry, was. a
published by the French Government, in which he shows that it is proven by experi-
ment that the amount of aqueous vapor over a cleared field is five times as great as”
over ground covered with forests, which he considers equivalent to an increase in the —
annual rain-fall in sections of countries covered with forests. Professor H. W. Dove,
one of the first authorities in the knowledge of weather, says: ‘‘ Europe has worke¢
itself into continually irregular rainy seasons by the modern cultivation of its lands,
which crowds off the forests recklessly, and which causes its rivers to be nearly ana
during long periods, while during others their banks can hardly retain the masses of —
“the water which are poured into them.” vj

Then Mr. Wex, in his summary, says:

‘« The existence of forests in a country increases the amount of rain-fall, because
fogs and clouds, saturated with aqueous vapor which sweep over it, are, in the fi
place, condensed by contact with them and fall in the shape of rain. ”

This short, simple assertion could have been verified in one year’s time by obser
tions on neighbori ng rain gauges—one in a forest and the other stationed in an op
plain—but } Mr. Wex quotes no one who has tried this experiment. He continues to sa

‘« Forests increase the amount of subterranean seepage and water in springs consid-—
erably, since the rains, being retained by the leaves of the trees, fall to the earth slow ly.
They are then retarded in their flow by the spongy surface, and are partly soaked -
and partly sink into the deeper layers of the earth,” &e.

ofessor G. K. Gilbert, in Powell’s Land of the Arid Regions, in a report on the
ater supply of the Great Salt Lake of Utah, says :

“The cutting of trees for timber and fence material and fuel has further increased
estreams. By the removal of foliage that share of the rain and snow which was
formerly caught by it and thence evaporated is now permitted to reach the ground,
and some part of it is contributed to the streams.”

Thus authorities will philosophize differently.
_ Again Mr. Wex says:

_ «A further cause of the decrease in the discharge of springs and streams of many
countries in Europe during the last decades, is the emptying of lakes and ponds and the
_ drainage of swamps and marshes.”’

By We will let Professor Gilbert answer this. He says, quoting from the report just
_ mentioned :

«Small springs are apt to produce bogs, from which much water is evaporated,” &e.
\?

_ It appears arguments can be produced from nature to support any theory. She rains
not only on the just and the unjust alike, but quite possibly denies the ploughed field,
_ which needs it most, no favors which she would give the woodlands.
_ Lastly, Mr. Wex says that in cultivated and thickly-settled regions much water from
_ ourrivers is withdrawn for the purposes of irrigation ; he might have added for manufac-
_ turesalso. It is believed that scarcely a half of the water used by great cities returns to
_ the streams from which it was originally drawn. Undoubtedly such considerations as
these would have great weight in some regions, dependent upon the proportion with-
drawn for these purposes as compared with the original stream. There is little irri-
gation practiced in the Ohio basin, and the quantity of water pumped out to supply
_ the cities lining its banks is probably too insignificant a proportion of the whole low-
_ water discharge to require notice.

The Sanitary Engineer, in a recent article, says: ‘‘ The surface of the ground, when
shaded by forest trees, is always covered with a spongy layer of old leaves or mosses
_ fayoring the absorption of water, while the fallen logs and underbrush obstruct the
flow on the surface.”’

_ ‘We have never had but one destructive summer or fall flood on the Ohio, and that

_ was in November, 1810, when the Ohio basin was a virgin forest. All other high

floods have occurred in the early spring, at periods when the ‘‘ spongy ’’ layers of leaves
and moss must have been soaked to saturation by earlier rains and snows. It may be
_ that changed conditions of the surface, such as the destruction of forests and cultivat-

_ ing and draining the soil, may have a sensible influence in increasing the height of

_ summer freshets, which might be termed floods of intermediate height ; but in Febru-
_ ary, when the great floods usually occur, the previously-saturated soil and overflowing
_ marshes are merely like other surfaces, the same everywhere, and, therefore, can have
no regulating effect on floods.

_ Mr. W. Milnor Roberts, in a report on the surveys of the Ohio river, referring to
_ some views previously expressed by him in a pamphlet printed by the Franklin Insti-
_ tute, and combating the theories of Chas. Ellet in favor of reservoirs as a means to
hold back floods on the Ohio, says: ‘ It was proved from an examination of the records
of the floods on the upper part of the Ohio, that some of the highest floods occurred
_ when such reservoirs, had they been in existence, must have been full. Such being

_ the case, they could not have aided in restraining those floods, and this would certainly

_ be the case almost every year.”

If Mr. Roberts could argue this way, in view of the fact that Mr. Ellet’s dams
p 4 ae the heads of the Ohio would be, in some instances, 100 feet high, reaching from

=)
—>

etal

hill to hill and of enormous storage capacity, he certainly would have placed little
reliance on moss, leaves, marshes, and forests as restraining reservoirs for spring
freshets in the Ohio valley.
__ More has been done by the hand of man on the North American continent in the
_ removal of forests during the last forty years than has probably been accomplished in
_ Europe in a century and ahalf. Moreover, the proportion of mountain land in Europe
_ is considerably greater than it is in the eastern United States. If, therefore, decrease
_ of rain-fall, or other meteorological phenomena, are affected by such means, they
_ would be most marked in the regions of plains, and particularly in rapidly-cleared
and settled plains. In the Allegheny valley above Pittsburgh several billion feet of
_ lumber have been cut in the last forty years, and a vastly larger quantity of timber
_ has been recklessly destroyed by forest fires and by the process of girdling trees in open-
ing up farms.

water above the river’s slope is increased; hence follows increase of v
greater discharging capacity. The great flood on the Ohio was comparati
gish, for, as before said, its prism was comparatively full before the flood con
and its slope or inclination of surface when at the maximum of its height \
than the average inclination of the river. The flood of 1883, when the Ohio y
twenty-seven-foot stage at Pittsburgh, flowed for a while with a current
eleven miles an hour, whereas the flood of 1884, when at a stage of over th
flowed at the rate of only a little more than eight miles an hour; so that I ap
there were hours when the twenty-seven-foot flood discharged as much water as th
great flood did at its maximum. It is, therefore, important to understand the*
dents of a great flood in order to determine the probable effect of a given amo
rain or snow fall. 7

The popular opinion no doubt will long be that the destruction of forests
the height of floods, but I am persuaded it is not a belief founded on establis

i Ne lee
«gee Ate ee
Dee ity: we

By f -) F J \ 4 _ toe . ae. 6
0, Bee eee See OS Re NR kt eae 4 vi

my ay = rs
sae ; aS s bas et ee ; :
1 Highest, Lowest, and ‘Mean of Water at Pittsburgh, and Averages for

Two Periods.

Year. Highest. Mean. Lowest. Remarks.

1810 32. Sacehuebancosunnce| -cesase
1813 29. Gans
1816 33. Sabeenceuccneepce-lucdanan
1832 34. GcccasesecSassscn=[osacens

1840 26.9 «Robs acnont Cee Hoeeees a3 High Water.
1847 26. eases ites Peseta Rae
1851 20.9 eNapereestigeaencer| ioeaene ...| First period, 1847 to 1863. Av-
1852 31.9 fess eS | eee ..| erage for the period is 24
1853 SLo5. “hs ny i Pac | feet 7 inches.
1855 18.0 5
1856 19.6 Ec
1857 21.4 .
1858 26.0 | 0.5 Low Water.
1859 22.0 1.1 :
Saeeane 1860 29.7 2.8 First period, 1855 to 1870. Ay-
1861 30.916 1.10 erage for the period is 8
1862 28.7 0.3 inches.
1863 16.0 toss = 0.1
1864 18.6 | oe acd 1.0
1865 314 os 1.4
4 1866 15.4 0.4 High Water.
Saasene 1867 22.6 0.0
E. 1868 20.6 0.0 Second period, 1868 to 1884.
1869 19.6 0.7 Average for the period is 23
1870 18.0 1.3 feet 6 inches.
y lee 1871 19.0 12
Se nets 1872 20.6 1.6
1873 25.6 1.6
1874 22.4 ae Low Water.
1875 25.0 6.15 0.4
1876 26.0 5.88 0.2 Second period, 1870 to 1884.
1877 25.0 4.95 0.7 Average for the period is 8
1878 24.6 5.20 0.0 inches.
1879 20.0 4.30 0.1
1880 22.0 4.70 0.3
1881 28.0 4.96 0.6
eae 1882 21.9 5.11.6 0.6
aaaut'e 1883 27.6 5.11.3 0.1
oie ares Bye Val ty eee Geka Eee

es Statement Showing the Highest, Lowest, and Average Stages of the Ohio River at Ovn-
__einnati each Calendar Year, from 1858 to 1883, including Floods of 1832 and 1847.

HIGHEST STAGE. - LOWEST STAGE, AVERAGE.

} Date. Ft In. Date. Ft. In. Ft. In.
LG2si <r rare February 18 ......... BES F [rccsena Storcceseenesreccerceee| ate in <naeennnslaeechusscuceeesee
PTR AER fascia cn csinseesenses December 17........ 63.7 | eee aotaa| sxcceasuastecetces| seceecretn cette
Vis oe NENG piesa n-cewceacencsc 43.10 October 3 2.5 12.10
...| February 22.. c 55.5 September 19. 3.3 17.7
April 16.... 49.2 October 3 .. 5.4 16.
April 19...... 49.5 JULY daczcccxes 5.1 19.1
-| January 24.. 57.4 October 31.... 2.4 17.5
March 12....... 42.9 October 6..... 2.6 15:
---| December 23........ 45.1 August 6...... 3.1 16.8
a ES) Sh - 56.3 October 19............ 5.8 21.10
| September 26 42.6 August 17 ............. 4.9 19.2
Witz ig 0 eee 55.8 October 19...... 3.0 17.
hy. 48.3 July 21..... 5.1 18.8
BRO Yc: 0 48.9 August 21.. 5.4 19.8
January 19.. 55.3 October 4.... 3.10 17.10
Liiva. =e 40.6 October 14... 2.8 11.10
Snneeceon i Secetekeudecsans 41.9 October 14... 3. 1.8
....| December 18......... 44.5 October 12...... =e 3.8 13:5 4
pakeehaas January 11............ 47.11 September 29........ 2.4 15.8
See regce| RELVES Bit eseecsaccoowe 55.4 September 19........ 4.3 18.9
a SRRUATY 200 esos. 51.9 September 4......... 6.2 18.2
...| January 20..... 53.9 October 9........ a 3.3 15.
«.| December 15. 414 October 24. 4.4 16.9
-| December 27. 42.9 October 23. 2.6 14.6
.| February 17.. 53.2 October 28............ 3.9 ius
..| February 16......... 50.7. | September 18....... 1.11 16.11
Scterersa|WLCDITLALY? Eh cvoces. q 58.7 November 1......... 6.1 22.11
Bie. dtte stood z.....| February \15......... 66.4 | September 21........ 3.7 19.5%

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anonsburgh and. Pittsburgh.

Inches. -

27.54
40.81
39.61
B1.59
32.72
31.00
23.74
39.48
25.48
20.86
41.91
25.07
43.53
31.59
39.23
39.43
36.46
31.61
33.58
39.95
43.90
36.51
29.77
30.61
36.60
24.35
30.78
41.57
39.34
34.06
37.01
34.72
38.76
37.02
31.97
37.30
38.61
43.17 .

» Remarks.

Canonsburgh is 20 miles south-
west from Pittsburgh. The
Pittsburgh record begins with
1871.

There are no records for either
place in 1870.

Average rainfall from 1845 to 1863,
inclusive, 35.01 inches,

Average rainfall, 1864 to 1883, in-
clusive, 37.68 inches.

.| Increase of the second period

over the first period is 2.67
inches.

, Table of Rain-fall in Philadelphia from 1810 to 1875.
iy (Report of the Commission of Engineers on the Water Supply of Philadelphia.)

Rainfall.| Average. || Year. | Rainfall.| Average.|| Year. | Rainfall.| Average.|| Remarks.
: }
Inches. Inches. Inches. Inches. Inches. Inches. :
32.66 1840... 47.40 m 18g 44.11 Sc
34.97 || 1841...... 58.50 2 | (ea ky cae 47.32 ae
39.30 2 Tei. 48 54 = 1S72ees 51.12 te
35.63 1s432)2. 46.91 oO: siz * §8.29 ra
43.14 oF 1844...... 40.17 pe i] 184. ss.. 40.91 48.35
34.67 ae 1845...... 40.02 =) .
27.95 & 1846.....: 44.39 =
36.01 a 1847... 45.09 | * ©
30.18 iY See 35.00 x ?
23.35 32.79 || 1849...... 42.09 44.57
39.61 ; 1850...... 54.54
32.18 = 1851...... 35.50 =
29.86 = opoe, 45.75 2 }
41.85 = 1 ee 40.66 re }
38.74 paaae ly P4018 4 |
29.57 = 1855. 44.09 a
36.15 $s 1856...... 33.93 & |}
38.50 a iy eee 48.29 co
37.97 2 1858...... 39.85 i
41.85 36.63. || 1859.....) 58.12 44.09 |,
45.07 1860...... 44.09 i
44.94 = ISGLes.. 46.44 eine ||| |
39.87 2 1862... 45.01 |-° 2 i} |
- 48.55 5 1863......] 49.19 ane |
34.24 a 1864...... 46.00 a |
39.30 = 1865......| 56.26 ia
42.66 2 1866...... 45.26 aa, ||
39.04 = 1867...... 61.19 a |
45.24 1868...... 51.40 |
; 42.65 || 1869......] 48.86 49.37 | |
il, ‘ I
SS >) -e 5

AVERAGE.

Increase.

First Period. |Second Period.

Inches. Inches.
Breckenridge, Minn 27.20 25.59
Cairo, I] preads 44.47 46.36
Chicago, Il wae 33.06 35.45
Cincinnati, O.. 39.06 47.03
Cleveland, Ohio. 35.19 41.61
Detroit, Mich.. coetaselces 28.95 40.77
Duluth, Minn.. : 32.68 35.61
Escanaba, Mich. = 33.58 34.14
Grand Haven, Michigan 35.64 * 37.47
Indianapolis, Ind.. 46.36 45.82
Knoxville, ‘Tenn 56.81 48.96
La Crosse, Wis .. 33.32 34.31
Marquette, Mich aes 28.06 33.87
Memphis, Tenn. 50.31 58.45
Milwaukee, Wis.. pas ane 30.72 37.93
Morgantown, W. Va... es 4T.S4 45.45
Nashville, Tenn oy 50.90 54.00
Pittsburgh, Pa 38.48 35.89
St. Lonis, Mo.. ne 35.78 38.01
. ES 5 32.88 29.48
i 29.67 33.67
Vieksburgh, Miss 58.97 60.42
Buffalo, N. ca 34.03 , 40.74
Dubuque, Ia. BAAS 38.85 37.49. > "| cccekeessenee
i 41.22 42.09
Fort Gibson, Ind. Ter. Af 39.48 36.78
Galveston, Texas 52.12 51.32
Indianola, Texas.... < 38.94 38.59
Keokuk, Ia.. Pa 38.65 37.81
Leavenworth, : Bay 35.96 42.02
Lynchburg, Va .. 42.35 40.88
Montgomery, Ala. 58.45 52.08
Omaha, Neb aes a 3219 . 33.86
Oswego, N. Y.. Selsespeweestcee 31.28 40.40
Port Huron, Mich 32.97
Rochester, N. Y........ 37.61
Yankton, Dakota 29.97
1431.90

Nore.—The general average for the thirty-seven stations above mentioned is 1.68 sof I
in the second period over the first.

ac: sae Chatto oe rh BS te eee
Pye er eae a ba ;

ANNUAL

MEETING

—OF THE—

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS

Hetp In DENVER, COLORADO,

COMMENCING TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14TH, 1886. .

Vo} .

FIRST DAY’S PROCEEDINGS.

Many of the members and delegates to the
American Forestry Congress arrived in the
city yesterday. Others are expected to-day.
Owing to the fact that no business meeting
has as yet been held, the names of the entire
number of delegates and members has not
yet been reported to the Secretary. Among
those present: from other States are: J. H.
Hayford of New York, Hon. Martin Allen of
Hayes City, Kansas; Leo Weltz of Wilming-
ton, Ohio; G. J. Carpenter of Fairburg, Ne-
braska; Hon, G. W. Minier of Minier, Llinois;
J. L. Johnson of Gunnison; Dr. Daniel Berri
of Carmi, Illinois; J. Horner of Emporia, Kan-
sas; Bernhard E. Fernow of New York City;
Harmon Dean of Sidney, Ohio; and Mr. Es-
bock of Dayton, Ohio.

Among those from this State are: William
W. Pardee of Deaver, R. Q, Tenney of Fort
Collins, B. F. Rockafellow of Cauvon
City, Joseph Davis of Trinidad, and Blair
Burwell of Durango, W. N. Byers, Posey S.
Wilson, Avery Gallup, T. C. Henry and Col-
onel Berkey of this city, President George
H. Parsons of the State Forestry Association,
Professor Van Diest of the Surveyor-General’s
office, Colonel Edgar T. Ensign of Colorado
Springs, State Forestry Commissioner and
State Engineer Nettleton.

J. L. Barrett, Greeley; J. S. McClelland,
Fort Collins; Samuel Wade, Paonia; Louis
Dugal, Nelson Millett, Henry Lee, George
Richardson and H. G. Wolff have been ap-
pointed as delegates from the Colorado State
Horticultural Society.

Although the number present will not
probably be as large as was first expected, the
meeting bids fair te be one of great interest.

THE CONGRESS IN SESSION.

The opening session of the Congress was

held last evening at the Chamber of Com-

merce. The hall was well filled, many of
those present being ladies.

The mesting was called to order shortly
after 8 o’clock by Mr. J. T. Cornforth. Be-
sides Mr. Cornforth on the platform were
seated George H. Parsons of Colorado
Springs, President of the State Society, and
Mr. Bernhard E. Fernow of New York city,
the Corresponding Secretary of the Con-
gress,

Mr. Cornforth apologized for the absence of
Governor Eaton and President Woodbury of
the Chamber of Commerce, and said that he
found himself compelled to act for them.
Mr. Woodbury, he said, was in New York
and the Governor was detained by sickness in
his family.

He then delivered the following address:

EXTENDING A GREETING.

“The members of the Chamber of Com-
merce and Board of Trade extend to you,
gentlemen of the American Forestry Con-
gress, a hearty welcome, and feel highly hon-
ored by your presence in our city. We feel
certain that your deliberations within this
chamber will beasource of information to
our citizens as well as to the country at large,
and will also result in great good to our peo-
ple. :

“Washington said, ‘promote as an object of
primary importance institutions for the gen-
eral diffusion of knowledge. In proportion
as the structure of a government gives force
to public opinion it should be enlightened.’

“Now, gentlemen, we wish to learn, and
after we have had the pleasure of hearing
your addresses we hope to have such a fund
of knowledge and information that we can
enlighten our friends,

“We doubt not but that your aims are no-
ble, and for the future welfare of our coun-
try, and full of patriotism, and that one of
the prime objects of your organization is to

—

ask that each State have laws regulating our
forests; but many interests within our State
will object to too stringent a law, or say” that
the State should not interfere with their in-
terests. : ; J
“Gentlemen, it was a question like this
that brought forth the words of that noble
son of liberty, Sir W. Jones, who said:
What constitutes a State?
Not high raised battlemets or labored mound,
Not cities proud with spires and turrets crowned,
Not bays and broad armed ports tin 5
Where, laughing at the storm, rich navies ride,
Not starr’d and spangled courts
Where low browed baseness wafts perfume of

ride

No! oop) high minded men, with powers of far
above,

Dull brutes endued in forest, brake or den,

As beasts excel cold rocks and brambles rude.

Men, who their duties know, ‘

But know their rights, and knowing dare main-
tain,

Prevent the long-aimed blow

And crush the tyrants while they rend the chain,

These constitute a State.

“We think this Forestry Congress composed
of just such men and your purposes are the
greatest good for the greatest number,

NOW HOW CHANGED,

“Again we welcome you. Many years ago
in our pil» rimage across the plains we tray-
eled for 200 miles and only hand one single
tree, but now how changed.

“Plantations on many sides and with each
annual Arbor Day, the plains will soon be
gone. The pioneers see little as it was, and
the few that are spared meet to-day. Thisis
their annual celebration. I honor the pio-
neers, the pilgrims; it was they that made it
safe and possible for others to follow. They
made the trails and prospected our’moun-
taius, laid off our cities and called for all
people tocome and enjoy the fullness of our
land and mines. They dedicated Denver
the City of the Plains. I think this Forestry
Congress should ask a rededication and name
it the Forest City, for we have now more trees
within our corporate limits than any other
city of its population in the Union.

“Some of you present remember the big
timbers on the Smoky Hill Trail and the
reverence in which the Indians held them,
I now draw to « close by asking the question;
where was the great American poet, Bryant,
when he wrote his, ‘God’s First Tempie.’ He
says the groves were Goii’s first temples, ere
meu learned to hew the shaft. Oh, why
should we in the world’s riper years ne_ lect
God’s ancient sanctuaries, Read it my friends
and I think you will say, why, he was in
Cambridge or Boston, reasoning with some
learned Proie.sors to organize an American
Forestry Congress, At any rate such words
as Bryant’s will never die and if your organ-
ization ever erect a statue let it be Bryant’s.”

Secretary Fernow in reply apologized for
the absence of Hon. Warren Higley, tie
President ot the Congress, and made a short
speech of thanks for the welcome which the

delegates and members had received. He
said: “You of the West must pardon us East-
erners if we still consider you in the far West.
But anyone who has made the journey from
New York acros3 the plains and then has
suddenly come upon this beautiful home of
an enlightened and cultured people, the dis-
tance seems as naught. His sympathies are
stirred and he feels. that here he is still a
member of this great country. I again regret
that President Higley is not present to ad-
dress you.”

THE PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS.

Mr. Fernow then read the address of Hon.
Warren Higley of New York, President of
the society, from which the following are ex-
tracts:

“Ladies and Gentlemen—I congratulate you
on meeting here under the shadow of the
rugged Rockies and on the border of the
Great American Desert for the discussion of
questions of vital importance to the Ameri-
can people, and of special interes to those of
you dwelling on the border-land of this great
treeless waste. It is with pride that I call
your attention to some of the results that
have followed our annual discussions during
the short life of our Congress, and the
rapid growth and spread of favorable
forestry sentiment throughout the country.
In a Republic like ours, where laws are ex-
pected to be the expression of the people’s
will, itis all important that the subject to
which these laws relate should be under-
stood by the masses interested in them, for
without such popular uuderstanding or
knowledge the sovereign citizen will fail to
obey or enforce them, Public discussions by
intelligent, patriotic citizens, in gatherings
like this, are powerful engines in the promo-
tion of such a cause as ours.

LOOKING FOR RESULTS,

“And now what can we hope from this
Denver meeting? What results can we look
for as a result of careful study and long jour-
neying? Shall your mountain forests be more
respected, their protection against wick: d de-
struction become more secure? The special
object of this meeting is to bring beiore the
people of the great West such a presentation
of the questions directly arising from the pe-
culiar conditions as will tend most surely to
their intelligent consideration and eventual
soiution,

“You will be told with scientific assurance
that by this means your cultivated fields on
the eastern borders of the R.cky Mountains
shal] extend eastward across the desert waste
until they meet the well watered fieids on
the Kansas and Nebraska borders. ‘This may
be but a dream of the enthusiastic forester,
yetis a dream that once realized will open a
now worthless territory to the incoming set-
tlers of an extent aud productiveness suf-
ficient to support 50,000,000 of people.

“You will be told of the amountof forest
product required in the working of your
numerous mines; of the rapidity with which

your forest areas are being diminished, and
of the increased cost of the production of
your precious metals in consequence of this
coming derth.

ARBOR DAY.

In 1882 only three States had officially
recognized the importance of Arbor Day.
Now fifteen States of the Union annually in-
vite their citizens, through the Governor’s
proclamation, to do something toward repair-
ing their wasted forests. There is no
more important factor in popular
education than Arbor Day celebration, and it
seems to me incumbent upon this Congress
to foster and encourage it in all reasonable
and practical ways, until every State and
Territory of the Union, and every Province |
of Canada, shall estabiish and perpetuate it
throughout their borders. The enormous an-
nual loss caused by forest fires demands our
attention. In the census year euding in
June, 1880, the fires destroyed, in Colorado
alone, 113,820 acres of her forests, valued

at $935.500; in Montana, 88,000 acres,
valued at $1,128,000; in California,
356,815 acres, valued at $440,780; in
New York, 149,491 acres, valued at

$1,210,785, and in the whole United States,
10,274,000 acres with an estimated value of
$25,482,250. In view of these alarming fig-
ures, would it not be wise for the State gov-
ernment to adopt adequate measures for the
sure preveution of these fires, and to appro-
priate all money necessary to effectually carry
out sach measures?

IMPORTANT TO COLORADO.

“What could Colorado do under her wise
forestry laws, with an appropriation of a half
miliion toward the preservation of her valua-
ble forests? I commend this subject to your
continual attention and effort.

“Tt igevident that the education of our
American youth should be directed witha
view to their future sovereign citizenship,
and instruction in those departments of
American economics that most nearly touch
the productive energies of the masses, should
by no means be omitted in the public school
curriculeun. The science of forestry, like
that of agriculture, is as yet largely experi-
mental. It is the result of one of our modern
necessities. Some of the more important
conclusions regarding the influence of forests
are based upon historic evidence, scientific
investigations and careful observation, and
may be briefly summed up as follows:

1, The forests exercise an influence upon
the climate of the country; they modify the
extremes of temperature.

2. They have a decided influence upon the
water supply of acountry. Clear the forests
from the valleys and headwaters of streams
and rivers, and these water courses, perenial
before, become dry in summer and raging
torrents in spring time.

3. Forests exert a beneficial influence upon
agriculture by forming a wall of protection
to the growing crops when most needed.

4. Growing forests on mountain sides and
steep declivities hold the loose soil and ac-
cumulating humus in place.

5. Forests in adequate areas tend to pre-
serve the healthfulness of a country or dis-
trict by their influence on the surrounding
atmosphere,

6. Forest products afford the most indis-
pensable and necessary economic element in
the industries and prosperity of a nation. The
total value of the forest products of the
United States for 1880 exceeded $700,000,000.

A GREAT QUSTION.

The time has come for the people of Amer-
ica to consider most seriously this great for-
estry interest. And how can this best be
done? What surer averues are open for this
instruction than the public school?

“When I consider the progress that has
been made in America in the past few years
toward the establishment of some forest
policy, I feel that the consummation of our
fondest hopes as to the result of our labors
will yet be realized.

“IT cannot close without further congratu-
lating you and the country on having at the
head of the Forestry Bureau at Washington
our Secretary, the Hon. B. E. Fernon, a gen-
tleman of eminent scientific and literary
ability, a trained forester thoroughly pre-
pared for the position which he fills,”

The address was listened to with great in-
terest and was loudly applauded.

DESTRUCTIVE FOREST FIRES,

Mr. Cornforth then called upon President
Parsons, who said: “It seems fitting to make
a few remarks on the importance of this
subject to this State. We see in the moun-
tains destructive forest fires. Those Eastern
slopes were once entirely clothed with trees,
and with the loss of the trees we have lost
the natural reservoirs so necessary for the
growing of crops. It was for the preserva-
tion of the Colorado forests that in 1884 the
State Society was formed. A State Commis-
missioner was appointed by act of Legisla-
ture. By the preservation of the forests the
climate would be changed so as to be
better for man as well as for the crops.

“We wish to make the love of trees more
universal and the planting more general.
We thank the members of the Congress who
have come here, and as far as we can we will
aid them as much as we can.”

Mr. W. N. Byers was then called for, but
failed to respond. Mr. T. C. Henry was
called upon, but excused himsclf on the
ground that he wished tosave his ammuni-
tion for some futuie meeting during the
week,

On motion, it was voted that ladies be in-
vited to attend the meetings. It was then
announced that the subject for this morn-
ing’s papers and discussion will be, “Forestry
Legislation.” The meeting will be called at
9:30 a. m., when credentials will be received
from delegates,

SECOND DAY'S

The second session of the American For-
estry Congress was called to order yesterday
morning by Hon. George H. Parsons of Colo-
rado Springs. Hon. G. W. Minier of Illinois
was nominated as chairman and elected. He
made a short speech of thanks. Mr. A. E.
Beardsley was chosen recording secretary.

The following delegates from States and
societies were then announced by the Com-
mittee on Credentials:

Wyoming—Dr. J. H. Hayford, Professor N.
E. Stark, Mr. E. P. Snow.

Nebraska— Professor E. E. Bessey, S. Bar-
nard, J. H. Masters, J. G. Carpenter.

Kansas—Hon. Martin Allen (Kansas Hor-
ticultural Society), W.S. Tilton, Hon, L. D.
Bailey.

Colorado—W. W. Pardee, Joseph Davis, A.
E. ines > J. F. Martin and Blair Bur-
well.

Colorado State Hortieultural Society—J. L.
Barrett, A. E. Gipson, J. S. McClelland, Sam-
uel Wade, Henry Lee, Louis Dugal, Nelson
Millett, George Richardson, H. G, Wolff, C. S.
Faurot, and N. J. W. Hart, Secretary.

The Secretary then read an article of the
constitution to the effect that all members of
other like associations, etc., be made honorary
members of this convention.

TREES IN NEBRASKA.

The President then called for a statement
from one of the delegates from Wyoming. As
a representative from that Territory was not
present, the Chairman called for Professor
Bessey of Nebraska.

Professor Bessey said: “It is scarcely nec-
essary fora Nebraskan to say that we plant
trees. The State which originated Arbor
Day veed say very little on that subject. I
never have seen a great community in which
more trees were planted than in Nebraska.
Tree planting has from the first been a
pDecessity, aud the enterprise has been fos-
tered. It has been fostered by the State Hor-
ticultural Society, and also by individual ei-
fort.

“Thirty years ago the man who traveled
forty miles from the Missouri River reached
a country which he reported to be uninhab-
itable. ‘hat is all changed now, and one of
the influences has been the planting of trees.
We feel that in our way we are solving the
problem, not of reforesting, as is the cuse in
the older States, but a similar problem,
namely, the foresting of a treeless country.”

Professor Martin Allen of Kansas was then
ealled upon. Hesaid: “In the western part

PROCEEDINGS.

of our State we have a large amount of ter-
ritory with but few inbabitants, but not
enough timber to supply the inhabitants,
We have not done as much ih the tree plant-
ing as some States, but hope to do more in
the future.”

Ohio was then called and was re-
sponded to by Mr. Leo Weltz, a member of
the Forestry Bureau. He said that in 1880
there was 27 per cent. of woodland in the
State, and now there is only 17 per cent. He
said that they were now trying to get an ex-
perimental station, and hoped for generous
appropriations from the Legislature.

THE COLORADO INTERESTS.

Colorado was called and was responded
to by Mr. W. W. Pardee. He said: “Our State
is not an agricultural State. The first men
came here for mineral wealth, but later on
came men who attempted the irrigation sys-
tem until we have become something of an
agricultural State. As to tree planting, there
has been considerable along the ditches, and
some tree breaks and some groves. But in
our city you will see every street lined with
trees. This demonstrates what can be done
by energy and by water.

“Now the farmer begins to ask whether
this water supply will continue. Now, these
streams come from the foot-hills of the
mountains and they are generated in the
mountains from tve melting snow. The
mountain forests have now been so much
stripped that these streams are beginning to
diminish. The great question in Colorado
now is how shall we secure the water supply?
We must start forests at the head waters of
the streams. It was this idea which gave
rise to the State Forestry Association. Now,
we come here hoping to get encouragement
and aid from you gentlemen, because we feel
that unless we have the perpetuity of our
water supply assured, the agricultural re-
sources of the State will diminish until this
tract will again become the Great American
Desert.”

Secretary Fernow then announced that he
had received many letters from members re-
yretting that the distance was so great that
they were unable to attend. He read a let-
ter from the Secretary of the Pennsylvania
Forestry Association, giving an account of
the forestry work which has been done in
that State. On motion theletter was ordered
spread upon the records,

WITH GREAT RESPECT.

The Chairman, Mr. G. W. Minier of Illinois,
was then called upon to speak for his State.
He said: ‘‘We treat the trees with very great
respect. We gather in the forests the seeds of

= 5S

the various forest trees and plant them in
the towns. It is true that many of our
forests have been destroyed, but we will
have, I am sure, in a few years more trees in
the State than when Illinois was settled. We
are planting belts—that is, two or three or
half a dozen rows around our farms. We do
not have the destructive winds which we
had. We have planted evergreen trees,
which act as wind-breaks to farms and vine-
yards. .

“Always select the trees in your immediate
vicinity for planting. Those are the most
natural. Goto the nearest groves and select
your trees. Treat foreigners with respect, but
don’t depend on them.”

Dr. Berry of Illinois then arose and said:
“Tam from the southern part of the State.
Our forestry interests there represent the de-
structive element. Along the Wabash valley
they are sluughtering those forests to a terri-
ble extent. I believe that some will live to
see that white oak sold by the pound. I
make these remarks .to show that the condi-
tions in the southern part of the State are
different from those of the northern.”

Mr. C. 8, Faurot, President of the Northern
Colorado Horticultural Society, was intro-
duced and declared a delegate to the Conven-
tion.

Mr. J. S. Hayford of Wyoming then spoke
a few words regarding the conditions of for-
estry in his State.

He said: “Ido not think that the confla-
grations in the forests can be stopped. ‘The
fires will destroy the timber. I do not think
either that they can be replaced by planting.
After a fire, the shoots willspring up very
thickly, forming a better reservoiy for melt-
ing snow than the original forest, but before
they can grow up, they are burned down
again.”

Mr. Allen proposed that a committee of
five be appointed to report the senseof the
meeting on the efforts made by Congress to
repeal the timber culture acts. Referred to
the Committee on Resolutions,

PROGRESS OF THE REFORM.

The Secretary, Mr. Fernow, then read his
report, from which the following are ex-
tracts:

“The progress of reforms, sueh as the one
in which the American Forestry Congress is
engaged, cannot always be measured by a
definite ratio. While the development of
science and art can be demonstrated from
year to year, the progress of moral and
economic development is not as easily recog-
nized on the surface. Were we to guage the
result of our labor by tue prosperity of the
Asscciation, we might feel satisfied that our
energies were uOt wasted. Be it under-
stood once for all that this Congress is not
composed of forestry experts, but of men
who have enough of public spirit to devote

their energy to an important economic prob-
lem. Be it also understood"that forestry
science in this country can hardly be said to
exist. Atthe Boston meeting a New En-
gland Committee was appointed, which, in
connection with a Committee of the Massa-
chusetts Horticultural Society, defeated a
uniform forestry law suited for New England
conditions, The best fruit of the Congress
is still to be found in Canada, where the law
proposed by the Congress ior abating the de-
struction by forest fires has been now in use
tor two years.

“The State of New York has fairly started
upon its forestry work by appropriating $35,-
000 for its forest commission. The State of
California has begun vigorous measures to
enforce laws in regard to forest fires and the
establishment of a forestry school at Los
Angeles. What the tree-planting States of
the West have done and are doing for their
forestry interest you will hear from the del-
egates from those States. The General Gov-
ernment has continued to gather information,
mostly of a statistical nature, and published
it in its fourth volume of Forestry Reports.
Your Secretary has been lately called to di-
rect the work of the Forestry Division, and
he hopes to commence upon the investigation
of scientific forestry problems. The mem-
bership of the Congress is now forty-one life
members and 105 annuysl members. The
floancial statement of the Treasurer’s book
gives a balance on hand of $111.35,”

COMMITTEE ON RESOLUTIONS.

On motion a committee of five, consisting
of Messrs. Allen (Chairman), Byers, Ensign,
Weltz, Barnard and Parsons was appointed
on resolutions,

Mr. W. N. Byers extended an invitation to
the gentlemen present to visit and inspect
the electric railway.

Oo motion the following Committee on
Membership was appointed: G. G. Merrick,
W. W. Pardee, Professor T. H. Van Diest,
Nelson Millet and W. N. Byers.

Mr. Millett then arose and said: “We have
in Wheat Ridge about as fine an exhibition
of horticulture as can be seen anywhere, and
we invite you to-morrow to come over
and visit us. Conveyauces will be furnished,
and we also invite as many of the citizens of
Denver as possible who have conveyances to
join us.”

The carriages will start at 8:30 this morn-
ing from the Chamber oi Commerce building.

Mr. C.S. Faurot of Boulder invited the
geutlemen to visit that place on their way to
Fort Coilins,

The President announced as Committee on
Nominations Messrs. S, Buck, J. G. Masters
and Leo Weitz, and as Committee on Resolu-
tions Messrs. Byers, Ensign, Weltz, Barnard
anu Parsons,

Adjourned until 1:30 p. m.

The Afternoon Session.

At the afternoon session it was moved by
Mr. G. J. Carpenter that a committee of six,
to be composed of two from the States of
Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado each, be ap-
pointed to report by resolutions the best
varieties of trees to be planted in the various
localities.

The following gentlemen were appointed
by the President: Colorado, C, ©. Pardee
and Nelson Millet; Nebraska, G. J. Carpenter
and J. H. Martin; Kansas, Martin Allen and
Theodore Boggs.

The Secretary then read a long and inter-
esting paper on “The State and its Relation
to Forests.’ He reviewed the whole subject,
detailing, with statistics, the dangers of
allowing the forests to be destroyed, He
stated that like all other subjects of a simple
nature Governmental aid was almost a neces-
sity. He said: “It may be asked how the
Government is to obtain control of the land
necessary for forest planting. In the case of
the Federal Government the problem is very
simple, as in the States where there are no
public lands there are large quantities of
wzuste laud which can be purchased for a mere
song. In the case of the State Government
the problem is still simpler. ‘There is in
every State much land good for nothing ex-
cept forest-growing.”

He showed how the land would pay for
itself and how the Genéral and State Gov-
ernwents could best handle the question.

GREEN ASH AND COTTONWOODS.

Mr. Masters of Nebraska, then spoke a few
words on the subject of the Forestry work in
that State. ‘the green ash, he said, and the
cottonwoods spread over the upper ground
very rapidly. He said that there were about
fifty times as muny trees as there were thirty
years ago.

Mr. G, J. Carpenter of Nebraska, said that
there were rot as many fires as formerly,
owing to strict legislation, He advocated
foresiry government stations throughout the
plains country. He advocated the forestry
training being introduced into the schools.

Mr. W. N. Byers said: “It is an impossi-
biiity to get any State to take hold of this
question in any excepta limited way. The
Government is having great trouble in tak-
ing care of Yellowstone Park aloue.”

Mr. Fernow answered: “It is not impossible
to get the States to take hold of these matters.
Look at the State of New York, I don’t say
that they have dove as much as they should,
but they have appropriated $35,000 to save
their 7,000 acres of woodland. I think that
in time the people of Colorado will be willing
to spend $50,000 to save $900,000 worth of
timber.”

Mr. Tilton, of Kansas, then spoke as fol-
lows: “I came to Western Kansas about eight
years ago, and have been in journalism. No
one can view that vast country without see-
ing the great crying ueed of Western Kansas.
I have in my own mind developed some opin-

ions regarding forest culture. The question
of State interference is attended with much
embarrassment. We have an amount of rain-
fall perfectly adequate for timber culture and
agriculture, but the buffalo grass is a repel-
lant of moisture, and where we get sixteen
inches of rain we will only get the benefit of
five or six inches.

“IT would have two experimental stations,
one on the Union Pacific road and the other
on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. I would
have these stations under State management,
I would have them open to the public, but
under certain conditions,”

Mr. Horner, of Emporia, Kansas, said that
he believed scieutic State management was
thesolution of the problem,

ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION.

Mr. William W. Pardee then read a paper
on ‘Needed Legislation for the Rocky Moun-
tain Country.”

The following are extracts: “Legislation
is needed by the General Government and
by individual States for the preservation of
the forests of the Rocky Mountain country;
to the end that the streams may have suffi-
cient water for irrigation. The destruction
of the forest growth must be checked.
Therefore, prompt and wise action should at
once be taken by the General Government
and by individual States within the said re-
gion of country to check the depletion of the
said forest growth.

“The General Government should have
full control and be largely to the expense of
reforesting and preventing the destruction
of the remaining forests. First, because the
Government owns the greater portion of said
forests; second, because the various large
streams having their source in the moun-
tains flow through other than the States or
Territories iu waich they rise; third, because
it is the province of the General Govern-
ment to provide for the general good of all
the States and Territories and to promote
commerce.

“The soil of our plains in its native state
only produces stunted grass, but with irriga-
tion water applied it produces abundant
crops. Water is to our soil what life-blood is
to the human system. Hence our deep inter-
est in protecting and promoting our forest
growth, to the end that we may secure this
water not only for ourselves but also for gen-
erations to come,”

TARIFF ON LUMBER.

Mr. Feruow then spoke at some length on
the tariff on Jumber.

Mr. Merrick referred to the fact that Mr.
Pardee had suggested Government aid. He
thought that it was impossible to get the
Government to help them, He said that
Colorado had had some experience with the
Government control of pnblic lands. If the
people of the State expect any success they
must consider the peculiar characterisiics of
the State. The Government has sent timber
agents from the East, but they don’t know

—

the peculiarities of the country. The State
of Colorado is better adapted to deal with the
question then any general government is.

Mr. Pardee said that the gentlemen who
had spoken were laboring under a mistake as

_to his paper. He had referred to all the arid
country, and not to Colorado alone. The
State cannot do anything with the forests,
because they don’t own any of them. If
the State owned the land, that would be all
right.

Colonel Ensign desired to endorse the
views of Mr. Merrick. He then read a paper
on the “Management of Rocky Mountain
Forests.”

The following are extracts: ‘The forests
of Colorado may well stand as representative
Rocky Mountain forests, The course of de-
struction will continue until public senti-
ment is aroused to the necessity of protect-
ing the forests. Colorado alone, in this part
of the country, has attempted to establish a
system of forest protection. Her laws are,
however, weak and ineflicient in many re-
spects,

“The larger amount of forests are still in
the hands of the Government. Present ef-
forts should be directed to the maintenance
of existing forests. After this, earnest efforts
should be made to plant new forests. Among
the higher ranges, the snow and rains make
it exzsy to establish new forest growths.
When Colorado and other States and Territo-
ries can take care of their own forests, then
they should pave charge of them; but mean-
while, they should be in the hands of the
Government,”

Mr. Burwell said that there was one form
or government which could accomplish great
good, namely, the offering of rewards, or im-
munity from taxes.

FORESTS AND WATER.

The Chairman, Mr. Minier, read a paper
on the “Relation of Forests to Water Sap-
plies.” He gave statistics showing how the
planting of trees iad affected the climate ot
the surrounding country, and told of the
devastations made by fires and lumbermen
in New York and Pennsylvania. He thought
that 20 per cent of our lands ought to be in
forests,

On motion, the paper was ordered consoli-
dated with the others which had been read.

After further diseussion of the topics, Mr.
W. N. Byers read an interesting paper on,
“How Best to Preserve the Rocky Mountain
Forests.”

He thought that more timber had been de-
stroyed in Colorado last year than had been
used for five years before. He referred to
the proposed changes in the timber culture
and pre-emption acts,

He showea the weak points in the pro-
posed law and the impossibility of its being
complied with as laid down.

Considerable further discussion ensued, and
the meeting adjourned shortly after 5 o’clock.

Mr. Parsons announced that the Union Pa-
cific Railroad had promised half rates on the
excursions to the North, and that over
twenty had already signified their intention
of going.

About thirty will go on the drive to Wheat
Ridge this morning leaving at 8:30.

Evening Session.

The evening session opened at 7:30.

It was decided that the papers read be
made a part of the proceeding as they stand.
Mr. Weltz offered a resolution to the effect
that the number of vice-presidents be in-
creased from two to five.

Referred to the Committee on Resolutions,

On motion, each delegation was requested
to propose any resolutions they might have
to the Committee on Resolutions.

Mr. Barnard complained that the osage
orange had been taken from the list of de-
sirable trees. He wanted to know why it
had been denounced, and moved thet it be
the sense of this meeting that the osage
orange be added to the list of desirable trees
for planting on the plains.

Mr, Allen was willing to endorse all that
had been said of the osage orange, but
thougut that this way of getting at the ques-
tion was not the right one. The motion was
laid on the table.

The meeting then returned to the after-
noon’s discussion. Mr. W. N. Byers gave
some interesting facts regarding forest fires
and the peculiarities of second growth.

- Professor Bessey stated that he had in his
own mind formulated the results of the day’s
discussion. He thought that the present
laws should be swept out of existence. He
thought the present laws were admirably
adapted tothe present direful condition of
affairs. Then there must be an exactment
permitting the cutting of timber under
proper supervision. Here, he said, is where
the real question will come. Then he
thought that provision for the care of such
Young trees as came up as_ spontaneous
growth and provision for replanting should
be made,

AS TO THE LAWS.

Mr. Byers said he had been familiar with
land laws most of his life and thought that
the repealing law, repealing all the laws ex-
cept the homestead law, was a good one.

Mr. Pardee moved that the meeting ap-
point a standing committee of five to be com-
posed of men living in the arid belt,. whose
duty is to formulate bills having in view the
protection, care and, where necessary, the
reforesting of timber lands of the United
States, now embraced in the arid region and
covering the headwaters of the streams in the
Rocky Mountain region, and to press the
sale on the consideration of the Congress of
the United States, and also to prepare a bill
for an act of Congress to provide that each
pre-emptor or homesteader may also be al-

~Re

lowed to enter, in the same district, upon
forty acres of timbered land at the minimum
price.

The motion was carried. The Chair ap-
pointed Mr. Pardee (Chairman), Colonel En-
sign, Mr. Martir Allen, Professor Stark and
W. N. Byers as the members of the commit-
tee.

Secretary Fernow then spoke for Mr. Cole
of Allegheny County, New York, who was
unable to be present.

Mr. Cole proposes to change the character
of the arid region by subterranean irrigation.
Mr. Fernow stated at longth the system of
Mr. Cole, and{told the remarkable results at-
tained. Some of the statements‘were so re-
markable as to draw out hootsof derision
from the Congress. Mr. Fernow attested to
the truth of the statements.

Governor Eaton, who was present, was then
called upon and was greeted with applause.
He stated that twenty-two years ago he had
planted slips, which are now two and one-
half feet in diameter and sixty feet high.
He stated in details his experience in plant-
ing cottonwoods, and spoke of the import-

ance of guarding the mountain forests. He
regretted that he had not been able to attend
the meetings before.

COLORADO CLIMATE.

Mr. George H. Parsons then read a paper
on Colorado climate, describing its effect
upon vegetation. The address was full of
carefully compiled statistics and was listened
to with great interest.

The meeting then adjourned until this
afternoon,

This morning will be spent in the carriage
drive to Wheat Ridge and points of interest
in the city. There -will be sessions this
afternoon and evening. This will conclude
the sessions.

To-morrow morning at 7:45 the excursion
to Fort Collins, Boulder and Greeley will
take place. The fare for the round trip will
be $3.85. On Saturday the members and del- ~

| egates will go to Colorado Springs and Man-

itou, and from there they will go on Monday
to Leadville.

THIRD DAYS PROCEEDINGS.

The Forestry Congress, instead of holding
asession vesterday morning, adjourned at
the invitation of Mr. Nelson Millett to Wheat
Ridge.

Carriages had been provided, and at about
8:30, the party, numbering thirty, started
from the Chamber of Commerce. The
orchards and tree plantings of David Brothers
and H. G. Wolf were visited. The fine trees,
laden down with the large ripening fruit,
called forth expressions of wonder and ad-
miration from the visitors. The party re-
turned to the city shortly after noon.

The Afternoon Session.

The afternoon session began at 1:30,

The Committee oa Resolutions reported
favorably on changing the number of vice-
presidents from two to five. The amendment
was adopted.

The Committee on Membership reported as
follows:

Life Members—P. H. Dudley, New York;
Edmund P. Martin, New York; John M.
Bennett, Hebron, Nebraska; Dr. C. R. Agnew,
New York; Robert B. Warder, Lafayette; P.
H. Van Diest, Denver.

Members—&. P. Rose, Geneva, New York;
George H. Parsons, Colorado Springs; I. H.
Masters, Nebraska; Benjamin F, Eaton, Col-
orado; Professor J. W. Beal, Lansing, Michi-
gan; Frank E. Brown, Redlands, California;
Joseph Davis, Trinadad; A. E. Beardsley,
Trinadad; Theodore Boggs, McPherson;
Blair Burwell, Durango; G. Benkleman, Den-
ver; P. O’Brien, Denver; W. N. Byers, Den-
ver; G. J. Carpenter, Fairburg, Nebraska;
David Brothers, Denver; W.S. Tilton, Win-
field, Kansas, and Martin allen, Hays City,
Kansas.

These gentlemen were consequently made
members of the Congress.

Yhe following resolutions were introduced
and adopted: «

That the Corresponding Secretary be em-
powered to use his discretion in soliciting con-
tributions during the interval between this and
the next meeting, and if sufficient funds be on
hand, that the two Secretaries form a Committee
of Publication for the purpose of publishing the
proceedings of this meeting.

That the New England commitiee, ereated at
the Boston meeting, at their request, be con-
tinued for another year, andthat the name of
Samuel L. Boardman je substituted for that of
poet Charles Hamlin, resigned, on that com-
mittee.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS.

The Committee on Nominations reported
as follows:

For President, G. W. Miniér of Illinois;
for Vice-Presidents, H. G. Joly of Quebec;
Martin Allen, Kansas; G. H. Parsons, Color-
ado; R. H. Warder, Cincinnati; O. abbott
Kinney, California; for Recording Secretary,
E. T. Ensign, Colorado; for Corresponding
Secretary, B. C. Fernow, Washington; for
Treasurer. Leo Weitz, Ohio.

On motion these officers were declared
unanimously elected.

On motion, 2 committee of three on final
esolutions, consisting of Messrs, Carpenter,
Budd and Dean, was appointed,

On motion it was decided that the papers
read at the meeting be collected and pub-
lished in pamphlet form.

A paper was then read by Hon. Martin
Allen of Kansas on the “Great American
Desert.” He spoke of the “Desert” as it was
at the time that Pike, Loug and the early
pioneers visited it and compared that condi-
tion with the present one. He stated that
there was no doubt but that as trees are
planted the rainfall increases and the rain
belt extends westward, and prophésied that
with the energy which is now displayed by
the people of the plains the desert and the
treeless plains will entirely disappear.

Mr. Carpeuter of Nebraska then described
at length his experience in pianting trees in
that State and the methods used by him.

Professor Budd was then called upon to
give his experience in forest culture. He
described the result of his observations in
Europe ahd Asia.

Secretary Fernow then gave a lengthy talk
on the same subject. He was of the opinion
that when the Americans once were aroused
to the question of forestry that they would
far surpass the European countries, inasmuch
as the latter have many old methods which
they will not drop, whereas the Americans are
now ready to use the latest aud most im-
proved methods,

Messrs. Budd, Fernow and Minier entered
into a discussion on the black locust tree and
the damage done it by insects. It was agreed
that planted with other trees it is a good tree,
but planted with its own kind, it will be
always surely destroyed by insects.

M. Carpenter then exhibited a number of
seedlings which were planted in the spring,
exhibiting the relative growth of the various
varieties and recommending which ones

should be planted together. Among the varie- | lutions.

ties exhibited were black locust, black wal-
nut, box elder and mulberry.

CONCERNING TIMBER CLAIMS,

Mr, Millett gave his experiences with a
timber claim. He wanted to know whether
a slow growth was advantageous, in consider-
ation of the question of the trees living
through the winter. He was assured that
their slow growth was more favorable to
their living through the winter.

Mr. Masters said that this country west of
the Missouri had been called the Great
American Desert. He then held up some
handsome apples grown near Denver, and
said that hereafter the plains should be called
the Great American Dessert.

On motion, Mr. Isaac Horner, of Kansas,
was requested to spend thirty minutes in
telling the Congress his success in silk cul-
ture.
beautiful specimens. His object, he said, in
addressing the Congress, was to persuade
them of the advantage of cultivating the mul-
berry tree, which is the basis of silk culture.

The Secretary then read an interesting
paper on “The management of the forests in
the United States,” by Albert Borcherdt. He
advocated withdrawing all forest lands be-
longing io the government from market, and
establishing a competing bureau to care for
them.

The meeting then adjourned until 7:30.

The Evening Session.

The evening session was opened by the
reading of a paper on “Ornamental Trees for
Colorado Planting and Methods of Their Cul-
ture,” by Mr. James Cassidy. He said: “‘The
firsc impressions of the traveler in this State
cannot be said to be the most pleasing, accus-
tomed as Eastern people usually are to asso-
eiating rural life with orchards, groves and
other embellishments of nature in the couu-
try. But since the conditions of pioneer life
are rapidly passing away it would seem to be
high time that we seek to avert the danger of
becoming so accustomed to over-bleak sur-
roundings as to forget the enhanced value of
crops properly protected and the charms of
trees, shrubs and flowers.”

He spoke of the elm,’ the maple, the box
elder, the birch and many other trees, giving
the advantages and disadvantages of each for
Colorado culture.

In conclusion he said: ‘The fairest adorn-
ments of nature everywcere are simply trees,
shrubs and grass. What is especially needea
to-day is the diffusion of information amung
landholders as to varieties of fruit and forest
trees adapted to our State, with such meth-
ods of culture under irrigation as shall in-
sure with proper care their permanent estab-
lishment and usefulness.”

RESOLUTIONS,

The Congress then proceeded to the consid-
eration ct the various resolutions presented
in the afternoon by the Committee on Reso-

He had with him a Jarge number of |

Each resolution was considered
separately and several changes were made in
them. The resolutions as finally adopted
stand as follows:

The American Forestry Congress, in meeting
assembled at Denver, Colorado, in behalfof the
forestry interests of the country, resolves:

First. That the rapid destruction of the timber
lands of this country is an evil whicb will result
in incalculable damage to the present and future
generations; that the denudation of mountain
slopes and hillsides, by fire and axe, without
proper regard for renewal, has already begun to
injure agricultural interests by disturbing favor-
able distribution of water supply, intensifying
drouths and floods. causmg springs to become
dry and streams to diminish their flow.

Second—That the importance of maintaining a
proper amount of land in forests cannot be over-
estimated: and itis also apparent that only the
Government, State or Nation can have an inter-
est in such maintenance for the benefit of future
generations.
| Third—That the public lands, at the sources of
streams, necessary for the preservation of the
water supply, stould be granted by the general
government to the several States, to be held and
kept by such States in perpetuity, for the public
use, with a view to maintain and preserye a full
supply of water in all rivers and streams.

Fonrth—That we recommend to the Gencral
Government the creatixg of the office of Com-
missioner of Forestry, which office shall be filled
by aman conversant with the interests of practi-
cal forestry, whose duty it shall be tosee that the
laws upon that subject are Carried in-o effect.
| ¥ifth—That fire is the most destructive enemy
of the forest, and that most stringent regulations
should be adopted by the National and state and
Territorial governments to prevent its outbreak
| and spread in timber Jands.

Sixth—That the General Government be recom-
mended to assist the Agricultural Colleges of the
various States in the formation of tree planting
and culture, and that all work and experiments
in that cirection should be under the general
supervision of the Commissioner of Forestry, in
case such an office should be created; otherwise

of Agriculture.

Seventh—That the principles of forestry and
practice of tree-plauting should be taught in the
public schools, normal schools, and agricultural
colleges of this country, and that we urgently
recommend suitable legislation to that end in the
several States and Territories.

Eighth—tThat, in our opinion, the Agricultural
Colleges of the various States should give special
attention to the propagation and cultivation of
forest trees, and especially to the purpcse of de-
termining the most useful and robust varieties of
timber for their respective States, and for the
various portions thereof, and for the proper dis-
semination of the knowledge so obtained.

Ninth—That to encourage the planting and
propagation of forest trees, States and counties
should provide for and allow an abatement of
taxes proportioned to the extentand success of
such planting.

Tenth—That we most earnestly recommen to
the Governors of the various States that they urge
upon the Legislatures of their respective States
the importance of the preservation of the forests
where they already exist, and to urge and en-
courage such legislation as will promote the more
general planting and cultivating of trees and
toresis. :

Eleventh—That there should be no rigid ruling
as to the varieties of timber to be planted or cul-
tivated upon a ‘‘timber culture” claim.

Twelfth—That the Commissioner of Agriculture
be authorized by Congress to apply in bis discre-

\e be under the supervision of the Commissioner

—[I—

tion such sum or sums as he may see fit from the

appropriation for the forestry division of his de-
artment for the encouragement of National and
ocal forestry associations. ;

Thirteenth—That it is the sense of this Forestry
Congress that the Legislatures of the States
should provide for the establishment and main-
tenance of experimental timber culture stations
to the end that there may be secured a knowledge
of the highest adaptability of different varieties
of timber to the different soils, and that the tax-
able wealth of the State may be increased to the
material !essening of the rate of taxation.

The following additional names were
recommended by the Nominating Committee
end were elected on the membership rol!: E,
S. Nettleton, Denver; F. Steinhauser, Denver,
and F, J. Mott, Denver.

On motion it was decided that the Exeeu-
tive Committee be made a committee of Leg-
islation to draft bills, and present them to
the Congress of the United States, embodying
the sentiments presented in the resolutions,

FORESTS AND CYCLONES.

Dr. Berry of Illinois was then requested to
read a paper which he had prepared on the

subject of the effects of forests on cyclones,
The-paper was Jong and scientific, and was
listened to with great interest.

Votes of thanks were tendered to the
Board of Trade, the press, the hotels, the cit-
izens who offered the use of carriages and to
the railroads for courtesies extended.

A paper by Dr. Anders of Philadelphia was
then tendered to the society by Dr. P. L.
McKinnie, on the subject of ‘“Beueficial Cli-
matic Influences of Forest Growth.” The
paper was not read, but was ordered added to
those to be published.

On motion, it was decided to visit the elec-
tric railway to-day after returning from Fort
Collins and Boulder.

On motion, the time and place of the next
annual meeting of the congress was referred
to the Executive Committee.

On motion, the ladies present were declared
honorary members,

Meeting then adjourned until this morning
at 7 o’clock at the Union Depot, when the ex-
cursion will be made to Fort Collins, Boulder
and Greeley.

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Promptly at 10 o’clock in the morp- |

ing President George W. Minier, of [li-

nois, called to order the sixth annual

meeting of the American Forestry con- —

gress. Considering the usual meagre at-
tendance on the opening days of all asso-
-ciations, a good representation was present,
delegates appearing from all the principal

sates of the union—{from the Atlantic
coast to the far west. Among those of
prominence present were: B. E. Fernow,

of the national department of agriculture,
Washington, D. C.; Leo®,Weltz, commis-
sioner Ohio state board of forestry, Wil-
mington, © ; George W Minier, president
American Forestry congress, Minier, II1.;
Prof. J. L. Budd, of the Iowa Agricultural
coliege, Ames, Ia.; Hon Martin Conrad,
Chicago; Hon David A. Brown, L[llinois
statician of the national board of agricul-
ture, Bates, Il!.; J. H. Morgan, Ontario,
Canada; J. M. Osborne, Toledo, O0.; 8. C.
Robb, Ogaliah, Kas.; Jean A. Matthieu,
Detroit, Mich.; Harmon Dean, Sidney, 0.;
Martin Allen, Hayes City, Kas.; Charles
C. Bell, Booneville, Mo.: F. F. Palms, De-
| troit, Mich.; Benjamin Buckman, Farm-
ingdale, Ill; T L. Minier, Minier, Ill.

In opening the session President Minier
stated briefly the objects of the congress
and gave a few events of its history since
the first annual meeting six years ago. Al-
though, first an organization of the United
States alone, it had been broadened to em-
brace in reality the whole western hemuis-
phere and the name changed to the “Amer-
ican Congress of Forestry.” While this ac-
tion had been wise in some respects, it had
had its advantages, as making the congress
international in its character apparently,

vol. Vi _

FIRST DAY’S PROCEEDINGS.

Septemhey

precluded the hope of obtaining appropria-
tions to defray its expenses, from either
the United States or any other American
government.

Mr. Leo Weltz of Wilmington, Ohio,
thought it important that the committee on
order of business should be appointed early
in the session, and on his motion the folldw-
ing gentlemen were appointed as that com-
mittee: Leo Weltz, Wilmington,O.; Prof. J.
L. Budd, Iowa University, Iowa, and Hon.
Martin Conrad, Chicago.

On motion of B. E. Fernow it was decided
that the papers of certain members absent
and unable to be present be read and dis-
cussed.

“Area aud Economic Value of the For-
ests of the United States,” avery able pa-
per by H.C. Putnam of Eau Claire, Wis..
was read by the secretary. Mr. Putnam,
having had over thirty years’ experience in
the lumber and timber business, his views
were considered of unusual importance by
the congress. The lumber menof the north
west, he said, were cutting the pine forests
of that regin at the rate of 800,000,000 feet
a year. Fifteen years will see the great
pine forests of Wisconsin obliterated as an
article of commerce. Just so with the for-
ests of Michigan, Minnesota and the whole
northwest. The importance of legislation
on this subject cannot be overestimated.
Care should be taken against the origina-
tion of the devastating forest fires. Officers
should be appomted by the national or
state governments to look to this and see
that the laws already in existence are en-
forced. The young trees should be pro-
tected in their growth where the larger are

)82 77,

4 AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

felled and cutup. It is easier to savea
thousand young trees than to plant and
nurture one. By proper care and discrim-
ination, by proper legislation, these great
forests can be preserved at their present
acreage. But will tie national government
or the states ever move? The slaughter
goes unheeded onward year after year. If
these forests are destroyed, the great rivers
of the northwest will in the dry season
become less than babbling brooks instead
o! commercial waterways as they now are.
History has proven this prophecy to be
inevitable. Asa nation we are rich in
forest area. The 800 miles of coast of the
Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mis-
sissippi and Texas, extending inward an
average of 100 miles, carries a valuable
pine forest of both varieties. Just so with
other portions of the country. Australia,
China, Japan and the islands of the
sea, on the other hand, have no
timber of commercial value. Mexico has
some, but at present it is almost inacces-
sible. Europe depends entirely upon
us for many varieties of timber. Are we
to be profligate of these great riches or are
we to lavish and destroy? Action by con-
gress, and laws to insure preservation of
the growing timber are the only safeguards.
But we must not wait too long.

DISCUSSION.

Mr. Fernow opened the discussion on
this paper. He thought the incentive to
forestry legislation lay rather with state
legislatures than with the national con-
gress. In Michigan a commission has
already been appointed to suggest legisla-
tion in that direstion. Other states should
follow. In Canada the most encourage-
ment had been received. There the pro-
ceedings of this congress were printed
without the inquiry being made whether

the organization were Canadian or Amer- |

ican. There the government has conjointly
with the timber men appointed ‘‘fire

wardens,” to look to the preservation
of the forests from fires and secure enforce-
ment of all the laws. J’he lumber men pay
half his salary and the government the
other half. This man has the power of police
officers. He'can make arrests and in fase
of emergency can summon all citizens to
his aid in the suppression of fire or enforce-
ment of the law. In Michigan, alone, on
the other hand, the forest fires have done a
damage of over seven million dollars. Of
course the states could do nothing in regard
to the mountain regionsand government
reservation. Congress would have to legis-
late on that subject. The manner in which
the government forests were devastated
was shameful, yet laws should not be pags-
ed without the instrument to enforce them.
A natiozal commission or board should be
appointed with the necessary powers, The
present trouble was that, although in most
states laws already existed for the protec-
tion of forests against fires, there
were no commission or officers
to look after their enforcement.

Prof. J. L. Budd remarked that he had
been surprised when in Riga, Russia, some
years ago to find that shiploads of pme
were being continually shipped from that
point to the United States in large quanti-
ties. On the other band the English have
picked up nearly every black walnut log in
the west and shipped it to England to be
manufactured there. Speaking a little off
the subject he wished to state right here
for general information that in lowa they
had found that white pine was one of the
best timbers to grow. Groves planted
eighteen years ago were now from forty to
fifty feet in height. No particular experi-
ments had been made with red pine, but
they seemed to flourish wherever planted
and proved very ornamental. Observations
made by the Iowa people had shown that in
drouth white pine made the best growth of
any tree in the state. Red pine probably

‘and perforate trees.

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS. 5

came next, and it was followed by white
spruce.
“Helps and Hindrances to Kansas For-
estry,” by W.S. Newlon. of Oswego, Kan,
was the next paper read. The author |
stated that the people of Kansas in years
gone by had done a great deal of grove and
tree planting on their farms and around |
their orchards, fields and homes. These
benevolent efforts were now giving a rich
return. All that was needed in the future
was intelligent discussion and agitation to |
stimulate in the mind of the masses a |
benevolent inspiration for forestry. ‘The
hindrances to forestry in Kansas were the |
great drouths, fires, birds and insects, and
the consumption of the timber as rapidly

asit grew. In the past the prairies of |
Kansas were burned annually and |
much timber destroyed in the course. In |

Indian territory particularly these fires
still ravaged periodically. ‘lo prevent the
frequent disastrous fires from railroad |
sparks, the funnels of the locomotives
should be netted. Much timber too is need-
lessly squandered in. Kansas in the con-
structiop of bridges and other public struc-
tures that should be composed entirely of
stone. Wire fences, too, should be built
rather than plank ones. A substitute for
wood in railroad ties should also be adopted
by the railroads. The demand for ties
probably makes a greater inroad op our
forests than any other one article. The |
laws of Kansas fail to protect certain birds |
from indiscriminate slaughter because of
the impression that they eat and peck fruit
While this to some
extent is true, yet these same birds do jn-
calculable good by preying on borers and
other insects that attack the trees. A law |
of Kansas forbidding the growth of hedges

to a height of over four and one-half feet

was also an unwise act. They should be |
allowed full scope. The roots of trees and
herbage stop the circulation. of water
through the ground and hold it from run-

ning off and away through the streams too
rapidly. Itisa well-known fact to close
observers that fibrous roots hold water like
a spouge and will make a swamp any where,
This fact materially affects the rainfall
of a country. Trees by consum-
ing effete carbonic acid and
out oxygen are valuable as
preventives of malaria and other diseases.
As a matter of fact birds are indispensable
to forestry. Without them all trees would
be destroyed by the various insects. De-
spite them many trees*in Kansas are
destroyed by the borers, caterpillars, grass-
hoppers, aphis and other pests. The En-
glish sparrow and other birds destroy all
these insects. The birds should be appre-
ciated and protected from injury.

giving

DISCUSSION.

Mr. Minier said he endorsed every word
of the paper—particularly all that referred
to birds. They were his particular pets.

Mr. Fernow said he was astonished to see
so few birds, comparatively, in the United
States. The woods of North America ap-
pear lifeless compared with the woods of
Europe. Singing birds particularly are
scarce here.

Mr, Brown thought there were plenty of
birds here, but they rather frequented the
prairie groves and prairies.

Mr. Allen did not agree with the paper
on the assertion that the roots of trees
stored up moisture, That was, he thought,
@ great fallacy. He believed, on the other
hand, the roots afforded an exit of moisture
from the ground by sucking it up in the
tree from whence it passed through the
limbs and foliage to the atmosphere. Some
of the birds, too, which the paper praised
he found in Western Kansas to be a great
pest, sticking their bilis into fruit and
creating great injury.

Mr. Morgan, of Ontario, Canada, in re-
ply to this, said there could be no roses

6 AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

without their thorns. The birds paid for
all their damage. He thought, however,
roots were a great preservative of mois-
ture. They actas asponge. Go several
days after a heavy rain and take a net-
work of the roots and youcan squeeze
water out of them.

Mr. Osborne thought it wonderful the
amount of moisture trees draw up through
their roots and distribute to the atmosphere
—even where the soil is apparently dry.
Experiments have proven that the roots
penetrate to such a depth as to obtain
plenty of moisture where there has been no
rain for months. In Nebraska he found
the planting of forests had atiracted the
birds.

Mr Fernow said that experiments 80 far
had given no direct knowledge in regard
to the transpiration of water by means of
the roots and branches of trees. It is cer-
tainly true that the amount of evaporation
through the roots and leaves is enormous,
yet it should be borne in mind that the
roots, penetrating a distance often of
twenty feet or more, bring up the moisture
that otherwise would never be available.

Mr. Budd said that a few years ago, in
the Adirondacks, he walked through a for-

est in dry mid-summer where the moisture |

actually wet his feet. Afterwards he vis-
ited the same country; the forest was
cleared away, and where once was mois-
ture was now arid desert. The point lay
in the fact that evaporation from open land
was much more rapid than from the earth
covered with forests. Scattering trees did
not do so much proportionate good im this

respect as several thousand acres, as for- |

est conditions seemed to be necessary.

Mr. Fernow stated that in Prussia, where
forestry was bet:er understood, and an an-
nual crop of timber felled the same as any
other crop, great trouble was lately
experienced in disposing of the supply,
‘timber being imported in large quantities

from Gallicia and Hungary. As to the
metal railroad ties suggesied in the paper,
Mr. Fernow would say that the Mexican
railways had this year laid 60,000 of them
as substitutes for wooden ones.

Mr. Budd said no climate on earth had
been so greatly modified within fifty years
as the climate of this part of North Amer-
ica. The clearing of the forests hasclearly
had much to do in this direction. Let us
cultivate timber cn our own soil, and not
bring it frora British America or Russia.

Mr. Fernow agreed that the clearing of
forests greatly affected the climate. Ex-
periments had proven that the temperature
of forests was 15° to 20° lower than the
fields in summer. In fall and winter the
difference was somewhat less. The hu-
midity of the torests was from 3 to 10 and
even 13 per cent greater than in open air.

Mr. Minier stated that years ago, when
surveying the Illinois Central railroad and
the Illinois river, he made some observa-
tions regarding the rainfall. A singleinch
of rainfall on a single acre of ground
amounted to 101 tons of water! ,He also
insisted that fibrous roots, acting as
sponges, absorb large quantities of water.
It is also true that an enormous,evapora-
tion is constantly going on through this
medium. There is considerable moisture
in the atmosphere all the time—so much,
indeed, that 1f all the water above us for
forty or fifty miles could’ be
condensed at once there would no longer
be any dispute about there once having
been a flood. ‘[Laughter.] Regarding the
subject of metal ties, President Blackstone,
of the Chicago & Alton railroad, had in-
tormed the speaker that they proved too
great an injury to the rolling stock to ever
be adopted. Paper ties were the only sub-
stitute, Mr. Blackstone,has asserted, and it
required bass-wood or linden trees to make
them. ‘As to the birds, there are but few
of them that are not our particular friends.

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS. 7

In April, May and June they prey on the |
In July and |

insects that attack the trees.
August they ask a little compensation for

labor, andI propose to plant enough that |

they may come and get their pay without
any trouble.” [Applause.]

AFTERNOON SESSION,

At the opening of the afternoon session

letters of regret # inability to be present
were read from ope Northrup, of Connec-
ticut; Joaquin Miller, of California, and
several others.

The secretary, Mr. B. E. Fernow, made a —
report, stating briefly the work of the past |

year, which, together with the treasurer’s
next made, was referred to the following
committee: C.C. Bell, Booneville,
Martin Allen, Kansas, and Harmon Dean,
Ohio.

The report of the ‘New England commit-
tee” was read by the secretary. It stated

Mo.; |

that the efforts of the committee had been |
principally directed toward securing legis- |

lation for the preveniion of forest fires.
The state grange of Maine had seconded the

efforts of the committee, and in that as well |
as other New England states the results

had been encouraging. In Maine a bill

had been passed establishing an “Arbor |

Day” for the general planting of trees.
The report of the “Arbor Day committee”

was read in the shape of a letter from Prof. |
Northrup. Im all states visited, he had |
met with flattering results, many of them |

having already passed a law creating an
“arbor day.”

Messrs. J. L. Budd, Leo Weliz and B. E.
Fernow were appointed’ a committee to
wait on Gov. Oglesby and escort him to the
hall. On entering the meeting the gover-
nor was greeted with considerable applause,
and was introduced by the president ina
brief but fitting speech.

Gov, Oglesby spoke at length, avowing

his great interest in the cause of forestry, |

_ country.

and commending the zeal of a body of men
who year after year labored in its advocacy
without ever a hope of remuneration.
Theirs was a patriotism worthy of any
In conclusion he warmly wel-
comed the congress to the state and capitol
city, and promised daily attendance of its
sessions.

J. H. Morgan, of Ontario, Canada, re-
sponded briefly to the governor’s welcome.
He felt that the people of Canada and the
United States on the subject of forestry
were growing nearer and nearer together
every day, and concluded by expressing
the hope that bonds between the two peo-
ple would grow closer and closer, their in-
teresis more and more identical, until] in
the end the long-cherished “commercial un-
ion” would become a fact of history.

The president, G@. W. Minier, read the
annual address, which contained a number
of valuable suggestions, snd was listened
to with marked attention.

‘Forestry in Nebraska” was the subject
of a letter of the Nebraska delegates. It
stated that great efforts were being made to
awaken the interest of the people of that
state in forestry with partial success.
Already the forestsat the mountain sources
of the great rivers of NeLraska were being
cleared off to such an extent as to endanger
irrigation of Nebraska lands and, unless
decisive steps were taken, ina few years
the North Platte and other important
streams would, in mid-summer, dwindle to
feeble brooks or become entirely dry. The
state agricultural and _ horticultural
societies, too, were urging the passage of a
law by the state establishing “forestry sta-
tions’ —that is, the planting at certain dis-
tances apart of considerable groves to be
preserved intact. The delegates were en-
deavoring to seeure the adoption of forestry
as aregular course of instruction in the
schools.

8 AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

Mr. Budd thought every agricultural col- |
lege in the United States, particularly, |

should teach forestry, and Mr. Minier
amended the sentiment by insisting that
every common school also should give
limited instruction on the subject.

Mr. Budd said that “arbor day” customs

had been reasonably encouraging in Lowa. |

Premiums were offered for the number of
trees planted, and good results achieved.
although the general experience had been
that arbor day was more of a sentiment
than a solid reality.

Mr. Beil said that in Missouri it had
been found that the best way to get trees
planted was to plant them. (Laughter). In
his state he simply went to the foresis,
secured abundant young trees and an-
nounced that on acertain day everybody
could have as many as he wanted for plani-
ing. Asa result, thousands of trees were
planted.

Ex-Senator Gillham, of Alton, spoke at
length on the necessity of forestry organi-
zation in Illisois. In his part of the state
many trees had been planted, and the re-
sult.had been satisfactory. He urged the
adoption of resolutions by the congress re-
questing the various states to amend their
laws and constitutions 1n such a way as to
exempt from taxation all lands planted in
foresis for a given time.

from this time the discussion took a
very general character on the merits and
methods of treating different timber trees.

The chair appointed the following “com-
mittee on resolutions:” D. B. Giliham,
W.J Beal and J. L. Sudd.

“Legislation Necessary for the Encour-
agement of Tree Planting in Illinois,’ was
the subject of a paper by Fred Grundy, of
Illinois, which was read by the secretary.
The paper was very brief, and particularly
nrged the passage of legislative enact-
ments to promote forest planting, It con-
cluded with the draft of a bill whjch the
author thought should be presented to the
next legislature of Illinois. This bill pro-
vided that land upon which a certain num-
ber of trees were planted for timber cul-
ture should be exempt fora limited time
from all taxation.

Senator Gillham stated at the conclusion
of the paper that abill similar to the one
presented had been introduced by him
ina former ‘egisfature but had failed to
pass on account of its unconstitutionality,
the constitution of Illinois providing noth-
ing but school and church property shall
be exempt from taxation.

On motion of Mr. Weltz the congress ad-
journed until 9 a. m. of next day.

From 8 to 10 last evening a reception
was tendered the delegates of the congress
by Gov. Oglesby at the executive mansion.

SECOND DAY’S PROCEEDINGS.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15TH, 1887.

When the American Congress of For-
estry convened at 9 o'clock this morn-
ing a rather increased attendance was ob-
served over that of the previous day. J. R.
Dodge, chief of the bureau of statistics of
the National Department of Agriculture,and
several other gentlemen of national reputa-
tion, arrived early in the day

Letters of greeting and encouragement
were read from Hon. L. D. Whiting of Tis-
kelwa, Ill., Mr. S. Bock of Dayton, O., from
thes ecretary of the Southern Forestry con-
gress,Huntsville, Alabama, and several other
gentlemen of prominence interested in for-
estry.

‘A joint resolution was received from the

general assembly of Georgia inviting the
American Congress of Forestry to meet
conjoint!y with the Southern Forestry con-
gress at Atlanta, Georgia, in 1888. Hon.
Sidney Root, of Atlanta, Ga., a delegate
from the Southern Congress of Forestry, in
a brief speech warmly seconded on behalf
of his congress, this invitation of the state
legislature. There was strength in union,
and a joint convention of the two congress-
es next year would not only promote the
cause of forestry throughout the country
but cement the bond of union between the
north and south.

Mr C. C. Bell, of Missouri, favored the
acceptance of this invitation. Southern
hospitality was proverbial, and he for one
was in favor of meeting next year con-
jointly with the southern congress. Re-

marks tending in the same direction were
also made by President Minier, Secretary
Fernow and others. At this juncture a
communication was also received from the
Pennsylvania Forestry association inviting
the American congress to meet in Phila-
delphia next year. The matter of selecting
a place of meeting for next year was by
general consent referred to the executive
committee. :

The next thing on the programme was
annouuced by ‘he president to be “discus-
sion on Memorial and Bill for National

Forest Administration.” Mr. Fernow,
spoke briefly on the attempts at
forestry legislation in the various
states, and read several bills on the

subject—one prepared by the State Board
of Forestry of California, another by Sena-
tor Miller, of New York, and another by the
Forestry Commissioner of Colorado. The
bill prepared by himself was then read by
Mr. Fernow and discussed at length hy the
congress, being finaily adopted for recom-
mendation to the'senate and house of rep-
resentatives at Washington, as follows:

A BILL

For the protection and administration of the
forests on the public domain.

Be it enacted by the senate and house of
representatives of the United States of Amecria
in congress assembled:

DESIGNATION OF FOREST LANDS.

Section 1. All lands now owned or con-
trolled, or which may be hereafter owned or

10 AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

controlled by the United States, and which are
now, or shall hereafter be, devoted to forest

uses, are, for the purposes of this act, declared |

to be public forest lands.

WITHDRAWAL OF FOREST LANDS FROM SALE.

Sec. 2, The unsurveyed public lands of the |
United States embracing natural forests, or |

which are less valuable for agricultural than
for forest purposes, and all public lands re-

turned by the public surveys as timber lands |

shall be, and the same are hereby, withdrawn
from survey, sale, entry, or disposal under ex-
isting laws, and shall be disposed of only as
provided in this act and as congress may here-
after prescribe.

PREVENTING ENTRIES UPON FOREST LANDS.

Sec. 3. Every person applying to make an
entry or filing of public lands under any law
of the United States before the classification
and survey of the forest lands as provided in
this act shall be made, shall file with his ap-
plication an affidavit under oath, corroborated
by witnesses, stating that the land applied for
is not exclusively forest land, and not situated
near the headwaters of any stream, and is

more valuable for agricultural or mining pur— |

poses than for the timber growing thereon, and
each such applicant shall state particularly his
means of information and his personal knowl-
edge of the facts to which he testifies, and
upon a certificate from the com-
missioner of forestry the lands_ so
entered may be disposed of under ex-
isting laws; and every person swearing falsely
to any such affidavit shall be deemed guilty of
perjury and liable to the penalties thereof;
and all illegal entries of timber lands shall be
absolutely void, and upon satisfactory proof,
shall be subject to summary cancellation by the
commissioner of the general land office.

INSTITUTING THE OFFICE OF COMMISSIONER
OF FORESTS.

Sec. 4. There shal] bein the department oi |
the Interior a commissioner of forests, who ;
shall be appointed. by the president, by and |

with advice and consent of the senate, and he
shall have the care, management and control
of all the forest lands owned or controlled by
the United States. He shall be a suitable per-

son, versed in matters of forestry, and shall
be entitled toa salary of $5,000 a year, with
such allowances for assistants and expenses as
will insure a proper execution of the provisions
of this act and as congress may from year to
year provide. He shall hold his office during
good behavior, and may be removed by the
president for cause, and before entering upon
his duties he shall give bonds with sureties to
the treasurer of the United States in the sum
of $50,000, conditional, to render a true and
faithful account to the treasurer, quarterly, of
all moneys which shall be by him received by
virtue of the said office.

APPOINTMENT OF FOUR ASSISTANT COMMIS-
SIONERS,

Sec. 5. The commissioner of forests shall
apy oint to himself four assistant commission-
ers, one of whom shall be a resident of the
state of California, or any of the territories on
the Pacific slope and well acquainted with the
forest conditions of the Pacific slope; another
shall be from the state of -Colorado or any of
the territories bordering the Rocky mountains,
and well acquainted with the forest conditions
of the Rocky mountains, and the third shall
be from one of the states east of the 100th
meridian, and well acquainted with the forest
conditions there prevailing. The fourth skall
be an expert in the knowledge of scientific for-
estry. The four assistant commissioners are
to act as a council to the commissioner of for-
ests in all matters pertaining to the adminis-
tration of government forest lands as consti-
tuted by this act, and each shall have special
charge of one division of the public forest
reserves, which he shall personally inspect at
least once every year. Each of the assistant
commissioners shall receive a salary of $3,000.

CLASSIFICATION OF FOREST LANDS.

Sec. 6. ‘The forest lands on the public do-
main shall be arranged in three general classes,
namely:

First, Lands distant from the head-
waters of important streams, covered by tim-
ber of commercial value, more valuable for
forest purposes than for cultivation.

Second, Lands partially or wholly covered
by timber, but suitable for homesteads, and

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

more valuable for agricultural purposes than
for timber.

Third, Mountainous and other woodlands,
which, for climatic or economic or public rea-
sons should be held permanently as forest re-
serves.

ESTABLISHMENT OF FOREST RESERVES.

Sec.7. It shall be the duty of the commis-

sioner of forests to examine and classify the |

forests and public timber lands of the United

States, and to determine, subject to the ap- |

proval ;f the secretary of the Interior, what
portions of such forests and timber lands should
be permanently retained in reservation for cli-
matic or other economic or public reasons, and
what portions may be disposed of without dis-
advantage to the public interests. He shall
cause to be prepared connected maps or dia-
grams showing the approximate situation and
areas of public timber lands in each state
and territory, and the president shall,
by ‘prociamation, designate the permanent
forest reserves as the same shall be selected
and approved as herein provided; and it shall
be the duty of the secretary of the Interior to
cause exterior boundary lines thereof to berun
and marked by durable monuments; and no
further survey of any timber lands of the
United States shall be made until the perma-
nent reservations herein provided for are
established.
APPRAISEMENT OF TIMBER,

Sec. 8. The lands of the first and second
elass shall from time to time be appraised,
under the direction of the secretary of the In-
terior, and lists and plats thereof made; and
the value of the timber shall be appraised
separately from and in addition to the govern-
ment price of the land.

DISPOSITION OF TIMBER

Sec. 9. The president may, from time to
time, in his discretion, by proclamation,
authorize the sale of such appraised timber on
lands of the first class, on the stump, in aggre-
gate quantities not exceeding twenty-five
thousand acres at any one sale.

MANNER OF SALE OF TIMBER.

Sec. 10. Such sales shall be made under the
supervision of the commissioner of forests and

in accordance with such regulations as the
secretary of the Interior may prescribe, and
under the condition that the purchaser will
comply with the regulations as to the cutting
and removal of the timber prescribed and made
known by the commissioner of forests; but no
such timber shall be disposed of except to the
highest bidder, upon sealed bids, by legal
subdivisions of sections, at not less than the
appraised price, and after due public notice as
now provided by law.

RESTORING FOREST LANDS TO ENTRY.

Sec. 11. Lands of the second class, when re-
ported to the secretary of the Interior by the
commissioner of forests, with the approval of
the president, shall be restored to homestead
entry or sale; but a special price for the timber
thereon, as appraised, shall be paid by the
applicant in addition to the usual price and
fees for the land.

CO-OPERATION OF OTHER OFFICERS.

Sec. 12. The commissioner of the general
land office, surveyors general, registers and
receivers, and other federal officers connected
with the public lands, are directed to co
operate with and assist to the extent of their
power the commissioner of forests in the selec-
tion and classification of tke public forest
lands.

FURTHER DUTIES OF FOREST COMMISSIONER.

Sec. 13. The commissioner of forests shall
properly subdivide and arrange into divisions
and districts of proper size such forest lands
as shall constitute the forest reserves and for-
est lands remaining under his control, and
shall organize a service of and appoint in-
spectors and rangers for their protection and
proper administration and provide a practica-
ble system of forestry. He shall make rea-
sonable rules and regulations for the preven-
tion of trespass upon said lands and for their
protection and the conservation of forest
growth, and he shall be empowered to sell tim-
ber from the said reservations as the local de-
mands require and a proper forestry permits.
He shall designate every year the areas which
may be cut over and prescribe the conditions,
manner, method and time for the cutting of

the same and fix the government rate for the
stumpage on such areas, and
upon the application of any resident citizen de-
sirous to obtain his supply of wood from the
government forest reserves, suitable locations
shall be designated to him. Thecommissioner
of forests shall have the power to regulate
pasturage and any occupancy whatever upon
the forest lands. And all moneys received
from the sale of timber or any other privileges
he shall cover into the United States treasury.

CO-OPERATION WITH STATE BOARDS.

Sec. 14. Whenever any of the states in which
public forest lands are situated shall have in-
stituted and provided for a forest commission
or other forest management of the forest lands
belonging to the state, it shall be in the dis-
cretion of the commissioner of forestry, with
the approval of the secretary of the Interior, to
co-operate with such forest commission and
to allow the same to act as agents for the
United States under his direction for the pur-
poses of this act.

PENALTIES FOR ILLEGAL CUTTING ON FOREST
RESERVES

Sec. 15. If any person shall illegally cut,
remove or destroy, or cause or procure to be
cut, removed or destroyed, or aid, counsel or as
sist in cutting, removing or destroying any trees
or timber upon any forest reserve of the United
States, every such person shall be liable to a
fine of not less than $100 and not more than
$1,000 for each such offense, to imprisonment
at hard labor not exceeding one year and to
civil prosecution to recover the value of the
property so unlawfully taken or destroyed.

PENALTIES FOR CUTTING TIMBER ON ANY

FOREST LAND.

Sec. 16. It shall be unlawful to cut or re-
move without proper authority, or to cause or
procure to be cut or removed, or to wantonly
burn, injure, tap, girdle or destroy any timber
on or from lands of the United States, or to
export, transport. purchase or dispose of the
same, or of any lumber, charcoal, pitch, tur-
pentine, or other product manufactured there-
from; and every person violating the provis-
ions of this section shall be guilty of a misde

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

meaner and shall be fined in a sum not ex-
ceeding $1,000, and imprisoned not longer than
one year; and every person engaged in any
such depredation upon timber or timber lands
of the United States, whether as principal,
agent, employe, carrier, mill owner, manufac-
turer,vendor or vendee,shall moreover be liable
in an action of trespass for the full value of the
timber or timber product at the place of deliv-
ery; but nothing contained in this section shall
prevent any agriculturist or minor from taking
from his claim the timber necessary for do-
mestic purposes or the support of his improve-
ments.

And wherever there exists a right previously
established by law, to cut timber on the public
lands, every person or corporation exercising
such right must comply with the rules and reg-
ulations prescribed by the commissioner of for-
ests and approved by the secretary of the In-
terior.

And a failure to comply with all the ‘rules
and regulations so prescribed and approved in
regard to the manner of using and occupying
the public forest lands shall constitute a mis-
demeanor punishable as provided in this sec-
tion.

PENALTIES FOR OCCUPANCY OF PUBLIC LANDS.

Sec. 17. That it shall be unlawful for any
person, firm, or corporation to knowingly erect,
establish or maintain upon puoplic lands of the
United States without proper authority any
saw-mill or manufactory of lumber or other
timber products, or to engage or be employed
in the manufacture of lumber. charcoal, pitch,
or turpentine upon public lands, or to use at
any such mill, manufactory, or works, any
timber cut or removed from public lands; and
any person violating this section shall be liable
to a fine of not less than $500 and not more
than $5,000, in addition to the penalties here-
inbefore prescribed; and all mills, manufacto-
ries, and works so erected or maintained upon
publie lands shall be absolutely forfeited to the
United States.

PENALTIES FOR TRANSPORTING AND HAND-
LING ILLEGALLY CUT TIMBER,

Sec. 18. Thatif any master, owner or con-
signee of any vessel, or any offieer or agent of

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

|
any railroad company, shall knowingly receive
for shipment any timber, lumber, or timber
product taken without authority from timber
lands of the United States, with intent to trans-
port the same to any port or place within the |
United States, or to export the same to any |
foreign country, every such master, owner, |
consignee, officer, agent and railroad company |
shall be liable to the penalties prescribed in the
eleventh section of this act, and the vessel on
board which any such timber, lumber, or tim-
ber product shall be taken, transported or
seized, shall be wholly forfeited to the United
States.

PROTECTION BY MILITARY FORCE,

Sec. 19. The president is authorized to em-
ploy so much of the land and naval forces of
the United States as may be necessary effec-
tually to prevent the cutting down, removal, |
or other destruction of trees or timber on public |
forest lands, and to prevent the transportation
of any such timber, and to take such other
measures as may be deemed advisable for the
protection of the forest lands of the United
States. |

RESTRICTING QUALITY OF FOREST OFFICERS. |

See: 20. No person who is directly or indi- |
rectly engaged in the manufacture of lumber,
or timber products, or conducting any busi- |
ness which requires a large consumption of
timber or wood, shall be qualified to serve as
commissioners of forests under this acj, or to
serve in any official capacity in connection
with the public woodlands.

REPEALING CLAUSE,

Sec. 21. That the acts of June 3d, 1878,
chapters 150 and 151, and the first and second
sections of the act of June 15, 1880, entitled |
“An act relating to the public lands of the
United States,” and all acts and parts of acts |
inconsistent with this act, be, and the same
are hereby, repealed.

ENACTING CLAUSE.

Sec. 22. This act shall take effect on the Ist |
day of July next, but the president may ap- |
point the commissioner of forests prior to that
date, with his duties and salary to commence |
at that date.

“APPROPRIATION CLAUSE,

Sec. 23. For the purpose of carrying out the
provisions of this act, for the payment of sal-
aries, traveling and other expenses the sum of
$500,000 is hereby appropriated.

A communication was received from
Mayor Charles E. Hay, of Springfield, on
behalf of the Lincoin Monument associa-
tion, extending an invitation to the Ameri-
can Forestry congress to visit Linculn mon-
ument as the guests of the association be-
fore adjournment. After some discussion
it was accepted with thanks, the congress
deciding to start at 4 p. m.

The committee on resolutions reported,
with favorable recommendation, the follow-
ing resolution, which was unanimously
adopted:

Waereas, The osage orange has heretofore
been proscribed as a timber tree by a former
commissioner of the general land office at
Washington ; and

WHEREAS, Commissioner McFarland, in

, February, 1882, modified such ruling of his

predecessor, reinstating the osage orange and
other trees; and

Waereas, Under such modification the reg-
ister of the land office of the western district of
Kansas did recommend to patrons of the tim-
ber culture law the osage orange as one of the
best they could plant on their claims; there-
fore, be it

Resolved, That we look upon it as not only
unjust, but extremely cruel, to now subject
final proofs upon claims planted under such
modification and advice, simply because such
advice and modification was followed.

Resolved, That up to about the 40th parallel
of north latitude the osuge orange is an emi-
nent success as a forest tree, worthy of ex-
tensive planting.

“Forest -ultivation jor Profit” was the
subject of a well-prepared paper read by
Hon, Martin Conrad, of Chicago, which is
here given in full:

Mr. PRESIDENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

I have accepted with much pleasure, the invita-
tion to address you on that department of Forestry
which more particularly concerns the present and

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

future supply of timber required for the manufac
ture of farm machinery and wagons, because I
feel that timber culture isnot ordinarily a subject
of such popular attention as it deserves to be.

The few remarks I am about to make, may sug-
gest further channels of research and experiment
in this noblest of nature’s:domains, and it is for
you, as the practical promoters of this branch of
our great agricultural interests, to direct such ef-
fortsas may be awakened by my words, if you shall
judge them worthy of such distinction.

It is a noteworthy-result of our daily vocation, be
it what it may, that we are always taking mental
note of whatever may have the remotest connec-
tion with it; yet it is true that this unconscious
mental action, in time quite dominates our facili-
ties of observations. We hear the stockmen speak
only of the cattle he has seen in his travels—and it
is the dairyman who can locate every fine herd of
“ood milkers” in the country. Even Miss Flora
McFlimsy, absorbed in her own delightful occupa-
tion, may have “clean forgot” the text, and all
that the good pastor said—but she can minutely
describe each}“‘duck-of a bonnet” that comes with-
in her range of vision. So it comes that the lum-
berman is no exception to this universal rule, for,
even while gazing on your favorite herd of short-
horns, his ‘mind is elsewhere. He sees only the
leafy grove in whose shade they are gathered, and
is undoubtedly figuring how many feet of this or
that grade each spreading oak would average.

Influenced in much the same way, my own ob-
servations during twenty years of experience in
the wagon business have included in their scope
the great problem which to-day confronts its chief
ally, the lumber interest. I need hardly say that I
have noted with much’solicitude the wholesale des-
truction of our forests in all parts of the United
States. I use the word ‘“‘destruction,” advisedly,
and in its fullest sense; because the removal of
timber for actual use, is but a fraction of the evil
causes now at work upon our woodlands—while
wantonness and rapacity are doing their worst in
this war of extermination. Even the farmer, eager
for quick returns, relentlessly uproots the last sap-
ling that the ground may be sown with grain, not
thinking of how he is robbing future generations
of their just heritage.

In ever-widening circles does this destruction
spread over the land. It is but a few years ago
that Chicago drew the bulk of its whitewood sup-
ply from the state of Michigan—while to-day, that
great timber state, in common with }fourselves,
draws upon Tennessee and other southern districts
for this valuable wood. Oak, at that time, was so
abundant that it could not be profitably shipped by
rail to Chicago from outside a radius of a hundred
miles; whereas, to-day, Arkansas and even Missis-
sippi are represented in the oak supply of the Chi-

cago yards. Black-walnutand live-oak are already
practically extinct—but long before the culmina-
tion of this ominous result, even as far back as .
1868—the Hon. T. M. Edmunds in his report to the
U.S. Department of Agriculture, foresaw a com-
plete extinction of all timber resources of the
United States in about fifty years. This threat-
ened loss alone should:demand prompt measures
of restraint; but the disasters that we invite,
through the climatic changes that must follow our
imprudence, are appalling enough to jusify the
gravest fears.

It is not my purpose to introduce here any lurid
pictures of calamities in store for us—as better
pens than mine, guided by the hands of science
have already enlightened us as to the probable
course of events if the present conditions are al-
lowed to continue. The note of alarm has been
sounded long ago, and the stormy floods of the
Mississippi and the Ohio have re-echoed it with
terrific emphasis.

In proof of the enormous climatic changes that
can result from such a cause,I may mention that we
have an actual demonstration of the whole process
at our very doors. I refer to the northern domain
of our sister republic of Mexico, a section whose
former luxuriance of vegitation once proclaimed
it a paradise, and whose mineral wealth marked
a brilliant page in the chronicles of the sixteenth
century. This region is to-day a parched and
torrid desert land, treeless and waterless, in
whose barren: solitudes it would seem that few
would have dared to venture.

Yet it isa deeply significant fact that these sun-
burnt valleys, not only around the city of Chihua-
hua, but=also in many other parts of that section,
should be covered with acre after acre of slag
from silver oar. It must be borne in mind that
in all this’ strange region there is not a bed of
coal and that, therefore; the extensive smelting
operations that are evidenced by the vast fields of
slag, must have required an enormous and also
convenient,’supply of wood for fuel. It follows
then that at some distant period of the past dense
forests must have covered this land, and furnished
the necessary fuel, thereby completely verifying
the statement of Bernal Diaz, the soldier-historian
of the Cortez’expedition, that they found the region
covered with luxuriant woods, verdant valleys
and fertile plateaus, It was the treasure hunters
then who followed these conquerors that inaugu-
rated the destruction which has extinguished
these ‘forests and swept all vegetation from the
face of the-land.

With nature’s:sheltering mantle thus removed,
the denuded earth quickly yielded to the influence
of an already arid climate, and the desert prompt-
ly spread over the area:thus preparedifor it. The
noble forests have vanished at the touch of civili-

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

zation, and with them also, the life-giving inter-
change of the clouds and the dew—the balance-
wheel of nature’s fertility. To-day only afew
scattered ruins, here and there, in the midst of
lonely wastes of desert, are left, to speak of their
former beauty and grandeur. Could the explorer
Cortez, and his devout historian, at this moment
look upon those beautiful valleys of 350 years
ago, viewing again the scenes of their adventures
and discoveries, their pious catholocism might
be charmed by the sight of the grand cathedral,

with its stately towers, costing almost a round
million of dollars, as well as the beautiful park at
its doors, with its fountains, trees and luxuriance
of tropical plants, maintained in this splendor, by
the ever watchful, artificial care of many but,
looking beyond this little garden spot, they would
search in vain for the Eden of primeval beauty
that first met their wondering gaze, for their eyes
would rest only upon the dreary desolation and
ruin which their treasure-seeking followers left
behind them.

Ido not attempt to trace the exact degree of
climatic changes wrought in this particular in-
stance. Itis sufficient that the connection from
cause to effect is obvious; and to those who have
given a thought to the science of forestry, I need
not repeat the immeasurable benefits conferred
by the presence of forests; how they eqalize the
humidity, how they furnish shelter, create springs,
control the flow of rivers, and protect the proper
moisture of the ground. On the other hand, his-
tory supplies instances enough of the decay of
nations whose decline may be logically traced to
the imprudent destruction of their forests, and
the consequent disastrous and deteriorating
changes in their climate.

Fortunately, we have a prudent example before
us, in the countries of Europe, in all of which the
forests are under government guardianship, pro-
tecting them against fire as well as spoliation;
and, however little we may profit by this (for such
a system would be a physical impossibility in this
country), it may at least serve to remind us that
our national legislation tends to the opposite di-
rection, and that atleast indirect relief could be
afforded by admitting foreign lumber free, and
thereby lessening that much of the drain upon
our own resources.

Without stopping to discuss this point, it is
worth while to see what can be done legitimately
in the right direction, and to inquire if there is
not a chance of redeeming the situation by intelli-
gent and well directed individual action, with a
suffieient incentive of personal profit to warrant
hopes of success. if I can show that proper
efforts in tree culture will prove profitable
and that itis a sure and valuable investment for
any farmer and land owner, this may be the means

of forestalling evil results and recovering some
part of what has been so wantonly destroyed. To
investigate this interesting point, I have searched
many records and exhausted many tables of sta-
tistics, only to be met with a most surprising
meagreness of practical information on the gen-
eral subject. It seems that of late comparatively
little personal knowledge of any value has been
given to the world, and if there be any reason for
this it will lie in the fact that the life of a matured
tree far exceeds that of aman, and that conse-
quently no one individual can possibly follow the
complete growth from its germination to its nat-
uralend. All our knowledge of any given growth
is, therefore, aseries of tradition, so to say, for
each authority can furnish but asmail section of
personal experience.

In my researches I have consulted a great
variety of authors as well as the very latest gov-
ernment reports bearing on this special subject;
but, as already intimated, the practical side of the
information they afforded was singularly meagre
and unsatisfactory. One author devotes a valua-
ble number of pages to a continuous rhapsody
over the “great ash tree’ under which he played in
the days of his childhood, while a still more pre-
tentious writer in trying to cover his exhaustive
subject, ‘“‘Trees of America,” commits the un-
pardonable blunder of entirely omitting all men-
tion of the oak. That tree, which above all, from
a utilitarian standpoint, has earned the right to
be called the king of our forests.

It followed, therefore, as a result of my re-
searches, that Iwas compelled to fall back, ina
great measure, upon my earlyxexperience with
the trees of the forest, together with the practi-
cal knowledge of my later years in handling lum-
ber as a manufacture. Before I present the tabnu-
lated results of our calculations, I will give a short
description of the five kinds of wood usedin the
construotion: of-farm wagons, for in these five we
have all the varieties that are used in implements
and all outdoor machinery. I begin with the oak.
(Quercus). Of the 150 or more varieties of this
tree 82 are native to this country. Of these the
white oak (Q. alba) is the only one in demand by
wagon and carriage builders, and as it is at the
same time the most serviceable for all mechanical
purposes, I will describe only this species.

The white oak is indigenous to the state of
Illinois and is mostly found on yellow loam of
moderate fertility, although it also flourishes on
our prairie soil. It matures at about an average
age of 80 years, after which it gains in size, but
with no further improvement in quality, its
further growth,being a mere accumulation of adi-
pose, if I may use such a comparison. When fully
developed the white oak is one of the largest and
grandest of the entire forest tribe, and it is, of all

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

the deciduous trees, about the most valuable for

general purposes. In a wagon it furnishes the
hubs, spokes, felloes and all of the running gear
except the axles and the tongue, and it takes the
lead in all other branches of wood manufactures
where special strength, solidity and durability are
required, as in ships, car-building, cabinet ware,
implements, etc., etc. The natural forests of this
supremely useful tree are, however, rapidly disap-
pearing, and, if only on the ground of utility, its
preservation and culture should be our very first
care.

Next in order comes the hickory (carya). The
hickory is exclusively an American tree, of many
varieties, one or more of the several species being
quite common in every state of the union. None
of them, however, better merits cultivation than
the shellbark, for wherever special elasticity is
required, as in wagon axles, carriage spokes,
hammer, pick and tool handles, etc., it stands
without an equal, and in its growth it is as rapid
as any ofits kind. The timber is heavy, hard and
elastic, and is very durable, except when exposed
to a foul or moist atmosphere, in which case it
decays rapidly. It grows to the height of 60 or 80
feet, with a diameter of 2 feet, and while young is
exceedingly graceful and ornamental, so that it
might well be cultivated for its beauty alone. For
fuel its wood is by far the best in America, andits
fruit is the ‘“‘hickory nut” of commerce.

The “thick shellbark’’ must not be confused
with the species just described. To identify the
proper nut for planting I may mention that itis
of a globular shape, somewhat flattened, nearly
pointiess, with a thin, whitish shell, and a large
kernel. The nut of the “thick shellbark” is
twice as large and has a sharp point at each end,
the shell is thick, hard and of a yellowish tinge,
while the kernel is very inferior. The leaf of the
“shellbark” always consists of five leaflets, while
the “thick’’ shellbark leaf has seven or nine. In
this way the difference can be easily distinguished
—not only in the seed, but in the young trees as
well. Hickory for timber should be grown unin-
terruptedly from the seed; but it has been as-
serted that the transplanted tree will bear more
and better quality of fruit.

I will now pass on to the well known ash
(fraximus). To the manufacturer of wagons and
agricultural implements this valuable timber is
of high importance. It is very durable, and
unites lightness, strength and elasticity to such a
degree that no other wood could properly replace
it for wagon tongues, fork handles and the like.

It exhibits also a highly ornamental finish
when used in floors, furniture, wainscoting and
interior trimming of dwellings generally. Be-
sides all this it is of high rank simply as fuel,
and for all these multifarious purposes its con-

sumption has so largely increased, that the better
grades are becoming very scarce and the price has
advanced at least 25 per cent in the last 15 years.
{ venture to say that unless its cultivation is be-
gun very soon, the present generation will see its
last for practical uses in this country.

Indigenous to North America are the white ash,
as also the “black,” ‘‘blue” and “green,” but of
these the ‘white ash” is the most valuable. It
bears transplanting even when quite well grown
and appears to be quite free from insect foes, so
that its cultivation would have at least these im-
portant points in its favor. ;

The next in order is the tulip tree, (Lirioden-
dron tulipifera) which belongs to the family of
the magnolia and although commonly known
under the various names of “white wood,” ‘yel-
low poplars,” “tulip poplar,” etc., it does not
resemble the true poplar in any respect. There
is but one species of this genus and itis one of
the largest and finest trees of the Ameaican
forests. Hough, in his ‘Elements of Forestry,”
speaks of specimens attaining a diameter of ten
feet, and a height of 150 teet. It is found more
or less all over the United States, but chiefly in
the western forests wherever the climateis not
too severe, and where the soil is deep and fertile.
Its lumber, known as “white wood,” is superior
to pine in wagon and carriage building for several
reasons. Itis stronger, less liable to twist and
warp, and has a dense grain,which renders it cap-
able of taking a very higher finish without
the use of any previous ‘“‘filler,’ for which
reason also its finish is much more per-
manent. Its clear qualities also enable its
use in wide boards and the largest class of tim-
bers. Its quality of width being a leading attrac-
tion, it requires at least 60 years before it at-
tains a marketable size, hence its only value to
the producer in the meantime is its ornamental
appearance in which it has few equals. Its leayes
are large, bright and glossy, its blossoms are of
good size, abundant and of an agreeable odor. This
tree should be cultivated from the seed and de-
serves an extensive propogation, for it would be
hard indeed to find another kind to fillits place
in the wood-working industries, especially wagon
making and furniture. Its color and quality is
decidedly affected by the nature of the soil on
which it grows, and leads to the various names of
“white,” “blue” and “yellow” poplar, by which
it is erroneously designated. The difference, how-
ever, is not externally manifest in the tree. The
“yellow” variety is the toughest, hardest and
most flexible, which leads to its extensive use in
carriage panels, cylinder desks and other work
where flexibility and toughness are required.

My list of wagon woods will end with the PINE
(Pinus). This is the only coniferous tree that is

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS. 17

of use to the wagon-maker, and it is perhaps for-
tunate, because none of the conifers are of any
value for wagon lumber, until at least 60 years of
age, being used exclusively in the form of boards.
To make the best lumber, they should be thickly
grown when young, in order to produce a straight
tall tree of nearly uniform diameter, and free from
knots. If grown in isolated situations the tree
will expend its vigor in the production of useless
side branches, and the trunk will taper very rapid-
ly from the base.

The pine is used for wagon box bottoms, in
which the “hard yellow” variety is chiefly employ-
ed. Its chief recommendation is its cheapness,
since ash is fully its equal in lightness and superi-
or in durability. The fact is, if it were possible to
dispense with pine entirely, the wagon would be
the gainer—and the list of our wagon woods would
be reduced to the four deciduous trees already de-
scribed. .

Here, then, we have five species of forest trees
whose extinction alone, or even decline, would be
a calamity of measureless extent to our entire na-
tion. Butitis a most unfortunate characteristic
of our people, that, however imminent the danger,
the great mass of them—in fact all but a few spc-
cialists—fail to evince the slightest personal inte-
rest in the matter. In a spasmodic manner, and
to a limited extent, the timber question has re-
ceived the attention of local, state and national
legislation, but to the average farmer, the impend-
ing result carries but a very indistinct impression
of a yaguely distant future days,—interesting him
much the same as the paragraph in his almanac
which tells him of the ages that remain before the
extinction of the sun. To him it is a matter that
concern future generations, but need not worry
him; provided he credits the statement at all,
which is not always. Moreover, with the great
mass of people, the maxim holds good that ‘what
is everybody’s business is nobody’s business,” and
however threatening the result,—when it comes to
“sowing that others may reap,” or making sacri-
fices from which no return may be hoped for in
this life, it is asking a good deal of human
nature.

To bring forth adequate results, therefore, will,
as I have said, require the powerful stimulus of
personal gain to whomsoeyer shall venture his
means and his time in this beneficient work. I
am aware that itis the unfortunate, though gen-
eral impression that no profit can possibly accrue
to an investment that waits fora forest to grow
up from the seed, yet I propose to show that noth-
ing could be further from the reality. I maintain
that there is a profit in it, and that a well directed
system of cultivation will not only repay the in-
vestment richly at an early period, but will be

ey a

the means of solving the economic problem of
our timber supply.

Any line of inquiry looking to the practical so-
lution of this great problem must naturally begin
with the number of trees that can be successfully
grown on a given space of ground—say an acre—
for aunit of calculation; but simple as the ques-
tion may seem, it is vain to look for it in books.
One German authority gives us 300 to 400 trees to
an acre, as the results of an 80-year period of cul-
tivation: but unless we are ready to allow a good
deal for the rigorous thoroughness of the forestry
systems of the old country, we may be pardoned
for doubting these figures. We must reflect-that
a square rod to each matured tree is a small
enough allowance of ground space for a large
healthy growth. This gives us 160 trees to an
acre, but to be still more conservative, let us
knock off 50 more, leaving 110 trees to the acre for
the harvest 80 years after planting the seed. This
result coincides exactly with the figures given by
A. R. Whitney, Esq., the veteran tree grower and
proprietor of the well known Whitney nurseries
at Franklin Grove, Ill.

The long practical experience of this*gentle-
man has,formulated the following method of cul-
tivation, viz:

Starting with a planting of 2,720 young trees to
the acre, set 4 feet apart, he begins by trimming
out after ten years of growth every other north
and south row. Five years later every alternate
tree in each of the remaining rows is removed,
and after another interval of five years more, cull
out all imperfect growths, which will leave an ay-
erage of not less than 110 trees to the acre.

To put this result in marketable form is the
next step in our inquiry, that we may determine
the money value of our harvest. Our leading
hardwood lumbermen count an average of two
trees for each 1,000 feet of lumber, and with these
factors we may easily compile the following table,
showing the value per acre of our 80-year crop of
cultivated trees.

VALUE OF ACRE OF TIMBER OF EIGHTY YEARS’

GROWTH.

Number of trees per acre............... 110
Number of trees to cut 1,000 feet....... 2
Number of feet of lumber per acre..... 55,000
Pricesper 1,000'feet one. st. . § «1800
Value per acre, 80 years’ growth........ 1,100 00
Average value per acre per year........ 12 37%

Is not this encouraging result worthy of earnest
consideration by every farmer and land-owner? A
little further reflection will show him that the
above result is safely within the reality, as such
lumber as we speak of will be worth at least $50
per 1,000 eighty years hence, and he may also
count upon the yearly trimmings of trees, which
increase in value, growing from poles to trees

18 AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

that will make the very best second growth
spokes, and carriage stock, as well as all kinds of
the most expensive ax, hammer, and pick han-
dies. For these purposes, a tree at 30 to 40 years,
is of greater value than when fully matured. Be-
sides this, we will have timber which will be use-
ful for fuel, fencing or charcoal, and will event
ually afford a steady revenue far beyond the actnal
cost of supervision and labor, and in addition to
all this, we must bear in mind that the timber left
over after the logs are cut, including the tanbark,
is very nearly as valuable as the logs themselves.
But you may say that a period of eighty years—
aye, forty years—is a long time to await the fruits
of your labor. True: but cannot its full value be
realized just as readily as any of the other perma-
nent improvements on your lands? Your invest-
ment in the tree-plantation is not locked up, for
should von sell the place at any time, it will cer-
tainly take rank with the rest of the improve-
ments as an element of value, and will bring its
full price.

No other improvement on your estate can do
more than this. The soil itselfis certainly not as
productive as it was when you first turned the
virgin sod, while neither the well-appointed farm-
house nor the roomy barn nor any of the other fix-
tures can ever realize you acent, except as part
and parcel of the whole,"and then only when it
passes out of your possession by outright sale. It
is the sum of al] these improvements that enables
you to value the property at twenty times its
original cost, and not because the land will pro-
duce more than it did in the past.

Your investment in the tree plantation must
therefore be ranked with the permanent improve-
mentsfof the place, with the additional certainty
that at whatever period of its growth a transfer of
ownership may take place it will invariably yield
its full value; for while all the rest are undergo-
ing the process of natural decay and require con-
stant labor and expense to keep them in repair,
the value of the tree farm until it matures is
steadily accumulating with the years, andit must
therefore in its intrinsic worth prove the most
valuable of all the improvements on your estate.

My subject having been limited to only such
woods of natural forest growth as are in present
use for the purposes referred to, I must mention
that there are numerous varieties maturing at
least a decade of years earlier that are possibly
better adapted to our prairie soil, which might be
substituted in many branches of manufacture
without affecting the quality of the article. How-
ever, as I have based my estimate of profit upon
the oak, which of all species requires the longest
time to attain maturity, it follows without argu-
ment that with trees of ;an earlier maturity the

— —

average would be, proportionally larger. Sp

Having therefore clearly shown that the culture
of timber implies nothing in the nature of sacri-
fice, but on the contrary is a valuable source of
revenue, it follows that the great problem can be
solved by the incentives which nature herself
holds out. She asks nothing without recompense,
but offers a far more substantial reward than the
mere consciousness of duty performed. Had the
proprietors of the Schuttler Wagon Factory
planted an oak for each one they cut down for
spoke timber since the establishment of their
works in 1843 they might to-day make a like
amount of second growth spokes from the same
ground.

And before going further, let me say that this
latter fact has actually been verified in a most in-
teresting and noteworthy manner. The factory
named has just finished a wagon built entirely of
cultivated Illinois timber, twenty varieties of
which enter into its construction,—none of them
over forty year’s growth from the seed. This great
variety was sought, only to show what it is pussi-
ble to produce on our prairie soil, and not for lack
of material,—for the entire running-gear could
have been made out of one honey locust log in the
lot, which measured 18 inches clear in diameter.
The entire assortment of woods was furnished by
Mr. A. R. Whitney, of Franklin Grove,—of whom
mention has already been made—and his testimony
onthis subject hardly needs stronger proof than
this interesting collection of Illinois woods, grown
by his own hands. No less praise is due to the
far-sighted manufacturers, whose thorough grasp
of the question has thus evolved the first wagon of
the kind ever_seen on the American continent.

To conclude my theme, I would therefore offer
the plan of “tree culture for profit,” as the only

‘rational means that we have, not merely for recoy-

ering what we have lost, but for preventing the
evil results which a few more years of our blind
folly will surely bring upon us.
would not only urge upon every farmer to check
by all means in his power, the indiscriminate des-
truction of our trees, but to preserve and foster
the young growth as he finds it on his lands,—and
above all, to*plant at least ten acres on each quar-
ter section of our treeless area, as a systematic
step towards correction of the evil.

Having occasionally met with the assertion that
the original timber area of our state had not been
impaired in the last forty years, 1 took pains to in-
vestigate this point, and upon consulting the latest
reports to the Department of Agriculture at Wash-
ington, I find that seven counties show an average
increase of nine per cent., ten claim to have the
same area, while a fair computation of the loss in
the balance of the counties shows an absolute de-
crease of the entire area of the state of 52 2-10 per
cent., during the stated period of time. The fur-

To this end, I ~

—— -

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS. 19

ther fact that both quality as well as quantity is

rapidly diminishing is shown in the decrease of |

over 10,000,000 feet of our lumber product ina

- single year. -

As these reports are compiled from the best and

- most intelligent sources obtainable in each county,

the data are as nearly exact as it is possible to ob-
tain such information.
Treating upon this subject in general terms of

Southern Illinois, which was formerly covered |

with timber of valuable varieties, such as oak,
walnut, hickory. and whitewood, one of these
correspondents says: ‘About one-half of the
area has been cleared and put under cultivation.
Much of the timber was bnrned on the ground
and all that remains has been culled over and the
best taken.”’ Another speaking of Gallatin county,

' says, in 1857 fully 80 per cent of this county area

was covered with forests. The’ Wabash and Ohio
river bottoms and valleys are covered with a
growth of large, heavy oaks, black walnut, ash
and other valuable varieties. All these have long
since been utilized for lumber and but little econ-
omy displayed in cutting. At present rates of
destruction and consumption, in ten or twelve
years no timber worth naming will:be found in
the county. But over 20 per centof the entire
area is now in timber of any kind, and the new
growth is not of the valuable original varieties.

Increased area is only reported from counties
that had very little originally. »Lee connty is one
of this class and makes the only progressive re-
port of the entire list. The correspondent says:
“When I settled in this county, forty-nine years
ago, about one-twentieth was in good timber.
Most of this has been cut off, but very little of the
timber land was cleared for farming uses, and as
this has produced a new growth, there is now a
greater area of natural growth than at the date of
first settlements. Where timber has been cut
away, the severity of winter and storms at other
sessons of the year has been intensified.

Much tree planting has been accomplished and
when this has been done on the prairies and where
the natural re-invested forests have again attained
size, there has been a perceptible modification of
climatic conditions.”

This is a very interesting report, but I am hard-
ly prepared to admit the possibility of producing
climatic changes within such narrow limits. To
create any effect it requires a larger area than
that of a single county in which the timbered por-
tionisbut asmall fraction of the whole, but,
nevertheless, we must say that Lee county is
moving in the right direction. Were all to do
likewise this inevitable consumption of our forests
might be arrested instead of being encouraged by
such statements as the one which Iam herein
forced to controyert, for it lulls to a dangerous

indifference at a time when our vigilance should
be aroused.

Let us not then, ostrich-like, bury our sight to
avoid the apparation of danger nor yet believe it
far away, for another generation may find itself
battling with the consequences. For so surely as
the forests are swept away so surely will our
mighty assistants, the clouds and the sunshine,
the winds and the rain, refuse their further ser-
vics in calling forth and nurturing our growing
crops. But released from all control they will
descend upon our fields only to blight and destroy.
Instead of the zephyas of spring we have called
forth the black demond of the cyclone, and for
the gentle and life-giving rain we have exchanged
the terror of the mighty flood alternated with the
hot breathe of the drought. This is what we shall
have to reap for so wantonly wasting that which
we should have used with prudence, and upon
which future generations have aclaim as well as
ourselves, for it certainly was never intended
that we should destroy any of the elements upon
which depend the welfare of posterity.

~ Baron Ferdinand yon Mueller, beautifully ex-
presses the situation, when he says:

“T regard the forest as an heritage, given to us
by nature, not for spoil or to devastate, but to
be wisely used, reverently honored and carefully
maintained. I regard the forest as a gift entrusted
to us only for transient care during a short space
of time, to be surrendered to posterity again as an
unimpaired property with increased riches and
augmented blessings, to pass asa sacred patri-
mony, from generation to generation.”

AFTERNOON SESSION.

Immediately on convening in the after-
noon the subject of printing the proceed-
ings of the congress was taken up and it
was decided to publish 1,000 pamphlets
containing the three days’ proceeding of
this year.

The president announced the appoint-
ment of the following:

“Arbor Day Committee’—Gov. Furness,
Nebraska; Leo Weltz, Ohio; Chas. F. \ills,
Illinois; Prof. G. B. Northrup, Connecticut,
and J. H. Morgan, Ontario, Canada.

Prof. J. F. Beal, of Lansing, Mich, sub-
mitted remarks on personal experiments in
preserving the life of buried nuts, showing
that acorns that had been buried below the
frost for two years were healthful, living
and sprouting. He said he had others

20 A

RICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

buried which wou'd be taken up two years

hence. They were also good indications
that certain larve of grubs, living in
the nuts,
finding their way vp through the earth at
the end of two years. Prof. Beal also sub-

mitted samples of nine different kinds of |

wood grown from the seed by himself and
pointed out the testimony they gavejre-
specting ring growths They indicated a

layer for each year. He also stated that
the more valuable trees usually by their

large leaves and thick foliage offered
greater leaf surface to the atmosphere,
thereby exerting greater climatic influence.

Prof. J. L. Bupp, of the Iowa Board

ot Forestry, read the following inte-
resting paper:

POSSIBLE MODIFICATION OF OUR PRAIRIE

CLIMATE.

Mr. PRESmMENT:—I think it was not wise to
promise a brief paper on this disputed subject, as
I believe—in common with most of our early prai-
rie settlers—that an appreciable change of climate
has been wrought by the occupation and cultiva-
tion of the prairies by civilized man, and that an
extended system of forestry planting in great
blocks, such as iscommon inall parts of continent-
al Europe, might change our present climate for
the better in a brief period.

On the other hand our American physicists seem
to unite in accepting the sweeping assertion of
Prof. Elias Loomis, and others, that the mean
temperature and rainfall for given periods does not
vary sensibly from century to century, and that
there is no evidence whatever that the earth’s cli-
mate has changed materially in 2,000 years.

While I do not feel like combatting this general
proposition from the standpoint of periodic aver-
ages of temperature and rainfall, we are anxious
to impress the fact that successful orcharding,
small-fruit growing, and crop production in field
and garden, depend more on extremes of rainfall,
temperature and atmospheric humidity than on
monthly, annual or longer periodic means.

Especially is this true of great area of prairie or
steppe, far removed from the breath of the ocean,
such as our great western plains, and the still
greater steppes of Europe and Central Asia.

In Continental Europe the methodic and general
forestry system is founded and sustained on the
generally accepted belief that a judicious distribu-
tion of large forest areas will modify diurnal vari-

have germinated and were |

ations of temperature and moisture of air during
the growing season, and possibly will bring about
a more equal distribution of rainfall if it does not
actually increase it. .

The general plan of the meterological observa-

tions in Europe will give, and has given during the-

past century, much precise information on this
vitally important subject.

The learned secretary of the London Meteo ro-
logical Society gave us in 1882 the following guid-
ing principles, observed at the meteorological
stations of continental Europe:

(1.) Ordinary meteorologic tables of periodic
means are not sufficiently detailed to throw light
on the influence of the weather on agricultural
or horticultural crops.

(2.) To be truly valuable, the observations mus t
be frequent and accurate, and give daily and
monthly extremes as well as means.

(3.) For agricultural purposes, the heat should
be observed in the open sunshine, as field crops
can have no protection from direct sun heat, or
the heat of the lower beds of air on exposed soils.

(4.) The temperature and hamidity of air dur-
ing the heated portions of each day, in the grow-
ing sesson, and their extremes, should be record-
ed.

(5) We need more perfect heat’ measures than
we now have. That the sun reached a certain
temperature at a certain hour gives no correct
idea of the sum total of heat during the day.

(6) We need more perfect observations on rela-
tive evaporation under the varied conditions as
to exposure, color of soil, protection from wind
sweep, etc. The evaporation froma tin dish on
a glass plot gives uo correbt idea from the evap-
oration from exposed dark colored soils.

Had we been favored with such accurate obser-
vations on our daily, monthly and annual extremes
of temperature, humidity of air and rainfall at
varied points over our prairies for the past 40
years, we would now be able to give scientific
reasons why spring wheat is now a precarious
crop on virgin sods, why rusts, smuts and
blights are more general than in the early days,
and why orchard trees, shrubs,etc., that succeeded
perfectly 30 years ago, now utterly fail to endure
our summers or winters.

As our relatively new country cannot give this
accurate information we can only talk of proba-
ble causes for known effects.

(1) We have reason to believe that our winds
from the southwest, west and nothwest are hotter
and drier in summer than forty or even twenty
years ago, and that our winds from the Gulf of
Mexico have not materially changed as to heat or
contained moisture. If wellfounded this would
account for many of our cumulative troubles in
crop production.

Prof. Tyndall has remarked

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS. 21

‘

that a change in the extremes of heat, cold, mois-
ture and aridity of air, of five p er cent. may change
or materially affect the field crops of a whole
country. In Europe, Asia, and in our American
states at the east and south, the destruction of
the native covering of timber has wrought the
changes on which the statement of Tyndall was
predicted.

In the prairie region we have as much timber
to-day—perhaps more—than we possessed when
the first settlers put up their cabins on the borders
of the island groves and the stream timber bor-
ders of Indiana and Illinois. Yet it must be said
that the prairie groves, and the timber of the
stream bottoms and adjacent bluffs, then present-
ed real forestry conditions, which alone can mod-
ify climate to any noticable extent. Now, our
larger timber areas are broken by clearings
into little patches, and our planted timber is in
little patches and thin belts for arresting wind-
sweep. Inthe way of arresting two rapid evapo-
ration such timber planting is useful, but it can-
not take the place, in climatic modification, of the
scattered areas of real forests known to the early
settlers. But the main cause of the cumulative
increase of heat and aridity of our westerly winds
in summer, is given with special clearness by our
lamented Arthur Bryant on the first page of his
valuable work on Forestry. In this brief paper
we cannot repeat the whole story, nor is it needed
in this body of clear thinkers and close observers.
Forty to fifty years ago the whole prairie region,
west of Lake Michigan, was literally a sea of
grass, interspersed with island timber belts and
groves, clogged drainage centers, and wet bottom
lands without visible outlet. Even in the famous-
ly dry summer of 1854 the flats, drainage centers
and sloughs of Illinois, in DeKalb county—which
are now dry and firm—would mire a team in Au-
gust, while the grass could be tied over your hat
when sitting on a horse.

The whole country was then in condition to hold
the never failing June freshets, and as Bryant
states, the rank vegetation of forest, barren timber
lands, and open prairie took the place of the fores-
try covering of the eastern and middle states to a
measurable extent. Even then the rainfall was
variable, ranging for instance from 7414 inches in
1851, to 23%4 inches in 1854, yet it was proverbial
that the dry seasons then gave the best crops and
the fattest hogs and steers. The driest and hottest
winds from the southwest were then never known
to “‘fire’* corn, to burn the leaves of trees or plants,
or to prevent the deposit of copious dews at night.
Forty years ago Robert Russell said that continued
westerly wind could never fail to bring drouth to
to the prairie region, yet the continued westerly
winds of 1854 and 1855 did not come to us as now

robbed of moisture, and as dry and hot as the air
from the Sahara Desert.

The grassy plains and clogged sloughs and
streams gave off moisture to:the passing breeze.
At this time the whole west presents a different as-
pect. Since Bryant wrote in 1870, the evils of
which he complained have become more pronounc-
ed. Literally a great expanse of country—large
enough to make several kingdoms of Enrope—in
the west and northwest—have been since turned
with the plow, with the accompanying drainage of
sloughs, ponds and streams. Our winds from all
westerly points now literally pass over a dry heat-
éd soil in a dry period, which drinks up with hun-
gry avidity the moisture of the air. :

For the benefit of those who may doubt that the
occupation by man of a prairie country, with the
consequent exposure of an alluvial drift soil by
culture, pasturage, cities, villages, roads, railway
beds, drainage, opening of clogged and boggy
drainage centers, and creek channels, etc., will in-
crease the heat and aridity of the breeze passing
over it, we might give many pages of proof from
the chequered history of the great east plane of
Europe and Asia. In the light of this experience
we might reasonably expect a more radicai and
positive change of climate than we now complain
of.

(2). The tendency to long continued westerly
winds during our dry periods has seemed to in-
crease during the past forty years.

After careful consideration this seems quite as
probable as the increase of heat and aridity of our
summer air.

It may be said that we are on the plain at the
foot of a mountain range. West of the Missouri
river we ascend an inclined plane toDenver, where
we reach an altitude nearly one mile above the bed
of the Missouri or the Mississippi.

Just west of Denver we reach the apex of ele-
vation on the summit of the Rockies. The natu-
ral movement of cool air from the mountains
down the elevated plane to our relatively warm
valley, was a marked peculiarity of our climate
when the buffalo and Indian roamed over our
prairies.

That this natural tendency would be increased
by any marked increase of heat and aridity of our
summer airin the Mississippi Valley, is too evi-
dent for words. In connection, it should be kept
in mind that the inflow of air from the elevated
plateau and mountains west of us is really only a
continuation of the natural current that flows in-
land from the Pacific ocean to the summit of the
Rockies during the heated term. When the can-
ons, gorges and slopes of the mountains east of
the summit were covered with a dense growth of
conifers, that held the snows well through sum-
mer, the Pacific moisture was mainly precipitated

22 AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

on the range and its foot-hills. But more recently
the heating of the rocks, consequent upon the re-
moval, in large part, of the timber covering by
fire and axe, permits a greater per cent. of the Pa-
cific moisture to pass through the gaps and over
the dry plains of Colorado to the eastward.
Plainly this moisture might pass eastward to the
Alleghanies if it failed to meet cooler northerly
currents, as it often does in the valley of the Mis-
souri and south of the great lakes.

From this source, beyond reasonable doubt, has
come the blessed showers which gave eleven inch-
es of rainfall to the west slope of Iowa last June,
while east of the divide we had, during the same
period; but two inches, and that in light sprinkles.

We can only add that our idea, that we have had
almost continued westerly winds during the se-
verely drysummers of 1886 and 1887, has been dis-
puted on the grounds that we have had winds
from all directions, often changing three or four
times a day. Our close observers need not be
told that the variation of our surface winds, in
connection with indications of rain, have always
been followed by the steady inflow of air from the
dry west.

(3) While our average rainfall of summer for a
period of ten years may about equal that of the
period from 1850 to 1860 it seems to be less equally
distributed through the season of growth and the
wet and dry seasons.

On this point Mr. Bryant says: ‘Extremes of
wet and dry weather are more frequent and the
dews condensed in dry seasons are more scanty.
Instead of abundant rains in May and June dry
weather at that season is more common.”

Asto causes we can only look to the changes
wrought by man on the prairies and mountains
west of us as already indicated, With the ap-
proach of cold weather each year we have a change
in prevailiag winds and character of storm center.
The snow covered Rockies become storm breeders
from which will pass eastward our usual series of
storms and blizzards. In the early springif we
have our usual supply of melted snow and heavy
rainfalls, filling our bottom lands of rivers and
streams and making if difficult for farmers to get
in their crops, the lower levels of our plain be-
come less heated and we may have until July an
alternating play of winds up and down our valley
from the Gulf of Mexico to the polar ocean, bring-
ingan excessive supply of the blessed rain, but
facts too evident for successful refutation lead us
to believe that the tendency to extremes of drouth
will become still more manifest as the prairies
become more generally occupied and cultivated
unless as Bryant says, the evils we have brought
about be not mitigated or perhaps wholly removed
by planting a due proporition of the country with
forest trees.

|
}

This brings us to the consideration of the ques -
tion; in the light of the experience of the old
world, as indicated by Geo. P. Marshin his able
work on “Earth as modified by human action,”
what course should congress have pursued in the
disposition of public lands in the northwest.

During a talk with Lewis Ellsworth and Dr.
John A. Kennicott, in the old Prairie Farmer
office in 1857, they unitedly expressed the belief
that at least thirty per cent of the whole prairie
area then in the hands of government should be
reserved for timber planting in great blocks, as
practiced in Europe, and that a large share of the
proceeds of sales of the remaining lands should
be devoted to the systematic planting and after
care of the reserved tracts, I think it will be gen-
erally agreed that this methodic disposition of our
prairie lands would have been immeasureably bet-
ter than frittering away the proceeds of the land
in harbor improvement and abortive attempts to
make mud creeks navigable.

We pass over the final attempt of congress to
do something for the forestry interests, as the
plan of securing a timber claim by the planting
of ten acres of timber could not materially mod-
ify our climate, bad each settler under this act
faithfully carried out the contract.

Even at this late date congress could do much by
withdrawing from market large tracts on the west-
ern plains, and on the headwaters of our streams
in the west and northwest, with a view to system-
atic timber planting and thé preservation of that
we now have in the Rockies, but that it will be
done, we are not more certain than was Dr. Ken-
nicott and Mr. Ellsworth in the early days of prai-
rie settlement. I will only add that my faith in
methodic forestry planting as acomplete or partial
remedy for the climatic troubles we now experi-
ence, is much stronger than it was in 1881. Dur-
ing the summer of 1882 I was permitted to study
critically the elaborate forestry system of the Rus-
sian Empire in Europe. Prior to the time of Peter
the Great we have the most complete evidence that
a very large part of the black soil region east of the
Volga was subject to periodic extremes of rainfall,
followed by long continued drouth, during which
the moisture bearing winds from the west passed
over the heated plains of Russia in Europe and
Central Asia to the far off Altia range of moun-
tains without precipitation, as they now pass over
Western Texas and Southern California. Wow.
the planted forests on these steppes are 12,502 in
number, which are under the general supervision
of 762 educated directors.

The area of these individual forests ranges from

3,000 to 30,000 acres.
In company with forestry experts we passed
through many of these island forests on the great

plain, and found everywhere an attempt to pre-.

_————- |

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

serve real forestry conditions by thickness of
planting, the preservation of underbrush in open
parts, and the rigid exclusion of fires andstock. In
all cases we found the dense sylvan shades, and the
carpeting of leaves and leaf mould which keep the
earth cool and moist.

As to climatic effect, the minister of public do-
main assured us that the meteorological records of
past 150 years, and the reported crop yields on the
steppes dotted with these forests, had shown a
cumulative increase of rainfall from summer
showers, and a decided increase in the moisture of
the air during the growing season.

He was also positive in the statement that the |
modifying influence had extended into the eastern
sections, with the completion of the forests, where

formerly the lands had been utterly worthless ex-
cept for thin and scanty pasturage.

In the earlier history of this region the main
rainfalls were in June, but since the completion
of the foréstry system—now ‘covering fully 30 per
cent. of the black soil area—the summer showers
during July and August permit the successful cul-
ture of the sugar beet, potatoes, Indian corn and
other crops requiring rainfall later than June.
When questioned for the causes for the increased
summer rainfall, the invariable reply of experts
was, that it resulted from the'unequal heating of
the air over the plain, {brought about by the large
forestry areas.

On the north plain of “Europe, ‘including North
France, Belgium, Holland, North Germany, Den-
mark, Prussia and Poland, we found a methodic
system of forestry planting and preservation, and
that all classes from peasant to prince united in
the belief that 3334 per cent. of the {country must
be kept in timber, yet wekdid not-here find scien-
tific menfunited in'the belief that forestry planting
directly increased rainfall. But they did unite in
the belief that large areas of forest:tend toa more
equal distribution of the rainfall,‘and more equable
conditions as to temperature and humidity of the
air.
On the north plain of Europe forests have ex-
isted in more or less perfect condition during
hundreds of years, hence the Russian experience
in the way of extended timber planting on bare
pastorial steppes, like our plains west of the
Missouri to Denver, has more valne for our
guidance.

Asnearly as wecan belieye any proposition of
science or any established principle growing out
of long experience, we may believe that the Rus-
sian plan of great island groves over our west-
erm prairies will giveus a more equal rainfall
and more equable conditions as to summer hu-
midity and temperature of air.

With adespotic form of government we might
hope to try the scheme in the near future, but left

=
23

to the voice of the people the time of trial seems
far off. Permit me to repeat the opening remark
that itis up hill work to writein a satisfactory
way on a subject on which I know so little or on
which so little is generally known as prairie cli-
matology.

It would have beenfar easier to talk of species
and modes and methods of planting the blessed
timber in which I believe with an intensity bor-
dering on perfect faith, as our final savior and
preserver from climatic ills and evils which each
year are becoming more apparent.

At the conclusion of this paper the con-
gress, in order to accept the invitation to
visit Lincoln monument at4o’clock, ad-
journed until 7-30 p. m.

EVENING SESSION.

“The Influence of the Western Treeless
Plains on the Atmospheric Conditions East-
ward of Them,” was the subject of a paper
read by Dr. Dan Berry, of Currin, IIL, at
the opening of the evening session. [it was
an elaborate productioa and proved the
author thoroughly informed on the subject
of air currents and the causes which in-
fluence their course. The fact that the

once verdure-clad western plains
were yearly reduced _to plowed
ground, the further fact that

the forests of the west and southwest and
of the mountains were almost obliterated,
explained to his mind the increased dry-
ness from year to year of the air currents
that sweep over the Mississippi valley.
These currents are now dry and arid in-
stead of moisture-laden as formerly.
Again, tiling throughout the west rapidly
carries off the rainfall to the rivers, from
whence it flows in freshets to the sea, with-
out, as formerly, remaining in the ground
to become a source of vapor and clouds.
The planting of forests at regular intervals
throughout the west is the only remedy.

The paper was discussed by Messrs.
Fernow, Robertson, Allen, and others, and
the author’s views generally endorsed,
Mr. Allen particularly urging the building
of dams and fish ponds throughout the

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

country as receptacles for the water that
escapes through the tile.

Mr. S. C. Robb, Kansas state forest com-
missioner, read a paper on “The Status of
Artificial Forest Planting in Kansas.’’
He stated that in Kansas in what was once
called the “Great American Desert,” there
were now many groves of flourishing trees
from six to eight years of age. The plant-
ing of these was attributable principally

to the “timber}‘culture” law passed years

ago by congress. The timber planted in
this‘-way already aggregated many thou-
sands of acres. Again, in Kansas tree
planting had been practiced to such an ex-
tent that many of her towns and cities
give the appearance of large forests. A
law had been passed by the ‘state under
which a “state forest commissioner” had
been appointed and experimental forest
stationsj*established. From all this the
most flattering results were being yearly
realized.

The paper was discussed at length by
various members. The author having in
the course of his paper incidentally men-
tioned the prevalent belief that the Ameri-
can Forestry congress was opposed to the
timber culture law, Mr Fernow emphat-

ically denied the correciness of that im-
pression. The congress, he said, at all its
sessions had invariably refused to take
any action whatever on the subject—either
to commend or criticise the timber culture
act. ?

“Tree Planting On Prairies” was a paper
read by Hon. David A. Brown, of Bates
Il'!. It cited instances where black walnut
and other trees had been planted on IIli-
pois praries with great success. He favored
the planting byMlinois farmers of double
rows of trees uround the limits of their
farms.

T. J. Burrill, of the Champaign (T1l.) In-
dustrial university, spoke ten minutes on
experimental forestry as practiced at the
university. In 1871 the planting of forest
trees was begun at the university. Twenty-
five varieties were planted. Most of these
are now in a thrifty condition, although
the land on which they were planted was
prairie that had been under cultivation for
thirty years. Many of the faster-growing
trees are now forty feet in height and two
feet in circumference.

After brief discussion of Mr. Burrill’s
remarks, the congress adjourned until 9 a.
m. to-morrow.

THIRD DAY’S PROCPREDINGS.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16TH, 1887.

The third and last -day’s session of the
American Forestry congress opened
promptly at 9 o’clock yesterday.

A valuable paper by Joaquin Miller, the |

eminent writer, who was unabie to be pres-
ent, was read by the secretary. The paper
warmly urged the turning over of all gov-
ernment forest lands to the respective
states for maintenance and cultivation.
He said:

“T believe it is pretty generally conceded
that our continent is being washed into the
sea by way of the Mississippi and its thou-
sands of miles of tributaries on the one hand,
and at the same time swept naked of its native
forests by annual fires on the other. I take it
that it is this deplorable condition of things
that has called into existence the American
Congress of Forestry.
the late Capt. Eads at the mouth of the Father
of Waters, inspecting his jetties two years
ago.

“We have begun at the wrong end,’ said
this great man more than once to me.

One morning he threw a bucket over the.

side of the bost and drew up several gallons
of dark mud and water.

“There,” cried the great engineer, ‘‘there is
amixture of one-tenth Missouri, one-tenth
Illinois, one tenth Iowa, one fraction Ken-
tucky, and so on, through about fifteen states,
with an addition of about five-tenths of pure
water.”

“And what would you do, Capt. Eads, to
stop this washing away of states ?”’

“As I told you,’”’ remarked the energetic
old man, as he dumped the ugly mixture back
into the Gulf of Mexico, ‘‘we have begun at

I spent some time with |

the wrong end. But the country is not edu-
cated up to the point of beginning. It wants
the other end for wheat and corn.: It only
wants the mouth of the river kept open so as
to be able to sell its corn for the present gene-
ration, and let the next generation look out for
itself. The other end of the river has drowned
out this end; state after state is going to be
drowned out until some day the coral insect
may again build his pretty castles where the
people of Iowa are now digging wells for
water. The United States is tearing out her
very heart with her gang plows, and dumping
it into the sea, sir.”’

I beg to put this statement before the coun-
try with something of the emphasis with which
this great and good man uttered it there in the
mouth of the great river. More than once he
brought up the subject and always with an
emphasis that would write every syllable in
italics.

Capt. Eads was very fond of quoting poctry.
Once he was saying to himsglf, ‘Leaves,
leaves, nothing but leaves,’’ when he suddenly
turned to me and said: ‘‘Do you know that
in leaves you can read the history of creation?
My son, leaves are not only creation, but sal-
vation.”” Capt. Eads explained-to me that he
meant if leaves and grasses were left lying on
the ground at the proper time of the year, as
nature, the hand of God, placed them, there
would never be any damage from high water
any time; that leaves would be the salvation
of the republic, and that there would never be
any need for Eads’ jetties. He explained that
he meant when he said that leaves were crea-
tion that there is no nourishment so dear to the
hungry earth as a handful of leaves. He in-
sisted that more beauty could be grown out of

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

a single basket of leaves than a whole load of
manure.

Suppose California and all other states in-
deed had absolute control of all forest lands,
why the state, following the liberal action of
the nation, would let the counties have the
lands within their lines to protect, to make
parks or pleasant resorts, or to erect churches
and school houses thereon. The remote border
counties that have been impoverished by In-
dian depredations, fires and floods, and kept
poor by the very conditions of savage, moun-
tains and inaccessible forests, would thus not
only be enriched but made at once the pro-
tectors of the nation’s very heart and vitals.
Every county officer, every censtable, aye,
every citizen would then have a pride anda
personal interest in preserving his property.
These woods would then be as secure as the
archives or the courthouse of the county. The
remote pioneers would no longer assist the dep-

redator to escape punishment and laugh at the |
federal officers and law, but he would help to |

protect the property of children and the heart
of the nation.

And so I sav, bluntly, that commen sense
and common justice demand that all the states
should have the forest lands not suited to ag-
riculture conceded absolutely and at once by
the federal government.

There are few forest fires in the old world, |
because the poor pick up the fallen timber and |

the leaves are gathered to nourish the earth.
But was this the case of old?
day, from Babylon toward Jerusalem, without

seeing so much as a grasshopper; not a bird, |

not even a blade of grass in a land that was
once an Eden. Weread that Alexander the
Great planted every tree of Greece there in
trying to restore that land, and mourned be-
cause the Greek ivy could not be made to grow
on the tower of Babel.

Well let me tell you right here that if this
process of fires and floods—floods that always
follow fires—is permitted to go on by the help
of 10,000 iron-toothed mills—gang-plows in
the valleys to help along the flood that has
gathered force in the burned-out higher land—
why we will accomplish that same desolation
just as certain as water runs. Only we will

I rode for a full

achieve by the aid of gang-plow and circular-
saw impliments, unknown of old, in two
centuries what it took Babylon twenty to bring
about.

It was my fate to spend my boyhood with
Indians. They were the only true foresters I
ever knew. In the spring after the leaves
and grasses had served their time and season
in holding back the floods and warming
and nourishing the earth, then would the old
squaws begin to look above for the little dry
spots of headland or sunny valley. And as
fast as dry spots appeared they would be
burned.

In this way the fire was always under con-
trol. In this way the fire was always the ser-
vant, never the master. And by the time the
floods came again there was another coat of
grass and leaves, stronger and better than the
one before, because of the careful and temper-
ate fire of the careful and wise old woman.
By this means the Indians always kept their
forests open, pure and fruitful and conflagra-
tions were unknown.

Let the few remaining millions of forest
lands be conceded to the states, and then on
down to counties, and ever smaller divisions,
school districts forexample. And then let the
foresters of plain, hard, common sense follow
the Indian’s simple method of preserving his
property by burning the leaves, and my word
for it, neither New York, Louisiana, Michigan
nor California need fear flood or fire, drought
or drowning rains.

At the conclusion of Mr Miller’s paper
the following resolution was unanimously
adopted:

?esolved, That the American Forestry con-
gress deeply regret: that it has been deprived
of the honor and pleasure of receiving Mr.
Joaquin Miller as a delegate from the state of
California, deploring also the cause of his
absence—the death of the governor of Cali-
fornia, his friend—and the secretary is hereby
instructed to extend the thanks of the congress
to the distinguished poet and essayist for his
courtesy in sending his address in type, and
for the lively interest which hetakes in the ob-
ject of this congress.

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

The committee on nominations made the |

following report of officers for the ensuing
year, which was unanimously, adopted:

Hon. C. R. Pringle, Atlanta, Ga., presi-
dent. Hon. H. G. Joly, Quebec, Canada;
Joseph 8. Fay, Boston, Mass.; G. H. Par-
sons, Colorado, and Albert Kinney, Cali-
fornia, vice presidents. Martin Conrad,
Chicago, Ill, treasurer. bB. E. Fernow,
Washington, D.C., secretary. Charles C,
Bell, of Booneville, Mo., recording secre-
tary.

On behalf of the committee on nomina-
tions, Mr. Morgan, chairman, warmly
thanked President Minier for his services
in the past as a presiding office, and stated
it had been a source of great regret to the
committee that he positively declined to ac-
cept that position for the coming year.

President Minier, in response, thanked
the congress for the honors conferred upon
him in the past, and gaid his advancing age
reminded him that it was time he be rele-
gated to the position of high private for the
future [laughter], and the position of presi-
dent be given to a younger and more vigor-
ous man. Still, he would continue to at-
tend the annual sessions of the congress so
long as life and health endured

On motion of Mr. Root, of Georgia, a
unanimous vote of thanks was extended
Mr. Minier for the impartiality, dignity
intelligence and knowledge which he had
ever displayed as a presiding officer.

RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED.

The committee on resolutions made the
following report, which was adopted by
acclamation: ;

Hiesolved, That the constitution of this con-
gress ba so amended as to make it eligible to
hold the annual meetings of this organization
during either August, September or October.

Resolved, That the life membership, estab-
lished by the association at the Saratoga
meeting at $10, shall be raised to $100.

Resolved, That the two secretaries and the
treasurer shall constitute a committee on

finance and publication, and that they be em-
powered to take such action for the collection
of back dues and the provision of other funds
as they see fit; and they shall also exer-
cise the power of the congress in dropping
from the list such members as are delinquent
in the payment of back dues.

Resolved, That a committee be appointed to
act in laying before the national congress the
bill for the administration of government
timber lands passed upon at this session, and
in promoting its passage by the usual means.

Resolved, That the New England committee
as at present composed be continued and en-
couraged to work further for the development
of a forest policy for New England.

Resolved, That the American Forestry con-
gress favor the proposed plan of a unification
of all national societies interested in the pro-
motion of agriculture, horticulture, forestry
and kindred branchs into one large associa-
tion for the purpeses of holding their annual
meetings in the same place, at the same time,
and for other benefits that may accrue from
such a unification; and the executive commit-
tee is hereby instructed to act for the congress
in bringing about such a unification.

Resolve?, That thanks are due to the local
press for the very efficient manner of reporting
the proceeding of this congress.

Resolved, That the thanks of this Forestry
congress are hereby presented to his ‘honor
Mayor Hay of Springfield, for his kindness
and generosity in taking this body to the
tomb and monument of Abraham Lincoln.

Resolved, That the thanks of this congress
are due to. Hon. Joseph S. Fay, of Boston,
Mass., for his repeated generosity in donating
funds to this association.

Resolved, That the secretary be instructed
to convey the thanks of this congress to Gov.
Ogtesby, Hon. Charles F. Mills and the IIli-
nois legislature for their encouragement and
many courtesies extended.

Resolved, That a committee be appointed to
draft a bill to be presented to the legislative
bodies of the several states providing for the
appointment o state forestry commissions and
giving thereto the recessary authority to en-
force laws for the protection and extension of
the forest area.

Resolved, That a committee be appointed to
prepare a programme to be observed in each
community en Arbor day, by the teachers and
pupils of the public schoc ls and all interested
in natural and artificial tree culture.

Wuerreas, There exists a deplorable lack of
interest in matters pertaining to forestry ; and,

Wuereas, The reckless destruction of the
forests of the country demands a serious con-
sideration of all interested in the future sup-
ply of timber; and,

Wuereas, The attention ot the public should
be directed to the importance of preserving
certain forests and encouraging tree planting
wherever practicable ; and,

Wuereas, The information concerning the
influence of forests and climatology are not
generally understood , therefore be it

Resolved, That the legislature of the several
states be requested to favorably consider such
legislation as will tenc to stimulate the care of
forests and encourage tree planting.

The following was adopted as the memp-
rial to be addressed to the congress of the
United States, to accompany the bi!l recom-
mended by the Congress of Forestry :

To the Senate and House of Representatives
in Congress Assembled:

Your memorialists, the American Forestry
congress, and citizens of the United States re-
spectfully represent:

Wuereas, The present laws in regard to the
public lands as far as they relate to the dis-
posal of timber lands or of the timber from the
same, are entirely inadequate to the require-
ments of the present state of our civilization;
are unreasonable, pernicious and prejudicial to
the best interests of this country, and have a
tendency to induce fraud, theft and perjury;

Wuereas, Especially in the Rocky moun-
tain and Pacific slope regions the wining in-
terests in regard to material supplies and the
agricultural interests in regard to a favorable
distribution of water supply, are threatened
with danger or have already been endangered

AMERICAN FORESTRY CONGRESS.

by the thoughtless and unnecessary denuda-
tion of the mountain slopes and hillsides ;

Wuereas, By axe, by the teeth ofcattle and
by fire many millions of dollars worth of public
property have been destroyed without benefit
to any one, owing to the neglect on the part of
the government to protect the property of the
people;

Wuereas, Favorable agricultural and
climatic conditions of a country
are largely dependent upon a

of well distributed forest
areas and especially upon the preservation of
the forest cover on the mountains;

proper amount

Wuereas, Such preservation can not be had
under the existing laws, nor can be expected
at the hands of private individuals;

Wuereas, By the disposal of the timbered
areas now in the hands of the United States,
and by their devastation, under present condi-
tions guing on unchecked, the power to insure
proper forest -egulation passes from the people,

Therefore, The undersigned memorialists im-
bued solely by a desire to further the best in-
terests of the country at large, most respectfully
and urgently pray that you will without delay
give consideration to, and enact as a law the
subjoined bill, which provides for the with-
drawal from entry or sale, classification and
proper disposal or administration of public
forest lands."

A brief but instructive paper on the
cli nxtology, geography aud topography of
the great continental plains of North
America was read by Col D. A. Robertson,
of St. Paul, Minn. It demonstrated the
author’s intimate acquaintance with all the
subjects on which he treated, and furnished
manifold proofs of the influence of forests
ou the climate of North America

The entire programme and: business 0?
the meeting having been concluded, on
motion of Mr. Weltz, the congress at 11 a.
m. adjourned sine die.

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FACULTY OF FORESTRY
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO

American Forestry Congress
Proceedings

Biological
& Medical
Serials

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CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY

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PEE FOE EOE OPO
OO en mere

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