Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-05-11
UNION AND. AMERICAN.
Farm AND GARDEN.
OUR FORESTS.

Mr.. ]. T, Atkinson in communication
to the New York Tribune proposes that all
lumber and unmanufactured wood be placed
upon the free list. He thinks this will
operate as protection to our forests by the
supplies that win be furnished by other
countries, especially Canada. The destruc-
ton Of our growing timber is rapidly on
the increase and every effort should be
made to diminish that destruction, both by
getting foreign supplies and by setting out
trees. New England is almost denuded of
timber if the great forests of Maine are left
out. Western forests are disappearing be-
fore the progress of Improvement like the
snow fake before the sunbeam. Every
thing therefore that can be done, should be
done, for their preservation and perpetual
ton. We have on several occasions urged
upon our Legislature the necessity of ex-
emptiDg from taxation for a term of
years all old fields that should be
set out in timber trees. Our State has
enough of these places that are now I'm.
productive to furnish large quantity of
valuable timber. Almost every farm has
some cleared spot that would do better if
in timber. All rocky ridges, ravines, glades
and CALLED places should be set out in black
locust, ash, larch or some kind Of trees Of
quick growth and that viii make valuable
timber. The wealth of the country is in
creasing at a rapid ratio. Gen. Walker,
superintendent of the census of 1870, esti-
mates that the total value of the real and
personal property in 1850 in the Union was
$1,000, 100000. In 1860 it was Sl6,0O0,-
100000. In 1870, SSO,OOO,OOO,OOO, show
ing an increase between 1850 and 1860 of
126 per cent, and between 1860 and 1870
of So per cent. When the calamities and
losses Of the civil war is taken into account
it is almost marvellous how the increase
could have been so great. This is quad
ruplng in twO-thirds of generation. Yet
the destruction Of our timber in the aug
mentation of this wealth may be the means
of the destruction of that wealth. Climat-
ie influences have great deal to do with
the increase of wealth as well as with the
increase of civilization, and it may be well
to consider in time the probable effects up
on our climate the destruction of timber
will have.
Where there are no forests there are no
places for the retention of moisture, and
where there is no moisture there can be no
rain unless waited by continuous winds,
from a country of moisture. Lower
Egypt until recently has had no rain for
twenty centuries. The Pasha having had
trees planted in the region of the lower
Nile, rains have been frequent, amounting
to at least thirty days in the year. The
opposite has taken place on the Upper Nile.
Rains have usually prevailed there,
but the Arabs having cut down
the forests, rains have ceased
If facts can prove anything it is that the
cutting down of forests diminishes the rain
fall. We were amused a short while ago
in reading the discussion of this subject by
a lampstink philosopher, in which he chal-
lenged the world to show where any springs
or streams have ceased to flow from the
clearing up of the forests. There are nu-
merous streams in Middle Tennessee that
now cease to flow in summer that were
perennial in the early settlement Of the
county, and We know of one lawsuit that
was brought by the purchaser Of land
against the seller because the latter had
guaranteed a certain spring on the
tract to be perpetual. The purchaser
cleared up the forest above the spring and
the following summer the spring ceased to
fiOW'R The learned chancellor, learned in
all law, perhaps, except natural law, de-
cided for the purchaser and compelled the
seller to take the land back though the dry
ing up Of the spring resulted from the act
of the Durchaser