Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1874-02-03

the great pineries along the st.
J ohps, Ottawa, and the st. Law
renee were fast becoming recollec-
tons of the past |; In fact all the re-
forests of pine, spruce, and
comprised within the Can
adian provinces, were inadequate to
supply. the lumber demand OF the
United States, even for three years.
Now, Mr.. Editor, although Prov
idence usually comes to the anu OF
the race whenever the necessities
of nationalities demand the devel-
opment of new and hidden resosir-
ces. essential to the wants OF the
people, is it not the part OF wisdom
to bring into reQuisition all the IN
fiuences which may tend to preserve
our great forests from wanton ana
unnecessary waste, and thus arrest,
as long rs may he, the calamity
which this loss would entail upon
our people and industries, should
Providence, from our wantonness,
fail to interpose in our behalf
The loss of our forests Will not
only embarrass and retard the
Growth of our towns and cities, but
il will tend to disturb, II not TO
paralyze, many of our most impor-
tant and staple branches OF indus
try. As an illustration, we VIII IN
stance the effect such an event
would have upon the Manufacture
of leather in the Eastern States, es-
pecially in which States more than
three-fourths of all the leather made
in the United States is produced.
These states will be the first to be-
come depleted of their forests OF
bemlock, an event that is being
FASTENED, not only 10y the insreas'
ing demand of the Eastern lumber
market, but from the continual
drain of more than three million
cords of bark needed by the leath-
er trade of the East upon these
widely scattered and almost depict
ed forests. The manufacture OF
leather in the Eastern States will
either eventually he transferred
near to the great hemlock forests OF
the northwest, OF it will localize
around the great commercial CEN
tres of trade, near tide water,
where it must receive its supplies
of hemlock tanning material III the
form of concentrated extract, man
ufactured in the great hemlock for
ests of Michigan, Wisconsin, and
Minnesota, as those sources of sup
plies are too distant from the coas
| for the transportation OF crude
bark. .,
No matter how far short Mr.. Jas
Little may have estimated the pine
spruce, and hemlock forests east o
the Rocky mountains, one thin!
must be apparent to the least oh
servant of those who are all con
versant with the extent, growth, lo
cality and requirements c
the leather trade of tn
United State-that at tn
far West, the time is not far distar
when the manufacture OF leather
the Eastern States, with that OF I'll
West, will become nearly, if M
wholly, dependant upon the hen
. lock forests bordering the shores
the northwestern lakes for its st
: pie tanning material.
+ Now as 100000 cords of bar
5 represent nearly if not quite COG
4 00U,0 900 feet of hemlock lumbc
taken from The standing forests
the Eastern States and Canadia
border forests, each year, it is n
e difficult in connection with Il
IS drain upon these forests for T
3 manufacture of concentrated e
l. tract for shipment abroad, and t
'e annual loss of these forests by t
n great fires which swept over a.
rs through them, to compute the til
~ when the entire leather trade of I
az Eat will become wholly tributa
We to the Northwest for this indisp'
ed sible adjunct to its prosecution.
Ike Now as these forests of the ba
If the upper lakes are to eonstit
Ike for a limited. future-the sou
he of supply to the tanning intere
ed, of the East, as well as Tor those
,st the West and Northwest, will it
he greatly anhanee the valne OF ev
nd acre of heInlock forest land {,
n q braced within the States OF Mil
es- gan. Wisconsin and Minnesota,
nd must, when the people are disat
ity ed of the impression too preva
'ct. among them, that this predomin
md element of heir forests is comps
put lively worthless, result to gre
my care in the preservation OF an
ter- ment so essential to the prospe
YES Of one of the most extensive
or important of our manufacturing
6ustrics. ull r.' s.f D. %
Tie manufacture of concentr;
extracts has already been sucC
oco fully inaugurated in the hem
tho forests of Michigan, where j
ives quantities are beng shipped
nm. Eastern tanners, with whom
onv held in great favor, in consequ
der of the superior excellence of n
igan bark. AS small factorie
tho pable Of producing five barrels
wv LII ,xo,,nIo of axtra..f 4