Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1881-09-21

l. Closely related with what | hav
# hitherto referred TO, and strongly con
n ducing to the higher view OF farm life
d is the comprehensive subject of "tre,
;. planting" whether considered with
G view only to the profits and pleasure
?, Of fruit production or in regard t
# forestry, the preservation and replen
Q ishing of wasting timber lands. | have
q only time to refer you TO certain wei
I established facts to demonstrate the
@ necessity for greater attention to thil
D interest. Mahomet said "The tree is
. father of the rain" With the extinc
: ton Of the forests the power OF the
springs and the regularity of the
streams, vital elements of agricultural
: prosperity, have visbly been most un-
i favorably affected the Winters have
, become more open and the Summers
. less moist the climate more variable,
the winds more destructive and or.
chards less prolific, Ensuing climate
sevorities are as fatal to the farmer as
feebleness or sterility of soils while
the removal of the protection once
afforded him by timber belts on ele-
waited ridges, to break the force of the
storms, has often more than offset in.
creased fertility or greater acreage
under cultivation. The maintenance
Of provision Of proper shade in pastur.
ing places, by waters, around shed and
stable, have invariably been found to
be compensated byasaving or increase
of strength, milk, fat and fleece. In
short, | venture the opinion upon com.
petent authority that in any consider
able area Of cultivated country the net
producuveness of given acreage will
be increased rather than diminished by
leaving or planting one.fifth of it in
good timber growth and this proper.
tion it should be the aim of the com
ing farmer TO maintain or establish.
Experiments with the maple, ,catapa, To-
Gust, the black walnut, the wild cherry
and large variety Of other trees show
that abundant and sufficient profits
may be realized at least twice in every
generation for the farmer, who, of all
men, lives most for the morrow and
can bide his time for return to any
safe investment. "Woodman spare
that tree" is with him a sound bust
ness principle no less than q matter of
healthy sentiment have the greater
confidence that the success of this in.
terest lies in individual care of it,
stimulated by the universal recognition
Of its Importance. 1t has however
been the subject Of governmental pro.
lection and patronage in nearly all ad.
vanced states for many years, since at
least l770 when Frederick the Great
established a course Of theoretical in
struction in forestry. Since then Ger.
many, Austria, Hungary, Switzerland,
Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, Sweden,
Russia and Denmark have erected
schools of forestry, and England sends
pupils to the French school at Nancy,
to be trained for the management Of
forests in her colonies. In our own
country the older States like Massa.
chusetts and Connecticut, sensitive to
the loss Of their timber lands, give pa.
ternal care to their restoration, and
many western States enioin and en-.
courage tree planting, and their people |
have made "arbor day" a festival of
general observance. The State and |
National Government can largely aid |
and must be depended upon for the
dissemination OF information on the |
subject, especially as regards the adap-
tion of soil and climate and the intro. |
duction of eXogenous trees. | look |
with confidence to the day when, as
has been suggested, it shall be the aim
of railroads everywhere to mark their
lines by continuous belts of trees, thus
improving and making profitable their
right of way, erecting shelter for the
adjoining fields, and heightening the
beauty of the landscape. Nor would |
il be an Improbable duty of the town.
ship roadmaster to plant such greatiul
shade along every dusty highway. |
Deoaying Spain sets an impressive ex-
ample by the beautiful custom of her
people to plant by the roadside the
castoff seed of fruit there eaten.
Above the commercial view of this
question is the sentimental considera.
tion, which must appeal with force to |
every lover of nature, from the dullest |
olod that every rested in the noon |
shade to the farmer enthusiast who |
delights in the rugged beauty of the |
gnarled and lighthing-defying oak,
who watches each year with new in
torest the wonder of the Towering |
chestnut, its fruitage and the fall of
the leaf; whose every sense of the |
aesthetic is gratifed in the matchless
beauty OF the single dropping elm,
most picturesque OF all our trees, and |
who, IN the vernal freshness OF the |
woodlands or the gorgeous autumn |
glory of the forests reads over and |
over the miracle of nature. In my |
own county | knew farmer whose
eyesight had been gratifed for many |
years by a splendid tree which stood |
in little knoll upon q neighbours field. |
At last, when cupidity and the oalcu
lation Of its worth by the cord had |
resolved upon its destruction, the sub.
ject OF my admiration paid the owner
bis full price of the wood it might real
ize to let II stand, crown to the land.
scape and memorial TO the right |
sense Of Lancaster county farmer. |
You may believe me he was no mere
sentimentalist when | tell you that his
butter always brought the highest price
in the market and the plough never
struck stone on his land. The com.
ing farmer here will be forester.
LOCAL POLITICS.
He will be q politician too, in the .
best sense Of the word, watchinl for the
dignity, tho honor and the prosperity |
Of all public administration. Realiz.
ing the beneGcence Of local sefgov.
ernment he will appreciate and Danish
the baleiul spirit OF partisanship from
the selection Of local officials. For no
such curse has fallen upon our politi.
cal system as the prevailing ideas that
tho lines of local and National politics
run parallel, whereas they should cross
at right angles. The abundant care
oland most intelligent provision for the
public schools, regardless of what, alas !
we call politics. and honest, capable
and progressive supervision of the
public roads will be the objects Of chief
political concern TO the future farmer.
1t is my opinion that in the intelligent
laying-out, grading, mecadamizing and
smoothing of roads, the erection and
protection of free bridges, the general
employment Of road serapers, the ar.
rangement of breaks and water courses,
the erection of finger boards, and