Smyrna times., 1883-11-21
DESTRUCTION OF OUR TIMBER LAND

DESTRUCTION OF OUR TIMBER LAND
Inc destruction of timber goes on apace
The railroads have DESTROYED nearly oil
our young white oaks for ties, and the i'm
proved methods Of farming and demands
Tor more land has caused n further on
creachment OIL our wood lands In fact thew
are looked upon by such people when
they think of what golden crops of wbeot
and corn they would annually produce. as
OF little or no value as they stand. In New
castle county, what few there are remain
ing to beautiiy the landscape in the "bold
fellet" they form to the luxuriant folds
are fast giving way to the greed for tillable
land. In Kent and Sussex there has boon
more excuse for a vigorous use of the
woodlands axe" but in the first named
our timber for building houses and ships is
mostly gone and in Sussex county. at tho
rate the saw mills are ripping up the logs.
the pine timber of sufficient size will no
exhausted IN twenty years.
The most of our building material now
comes through the hands Of lumber deal
ers from the North, and for BUILDING nm
poses we are really more interested in that
section than our own. Some careful esti-
mates recently made by the Milwaukee,
sentinel indicate that the entire supply of
white pine and spruce in the Northwest
VIII be exhausted within seven veors
While this may be to strong a statement
there is no doubt that our lumber supnlies
are disappearing with great rapidity: and
unless some efficient measures are taken 20
preserve or replace our forests, their total
destruction is only a question Of n few
years. 1t says:
The apathy of the American people at
the wanton destruction of their magnificent
forests has been shameful, not to saw erin
mai; Practically nothing has been done
70 check the greed OF lumber men or the
ignorant wastefulness of settlers. Every
one appears to have gone on the sunnos;E-
lion that the forests were inexhaustihIe
Ihat trees are practically a crop. like grain
ana that IN their own way thew need iust
as much intelligent care to be productive
seems not to have entered the heads ~
Americans, IN spite of the teachings of Pro-
lessor Y. .; sargent and Others who have
for years been urging and demonstrating
the vital importance Of forest culture Tbee
usual practice appears to have been to cut
down all the trees on section, except the
young shoots, and leave the brush and
branches to dry, and most likely catch fire
the next year. And thus what the axe
may have left, the fire consumes, SO that it
really looks as though every precaution
had been taken to destroy our forests as
rapidly as possible. 1t is the custom of
Americans to speak rather patronizingly of
the Canadians; but in this matter they are
wiser than we. There is law in the Prov
ince OF Quebec which forbids the cutting
OF pine trees unless they are twelve inches
or over IN diameter at the butt, and the
same timber dues are charged upon the
small logs as upon the large ones, which
mas mad the salutary effect of discouraoing
the cutting of small trees
Ihere Is no doubt that something should
nave been done here in this direction many
years ago; but it is not too late even now
Notwithstanding the general use of wire
FENCES and the newly developed uses OF
iron, terra Gotta and straw In buildip0 Il e
probable that the demand for pine in1mbar
VIII go on increasing in the future as Il hss
done IN the past. That demand must be