New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-01-30

wilderness will come into its possession. 1t
will, no doubt, but not until all the valuaDie
timber has been removed and fires nave de-
stroyed its ability to produce new forest
growths. If it is fair to judge of the future con-
dition of the wilderness by the condition OF
those portions of it in which numbering has
been longest practised, or to argue that the
desolation which has fallen upon other regions
of the earth from excessive forest destruction
mist in time inevitably fall upon Northern
New York, there can be no shadow OF doubt
that the uncontrolled work of the lumbermen,
as at present practised, will ruin these forests
and the waterways which they supply.
1t is useless to entertain for a single moment
the idea that the Adirondack forests can be
really protected, and the water supply OF the
principal streams of the State maintained, unless
numbering by private owners is stopped. 1t can
only be stopped by the purchase of the lands by
the State. TO do this will require the ex-
penditure of large sum of money. How much
nobody knows for nobody knows, or can posi-
bly, know, how much land it will be necessary to
add to the lands already. owned by the State to
secure the desired results. Nobody knows with
any precision even the position and extent of
the different bodies of land belonging to the
State Nobody, in fact, knows much of any
thing about the Adirondack wilderness, in spite
of the expensive survey the State has been
carrying on there for q number OF years. The
Legislature therefore, is certainly not in
position to adopt any intelligent final action in
this matter. 1t would be as unwise to refuse, in
the interest of the lumbermen, to purchase any
land whatever as to blindly buy up the whole
region at any price the owners might see fit to
set upon it. commission, however, appointed
to consider this whole matter, might be of very
great service to the State in organizing and
carrying out surveys, and would be objected to
only by such persons as are unwilling to have
the condition of the Adirondack wilderness
really examined into. Great damage is now
being inflicted upon these forests by numbering;
this cannot be prevented so far as the present
winter is concerned, but it should not be
allowed to 20 on another winter. To prevent
this the commission should, at its discretion,
have authority to seize upon and condemn lands
necessary for the accomplishment of the desired
purpose, provided any general scheme for the
establishment of forest preserve in the north
ern part of the State is put into execution. 1t
has been suggested that the decision of this
general question, involving, as it would, larger
expenditure of money than either political
party would care to be responsible for, should
be submitted to a popular vote. This sug-
gestion is worth careful consideration.
The desire for more information in the
premises is very natural and proper. The in
terests at stake are enormous; and it is simply
folly to run the risk zen of such permanent in
jury to the State as must follow the destruction
of the forest lands, upon such Imperfect and
inaccurate information as the Legislature can
obtain at the present time These forests
should be preserved but it should be done in a
busincss-like and economical manner.