New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-01-23
A TALK WITH MR.. KNEVALS.
ANSWERING MANY ATTACKS.
he EXPLAINS THE POSITION OF THE COM
MI ZION AND MR. BASSEIIN.

MISSION AND OF MIR. bASSELIN.
Sherman W. Knevals, OF the Forest Commission
had talk with Tribune reporter yesterday about inc
many and severe attacks the Commission that have
been published in which the name OF MI. BasSehh
has been specially prominent.
Il not began Mr.. Knevals, required to defend
Mr. Bassclin and what going TO say Is Just wha'
has occurred to to say, without having seen hr
Ea,., lin or having had any communication with MIN
on the subject.
The charge brought against him, as understand IT,
is that he is a Forest Commissioner and is at the same
time man who has devastated the forest as luh
herman ard has organized raid on 1t by the forma
ton Of q company in which he IS stockholder WHOSE
purpose make lumber ont Of trees in the Adlroh
dack region: furthermore, that the lands III that CONF
panv's possession encountered with rights OF cuths
timber contracts that have been given to the com
pany by other people which, If these lands are taken
by the State FOR park purposes, will make 1t much more
difficult for the state acquire them than 1t Otherwise
would have BEEN and put money into the hand' Oh MI
asscn and hi, fellow stockholders II Is also charse"
that Mr.. El,scn has recommended park OF very
small cxten-sOO 900 acrcs-whereas the general sentl
mcnt Of the people is in favor OF park OF much
larger Size.
1T Is no new discovery that Mr.. Basselin Is lum'
herman He was one when he appointed. and nc
has been ever since. believe him to be an lnteheeh
lumherman who so manages and operates lands as "
make It possible him. after one crop OF soft tDer
has been taken from tlem to retain Posscssion Va
them and rclumber them.
Now in regard to the ricn1s Of cutting. Granted
that be lands that are held by his company are sub
jec 10 rights Of cutting which run through hve ten
or fifteen years II brings the whole question right down
~ this, which has been seriously discussed py our
Commission and by other intelligent people VINO nave
some knowledge Of forestry II the Only way u a'p'''o
tho mark Is bv what Is called the right OF emncn'
domain or condemnation proceedings. and the lara Is
-. rir and absolutely AT tlS 0pintut'
and II you are going to have park Of adequate sic
and consider park OF adequate size to be not less
than 1000 900 in area-tt seems 10 me ''a''
CONSIDERING the great value Of these lands. II would
he impracticable to embark the state IN any S"cn
great financial enterprise "a mat INC VS.
vould be too mucl-tOo many adverse ou'Siu'
interests would be brought into play-there Is great
r, for Doubt whether the bill would be passed by
the Leci,ature beyond that there Is doubt "hetner
II the bill were passed. the state would over chlofrh
on afy such immense enterprise. believe ulat o''"
noIiticoI parties would fight shy Of it. But II You
ARC willing 10 acquire such lands you need for any
reasonable price (oi there are GOOD many
cte,n ~ well as n great many expensive lands) ana
!, upder the law which provides for the PARK IL De
pe-mitted that the State may take lands otIer"ise
desirable for park purposes, even although ,ey p
encumtered with rights Of removal OF mature S"'
,,r,h.r-hv which / mean timber OF not less thah
twelve inches diametcr-the establishment OF t,le
,, w,Il IN nv Judgment be feasible and practlcabe'
81 at me give yon an illustration. IL own lo'ooo
acres Of forest land and you own oy us S'ue 49,
ac-.s Of equal value, and your lana Is aOsoi"''N
unepcunlbered. while my land Is subject " "''
age a lease or a right Of cutting. any one OF "n'n
,rce things forms An encumbrance. and II the sa'e
on,. g. ,couire yonr lands and mine outright theS
ha-o On, q, may no more for the one parcel thah
for the other: but whereas in your case you "o"i'
receive all the purchase money, IN my case ,'o n'
yrouId h, divided among the MORTGAGE the leS'eo'
or the men that held the contracts ior o"''i3' anu
me. the owner 1900 a., r..-,,i, has
-, ,,h,iro nm land, and forming a corporation ana
r,,,,y cpcumbrances on the land. designed 10 ee'
moro money 1om the state for the lands thah ,n'
lands are worth. I'm sure don't hNo" ""e'"o'
Mr. Rasseln's companys lands are eh'uhoclV" "
mn, Nor do | know whether they are "i'mh u'c
mark boundaries But question OF poHcy Oh
he mart ~ the state decidedly OF the opinion
mat =, j.. impra. ticable and unwise In the eAucih"
- declare that il VIII only buy lands outright vi
only buy land, free from all encumbrah'es' ouPP
ing the ptrl. contemplated to br one VI -''o''V
= ,oo 600 acres would probably have To DO
,cuuircd los the state. on many OF these lalus e'
,,r improycmcnt, and You cannot take tle ia'u'
i.,o,, bin the Improvement, and paying Tor them'
A,,, h.ucy, the state coua get l.ioOooo acres
win improvements for anything less than So'ooo'ooo
or s6OOO O0O-yc,. it might reach any hSui' "P ~
s1OooOoOo. ,.. ,a,,o ,bo
\n without regard 10 iIc luHl"ti"i''' '''O 49,
,dir,,,,act associations and other people that nave
'...., ,,, This matter and considered it, and they
, ma - thc most Intelligent men In the Legislature
m - tbe o,nion that the onIy way to carry Out thls
matter of the park i, 10 permit the acquisition Va
Land. which may BE- subject to rights OF HhoNins SUN
wood. Of not Is, than twelve inches IN diameter
The objection to Thu, plan Is That II you tahe l'o
land with permission 10 the owners to remove nihDer
~ ccrton SIZE You put it in their power to cheat the
sto,e-tbst they will take trees big aud httic not
conhniug themselves to the size specified.
Nv answer to that is All these numbering opera
lions are conducted In the winter ana INC iosS 'oo
down the streams In the spring. Han uoIeh ''"'o
agents by measuring the stumpS ana Inc logs can So
- tbe Iaw has been violated. The numbering opera
tions are conducted few firms. and TINS suPerNSio"
,yoph he easy Il would also put an absolute stop
IN all snoradic trcspassing. II you organize com
mission for the purpose of acquiring PARK, INC ceo'
is going to be to put an end 10 all peI'S "c'P"''o
and TO the stealing of logs Half dozen state agents
can On from one lumber operation to another ana nave
them all under their eyes
Then, asked the reporter. there is In your nina
M douht ~ 10 the pracabity of what may be called
a motley Of rccuperaon Is applied to the forestF
None whatever" said Mr.. knevals with emphaNS'
). Here | have an old report on the suDIect vi 'c
,drondacks which states that the soft WOOD cut py
the Iumbermcn forms but small proportion OF uo
timber of the forest and that for various reasons the
h, ,,ood romans almost intact. The report says
,t be chief danger 10 the forest arises not from the
removal Of trees but from the danger OF forest hrcs
II expresscs the opinion that the state shouu hot
acquire lands the AdirondachS unless at taA Suits
,r,, = ,ho renort ot a Commission appointed under
an act Of the legislature to examine into the state OF
tho Adirondack forest and make recommendations as
~ what should be done for the preservation OF inc
forest The members Of the Commission were Professor
charles : sargent OF Harvard University, an expert
authority on forests; Edward NJ shepard lawyer III
New York, and very bright one anu W. a. iVu."e.
- - ,~ho had been a member Of the Legislature
,rho conclusion they came In favor Of the ap
pointmcnt of a forest commission, and finally In 1889
there was law passed appointing such commission
want TO emphasize the conclusion stated In this re-
mort that lumbermen are not the priheipai ea'e Vi
-. ar ~ danger to the forest and that SOFT WOODS