The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1896-07-16
REeRowTH OF FORESTS.
The Struggle of Nature to Repair the
Outrages of Man.

tend into Monongahela county, w. Va,
are covered with a mixed deciduous for
est of second growth trees. This is one
of the best examples that have come I'M
der my personal observation of the nat
ural power of forest reconstruction.
During the early half of the present
century this region, embracing several
thousand acres lying across the north
bank OF the Cheat river, was the seat of
an active iron-malSing industry. The
ppuntains afforded bog ore which
WIS accessible and of great value. The
mountain slopes were then heavily
wooded, and as the iron industry be-
came established demand for char
coal was created, and to meet this de-
mand the woods were harvested and
converted into charcoal. This industry
beg&n about 1889, and was most active
FROM 1922 to about 1852, and continued
in a small way until in 1868. The
largest proportion of the timber re-
moved for charcoal purposes was cut
during the most, active period of the
industry, and before the middle of the
century.
As soon as the charcoal burning be-
Gang unremunerative from the eNhaus-
-. Of the timber supply and the sub
stitution of coke for charcoal in the re-
duction of ore, these lands, which were
too steep and rugged for profitable ag-
riculture or grazing, were allowed
again to fall into the hands of Mother
No+1Ira &c ho loc
much injury from time to time. But
even with the adverse conditions of soil,
exposure and frequent fires, there is
to-day upon these mountains a forest
OF second-growth chestnut, poplar and
oak, worth many times the value of
the land at the time the iron furnaces
closed-a convincing example that our
forests will reproduce themselves. This
we are told is all well enough for the
moist mountain districts of the Allie
ghanies, but will not hold in the de-
forested areas of Michigan, Wisconsin
and Minnesota. There is no ground
for this argument, foE when the forests
were removed no rational system of re-
forestation was attempted. Even the
protection of the area from fire has usu-
ally been neglected, and this alone will
suffice to explain why the land stripped
of its forest cover still remains bare.
Natural reproductive powers have not
been allowed an opportunity to assert
themselves. Trees are not grown so
long as fires are allowed to run period
ically over the exploited tracts; what
might take place, were they suppressed
and prevented, is another question upon
which some light is thrown in the
following remarks by Mr.. II. b. Ayres,
OF Carlton, Mimi, on Forest Fires"
Gwen men of intelligence and promi-
nence in the humber business have said:
why prevent fire? Pine will never
come in again after the marketable tim
Der is. once cut This assertion needs
the strongest possible denial; the men
who make such an assertion deserve rid
icu!es They We're looking for saw-logs,
and could not have looked for much
else, for loggers in cutting often leave
Oh an acre a hundred thrifty and Wig
orous young pines from four to ten
inches in diameter, and from 20 to 100
feet high after the l0g-timber is cut,
and on pine-stump land that has es-
capped fire 5000 of little pine seedlings
may be seen springing up. In order
TO be able to refute such miSstatements
utterly / have here the minutes of the
exact location where young pines in
excellent condition for timber growing
may be seen, and right by may be seen
burnt land cut the same year that could
not be put into a condition as promis-
ing for timber for less than $40 an acre.
In fact, so favorable a soil, malch and
shade can hardly be made at once on
burnt land at any price. Several such
acres on (sections) 16, Sc, % were staked
off and the trees counted; on one from
which $4,000 feet had been cut three
years before were 80 thrifty sapling
white pines, 8 to II inches in diameter,
and 30 to so feet high; 10 poplar s to IA
inches in diameter and so feet high;
900 poplar sprouts, one-half to one inch
in diameter, and to 10 feet high; a
light underbrush of hazel and vine
maple; and under all this were 1867
little white pine seedlings two years
Old and to 6 inches high. Another
acre on the same section had 200 trees
of white and Norway pine averaging 8
inches in diameter and As feet high.
Are not these worth saving?"
This is a specific example of what
may be expected from one of the fam
lilies of trees which it is most difficult to
perpetuate. Pines, as a rule, grow only
from seeds. They cannot be managed
under the coppice system, yet this
single observation, carefully carried
~out and recorded, is sufficient to set the
most skeptical to thinking.
In the deciduous forests which oc-
cupy the outlying ranges of the east
ern mountain systems the problem is
less difficult, as most of the desirable
species reproduce themselves from the
stump.
The history of this region clearly
shows the influence of the rise and de-
cline of the iron industry on the forest,
the benefit of the substitution Of
coke for charcoal and the beneficial re-
suits in the way of reforestation when
such lands are simply left to themselves
and partially protected from fires
Gnrdap md EoraSt