Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-02-01

taken, and the process of growth will
ensure the owner a profitable crop from
the same area every few years. The
study of land in detail would enable
the lumberman to get vastly more
from his township than he does by the
haphazard methods of cutting that SO
generally prevail. In this connection
Mr.. Cary seriously questions the wis
dom of any such legislation as has been
proposed, forbidding pulp cutters to
cut trees under certain size. Under
some conditions that law would most
completely defeat the end it tried to
attain.
The word growth" might be called
the key to all Of Mr.. Carys investiga-
tons and conclusions. The percentage
of growth, on which rests future sup
ply. is at the bottom of his study To
find the growth. not merely in detail,
but in the gross, the production Of the
forest, is the first great problem in the
study of forestry. so important to our
industrial and commercial welfare
Science has devised a simple method
Of ascertaining this percentage. A
German named Pressler has construct
ed a bit. for the purpose of boring into
tree and taking out a little core Of
wood. On this the thickness Of any
desired number of the yearly rings
can be measured, and the ratio of this
to half the diameter of the tree gives.
with tables devised for the purpose, the
percentage of present growth. The
correctness of the tables has been
proven by almost numberless expert
ments. Thus equipped Mr.. Cary has a
safe basis for sweeping and important
deductions which he has used in esti-
mating the growth of spruce in all the
regions studied. He shows by tables
that spruce II inches in diameter in
creases it's value over twice as much in
year as a spruce eight inches in di-
ameter. a point for lumbermen to con-
slider. if they know their own interests.
The practical application Of this and
many similar facts is that the lumber
man should, let his trees reach matu-
rity, as growth is steadily accelerating.
This is made so plain in the report that
fact hi <tn
thriftiness Of his own timber.
The Moose river basin and the Roach
river basin We're thoroughly explored
an abundance of facts and figures re-
garding the lumber and numbering op-
erations of those sections. The Moose
river is a highly favored timber coun-
try, the most valuable for it's area that
there is on the Kennebec. Probably
growth at the present time balances
more than half the cut. By a little
management for the purpose in sys-
tematically leaving young timber to
grow and in such favoring of young
trees as would cost no more if only men
are trained to it, this yearly growth
could be largely increased. On the
ether hand harder cutting if introduced
and continued can push the yearly
growth down till it reaches very
small figure. Growth is like interest
ly 10 q n1o nf two TOWN.
ships Mr.. Cary shows with striking en-
phasis the difference there is when the
man who owns the land cuts it and
when the land owner sells stumpage to
a man who cuts the logs without him
drance or supervision. One township
is that owned by the Bradstreets, who
cut the saw logs for their own mills in
Gardiner. The work is close and sys-
tematic and profitable to all concerned,
while in an adjoining township
which has been cut on stumpage per-
mits, the waste has been enormous and
though it is supposed to have been
completely cut over a second cut would
yield large amount of lumber. Here
as elsewhere Mr.. Cary finds reason to
believe that the reports of the census
and other authorities on our timber re-
sources are practically worthless. The
information is mostly second hand,
taken from those who have limited
knowledge and make rough guesses.
AS widely separated as are lumber
mems methods of operation. in regard
to economy and waste, are their ideas
Of how much available lumber tract
contains.
In summing up the lumber business
of the Kennebec Mr.. Cary finds the
northern spruce producing portion of
the Kennebec basin has 1920 square
miles, the total area drained by the
river being $500 square miles. OF this
$500 square miles 80 per cent. is made
up of water and boys, and burnt land.
One of the most valuable results Of Mr.
Carys work is the complete mapping
of the burnt areas OF the regions ex-
plored. There is left about 70 per cent