Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-08-18
THE HEAD OF THE CHARGE

in fewer cases, pure bodies of hard
woods. Hemlock with birch formed
the conspicuous companions of white
pine GU the loan lands Of the eastern
half, but the former was wanting and
the latter largely displaced by oak in
the western, especilly southwestern
part. The swamps were largely stock
ed with timber, generally tam
arack with cedar, and only part of
them were bare grass marshes or
moss boys. The mixed forest was
made up of few species; the scattered
white pine lowered high above the
surrounding trees, hemlock occurred
mostly as old timber scattered or in
denser clusters, and the hardwoods
themselves were composed almost en-
tirely of Eastwood, birch, elm, maple,
ash and oak. At present the pine has
been cut from nearly 80 per cent. of
the area, numerous tracts of pinery
are bare; the hardwoods have been
cut into along several of the railway
lines, especially in the oak districts;
hemlock has been sparingly utilized as
yet, but the hardwocds, hemlock and
even the swamp timbers have suffered
in places severely from the fires fol-
lowing pine slashings.
Though the great body of the land
is wooded, and in places well timbered,
the cut-over lands without any mer-
charitable timber occupy about As per
cent. of the total area, the largest
tract occurring in the areas where pine
predominated. Originally this area
contained, by a reasonable calculation,
about $50 billion feet B. M. of pine
Gully 95 per cent. white pine), about
20 billion feet hemlock and about 80
! billion feet hardwoods; at present
years has averaged near billion feet,
, B. M; hemlock, II billion feet B. M;
hardwoods, 16 billion feet B. M. OF
the $50 billion feet B. M. pine, there
were cut about Sc billion in 1887;
about 20 billion prior to 1878; stand
ing, 7 billion; total, 1O3 billion, leav-
ing about 80 billion to be accounted
for as wasted and destroyed, chiefly
by fire. The cut in pine for over ten
years has averaged near billion feet,
ard was over 2 billion in 1897. How
long this pine will last it is impos
sible to say, since a continued reduc-
ton OF the output will postpone the
end. AS matters stand the supply is
+ rapidly diminishing.
The young timber is cut, or else in
| jured by fire, and the bare cut-over
| lands remain bare, and their fertility
| is still further reduced by repeated
fires and exposure to wind and sun
| The state Of Wisconsin in this man
! ner loses the growth from about
million acres of land, while it's Sec
ond greatest industry is gradually
! crowded out of existence. Assuming
100 feet B. NJ. per acre and year as a
normal growth for this region-it
might readily be twice that amount
the annual loss of production is al
least 500 million feet B. NJ, the loss
from the removal Of the wood indus.
tries, which must he the consequence
| of exhaustion of supplies, may be in,
| ferred from the fact that the capita
! invested in the lumber industry alone
! in 1890 was over so million dollars
that this industry paid that year over
10 million dollars in wages, and thai
the timber products at first hand were
| worth so million dollars, or about one
third the value of all farm products.
That such a loss will be difficult tc
balance in state like Wisconsin
which itself consumes over 600 mil
lion feet Of lumber, besides more thar
| 10 million dollars worth of other for
est products, is evident, and the move
ment for rational and energetic &C
ton on the part of its people, there
fore, most time