Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-09-22

the federal department Of agricul-
IRE on The Forestry Conditions Of
Northern Wisconsin. It is the first bull
tory survey Of which Dr.. E. A. Birge
is director. In 1897 the legislature
passed an act for the appointment Of
state forestry commission, charged
among other duties, with that Of form
ulating desirable forestry legislation
for the state. The commission con-
sists of ex-Speaker G. B. Burrows,
Madison Ernst Bruncken, Milwau-
kee; and Senator H. D. Putnam
Eau Claire. This commission con-
suited with DR.. B. E. Fernow, chief
Ct the division of forestry, United
States department of agriculture, who
advised that a careful reconnaissance
be made of the present condition of
the forests of the state. The depart
ment Of agriculture offered to send
an expert to make such examination
provided the expenses of the trip
could be betrayed by the state. Since
the forestry commission had no ap-
preparation for this purpose, applica-
ton was made to the geological and
natural history survey for an apprO-
prlatlon which was obtained. Hilbert
Roth was made special agent to make
The reconnaissance desired, under the
general direction Of DR.. B. E. Fer
now chief of division of forestry
Mr.. Roth spent three months in the
field before preparing the report.
The territory covered by Mr.. Roth
is that part of the state lying north
OF line from Green Bay to the
mouth of the st. Croix river, with
the counties Of Portage, Wood and
Jackson as southern projections; it
involves II counties with total land
area of about 1875 million acres or
about SO per cent. of the entire state,
and contains almost all of the present
supplies of lumber sized timber of
both pine and hardwoods remaining
in Wisconsin.
Of the 1876 million acres of lal
contained in this half of Wisconsin
little less than per cent. is i'm
proved; "A per cent. is held by actual
settlers, the greater part of which
falls to the counties along the south
ern and southwestern edge of this
district; the United States holds
about per cent. e per cent. being
Indian reservations, the state hol Is
less than per cent, the railways
little over per cent, the counties
about l.. 8 per cent. in tax deeds, and
about five times this amount cOndi-
tiOnally on tax certificates. Of the
SO per cent. owned by private non
residents, fully 80 per cent. is hell
by lumbermen. This amounts to so
per cent. of the total area under con
sideration or Is per cent. of the land
Of the entire state.
An uninterrupted forest, extending
from Michigan through Wisconsin
into Minnesota, originally covered
almost the entire surface of these u
counties. Along the southern luI
southwestern border, this forest fad
into oak and jack pine "Openings''
and in places gave way to regular
prairies. 1t was generally a mixed
forest Of white pine and hardw0 IDS
on all l0am and clay lands it ap-
preached to the regular pinery on
the tracts of sandy loan and the red
clays Of Lake Superior, and on al!
sandy and loamy sand distric :, il
was invariably pinery proper, Gtu-
orally a mixture Of white and RED
Norway pines.
At present. these forests are ma eri-
ally changed. More than 900
acres have Eeen cleared and put in
cultivation. During forty years OF
numbering nearly the entire territory
has been logged over The pine has
disappeared from most Of the mixed
forests and the greater portion of
pineries proper has been cut. There is
today hardly a township in this large
area where no logging has been done.
In addition to this, the fires. follow
Ing all logging operations or starting
on new clearings Of the settler, have
done much to change these woods
Nearly half this territory has been
burned over at least once; about 8,
100000 acres are without any forest
cover whatever, and several miller
acres more are but partly covered by
the dead and dying remnants of the
former forest.
In the better hardwood areas (Tay
Tor. Marathon, Langlade counties) tn,
least change has occurred; the
former existence of the pine i
scarcely noticed and the forest il
damaged by fire only where it Dor
ders on pine slashings" or spot
where quite a body Of pine occurred
and has been removed On the lighter
gravelly loan and sandy loan soils
where the pine formed a heavier ad
mixture, the remaining hemlOck an
hardwoods are badly damaged an
often entirely killed over eXtensiv
tracts. (Parts of Price, Chippewa
Sawyer. Washburn countless. Il
most of the pinery areas proper, tn
repeated fires have largely cleared tn
lands af all the heavier debris i
slashings Oneida, Marinette, Wash
burn counties, near Lake Superior a
Ashland and Bayfield, and in Doug
las counties) Here are large tract
of bare wastes, stump prairies.
where the ground is sparsely covere
with weeds and grass, sweet fern, an
a few scattering runty bushes of scru
oak, aspen, and white birch. TIL
swamps, to-, of every county hav
suffered from 1res. Some of the wor:
forest fires have started In the dens
tamarack and cedar swamps of til
sandy areas, where the most compile