Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-04-27
MAINE TIMBERLANDS.
The Big and Small Spruce
Must Be Cut
And Thus Can the Owners Work 10
the Best Advantage.
Destructive Forest Fires are Steadily Decreas-
ing in Number.


pine. Regarding the latter he says
that he thinks there is small danger
Of the pine ever becoming a thing of
| the past.
Mr. Carter is we'll known by some
Of the older people in the city. as
| shortly after the close of the war, he
| was employed at the State House. AT
that time the assessors work was done
| differently than now and when he
| came out of the army was offered Il
position in that department. After re
manning there for some time he gave
up the position and later went to work
for the Berlin Mills Co. as civil cngi-
necr. position that he now holds
During his work with the assessors II"
gained a fund Of information that is
now Of the greatest value to him.
In speaking of the pine timber. he
said that there is but slight indication
in the western part Of the State, and
in the pine belt especially. Of the pine
decreasing. The pine. he said viii
grow almost anywhere and in very
rapid manner In comparing the
growth Of the pine and the spruce h.
sail that the pine would grow in 80
\ .ar# what il would take the spruce To
grow in $50 years.
In the pasture lands and deserted
farms the pine is sprnging UP like
weeds ana in many places where there
was a deserted farm few years ago
there is now a thick growth Of pine.
The same holds true in pasturelands.
This rapid growth is especially true in
York ana Cumberland counties ana
az "a n thai Spttin If * in
that section, in fact. that the pine is
growing. In the northern sections
where the pine is being cut off it does
not spring up again. 50 that there is
danger in that section that the pine
will in time become extinct.
\ short time ago an unusually large
pine tree was cut in the section on which
Mr.. Carter was working When the log
was measured it was found to scale 1900
feet. Out of curiosity MIR. Carter counted
the rings and found that the tree had re-
quircd hut l05 years to grow to that I'M
usual size.
Regarding the growth Of the pine Mr..
Carter. showing what a remarkable
knowledge he has of the habits of the
different trees. said that the pine would
grow almost anywhere. All that is re-
quircd is a place where the roots can b.
started and then the growth begins. TIE
pines that have the heaviest tops and TO
liage he has learned, are those which
grow the most rapidly. while those hay
ing but a small growth OF the foliage
grow slower showing that the pine gets
the greater part Of the subsistence from
ne air. This he said was further shown
by the ashes of the pine when it had
burned, for then there is little or no min
eral substance in the ash.
At this point Mr.. Garter said that the
greatest amount of mineral matter is
found in the elm ana the ash. these show
ing that they get their main subsistence
from The ground ana not from the air.
The spruce grows 50 slowly, he has
learned from his work, that it does not
pay, all things taken into consideration.
to leave the smaller trees and wait for
them to grow UP but rather it is Of al
vantage to the operator to cut everything
on the lot. As his reasons for this he said
that when a man invests in timber
tract and cuts only the larger trees ne
has 50 much money invested in the tract
which he has not taken OUT by cutting
ONLY the larger trees. The interest on
this money invested increases much more
rapidly than does the value of the timber
~ being allowed to grow. For that rea-
son he advocates cutting everything on
the lot that can be taken out to advan-
tage.
REGARDING the loss to the operators he
said that the Iumbcrmcn now figure that
five Der cent Of the timber is destroyed
by forest fires while onc-half Of one per
cent of the timber on lot is lost by
storms. This latter loss. he said, may
seem very large but when q tree Is
blown down it IL L complete loss as
there Is no possible way by which 1t may
he taken out t. advantage.
1t is not possible he said for the opera
tors To pay more than one-half Of the
value Of the stumpage for lot ana eN-
r.ct TO make anything out Of the prop
erty unless it is favorahly situated as the
expensc of cutting. getting to the streams
and driving will eat W enough OF the
prospective profits to make the operator
Z work at loss if he pays more than that
amount.
REGARDING the number Of fires ana their
increase in the State he said that II :
his cxpericnce that there Is much
smaller loss now than few years a%"
1,bon no one seemed to have any partic-
mar interest in the timherands and but
uttle regard was paid to the fires whlcl
often did a great damage. Now the own
ors NJ the timbcrlands have their own
fire warders whose sole duty is to SEE
| that forest fires are not started and II
| tbav arc started to see that they are eX-
tincnished before damage is done
During the conversation an amusing
story was told of the uncertainty of the
nrofts of timberllnds and well illustrat-
ine the theory and practice of numbering
] ono Of The timberand owners had been
doing 4 fair business by specializing in
tho timber lands and after much figuring
came to the conclusion that there was
money in operating. His crew, he figured
would cost 50 much. A definite price
vas set for getting the lumber to the riv-
or ,rd \ figure was made for getting the
l,mher 70 the mills. Reckon any way
that he could he did not see how he wa
IN come out anything but $1,000 ahead as
Tho result Of his seasons work. He be
came an operator and followed out hi:
+baorv In the summer he met a frienc
ord started out with, Don't You tell mi