The Washington weekly post., 1900-11-27
FORESTS OF PHILIPPINES
First Report of Timber Resources
Of New Possessions.
From One-fourth TO 0ae-half Area OF the
Islands Is Covered with Valuable
WoOds--sack of Good Roads
Serious Obstacle.

The division of customs and insular af-
fairs Of the War Department has made
public a summary of the first report of
the Philippine Bureau of Forestry. organ
lied in its present form under an order
OF the military governor dated April H.
1850. Its first work was confined to ascer-
tanning the condition of the records re-
ceived from the Spanish government,
under which that bureau had not only
lad the care of the forests, but also the
survey of the public lands.
The laws in force at the time Of the
American occupation are said to have
been in line with the most advanced for
estry legislation of Europe, but were not
fully enforced, the licensees cutting any
and every thing The result was that val
liable rubber, gutta percha, and ylang-
ylang trees were taken, and even the
most valuable used as firewood. The old
regulations were translated and revised,
taking effect in their new form on July /
last. They provide for system of licens-
ing by which permits to cut timber can be
secured. the fees being based upon the
different varieties, of which 296 are named
in the order After the regulations were
promulgated, more than fifty additional
species Of trees became known, and 9TH
ers are being brought to the knowledge of
the bureau almost every week. The di-
rector, Capt. Ahern. estimates the total
number of tree species in the archipelago
at nearly five hundred.
There are no pure forests Of any one
species, rarely more than three or four
trees of one variety being found grouped
together so taat q lumDerman looking
for a shipload of one kind of timber
4
cut that and no other. and Cargoes must
be assembled from different points. Capt
Ahern states that from different sources
of information, he is led to believe the
public forest lands comprise from one
fourth TO possibly one-half the area cf
the Philippine Islands, c. from 100000
to AO.0O0.0O9 acres. There are fully 5eC0,0O0
acres of virgin forest owned by the state
in the islands of AIindoro ana Paragua
The island Of Mindanao. with an area of
some. 100000 acres. is almost entirely
covered with timber, and even in the
province of Cagayan. in LuZon, there are
more than 100000 acres of forest In
many other provinces of Luzon, especial
ly In the country close to Manila, much
timber has been cut, and to fill large con-
tracts the lumbermen are obliged TO go
quite a distance from that city in order
to find a suitable tract.
Capt Ahern mentions tracts of virgin
forests to be seen on the southern islands
where from l0,OO0 10 1000 cubic feet Of
magnificent timber per acre was stand
ing. with trees more than 80 feet In
height, the trunks clear OF branches for
sixty feet. and more than four feet in
diameter. He states that in these forests
there are millions Of cubic feet Of tim
ber which should be cut cut IN order to
thin this dense growth, so that the maxi
mum annual growth could be obtained
There are a large variety OF valuable
gum, rubber and gutta percha trees, seY-
enteen dye Woods, and the ylang-ylang
the oil from the blossoms of which lat
ter trees is the base Of so many perfumes.
There are no forest roads or dIiyeways
in the islands considered worthy of Elen-
tion. At present the trees are felled far
from any road hauled out very slowly
BY one or more carahaoc, with the re-
suit that many tracts are left untouched
The natives are skilled lumbermen and
while paid but small wage, are by no
means cheap labor, when the cost CT fell
ing and hauling cubic foot OF timber 10
the shipping point is considered.