Durango semi-weekly herald., 1901-08-22

/
the forest land into deliberate wastes
They take everything. The big trees
go to the saw mills and the little ones
to the pulp factories. 1t is estimated
that within the next half century the
timber resources of Norway will be
practically exhausted at the present
rate of destruction.
There are periodical agitations to
stop It. but the laws that have been
passed have been unpopular and the
regulations prove to be unreasonable
and impracticable. Every person
has been and still is able to cut down
his own trees as fast as he desires.
Only the government land. which is
about II per cent of the forest areas.
can be protected 1t is now propos-
ed to pass law, similar to those al
ready in force in France. Italy. Ger
many and Switzerland. forbidding the
destruction of young trees. Sweden
has taken similar action in the matter,
and has adopted restrictive legisln-
| tlon, but in Norway it meets with de.
| termined opposition from the pulp
manufacturers, who represent a large
interest and exercise powerful in
fluence. The pulp industries are the
fourth industry in Importance In Nor.
way, agriculture, the fisheries and
the lumber alone exceeding them In the
value OF their products. Drammen is
said to have the largest pulp mill and
the largest mandatory of cellulose
which is chemical wood pulp, In the
world.
There is n forestry department con
nected with the ministry of agricul-
ture. with inspectors. foresters and
rangers. but their jurisdiction is lin
tied to the protection of government
land. There are also three schools
at which instruction is given, at the
expense of the general government,
inthe cultivation and care of the for
ests, with seed farms and nurseries
at which seed and slips can be obtain
| edfree of cost, but thus far little prac-
tical good has been accomplished.
LAUNDERING is done very much as In
the United States Gangs go into the
! forests in September to establish their
camps and begin cutting. The tim
ber is stripped of bark and hauled
| W tne lthItbt btIthiiI. Wn'It IL lS
inspected. purchased, branded by the
buyer and piled up to await the spring
| freshets. Cooperative associations
of lumbermen look after the logs and
divide the expense OF maintaining the
booms and keeping the streams clear.
as in the United States.
| Drammen, pretty town, an hom
and a half by rail from Christania.
Is the headquarters of the pulp trade.
1t is an ancient city. one of the oldest
in Norway. but during the present
| generation has taken spurt and
doubled its population II now counts
u 900 inhabitants. the greater part OF
them engaged In the pulp mills. The
city stands at the head of a beautiful
| ford. which admits the largest ocean
steamers and Is surrounded by one Of
the most fertile valleys in Norway.
According to the legends, the pictur
esque fjord was the scene of tire
menduous battle. like that OF the
| giants against Odin and Thor, as re
lated in the elder Edda, and the re.
suit showed how important was the
power of paganism against Christian
| ity in the early days of the kingdom
| The giantess Gyvr. representing his
satanic majesty, determined to de
stroy church that had recently been
erected at the little suburb of Steen
but was no more successful than 9th
er women who try to throw stones
She stood on top OF one of the near
by mountains and let fly with all her
might. but of course the church was
miraculously protected by one of the
saints. and she couldn't hit thing
Every stone she hurled fell short OF
went wild and dropped into the lake,
md now remains a pretty rocky is
land as evidence of the truth of the
story She is said to have become
so exasperated and enraged that she
lung one or two of her own legs, al,
houh that Is asking people to believe
a good deal There is, however, no
other way of accounting for an island
in the ford which Is haped exactly
ike the limb of lady. Lots of queer
things happened In Norway in an
lent times. and this is only one OF
| many, and II occurred long before
the beginning of the wood pulp busi
| less, which is as unpoetic as any MOD
rn invention, but is growing rapidly.
The mills OF Drammen now produce
| about 200 tons a day. or total OF
100000 tons year, made from logs
that float down from the mountains
o destroy the beauty of the rivers
md the lakes that lead to the ford
The pulp is loaded upon steamers
that tie up alongside of the factories
and is sent to all parts of the world
some to the United States. but the
;reater part to England and France.
The pulp manufacturers make con
tracts with people who own timber
land to pay them Is kroner, or $i20
for dozen logs IA feet long and
inches in diameter, and less in pro
portion for the smaller sizes. The
timber man sends gangs Of cutters into
the mountains summer and winter
and keeps them cutting and hauling
the logs to the streams. The lovely
Lake Spirillen. one OF the most beauti
ful In all the world and the rivers