The Washington times., 1901-07-31
FORESTRY IN THE PHILIPPINES.

Capt. George P. Ahern. who has charge
ef the forestry interests of the United
States Government In the Philippine ISL
ands. discussed the subject interestingly
with visitor the other day.
Forestry and numbering in the Philip
pines, said he. ARE very different from
the corresponding industries in the United
States. AS rule. Philippine timber runs
to the bardwoods, while American timber
has a larger proportion of soft Then the
methods of handling timber in the two
countries are very unlike. There is no one
In the islands now who understands get
ting the valuable stuff out of the dense
forests and preparing it for market. Tim
ber can be cut on the public lands by any
one who secures a permit from the For
estry Office. No charge Is made for this
permit but the wood to be removed must
pay a tax on every cubic yard Each
transaction. with all its details of names
and figures. Is made subject of record,
and the accounts are strictly kept
ITO one accustomed to American Tor
ests and industry, the slow gait at which
work goes on in the Philippines. In spite
of the high value of timber properly cut
and prepared, Is a marvel. Out of 10000
square miles of dense forest. for the most
part in a virgin state. only 100000 feet of
lumber was taken between the Ist of july
1900 and the middle of May, this year.
Moreover, of this absurdly small cut, not
more than one-quarter found its way to
the mills, the rest being used rcugh-hewn
for construction purposes or as firewood.
1t Is very hard to get efficient labor for
forestry work or numbering in the Phil
ippines. The lack of roads is a serious
drawback, but does not compare with the
labor problem The natives acquire preju-
dices against many employers and will
not work for them at any price; and even
when they consent to work they are not
worth a great deal. Being of small stat
ure. they cannot handle weights nor stand
a long strain of nard work. One Irishman
would be worth ten Ffiipinos In an island
forest l have seen four natives struggle
with a wheelbarrow which any sound
bodied laborer here could pick up and
run away with One would seize it by the
handle bars and the other three would
pull on a rope attached to the front of
the body. and then barely move it. From
this Illustration you may Judge what n
handful of these little men could do with
log six or seven feet in diameter
Speaking of big logs, there are several
varieties of trees In the islands which at
tain gigantic size. The natives have never
been able to work this big timber. yet
here and there we find hardwood tables
of large dimensions, whose tops are one
solid piece The mystery is explained
when you learn that after cutting down
the tree from which such a slab can be
got. they slice out this single piece by
hand, and leave the remainder to rot.
They have neither the means nor the in
gepuity to get such "a log to market.
Here is where skilled American labor.
dummy engines, wire cables. and other
facilities familiar here will come in play
TO some purpose.
"A mistaken idea prevails in the United
States that most of the Philippine timber
is of varieties very valuable for cabinet
making. There are seven or eight varie-
ties which take a fine finish, but apart
likely to find their way to the United
States. The commerce which has already
sprung up in a small way between the
islands and the Pacific Coast Is restricted
by the uncertainty of profit Oh the stuff
that comes this way. as well as by the
uSelesSnesS of some of our woods in the
Philippine Islands. The white ant which
Is the terror of the forests in the archi-
pelago, will eat pine, fir. and other soft
woods, but will not touch cedar. The
some experiments in shipping fir, red
wood, spruce. and pine from the Pacific
Coast for the construction of storehouses
and other military buildings. but the raw
ages of the ant doom these structure to
a short life. On the other hand. cedar
is pretty expensive and not strong enough
for use in much structural work The
native woods, which are proof against in
sect plaques, will probably continue to be
used chiefly for buildings there.
Rubber will probably come to be one of
the most important products of the Phil
ippines. We have there a considerable
belt of rubber and guttapercha. In sew.
eral of the Islands the explorers are now
studying gum trees, and by next fall we
expect to have data enough available to
form an intelligent idea of the extent of
the gum forests A good deal of gum has
already been shipped from the Philippines
10 Asiatic ports. but the industry is only
in its infancy. AS in all other lines, the
natives who make living by gathering
gum are quite unsl5illed. The gum of a
guttaperCha tree flows very slowly Not
having the patience or the shrewdness
to devise any better plan, the natives al
ways cut down guttapercha tree for its
valuable juice, thus ensuring a famine
for the future. Our first effort will be TO
teach them better ways than that.