Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1903-01-01
JAIME CAN NO LONGER BE
CALLED PINE TREE STATE.

u Maine can no longer, correctly speak
Elng, be called the Pine Tree state. To-
'\day there is hardly good sized pine
}tree standing In the territory once COW
! eted with them. There was a time, but
that was over so years ago, when
the waters of the upper Kennebec and
PenobscOt were covered with the vast
drives of pine logs that were each year
fieated down to the sawmills and ship
yards to be cut up into lumber and put
into shape for masts and spars. 1t was
then thought that the supply was ever
lasting, but the tremendous domestic
and foreign demands and the almost
harbaric wastefulness of thoughtless
man, together with the great forest
tires which from time to time have
brought great havoc, have at last swept
! pc pine from the forest.
There are still scattered groves in
Iarious parts of the state, especially
in York county, but pine tree in these
days is allowed existence long enough
to pass the dignity of sapling Then
1t is swooped down upon by the box
4 N1lakers.
When the time came that the market
IN paying quantities, spruce, which up
that time was considered only a
Erifle better than useless, was substi-
lted. The forests were black with it,
10 much so, in fact, that anybody bold
'EApugh 40 years ago to hint at the pos
Sility Of its ever becoming scarce
4 nld have been jeered at as an empty
1eaded prophet
The cutting began, but the lumber
y operations had not proflted by the les
SON of the vanished pine. There was
seemingly enough and only the ch,icest
trees, measuring dozen inches at the
''tof off, were deemed worthy of float
ing own to the mills.
bspecting was carried on in an I'M
81 Eific manner, resulting in the fell
ina 1 thousands of trees that were new
er useI. These shutting out the suns
rays from the younger growth stunted
or broke them down, aiding in no small
way the work of depletion.
This wastefulness was maintained
without single cry of warning until
the advent of the pulp and paper mills,
when Lsuch men as Mr. Austin Carey Of
HANGAR and Charles e. Cakes warned
the a-eople of the state of the pending
II.<4er to the 100000 or more Of acres
lid woodland.
S$N(H'at the forests of Maine are by no
Nv inexhaustible is proven by the
AAVl that there are hundreds of people
today who can remember when
w BoSbest lumber was standing in large
Z Titles, even down to the tidewaters.
bw different now. The diameter of
/ PucYketable logs has dropped below II
"a 1,thes, and about every township in the
= Wild lands of the state has been cut
NJ. Eer.
, - .1The once fixed rule that timber sec
bn could be gone over in 20 years is
an , longer applicable. The pulp mills
~ ReAlogs Of four inches in diameter at
Unts Hop off," thus leaving nothing but
,oIa M 2that so years arc they would not
into shape for the sawmills.
nJ0He bung spruce, it is said, makes bet
ahpulp than the older ones.
." Ae growth of the wood pulp in
I Ts,tfry in the state of Maine has been
f&ffy beyond expectations, mill after
n1 going up almost in night. Ten
oH12 years ago New York was easily
thu leading state in this industry, but
Miline has been after 1t with giant
strides.
fhere were 9OO,OOO0O0 feet of pulp
loal cut last winter and spring.
The great pulp corporation owns mil
lions of acres of the best timber lands
in Maine. These big concerns go about
their logging operations Systematically,
employing foresters, log agents and va
rious superintendent to see that the
cutting is properly done, in the right