The southern sentinel. (Winnfield, La.) 1883-1910, 1904-06-30
THE FALLING /
OUR FORESTS BEING MI
ED BY VARIOUS NJ
Grazing Animals Find Ma,,,I
Kill the Timber-Ins..s.
Other Causes Alw.n
at Work.

at OK.
One Of the most frequept
forest fires is the grazing a
on forest land. To improv. !
ing, the owners of fiocks =
often fire the grass or NH
plants. sometimes with N. .
of destroying the forest itsel,
increasing the area of the :
but more often to improve -
the quality of the feed. n.
of these fires do not kill thu !,
but, by destroying the seed.
young trees. they do great inb,
forest, and finally to the foda,
themselves. And to under,
enormous amount of damae.
by this one cause. We must =
that vast areas are burned N,
year, in nearly all parts Of Il,
States where trees grow. M
fact well known to forestez 4
dreds of thousands of acres n =
where sheep are in the tabit
ing, would be covered BY Ia
day, if it were not for the
burnings to which the ground I
subjected.
In forests where grazing L =
much damage is often done h
ling. Heavy animals, like h4I
cattle. pack the soil with ths
and destroy the rootlets Of m
but these animals, having h
feet, do comparatively litik
Sheep, on the other hand,
harmful, particularly where Il
loose, and upon steep slopa
hoofs, being small and sham
into the soil and powder It 4
some time breaking and CO
young growth to such an "a,
Hourishing young forests u
completely destroyed. Nor
danger Of trampling stop via
struction of the forest Itself. VI,
take warning by the disastu
followed the grazing of sheQ
Alps of southern France. n
of all, the forests were destru3
followed the grass which hi
the forests, and the soil va {
fully exposed to the rains Il
was a succession Of food Z
force Of the water carried -
nous quantities of stones. II
them over what had been fal1
depopulating many prospefoud
The cost to the French peo1b(
ready run into tens of millId0(
lars, and the end 3 not Jet
is out of all proportion 70 q
which may have been del0
the mountain pastures. and q
sheep owners themselves srs
the end, as the sheep induzig
region has been utterly ruiz
Then the grAzing animab
Their harm by browsing On III
growth, and ON the tender -
branches of the larger III
making them unsightly or e
Insects are always at -
forest, and sometimes their q
suit in serious loss. Duri1g
20 years the larva of a saw-11
eating the foliage Of the lme1
the Adirondacks to such an
nearly every fullgrown tres q
cies has been killed in that 4
work of the elm beetle, the 81
and many other insects =
known to require comment
Many other enemies hays
amongst them being the ~
are ever ready to attack = -
of any kind. Their ravasee
be prevented by a dab OF p
which will exclude the ak
spores with which 1t Is -
wind sweeps through the fou
times doing good by removil
and dying trees, and sonnet
harm by throwing down t.
have not yet reached mafu
influence Of snow, also. ID -
does great good by protect
and the young trees. and it
great harm by bending an
and crushing out Of shape
young members OF the FORE
OF course, our forests sho9
tected, for the best Of busine
but there are trees In IL
which are entitled to our e.
and protection. not so much 0<
OF their money value, but -
are among the wonders OF 9
OF course, I refer to the -
California. many OF which
be doomed unless the Unil
government takes immediafe
preserve them. These trees el@|
and Of worldwide fame.
400 feet above the ground, -
Of some of them Is said %
years ERNEST HAROLD
A Candid Explanatl
Why is It." asked Mr..
e>l-~z sskL~k w-~,, nh q p0M