, 1905-01-18

courts, wouid pe regarded as exemnlary
Fifty thousand dollars have been snent in
architects fees alone in the last threa
years. The proposed department could he
maintained at a less expense annnauy
than Is incurred for architects and would
promote other economies as well as rem
der important service to the unfortunata
wards of the state.
Forestry.
OF New Jerseys forestry resources mona
are more neglected and none more likely
to add to her reputation than her wood
lands, If properly cared for. We are inst
beginning to realize the Importance of onr
forests and the necessity for their preser-
walton. they not only furnish timber and
provide an important industry, but they
beautify the country, temper the climate
hold the rainfall, fertilize the soil. furnish
game preserves and conserve our water
supply, an Indispensable feature of mn
rapidly growing and congested civilization.
The woodlands of our state produce an
annual product amounting to S1S2. 537.
They cover 46 per cent of the upland area
of New Jersey, and for the most part they
occupy soil that at present is adapted
neither to grazing nor to tillage. These
forests grow without the aid of man. and.
as with all wealth provided by nature.
we are most prodigal of the gift and
neglectful of the heritage. Forest fires in
two years destroyed timber worth nearly
half a million, and the indirect loss from
this source-the impoverishment of the
soil and the effect upon the water pply-
Is beyond calculation in dollars and cents.
The Importance to human health and
comfort of an abundant supply of whole
some water needs no Recommendation
From all over the state we have reports
of the increasing difficulty in obtaining
water of a satisfactory quality and guam
tity for our municipalities, while the pres
ent supply is rapidly diminishing. TIT
springs of our state are lower than they
were fifty years ago. Our wells must be
driven deeper from year to year. Brooks
and rivers once living and flowing no lon
ger exist, and streams once considerable in
size are now, in the heat of summer, mere
trickling riVulets. Rivers that once float
ed RATS of lumber with ease are now so
reduced in volume that they are no longer
navigable even by small boats. The mem
ace of water famines. with all their in
convenience to urban population and
doubly so to farmers and stockmen. con-
front future II not present generations.
Forests are natural reservoirs in which
are stored the water gathered from rain
and melting snow, to be drawn upon as
necessity demands. Stripped of the wood
land, the water rushes to the sea, and no
supply is held in reserve for the dry sea-
sons. Every year the government Is
spending thousands upon thousands of dol
lars in deepening the channels of our
streams that are again promptly filled
with soil carried by the rainfall from the
t~reeless plains along the river banks. The
same money expended in developing the
forests along the streams and around the
sources of their supply would check the
rush of water, save the soil that is now
carried and deposited in the river chan
nels and reduce to a considerable extent
the necessity for the river and harbor ap-
preparations.
The geological board of our state has
made Investigations concerning tree Gull
IRE. covering the kind of trees best
adapted to our soil, so that we have am
pie information for an intelligent treat
ment for our wooded and abandoned
lands. Pennsylvania and New York havs
already established forestry reserves,
New York owning about a million and a
half acres, acquired both by purchase
and by forfeiture under the tax laws, and
Pennsylvania an area of FOG, 900 acres, OBJ
tanned by purchase and tax sales. The
famous forest of Fontainebleau in France
is growing upon soil originally no better
than the wastes of south Jersey. 1t
yields an annual income in forest prod
ucts of $40, 900, while it occupies territory
no more extensive than Essex county or
about one-fourth that of Cumberland
county,. experiments III lOltSlIS Ill Der
gen county for revenue for the last eight
years show an annual return of 5 per
cent. Twenty-Five thousand dollars worth
of timber has been cut and yet the forest
is worth more than when the experiments
began. The state forests of Europe pro-
vide revenue reaching from 10 cents to
S.. SO an acre. Alsace-Lorraine derives an
income of $3.50, 900 a year from this source,
the ducay of Baden $667, 900, the kingdom
of NNttrttpn1haTp S6li W0 the kingdom of
SaXony 81, 9i6, 900. Every one of them is
smaller than the state of New Jersey.
This revenue is derived, not by depicting
the forests, but by scientific cutting of the
mature trees to make room for their
Younger and better companions We -
thousands of acres of land in this state,
part of it mere brush land, part of it
abandoned and waste, all of it u~nsightly
and all capable of growing trees that
would beautify the landscape, afford at
t~ractive d~riVeWays, furnish places OF
recreation for the well and health resorts
for the sick and be a source of inc me
TO our commonwealth Much of this land
can be purchased for a dollar an acre,
and in some cases can be obtained for
taxes
suggest this subject for your consid-
eration and that within
proper limits the state by purchase or
condemnation secure this waste and un-
profitable land and develop it as forestry
reserves. For some time at least the adj
ministrative work in this connection
could be performed with little or no ex-
nense by the state board of geological
survey. and our game wardens could act
as fire wardens.
Agriculture.
The population of our state and the con-
tributing population in the near vicinity
amounts to about 5,000,0 900. This vast
market for our products makes the agri-
cultural interests of New Jersey of spe-
cial value. The wealth of our farms,
$50 600. 000, with an annual product OF
- :. n-anAIar Of 10 nnrnnnnt hN