Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1905-01-14

Capt. Bullock at the Forestry Congress.
At the American forestry congress,
which held its annual meeting in Wash.
ington last week, Capt. Seth Bullock,
supervisor Of the Black Hills forest re-
serve, discussed the question, "Wil the
Administration of the Forest Reserve
on a Conservative Basis Retard Mining p
ITO arrive properly at solution of
this question he said it would be neces-
sary first to determine to what extent
the mine is dependent on the forest and
IN discussing the matter he referred
chiefly to conditions existing in the
Black Hills forest reserve with which he
is thoroughly familiar. He then point
ed out how in the successful prosecution
Of the work required to make a mine
productive and remunerative to its own
ers, the use Of forest timber is an abso-
lutte necessity. 1t could be truly said
that veritablo forest has been used un-
der ground in the mines of the Black
Hills during the few years they have
been in operation. In addition to the
timber used under ground in precious
metal mining, large quantities, Captain
Bullock said, are required on the sur.
face in the erection Of ore reduction
works and buildings required to house
the machinery necessary in conducting
the business of the mine. The question
Of an ample supply of water, he said, is
an important one in the business ofmin-
ing in the Black Hills Large sums Of
money have been expended in supply
ing the stamp mills or reduction works
with water derived from mountain
streams, the continuous flow Of which.is
dependent on the preservation and main
tenance of the forest conditions at their
source.
Captain Bullock, continuing said 1t
follows then, that the forest and stream
are dependent each upon the other and
successful mining upon both. The de-
pendency of the mine upon the forest
having been established, the question
arises, what is the best plan for securing
a permanent supply Of the necessary
timber? Ny reply is, intelligent and
practical forestry which can best be OBJ
tanned under forest reservation, laws ad :
ministered with business-like methods.
Our system of forest reservations as at
present conducted, has been established
but short time, the first public timber
sale under it having been made in No.
vember, 1900 Since then giant strides
haye been made in protecting the for.
ests from waste, depreciation and fire,
and the pronounced benefits arising are
apparent to the most casual observer.
"The present system could be improv-
ed upon by replanting and reforssting.
In successful forestry there should be
seed time as well as a harvest. Denud
ed areas in and adjoining the reserves
suitable to the growing oftimber, should
be planted with trees adapted to eli
mate and soil. This with a practical
administration of the forest reserves, an
administration beneficial alike to the
forest and the mine, one that takes into
consideration not only the preservation
and propagation of the timber but the
necessities of the mine as we'll and gives
the latter the most liberal treatment
compatible With the permanercy of the
forest, will not in my opinion retard
mining. but on the contrary materially
asaist in -