Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-09-22
lis FORESTER
FOR UNCLE SAM
w. n. MAST, FORMER oTTuMwAN
MAKING A SUCCESS IN cHos.
EN- LINE OF WORK
In Charge Of Nursery Work on Great
Timber Reserve at HaIsey, Neb.-
History Of the Place-Mast Well
Known Here.

| History Of the Place-Mast We'll
Known Here.
one former Ottumwan, young man,
who is making success In his chosen
line OF work IS William H. Mast, in
charge OF the nursery at the govern
ment timber reserve at Haisey, Neb.
Mr.. Mast Is the son Of MIR. and Mrs.
j. @. Mast. 206 Pennsylvania avenue
MI. Mast has been connected with
the government reserve since 1904,
when he graduated from the forestry
school at Yale. In his work he has
been unusually successful as the fol-
lowing articles will indicate. The de-
scription of the government reserve
and the nursery gives some idea Of the
magnitude and scope of the enterprise
and to Mr.. Mast is due a great portion
of the success that has already been
obtained.
/ Mr. Mast visited with his parents
here about month ago. He is we'll
known both in Ottumwa and in the
| vicinity OF Agency. where his family
lived before moving to this place.
$4,000 Acres.
The government reserve at Haisey,
Neb., consists of eighty-fve Thousand
acres of hill land between the Dismal
and the Middle Loup rivers beginning
near the little town Of Duntling and
stretching northward about eighteen
miles to point about four miles north.
east Of Thedford.
The nursery and home of the forest.
er is Situated in valley at the foot
/ Of chain of hills and Just BY the
south bank Of the Loup river, two
miles north Of Haisey, the station The
surroundings are very picturesque. The
river banks are beautif1ed by clusters
of ash and willow trees, and great
fields OF wild plum trees. many Of
which are loaded with fruit.
From the top Of Young mountain, as
one of the hills is known, its elevation
is $50 feet above the river bed and
1900 feet above sea level, one may look
out over geo acres Of rugged hills,
which are already covered with young
pines. Between 100000 and 100000
trees have been planted, the first being
planted in 1903
Time has proven that experience Is
a prime necessity Much loss has come
to the governments undertaking
through the lack of experience. The
jack pine and the bull pine were the
principal trees used and the first trees
, were obtained in Minnesota.
Heat Of Sun Fatal.
At first trees were set out on all
sides Of the hill and much loss occur
,, red from two causes. First, the stock
/ was not in the best condition; and
; second, the extreme heat of the SUM
mer sun ei1 the south and west slopes
. were too much for the young plants
AS a result of these causes there has
. been loss of from forty to sixty per
cent.
1t has been we'll demonstrated that
the jack pine is the best for the local.
. ity Of the reserve, as it grows the most
surely both in the nursery and in the
fields.
The trees are generally planted in
the wild sod with a spade, showed in.
to open spaces and worked back and
forth The young plant, about six to
eight inches above the root, is taken
from q bucket of water and placed in
the hole. and dirt Is pressed to it. Then
the word goodbye is said and the
tree is left to shift for itself
Arc NOW waist High.
Many of the trees first planted are al
ready waist high and promise we'll II
will be but matter Of few years be
/. fore travellers on trains a mile away
may feast their eyes on the stretched
out acres of living green.
The reserve was Withdrawn from
the market in April 1902, in accord
ance with an act Of congress. The frs
!. work was done in the autumn Of 1870:
and the first seed planted in the nur
i sery in the spring of 1903.
There are now in the nursery fou1
acres Of plants containing about 1000,
j. 900 trees Of various kinds. Jack pine
is the leading tree in the nursery al
V well as in the field. with the bull pin,
! second. Red frs and red and Scotch
pines are being tested as are ais,
d many other kinds OF the evergreen fam
\ iIy
There is also an extensive nurser,
!, Of ash, elm, soft maple, Russian mul
: berry and hard locust.
e Soil Of Reserve.
The soil of the reserve is a sand
II loan. The surface is eight feet abov
o. the water level and is undertake witt
= coarse gravel, so that no damage no
valte comes from the water below tn
!. surface. Rain fall supplies largely tn
needs Of the nursery, but huge els
a tern is provided situated on a hi
v forty feet above the nursery.
Pipes are laid throughout the groun
) from the cistern with MIGRANTS at cor
# venient places. For the protection q
the young plants against the summe
# sun or the cold of winter, a pecularl
constructed lattice work covers an
surrounds the whole nursery.
It is surrounded by vast fran
p work set upon posts about seven fee
high. Two inch Stats are firmly wire
= together two inches apart and ar
stretched over the frame work and
like lattice fence surrounds the Who'll
d. plat.
al By this arrangement every inch {
d. ground has sunshine a few minute!
o. then shade a few minutes, and thu