Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1907-10-01
- 2 ! : $500.
'E BLIGHT.
|ent Experts De-
4 It a Mystery.
The Ulnle Pines Of Maine Are
In Great Danger.
The Famous Brunswick Pines Suf.
fer the Most Severely.

Washington, Sept. 3".-.tftor n
thorough invc.tiga; ion 81 the peculiar
blight which has attacked lie white
pines of New England 50 generally this
summer, sovc' nmcnt cXpcr1s :.it"r two
weeks WORK <ay that tie disease 70
mains as much a mystery ~ cv.r. The
investigation is being i7JGe by the For
est Service ard the Hlrruu Of Plant
Industry, of the Departiat ut Of AGfi-
culture, and will continue until the real
cause Of the trouble is discovered. $.
r. Dana. Of the Office of silEics, who
has charge Of the investigation for the
Forest Service, in q preliminary report
to his chief which has just been maize
says:
''Thc disease is very widely spread
throughout New England. and Il De-
ours practically everywhere south oi
the White Mountains. BY no Mi"slllS All
this territory is badly affected. how
ever. In most places only a f.v: scat
. tered trees are attacked by the blight,
although in IA few localities as many
as ten to twenty per cent Of the trees
are affected ny the disease.
brunswick. Maine. appears to have
suffered most severely. and it is feared
that if the troubic shn'ilI continue .
increase. the beautiful ana famous
RowGoin pines, "f which Hawthorne.
and LpngicIoW wrote, viii soon he u
thing of tn" past. Another badly at
fectcd locHlitv j. Eliot. Main". Hero
the noble grove of pines on tn" Green
acre Conference" grounds rr( srnts
very different appearance from usual
to the hundre Us of health-Sccksr.; and
other VINO visit the place every year.
I'm New IIlnr,shir" The vicinity ~
Nashua SONS [" hu"" suffered mos.
and hr"Tn, hi@htcd trees mar til" land
scape V hCrcvcr one turns. Ma+@ualu
sets too has not escaped, ana through
out the State the disease is found, but
more particularly in the north. ri and
central part. In Rhode ISlard and
Connecticut white pine is not N album
dant tree, butin 10th Of these States
the same trouble is found.
at is evilt Mt then that the disease
has suddenly made its appearance i'll
very widely separated localities
all at once. Just nov nc1
the trouble is, is still! an un
settled question. y few Claim to
haze been noticing thu llight for thr
last - years, but most people
agree that ,hrv n"..,.r saw il until two
years ago il Inc summer az l",5. At
that tinr ii W." r".p"tt"1 frs''u several
.locaHtirA. it, the outbreak Wa nat 4
sever" one. ANA the trouble was not
Thought t. J." 81 rouS. IN 1906 condi-
lions remained about the same. Then
flis summer cam" III" present out
break. which without doubt exceeds
II extent all previous ones. and has
IL ,v,l
throuElult tits section ni the country.
unfortunately not enough definite
information is available at present to
enable the Government experts 10 say
precisely what is tn" cause of tho
trouble. In many respects tn" prob
lem seems To b. complicated one.
and one which will require considerable
study to solve satisfactorily. The all
important point to be determined is
whether the disease is an infectious
one ana one which is likely Ia dVN' l"i'
into q serious cl,:hcmic; or whether i
is purely due {" unftvnrablc tlinot!H
conditions i'll character ana therefore
not contagious.
"rhr cviicrC" NOW AZ hand points
both uIy&. atl ii is difficult q say
which cxi.l3un,,,,n il. :he correct one.
Evi,!tuc, ~ u" parasitic fungus
Scntnr;p hrv. i,,nn ;o':nl on all the
sr"c,r MS oXauir"E. lat Whether this
is the cau.c If thn hi 2ht. or thc result
% it. is not certain. IL some req; +
the beh" ,nr of TIA. ii+, a+c would seem
to Indicate ,!.a, IL il not caused by
fungus: but N the other hand the
explanation that the trouble is Il
physiological one also has its weak
points If tn;% l.t,r explanation should
prove t" h The ..,,"c>t pir. Tie trouble
will probably di..:rp NJ Of its own &C.
'cnr,l next Year. having done hut little
damage II. ho"CNrr 1t should prove
to be Il Cuiit.,.:ipt.S disease OF some
sort. there ere now M many ccrtcrs