Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1907-10-25
RUIN OF Valuable
FORESTS is Shown
ILLINOIS, INDIANA AND OHIO
ARE DEPRIVED OF A PROFIT.
ABLE INDUSTRY.
STATES ONCE FAMED
AS WOOD PRODUCERS
Government Forest Service Figures
Show an Amazing Decline of Tim
Der Production in Region Which
Once Furnished country's Supply.

Once Furnished country's Supply.
Washington, Oct. 21.-Figures pub
lushed by the United States forest
service show that only 20 per cent. of
Indiana is wooded. % per cent. OF Ohio
and 20 per cent. of Illinois.
The same authority places the wood
ed area of Rhode Island above 80 per
cent, Delaware 80, and Connecticut.
New Jersey, Maryland and Massachus-
etts each 40 or more, while some OF
the states east and south of the Ohio
river contain from 60 to rs per cent.
forest.
The figures, however, fall far short
of telling the whole story. Indiana,
the middle state of the three, has not
more than 100000 acres of what us.
ually is classed as merchantable tim
ber-less than per cent. of the states
area, instead of 20 per cent, according
to experts who have studied its forest
resources.
Shows Forest Exhaustion.
The history of the lumber industry
in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio illustrates
the rise of a region to importance. Its
period of great production and the
decline which rapidly follows the ex'
haustion of its principal forests. These
states have played great part in the
country's development. They were
for long time the region of chief
supply for hard woods.
For more than half a century their
total output rose and about 1900 it
reached high-water mark; then it fell
off with astonishing rapidity Their
output in 1906 was less than half that
of 1900, in spite CT the fact that much
timber was imported from Kentucky,
Tennessee, Arkansas and Missouri,
and when manufactured was credited
as the production of Illinois, Indiana
and Ohio
improvidence of the Pioneer.
When the pioneers first made their
homes in these states the timber was
an encumbrance, and the first thought
was to get rid of 1t. They felled the
trees, piled the logs and burned them.
making use only of what they needed
for fences. buildings and fuel. which
was small quantity compared with
what they destroyed. A market grad,
ually grew up, and the lumber indus.
try began to develop. AS early as 1910
sawmills were common west of the
Ohio, and in 1850 Ohio rose to fourth
rank among the states as lumber
producer, Indiana fifth and Illinois
eighth.
In 1860 the three leading states
were still Pennsylvania, New York and
Maine, but Michigan had passed Ohio,
Indiana dropped to sixth place, while
Wisconsin and California both rose
above Illinois. Ten years later Michi'
gan was first, and remained so for
80 years, when Wisconsin passed 1t
and held first place more than 20
years, finally yielding to Washington,
Great Folds for Hard Woods,
But during all this time Illinois, In
diana and Ohio were furnishing enorm
Gus amounts Of hardwoods and supply
ing many mills whose manufactures in
cluded farm machinery, carriages
wagons. tool handles. wooden ware
house Anishings, furniture and man,
other products. Uallke most of the
forested resians In the far west, 6
larse proportion of the land In this
section is adopted to agriculture. and
on the removed of the timhar h.s hear
made into farms. Every year has
lessened the foreaa area and increased
the size and number Of farms, with the
result that now the wooded area in the
three states named is proportionately
smaller than in any other Of the orig
inahy wooded states.