The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-12-19
sHoULp pn srorPrD.
This is from The Hartford Cou

This Is from The Hartford Courant. E One of the ,pitiabie sights of these Christmas days Is these car loads on one/ freight train after another ol rooms or whole areas for the season. It means actual forest destruction. and has not even the excuse of the epruce cutting that 1t is for useful purpose. 1t Is carrying to a wicked sasss som and II Mnss :SoSid 1sfI be discouraged.
 Judging from the statements we have seen In the Eastern papers dur ing the past few days 1t is safe to say that the "Christmas trees" that have Ibeen shipped to the cities will number up into the millions. Each of these young trees means full grown tree lost to the next. generation, and we agree with The Courant that the prac- tice should be discouraged. We go even further and claim that 1t should be prohibited, Just now when there is such strong sentiment In favor of conservation of forests and of reforest. :. ation 1t occurs to us that it would be we'll to begin at the beginning and put q stop to custom that has now no Justification.
 In the early days of the country, when the custom of having Christmas trees began. the cutting of the young growth was of little consequence. Trees of all sizes and varieties were in the way and had to bA;removed. and the cutting of the limited number then re- quired did 10 appreciabie damage. but it is quite different now. Unless active means are taken to prevent 1t tim Der famine is in the near future Gov ernments. corporations. societies and individuals are bestirring themselves 1 in the work of forest preservation, yet \ in the face of all that we find that mill lions of young trees are destroyed at each rshristmas season.
 I Why should the practice be kept up | in the face of the bad results that must follow? Is there anything in the spirit of the Christmas season. that re- auires us to destroy that which is needfui? Does the feeling or sentiment
 behind this glad day demand that we
 shall rob future generation? These I are questions that can hardly be an- swered in the affirmative. The day can be kept with due respect and enjoy- ment without committing tree murder, But there Is a financial side which is yet in control. These young trees have la money value to those who cut and
 sell them and that dominates all else. For the sake of the dollars thus gained the present generation Is robbing pos terity.
 The Manchester CN. H.) Union, which is published in &. section of country
 from which most of these trees are cut says:
 l The tax upon the forests to supply | the demand for Chs sstn as trees is at I tracting increased and deserved atten-
 S from a bs Cites s earcass se trssi snd
 consumed by hundreds of thousands When once used on Christmas eve or
 Christmas morn; r,o.s they are sna utterss 1sere | sent in the aggregate an enormous drain upon the future resources ot the l country. The larger number of tht trees shipped to the markets represent from ten to fifteen years of growth
 and are cut down at stage. wher the next fifteen years would show g
 great increase in growth and in the l Value of the trees for lumber, and, tc make the destruction the more regret ahIe. the trees most desirable and pop uiar for Christmas trees are of the | timtefSvarieties.