Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1908-12-08

already see for ourselves the damage
In the shape of permanent injury to
the soil and the river systems which
comes from reckless deforestation Il
matters not whether this dororestation
is due to the actual reckless cutting of
timber to the fires that inevitably fol.
low such reckless cutting of timber. or
10 reckless and uncontrolled grazing
especially by the great migratory
bands Of sheep, the unchecked wand.
ering OF which over the country means
destruction to forests and disaster to
the small home makers, the settlers of
limited means.
Shortsighted persons, or persons
blinded to the future by desire to make
money In every way out of the pres.
ent, sometimes speak as II no great
damage would be done by the reckless
destruction of our forests II s din.
cult to have patience with tho areu.
ments of these persons. Thanks to
our own recklessness I'm the use of our
splendid forests, we have already
crossed the verge of n timber famine
in this country, and no measure that
we now take can. at least for MANY
years, undo the mischief that has nj.
ready been done. But we can prevent
further mischief being done. and II
would be In the highest degree repre.
hensible to let any consideration of
temporary convenience or Temporary
cost interfere with such action. espec.
tally es regards the National Forests
which The nation can now, nj this very
moment. control.
All serious students of the ouestion
are aware of the great damage that
has been done I'm the Mediterranean
countries of Europe. Asia and Afric,
by deforestation. The similar DAMAGE
that has been done I'm Eastern Asia is
less well known. A recent invos,jya.
ton into conditions I'm North China nv
MIR. Frank N. Never. of tho Rureau of
Plant Industry OF tho limited states
Department of Agriculture has Incl.
dentally furnished in very strikiny
fashion proof of The ruin that comes
from reckless dcforesta,ion of noun.
tains, and of the further fart that tho
damage once done may nrovo nroc.
tically irreparable. So important are
these investigations that I herewith
attach as an appendix TO nv message
certain photograpbs showing nre.opt
conditions In China They show In
vivid fashion the apna,,inp desoIation
taking the shane of barren mounts aims
and gravel. and sand covered n,ains
which Immediately follows and do
ponds upon the deforesta,ion NJ tho
mountains Not many centuries 400
the country of nortbern chin. w,s enc
of the most fertile and beautiful snots
In the entire world. and was heavily
fofested. We know this moi only from,
the old Chinese records. lint from the
accounts given by the traveller Marco
Polo. He, for instance. mentions that
in visiting the provinces of Sbansi and
Shensi he observed MANY nlanta,ions
of mulberry trees Now there ia hard.
iy a single mulberry tree I'm either of
these provinces, and the culture of tho
silkwOrm has moved farther soutb. tn
regions of atmospheric moisture Az
an illustration OF the complete change
in the rivers, we may take Poles
= statement that a certain river. the
Hun Ho. was go large and deem that
merchants assembled Il from the sea
with heavily laden boatsE TODAY this
river Is simply a broad sandy he'd
with shallow. rapid currents WANDER.
lutely unnavigable. But we do moi
have to depend upon written records
The dry wells, and the wells with wa.
ter far below the former watermark
bear testimony to the good DAYS of
the past and the evil DAYS of the pres.
ent Wherever the native vegetation
has been allowed TO remain az for
instance, here and there around n
sacred temple or imperial burying
ground, there are still huge trees and
tangled Jungle, fragments of the rlor.
iois ancient forests The thick mat.
ted forest growth formerly covered
the mountains to their SUBMITS All
natural factors favored this dense for.
est growth, and as long as II was ner.
mitted to exist, the plains at the foot
of the mountains were among the
most fertile on the globe. and the
whole country was garden. Not the
slightest effort was made. however, TO
prevent the unchecked cutting of the
trees, or to secure reforestation.
Doubtless for many centuries the tree.
cutting by the inhabitants of the
mountains worked but slowly in bring