The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1908-03-21
Trees as Crops.


be made te grow successive crops of
trees under proper methods as that
pillow land can be made to grow sue
cessive crops OF wheat" says the Sec
rotary OF agriculture in the part of his
annual report wherein he speaks OF
the national forests.
This country, which once could
boast of forest resources richer than
any other nation in the world, has
been cutting three times as much tim
Der for number of years as there is
grown, and the consideration of tim
Der as crop to be carefully harvested
has come at time when many of the
virgin forests are already depleted.
Continuing. Secretary Wilson says
in part:
"Just as American farming has had
to develop and is still developing
methods adapted to the conditions of
each region to make the best use of the
agricultural lands, SO must the for
ester learn by scientific study and prac-
teal trial TO make the best use of our
cumberland. And the best use means, of
course, not merely it's best use for the
growing of trees, but its best use with
reference to all interests directly or
indirectly affected by it.
''As time passes, it will doubtless
appear that the principles which CEN
turtles OF experience in older countries
have placed at our command can be
applied with increasing good results
as we grow more familiar with our
own special conditions. The issue is
sharply between caring for our forests
by applying a system of known effici-
ency, or suffering certain loss not
only of the forests, but of usable water
and soil as we'll, through the opera
ton Of causes as certain to act as are
the rivers to run to the sea.
The forest service now has admins
tration over more than 164 200, 900
acres Of land. This is slightly more
than one-fifth of the coantry's total
forested area; the remainder is in the
hands OF private owners. Nearly all
the timberland of the unappropriated
public domain is now in the national
forests. This means that it is being
protected against fire, theft and waste
full exploitation, that its power to
grow wood and store water is being
safeguerded for all time, and that,
nevertheless, its present supply OF USE
full material is open to immediate use
whenever it is wanted. The report
says:
"The timber in the national forests,
which is the legacy of the growth of CEN
turtles. is now in the truest sense pub
lie property, administered for the ben
eft of the people-primarily for the
benefit of the people of the west, since
they are nearest at hand, but on the
whole, for the benefit of every part of
the country, since the welfare of every
section is interviewer with that OF all
others. The communities and settlers
adjacent to the forests are safe from
any fear of monopoly of one of the
chief necessities OF civilized man."
The secretary tells interestingly of
how the government manages it's tim
berlands as a trustee. Itgives timber
away through,free- use permits in small
quantities to the actual homemaker,
who comes to develop the country, and
in larger quantities to communities
for public purposes. Its system of
management is vastly different from
that of landlord When large guam
titles Of timber are harvested from
the national forests, sales are
made to the highest bidder, but under
such restrictions as look to the main
tenance of a lasting supply answering
to the needs of the locality, to be had
without faVoritism and without extor-
tionate demand based upon the neces-
sity OF the consumer.