Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-12-08

Doubtless for many centuries the tree cutting by the inhabitants of tho mountains worked but slowly in bring ing about the changes that have now come to pass. Doubtless for genera tions the inroads were scarcely no- ticeable, but there came a time when the forest had shrunk sufficiently to make each years cutting serious matter. and from that time on the de- struction proceeded with appalling rn- pidity for of course each year of de- struction rendered the forest less able to recuperate, less able to resist next years inroad.
 Mir. Meyer describes the ceaseless progress of the destruction even now, when there is so little left to destroy. Every morning men and boys go out armed with mattock or ax, scale the steepest mountain sides and cut down and grub out, root and branch, the small trees and shrubs still to be found. The big trees dis appeared centuries ago, so that now one of these Is never seen save in the neighborhood of temples, where they are artiHcially protected, and even here 1t takes all the watch and care of the tree loving priests to prevent their destruction Each family each com munity. where there is no common care exercised In tho interest of all them to prevent deforestation, finds its profit in the immediate use of the fuel which would otherwise be used by some other family or some other com munity. In the total absence of regu- lation of the matter in the interest of the whole people each small group is inevitably pushed into policy of de- struction which cannot afford to take thought for the morrow This is just one of those matters which 1t is fatal 10 leave to unsupervised individual rontrol. The forests can only be pro tected by the state, by the nation, and the liberty of action of individuals must be conditioned upon what the state or nation determines to be neces sary for the common safety.
 The lesson of deforestauon in China Is a lesson which mankind should have learned many times already from what has occurred in other places. Denuda- ton leaves naked soil, then gullying cuts down to the bare rock, and mean while the rock waste buries the bot tom lands. When the soil is gone men must go, and the process does not take long.
 The ruthless destruction of the for ests in northern China has brought about or has aided in bringing about desolation, just as the destruction of the forests In central Asia aid in bring ing ruin to the once rich central Asian cities, just as the destruction of the forests in northern Africa helped to- ward the ruin of region that was a fertile granary in Roman days. Short sighted man, whether barbaric. semi civilized or what he mistakenly regards as fully civilized, when he has destroy ed the forests has rendered certain the ultimate destruction of the land itself. In northern China the mountains are now such as are shown by the accom- panying photographs, absolutely barren peaks. Not only have the forests been destroyed, but because of their destruc- ton the soil has been washed off the naked rock. The terrible consequence is that 1t is impossible now to undo the damage that has been done. Many centuries would have to pass before soil would again collect or could be made to collect in sufficient quantity once more to support the old time for est growth. In consequence the Mon gol desert is practically extending east ward over northern China. The eli mate has changed and is still chang ing. It has changed even within the last half century as the work of tree destruction has been consummated. The great masses of arboreal vegetation on the mountains formerly absorbed the heat of the sun and sent up cur rents of cool air which brought the moisture laden clouds lower and forced them to precipitate in rain part of their burden of water. Now that there is no vegetation the barren mountains, scorched by the sun, send up currents of heated air which drive away in. stead of attracting the rain clouds and cause their moisture to be disseminat- ed. In consequence, instead of the reg ular and plentiful rains which existed in these regions of China when the forests were still in evidence, the un- fortunate inhabitants of the deforeSted lands now see their crops wither for lack of rainfall, while the seasons grow more and more irregular, and as the air becomes drier certain crops refuse longer to grow at all.
 That everything dries out faster than formerly is shown by the fact that the level of the wells all over the land has sunk perceptibly. many of them hay ing become totally dry. In addition tC the resulting agricultural distress, the water courses have changed. Former ly they were narrow and deep, with an abundance of clear water the year around, for the roots and humus of the forests caught the rainwater and let it escape by slow, regular seepage They have now become broad, shallow stream beds in which muddy water trickles in slender currents during the dry seasons, while when 1t rains there are freshets, and roaring muddy tor vents come tearing down, bringing dis aster and destruction everywhere Mnranrar fhnsa hnods and frashetS