The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-08-14

dent Morgan of the Chamber of Com.
merce, after approval by the trustees
of that body and forwarded to Gustav
Schwab, Chairman, Advisory Commit
tee, National Council of Commerce,
New York, in response TO a request
from that organization. The initiative
in this matter came from President
Roosevelt.
The draft of the letter signed by Mr.
Morgan was drawn by Walter M. Gift,
fard of the Board of Commissioners
of Agriculture and Forestry with the
assistance of Ralph S. Hosmer, Super
intendent of Forestry of the Territorial
Board of Agriculture, and is based on
lines which viii be fully covered by
the Governor in his annual report The
letter is as follows:
Mr.. Gustav H. Schwab, Chairman. Ad-
visory Committee, National Coun-
Gil of Commerce, 5 Broadway, New
York.
Dear Sir: In reply to your request
of June 10, 1908, for information for
the use of the Section on Forests OF
the Commission on the Conservation OF
Natural Resources, it gives me pleas
ure to send you the following state
ment relative to forest conditions in
the Territory of Hawaii.
The Importance of forestry and its
close relation to the economic welfare
of this Territory has for many years
been clearly recognized in Hawaii Be
cause of the peculiar conditions Of
climate and topography that obtain in
these islands, irrigation is a necessity
over large part of the area under
cultivation. To provide the means of
bringing water onto the land over if
teen million dollars have been expend.
ed, wholly by private enterprise, in
the construction of bitches, tunnels
and fumes. This had led naturally TO
an appreciation of the value of water
and to correct understanding of the
intimate relation that the protection
of the forest cover on watershed
bears TO sustained and regular flow
in the streams. For the last twenty
years increasing interest has been mani
Tested In forest protection and for a
part of that time several of the su,
gar plantation companies have main.
tanned under fence, at their own ex-
pense, large areas of privately owned
forest land as forest reserves. In 1903
provision was made by the Legislature
of Hawaii for the creation of Terri
torial Forest Reserves and a Division
of Forestry was established under the
Territorial Board of Agriculture and
Forestry. Since 1904, sixteen forest
reserves have been set apart by proc.
lamation of the Governor of the Ter
riff no I'D
protection forests on the water
sheds of streams that are needed for
irrigation, power development or do
mestic supply. There are no streams
in Hawaii of sufficient size to be used
for transportation.
The forest reserves as set apart in
clude forest land belonging both to
the Territorial government and to
private interests. The boundaries are
located to include the areas that in
the Judgment of the Territorial forest
officials should remain permanently I'm.
der forest cover An excellent public
sentiment is behind the Territory's for
est policy and the great majority of
the owners of private land in the es-
tablished forest reserves are in. full
sympathy with the objects for which
the reserves are set apart. Up to June
30, 1908, sixteen forest reserves had
been created, with a total area of 444,-
116 acres, of which 273,9 12 acres, or
81 per cent, is government land. 1t
is the announced intention of the Ter.
ritorial government to continue to set
apart additional forest reserves until
all the more important watersheds are
so protected
The value of by far the greater part
of the Hawaiian forests rests on the
protective influence exerted on the
steep, short watersheds. The main re,
quirement in the management of this
class of forest is that it shall be let
alone and the luxuriant tangle of vege-
tation maintained intact. But in the
leeward districts on the island of Ha-
wall are considerable areas where
owing to the great porosity of the
soil there are no permanently running
streams. Here the main value of the
forest rests in the wood and timber
that it can be made to produce. The
two Hawaiian woods of commercial
Importance are koa and ohia lehua.
Both are heavy, close-grained hard.
woods. Koa is used for interior finish,
furniture, cabinet work and veneering
1t is now sold in the markets of the
Hawaiian Mahogany Ohia is val
liable for railroad ties. The systematic
numbering of this class of Hawaiian
forest began in October, 1907, when
contract for ninety million board feet
of ohia railroad tie material was made
between a local company and the San,
ia Fe railway.
A tie mill with a daily capacity or
$500 ties has recently been erected. The
first regular shipment of ties is about
to be made No accurate estimates
either of the amount of timber or of
the exact area covered by forest of
the commercial class have yet been
made.
The fact that none of the native
trees in Hawaii furnish construction
timber has led to extensive tree plant
ing, both by the Territorial govern
ment and by private interests This
work has been going on for the last
thirty years and is constantly increas.
ing in extent and Importance. The
trees principally planted are several
kinds of eucalyptus, the Australian
ironwood and silk oak and the Japa,