Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-12-19

1--WE are now cutting timber from
the forests of the United States at the
rate OF 500 feet board measure year
for every man, woman and child. In
Europe they use only 60 board feet"
Few statements could be made which
would better convince the average man
that this country leads the world in the
demand for timber 1t is made by
Treadwell Cleveland. Jr., in q circular
which treats of the conservation of the
forests, soil, water and all the other
great natural resources, which has Just
been published by the United States
forest service. In speaking further OF
the consumption of timber in this
country. Mr.. Cleveland says:
cat this rate, in less than 80 years
all our remaining virgin timber will be
cut. Meantime, the forests which have
been cut over are generally in a bad
way for want of care; they will produce
only inferior second growth, We are
clearly over the verge of a timber fam
Inc.
This is not due to necessity, for the
forests are one of the renewable re-
sources. Rightly used, they go on pro-
ducing crop after crop indefinitely.
The countries of Europe know this, and
Japan knows it; and their forests are
becoming with time not less, but more
productive. We probably still possess
sufficient forest land to grow wood
enough at home to supply our own
needs. If we are not blind, Or wilfully
wasteful, we may vet preserve our
forest independence and, with 1t. the
fourth of our great industries.
present wastes in lumber production
are enormous. Take the case of yellow
pine, which now heads the list in the
volume of annual cut. In 1907 is estt-
mated that only one-half of all the yell
low pine cut during the season was
used, and that the other half, amount
Ing to 5, 200, 900 cords, was wasted. Such
waste Is typical Mr.. R.A. Long. in
his address on Forest Conservation at
the conference OF governors last spring,
pointed out that 20, per cent of the yell
low pine was simply left in the woods
a waste which represents the timber
growing on 100000 acres.
1.-THE rest of the waste takes place at
the mill. OF course, 1t would never do
to speak of the material rejected at the
mill as waste unless this material could
be turned to use by some better and
more thorough form of utilization. But
in many cases we know, and in many
other cases we have excellent reason
to believe, that most, If not all. of this
material could be used With profit. 1t
is simply a question of intelligent in
yestigation and. more than all, of hay
ing the wiil.to econoInize.
but there are other ways to con-.
serve the forests besides cutting in half
the present waste of forest products.
The forests can be made to produce
three or four times as rapidly as they
do at present. This is true of both the
virgin forests and the cut-over lands.
Virgin forests are often fully stocked
| with first class timber, but this stock
has been laid in very slowly, on account
| of the wasteful competition which is
| carried on constantly between the rival
| trees. Then, too, in the virgin forests
there are very many trees which have
reached maturity and stopped growing,
and these occupy space which, IL held
| by younger trees, would be laying in q.
new stock constantly. AZ regards the
cut-over land. severe cutting. followed
| by fire. has checked growth SO serious