Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-09-14
AMERICAN NEEDS.

Z = Z
1t seems to me that the people of
r Anerica-at least many of them--are
unappreciative OF our forests and GER
tain it is that we underestimate their
GSRlue. The timber suppytof our country
is rapidly diminishing timber has been.
cut wantonly and wastefully: millions
of acres of timber land in the United.
States have been denuded carelessly
and recltlessly to the great and irrepar-3
able injury to countless farms, rivers,
and even to our inland navigation.
Millions of feet of timber are being
annually destroyed by fire for failure
to properly protect our forests. and
from present prospects the year 1908
Will be one ofSsthe most disastrous in
our history as far as destruction Of
timber by forest fires is concerned. I
am glad; however, to note that very.
few fires have occurred in the national
forest reserves, and even our present
very meager administration of them
has apparently proved very effective.
CITY FORESTS.
system of governmental assist.
afce to cities and individuals in order
to encourage the demonstration and pre-
9serVation of forests has worked adj
mirably In Germany, and / am of the;
opinion that such plan would be of
lincalculable benefit to us in America
i believe If the government distrib-s
5uted seeds and young trees to cities,
counties and states, or made some pro-
vision for the acquisition of lands by
local communities. with the understand
ing that the same be used for forestry
purposes, it would not be long before
Americans would appreciate the value
of forests with their many advantages
Inscase the local community owned the
forest 1t could be administered either
by the local authorities or by the for
Mt ,s-l,i No, 1ntt
charging the community only the ac-
.tual cost Of administering the forest.
This system would produce four re-
suits First, it would conserve our
natural resources and cause the refor-
estration of large wasted acres; sec
.ondly. it would regulate our timber
supply: thirdly it would check the
present evils of careless management
and use of forests; and fourthly, 1t
would be a source OF considerable
revenue. True. we have at the present
time in the United States 100000 900
acres of forest reserves, and indeed
they were set apart none too soon for
the future prosperity of our country:
but with few exceptions. there has been
no movement on the part of cities or
states to study or put into practise
any system of forestry. The state of
New York has secured about one mill
lion of acres of timber land which it
Is reTOFeSlerlnE,s projecting ana Careful
ly administering. Pennsylvania has
also acquired 100000 acres of forest
lands for the purpose of maintaining
it as a forest. l feel that if the fed
eral government takes steps looking
toward the encouragement of local for
estry, the work will be taken up sys-
and energtically by the sew
eral states and many cities, and the
result would be exceedingly beneficial.
My visits to the forests of France,
Germany and Switzerland convinced
me that great things can be accom-
plished by the wise administration and
use of our American forests. We were
well received and royalty entertained by
the officials of all the countries that
we visited. and every courtesy was cx-
tended to US as official representatives
OF the United States. Before the re-
converting of Congress I expect to
make an official report of our trip to
President Roosevelt