The Robesonian. [volume] (Lumberton, N.C.) 1870-current, 1908-04-13
ARBOR DAY.

the WelI-be1ng and wealth. OF
the PeOPIe-The Forest One of =,
Our Greatest and Most VaIu- =
able Natural Gifts. y
The suggestions given in this q
JulletIn for lesson in the obser- d
yance of Arbor Day have been f
made by w. w. Ashe, Forester a
Of the Geological Survey. It is c
to be desired that this day shall I
be more generally observed and {
that our young people shall be &
brought to a realization of the 8
value of our forests and the
beauty and need of trees for
shade and decorative purposes.
Arbor day is May 20, and how
soon many of our school yards
could be made places of beauty il
on each Arbor Day the school
would plant a certain number of
trees or shrubs and then care for
them during the year.
While the same sentiment
which is attached to the Observ-
ance of Arbor Day in the scantily
fOrested Western States cannot
be applied in a we'll wooded State
like North Carolina. yet the
observance here of such a day
has its significance. ArbOr Day
in North Carolina could be set
aside for the school children to
learn of the great natural gift
which we have in the forests, and
the relation of the forest to the
we'll being and wealth of our peo-
pie.
The right way to plant a tree,
how the roots and crown should
be, the manner Of pressing the
earth firmly about the roots, and
how to prune the branches-this
is a manual exercise but one
which it is well for anyone to be
able to perform.
The life of the tree is closely
associated with thesmalleSt root:
which absorb moisture and the
need for preserving these when
transplanting should be emphasi
ed. The moisture the tree mus
! have, it's use of manure Qeat
mould and humus), how it grows
and bears its fruit are elementar,
to the fundamental truths of tn,
D relation of the forest to the hap
p piness and progress Of our PEG
= pie.
o Next to the very soil itself
! which in North Carolina was or
o iginally nearly all forest covered
y the forest has been the chic
source of livelihood for our PEG
pie. If it at one time temporari
r ly barred the progress of tn
farm, it yielded at the same tim
G a revenue in furnishing bot
: warmth and shelter. When tn
70 farming land became worn an
=, thin or quilted, the thickets {
pine again covered the soil, n
storing its fertility and maxim
it productive. The relation {
the forest to the farm is para
L. noun. 1t is SO intimate as I
d. be almost inseparable. On til
it farm the uses of wood are man
IT. fold, for fuel, fencing, buildin
tools and barrels and crates fC
x, shipping,
ek Within itself, moreover, tt
n forest sustains a vast industr,
d. employing more than 10000 (
ne our men 10 handling and sawin
and reconverting it's lumber an
a. other products. The lumber
Y. used for building our towns all
If then it keeps the factories
of many of them busy, changing tt
70 rough lumber into furniture.
is the case at High Point al
- Lexington; or turning wood in
- pulp for paper, as is done in ii
mountains at Canton; or makir
1t, tanning materials from WOO
III which is done at Old Fort.
But even this is not the limit
d. the direct usefulness of the fc
of est. The valde Of the many ri
ers of North Carolina for man
he featuring depends largely up
I've the uniformity of their flo
nd upon the absence of great flood
no and the shortness of the peri
an of low water, and upon how SIN
a quantity of sand and earth
washed from the soil of our hi
and mountains. Great uneve
up ness in the flow of the streal
)O,- makes it difficult to usethe pow
ate Large amounts of earth in t