The Washington herald., 1908-03-22
ASIA MINOR FORESTS
Their Depletion Results in
Crop Failure at Smyrna.
VALUABLE TIMBER DESTROYED
Shepherds WaStefuI I'm Cutting
Wood for Building HutS and Keep
Ing FIres-SawmIIIs Lacking, and
Railroads wanting to Develop
the Lumber Industry.

Consul Ernest L. Harris. writing from
Smyrna. gives some interesting facts re-
garding the forests Of Asia Minor. the
uses OF wood in that country, and the
effects of the depletion OF the wood
ranges.
The trees of which the forests OF Asia
Minor are composed are the fr. pine.
cypress. cedar. juniper birch. chestnut.
oak. plane. poplar. linden. beech. elm.
ash. and willow. The old forests have
disappeared and the tendency of nature
to prepare the soil for a second growth
is being continually defeated AS no in
dustry has ever laid claims upon the for
ests Of Asia Minor. their disappearance
can be attributed only to the demand for
frewood.
Fir and pine forests now exist in this
country only on the high pisteaus or
mountain ranges. such as the Paphlago-
nian mountain range. which is located to-
ward the shores Of the Black Sea. In
this region the rainfall is greater each
year than in the vilayet Of Smyrna
Beech. plane. and elm trees also thrive in
this section. in the valleys and plains In
Armenia there are large forests of red
beech. walnut oak. and chestnut There
are said TO be forests Of large beech
trees in the country back OF TrebizOnd.
at some distance from the coast. and in
the Ak Dagh Mountains near Amasia. II
is also said that there are forests Of tall
pines not far from Angora. Between
Smyrna and Konia there are no forests
of Importance The Tmolus range Is Gov
q ,Y,,
Is true. more or less. OF the SalcaccUs
range at Denizli. II IS nothing but thick
ct OF underground as far as I have seen.
ana is used chiefly in burning charcoal
Other Varieties of Trees.
The willow tree. which grows well in
some parts OF the country, especially
near Angora. is TO some degree protected
from the inhabitants on account OF the
shade il affords in summer and because
II grows rapidly and is supposed 10 act as
a preventive against fever The whiplike
branches are often woven into beehives
The poplar is frequently found in large
groves scattered about the countryside.
and is used chiefly in constructing houses
| in the Turkish villages.
The oriental plane tree is found all
over Asia Minor. but seldom in groves
/ They usually stand alone along the road
ways and serve the traveller as halfway
stations. where he finds some protection
from the summer san and a fountain.
| These trees also add considerable TO the
scenery of the country. They grow to be
several hundred years old. and often at
tain such size that shepherds have been
known 10 cut huts in the trunks OF the
standing trees. and their vitality Is so
great that they continue 10 live for years
thereafter.
The plane is also a fsvorite shade tree
! Smyrna has none, but Constantinople
and the little valleys leading away from
the Bosphorus. as well as most cities
and villages in the interior. have large
numbers Of them The Turks are fond OF
having them in front OF their cafes aud
in the yards OF their mosques.
Cypress n Stately Tree.
The oriental cypress is a stately tree,
which grows TO exceptional size in Tur-
key, and especially along the coast Of
/ Asia Minor. II is revered by the people
and is planted in groves in every Turk
! ish cemetery These trees are an orna-
ment to the country. and no Turkish
| landscape is complete without them. In
the old cemetery OF smyrna the grove
is several hundred years old. and an an
cient stately cypress keeps watch over
the tomb of Polycarp.
In various parts OF this yilayet a GER
tain kind OF scrub oak nourishes. upon
the leaves of which the gall wasp lays
its eggs These eggs become secreted in
the cells OF the plant, and after a time
form excrescences the size of berry
called gaIlnuts from which a winged in
sect finally makes it's way out and es-
capes. The nuts are green and white in
color, and some 5000 10 4.0O0 sacks are
shipped to England. Germany, and Aus
tria every year. Some gallnuts are ex-
ported to America for the purpose Of
making ink, but only small quantities
are shipped from the port of Smyrna
In 1901 the value of the shipments to the
United States was only $3.50
Waste I'm Use of Timber.
In the opinion of experts the quality OF
the timber in Asia Minor is good. The
state reserves TO itself the control of the
forests az all times, but there does not
| appear to be any system of forestry in
this country, with the exception of a few
experiment stations laid out near some
of the railways which lead into Asia
Minor. The peasants are permitted TO
chop and burn freely A government per-
nit is necessary only in case timber is
to be exported.
The owner of some forests near the
headwaters of the Boil Su River. who
holds permit 70 export timber. has Civ
en- me description Of the manner CT OBJ
tanning lumber in that region. Along