The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-08-02

TO PROTEST.
Forestry Bill Is Declared
RuinOus.
FIGHT TO COME THIS WEEK
w. Y. Lovelace Talks Of Proposed
Regulations.
Prediction Made That should Bill Pass
Farming and Industrial Progress
Would BE Foredoomed In
South Alabama.
FIGHT TO COME THIS WEEK

Despite the assurances Oh secretary
Wallace. of the state Commission OF
Forestry, that the new forestry bill In.
troduced in the Senate IL for the "di-
rect" benefit OF the lumbermen, pro-
tests without number are expected to
flood the committee this week when
consideration of the measure Is begun.
Lumbermen are awakening to the Sc
robustness of the proposition as they do
not lose sight of the fact that the sub
ject was mentioned in the call OF the
Governor, and that official Is said to
have stamped 1t with his approval.
Senator Overton, after reading the
bill carefully, Is against the stringent
feature which seeks to regulate the
size of timber cut on private lands.
He In still of mind to lead the fight
In the Senate committee on the bill.
Additional arguments against the
forestry legislation was advanced yes
terday by w. Y. Loyelace. OF Brewton,
of the .L0velace Brothers Lumber Com
pany. He predicts that should the bill
pass 1t would foredoom South Alabama
against farming and further Industrial
progress and would bankrupt two.
thirds OF the saw mills Of the state.
TT Is really hard to see ahead the
vast outcome of such a proposition,
said Mr.. Lovelace who has interview
ed many of the legislators on the sub
iect. In the first place 1t means that
all mills which do not own and operate
in virgin timber will have to shut
down. AS all men Of experience know,
1t would not be profitable to cut tim
Der in the cut-over lands when allow
ed to harvest only twelve or fifteen
hundred feet per acre. We are now
cutting about three thousand feet an
acre, but in my opinion IL this law Is
enforced the legal cut would fall below
fifteen hundred feet.
This would stop the logging bust
ness, and therefore SHUT down the
mills. One cannot afford to carry on
the necessary railroad operations to
get into the woods for SO small yield
per acre. 1t would not be warranted
by the expenses of the job. The road
which connects our plant with the tim
Der standing Is about twenty-five miles
long. ! estimate that the nearest tim
Der is ten miles distant. 1 am abso-
lutely sure that IL We are prevented
from cutting trees of less than twelve
inches diameter as the law requires, 1t
would stop operations. It takes money
to go after logs on cut-over lands.
Besides, even IL we could run there
would be the extra bunch of OK teams
for some of which we would have no
use. And to throw these Son the mar
ket all at once would result In certain
loss.
Now, let's see If 1t is so profitable
q thing for the lumberman to wait ten
or fifteen years or twenty years for
the timber to grow before cutting any
more. The mill would be standing un-
used and deteriorate SO that at the
future date of operation 1t would be
rendered practically useless. The rail-
road property itself would deteriorate,
and submit that in the distant future
when 1t would become proper in the
estimation OF the State officials to be-
gin cutting 1t again would be imprac.
ticable to build all over again. The
mills are worth something
"It should be remembered that all
this time the trees have been growing
at the rate Of about one inch in eight
years. This is the proven average of
the younger pine. Therefore, there
would be no material increase say in
ten years for the available legal sup
ply of timber. Meantime everything is
at a standstill. We are now cutting
away the timber and clearing the land
for farming. There are encouraging
experiments in our county In the
growing Of tobacco. 1t has been dem
onstrated that the denuded pine lands
make. good farming soil. Does It not
mean, If this bill is passed, that there
will be no hope of settlement IN the
pine SCcLIOn VI AldDdlud. OOcS IL AOt
mean that the land will lie idle when
it is breaking the owner to carry II
with all the obligations that may be
outstanding against it7
Furthermore, on that point, 1t can
mean but one thing in reference to
the future ownership Of the limb err
land. The present owners could not
AFFORD to hold the land for profits In
the long future. He would at some
a 30 4.
tor, for many of the lumbermen are
now forced to cut and keep cutting to
take care of the indebtedness 1t
would mean the ultimate monopoly of
the lands in my opinion by the large
Northern syndicates. And 1t is impos-
sibIe that once such a situation OBJ
tains the people will suffer by extrav-
agant prices"
It is the opinion Of Mr.. Lovelace.
Joined in by many of the Senators, he
says, that II Alabama wants to set an
example in the conservation of her
timber resources, the Legislature
should adopt some feasible plan of
scattering the sacrifice. 1t should not
be made to fall on a few of the citizens
if.as alleged. the scheme is to benefit
all the people of future generations
It is suggested that the State issue
bonds for the purchase OF timber tracts
and creation Of forest reserves. Then
tax the people at large for the pay
ment of interest on the debt. That is
the alternative offered by the timber
men in lieu of crushing at one fell
blow the entire industry In the State
as 1t now exists, as they look at the
law proposed.
The bill of the Senate also proposes
to prevent the boxing of pines for tur-
pentine under fifteen inches in diam
eter The turpentine interests are said
TO be up in arms against the bill as
ct- nnEl, O fha b arLlaan