The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-12-25
GREAT VALUE OF
 SOUTH'S FORESTS Timber Is One of Greatest Re-
 sources ot South WASTE TO BE PREVENTED Plan Is on Foot for the National Gov ernment to Help in Conservation
 of the Sources of Such
 Wealth.
WASTE TO BE PREVENTED

Washington, December o4-(Special) J.
 Roughly speaking, the original forest
 areas of the United States can readily be
 divided into five regions; the north
 ern, the southern, the central, the Rocky mountain, and the Pacific. The north ern forest covered the New England and
 Middle Atlantic states and the Lake states; the central forest, the great river valleys west of the Appaiachians and north of the Gulf states; the southern forest, the Atlantic and Gulf seaboard from New Jersey through Texas, and the Rocky mountain and Pacific forests, the regions whose names they take Each of these, with the exception of the Rocky mountain forest, which had far less than
 the others, originally contained about one-fourth of the total supply of timber
 of the United States. The southern type, the subject of this article, widened
 out southward and westward from New
 Jersey through Virginia, the Carolinas,
 Alabama and the Gulf states, into Ar
 kansas and part of Missouri and Okla d
 in which the yellow pines heavily pre-
 dominate. Interspersed with the pines are cypress, oak, gum, magnolia, yellow poplar and a variety of other hardwoods
 The total original area of this forest was about 220,0o0,0O0 acres and it contained at least LOG, 900, 0oo0O feet of timber.
 Forests Are Reduced.
 All of the forests have been reduced by cutting, clearing and fire. The south
 ern forest now contains 115,000,000 acres and 5Oo,0oo, 100000 board feet; or, in other
 words, since the development of the
 country began 1t has been reduced in
 extent by one-fourth and in production
 by one-half. Even now, however, one of
 the chief sources of natural wealth in
 the south lies in it's forests and what re-
 mains still forms the most important
 body of timber in the United States, for,
 though the great forests of the Pacific
 coast contain more timber they yield
 only a few varieties and are compara-
 lively far from market. The care of the
 southern forests. therefore, presents
 wonderful opportunity 70 the people of
 the south; for If the remaining forest is wisely used and if the timber in
 terests that are coming in from the ex-
 hausted woodlands of the north will
 practice sound forest management, the
 south can easily become the chief per manent source of timber in the coun-
 try.
 Lumber of the South. In 1870 the south contributed barely
 one-tenth to the total lumber product,
 in 1900 in produced one-fourth, in 1904
 1t was probably one-third and since then 1t has kept up the same ratio. The south, therefore, outranks all other lum-
 Der producing regions, and her yellow
 pine alone produces each year more lum- Der than the combined product of Doug las fir of the Pacific forest, white pine of the northern forest and the oak of the central forest
 More than 10000 sawmills, or nearly 43 per cent of those in the country, are now located in the southern states. They em-
 ploy at least 10000 men, or 50 per cent
 of all the labor engaged in the lumber industry in the United States. During the
 last quarter of century the capital in- vested in southern logging and milling
 has arisen from s20,00o,000 to $lSo,c0oOO, and the wage of the labor employed has increased six fold. The manufacturing of lumber, with an annual output valued at nearly $200,O00,000, is outranked by only one industry, agriculture, and is exceeded in value only by the cotton crop. It is of great importance that this vast
 source of wealth be fully conserved through wise use. In some regions, since timber grows slowly, and individuals and
 states can not readily take up long time investments, 1t Is right and just that the
 national government should step in and help conserve the supply through the es- tablshment of national forests, as for | instance, in the southern Appalachian | region
 Working for Betterment. 1 But in any event, lumbermen and own | CTS of timber land should not wait inac- 1 lively for this condition to be brought about. They should do all in their power | to work for such 8 consummation for | the good of the future south. In many cases it has been held that the proper 1 management of the present supply will ] work only for the advantage of future | generations. Even if this were true, I would 1t not be worth while to work for
 
 l most of those who are engaged in the | lumber business today will live to see the fruits of forestry. If a sawmill, for ex- ! ample, has ahead of it 20 years cutting l in the old-fashioned, wasteful way, at the l end of 20 years the mill is out of timber | and worth only the price of scrap iron | If, on the other hand, the lumber has | been wisely selected and an opportunity | has been given for new timber to grow. | the sawlnill still has perpetual supply 1 and probably of an improved class of 1 lumber
 l The southern Appalachians hold the l largest and finest hardwood forests of
 the world, and 1t is not only one of the ! most valuable resources of the south. but l constitutes the great, almost the only | supply of hardwood timber for the whole l United States. For the soft woods-pine
 spruce, fir, hemlock-the market may turn | to the north, or to the Pacific coast. But
 for hardwoods, the country is dependent | mainly upon the south, and, therefore, l as the feeder of many important indus | tries all over the country this great hard 1 wood belt forms most valuable asset l to the whole nation. A national forest | in this region will do more than any | other one thing to perpetuate this sup | ply. and to perpetuate to the south the | wealth that is to be derived from it. |
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