Daily Arizona silver belt., 1909-03-02
Biz Tree National Forest
 Bill Signed by President

WASHINGTON, March 1.--By sign ing the bill for the creation of the Gala veras National Forest, California, Pres ident Roosevelt has completed the leg islativc act which saves for all time the most famous grove of trees in the world. The people of California, par tieularly the 300 women of the Califor- mia club, have been working to inter est the government in this wonderful grove of big trees for more thnn nine years, but not until now has 1t been possible to arrange n plan satisfactory alike to the owners of the land and to congress.
 The senate bill passed by the house of representatives has just been signed ! by the president. Everyone interested in the great natural wonders reioices that as means of saving the big trees the way has been paved for D practical exchange of the timber in the groves | for stumpage on other forest land owned by the government. The first Calaveras bill was introduced in the senate four years ago by Senator Per kins of California. Bills for the same purpose were passed in the upper house of congress n number of times, but al ways failed of favorable consideration in the house until. Senate Bill l574, also introduced by Senator Perkins, was called up by Congressman $. C. Smith of California last week.
 |
 1 Robert. B. Whiteside of Duluth, Minn., prominent lumberman operating in the Lake states and on the Pacific coast, After his agreement to the proposals, which are simply a practical exchange of timber for timber, the entire Cali fornia delegation gave it's solid and enthusiastic support to the bill. No ap- propriation is needed to carry out the provisions of the act. The land to be acquired under the bill includes about 96O acres in what is known as the North Calavcras grove in Calaveras county, and 3,040 acres in the South grove in Tuolumne coutny. The North grove contains ninety-threo big trees and in the south grove there are 1880 of these giant sequolas. Any tree under eighteen feet in circumfer- ence, or six feet through, is not con sidered in the count of large trees. Be sides the giant sequoias there are hun dreds of sugar pines and yellow pines of astonishing proportions, ranging to the height of 275 feet and often attain l ing diameter of eight to ten feet There arc also many white frs and in lcense cedars in the two tracts. \ gov. ernment study of the land was made by field party under the direction of
 Fred c. Hummer, United States for
 est service, in 1906.
 The Calaveras big trees are known
 the world over. The North grove con
 tains ten trees each having diameter
 of twenty-five feet over, and morc 4 than seventy having diameter of fiji
 teen to twenty five feet. Most of tht , trees have been named, some for famou!
 generals of the United States and oth
 CTS for statesmen and various states ot the Union.
 The Father of the Forests, now down is estimated by Hittel, in his "Re
 sources of California;" to have had 1,
 height of 45O feet and a diameter a
 the ground of more than forty fec
 when it was standing. Massachusetts, contains 1lS,000 board feet of lumber : Governor Stoneman contains l0S.09' !, board feet, and the Mother of the For
 est, burned in the terrible forest fri ! which licked its way into q part o the grove last summer, contains l05,0G' board feet. Each of these trees nameS
 grows as much lumber as is grown CT
 dinarily on fifteen to twenty acres O
 timber land. The bark runs from si! , inches to two feet in thickness. }. Among other large named trees in tn , two groves are Waterloo, Pennsylvania James King, Old Bachelor, Pride of tin , Forest, Daniel Webster, Sir Jobn Frank lin, Empire State, U. $. Grant, w. I Sherman, J. P. McPherson, Abraham l Lincoln, Connecticut, Ohio, Grove Cleveland, Dr. Nelson, General Custer Dr. J. w. Dawson, General Hancock Knight of the Forest, Two Sentinel , and Old Dowd.