Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-01-23

stroycd by fire is worth far more than
the merchantable timber burned.
One-fourth of the standing timber is
lost In logging. The boxing of long
leaf pine for turpentine has destroyed
| one-ffth of the forests worked. The
less in the mill is from one-third to
two-thirds of the timber sawed. The
less of mill product in seasoning and
fitting for use is from one-seventh to
one-fourth.
We. take from our forests each year,
not counting the loss by fire, three and
half times their yearly growth; we
| twelve cubic feet grown; we take 260
cubic feet per capita. while Germany
| uses thirty-seven and France twenty
| five cubic feet.
| We tax our forests under the general
property tax, a method abandoned long
ago by every other great nation. Pres
ent tax laws prevent reforestation of
cut over land and the perpetuation of
existing forests by use
Great damage is done to standing
timber by injurious forest insects.
Much of this damage can be prevented
at small expense.
| To protect our farms from wind and
to reforest land best suited for forest
growth will require tree planting on
| an area larger than Pennsylvania.
| Ohio and West Virginia combined
Lands so far successfully planted
make a total area smaller than Rhode
Island. and year by year, through care
| less cutting and fires. we lower the ca
pacity of existing forests to produce
| their like again or else totally destroy
them.
The preservation BY use under the
methods of practical forestry of all
public forest lands, either In state or
federal ownership. is essential to the
permanent public welfare. In many
forest states the requirement of addi-
tional forest lands as state forests is
| necessary to the best interests of the
states themselves.
The conservation Of our mountain
forests. as in the Appalachian system.
is national necessity These forests
are required 70 aid ia the regula ton
OF streams used for navigation ana
other purposes. The conservation of
these forests is impracticable through
private enterprise alone, by any state
alone or by the federal government
alone. Effective and immediate CO.
operation between these three agencies
is essential. Federal ownership of lin.
tied protective areas upon important
watersheds, effective state fire patrol
and the cooperation of private forest
owners are all required
The true remedy for unwise tax
laws lies not in laXity in their applica-
ton nor in special exemption, but in a
change in the method OF taxation. An
annual tax upon the land itself. eX-
elusive of the value of the timber, and
a tax upon the timber when cut are
we'll adapted TO actual conditions OF
forest Investment ard are practicable
4 and certain. 1t is far better that for.
est land should pay moderate tax
permanently than that it should pay
an excessive revenue temporarily and
then cease TO pay at all.
Forests in private ownership cannot
be conserved unless they are protected
! me- We HCCu s,OSu liit y
well enforced. Fire control is impoSsi
bic without an adequate force of men
whose sole duty is fire patrol during
the dangerous season.
The conservative use of the fores,
and of timber by American citizens
will not be general until they learn
how to paotice forestry.
We shall suffer for timber to meet
our needs. until our forests have had
time to grow again. But if we act
vigorously and at once we shall es
cape permanent timber scarcity.
Waters.
The sole source of our fresh water
is rainfall. including snow. From this
source all running. standing and
ground waters are derived The hab
liability of the country depends OF
these waters. Our mean annual rain
fall is about thirty inches. the quantity
about 215.000 000.OO0,000 cubic feet pei
year, equivalent to ten Mississippi riv
crs.
OF the total rainfall over half i.
evaporated. about third flows int,
the sea, and the remaining sixth is eli
thcr consumed or absorbed. Thes
portions are sometimes called respec
lively the fiy-0ff. the run-off and til,
|