The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1913-01-05


years afuerward. and not so very long
ago. a medal was received at the post
office in Sand Beach, Mich, addressed
to Charley Pack. 1t was for me. The
Canadian Parliament had voted honors
to the veterans of the Fenian war, to-
i province of Alberta got the medal, but
never claimed the land-it's an anchor
TO the windwsrd which I may need here
after.
We'll. as I said. I went to Carlsbad
with my father. He soon discovered that
my German was horribly deficient even
] as q vehicle by which to convey our
7 wants to the waiter at the table. He
was a decisive man. Take your choice.'
he said. Go home at once or study six
| hours day Both propositions were I'M
! pleasing, but I chose the latter. A man
| taught me German three hours each
| morning. A woman taught me in the
| afternoon. She happened to be the daugh-
| ter OF the village forester. I made the
acquaintance of the father right of,
| spending all the time I could with him
| In the woods. learned many new things
about a subject that attracted me above
| all others
Trees. I found, become senfle like hu-
man beings. Forests / was shown, re-
quire attention, as do all growing crops.
| also discovered that while the senti-
ment back OF the plea to the cruel woods
man TO spare the tree is rather pathetic
| in type or on the platform, that II is ac-
| tualy irrational as an everyday Gus
| tom The poets tree. wept over in
words, has quit growing. or is decaying
at the heart. and should be promptly cut
down and used and another should be
planted in the ground It occupies. I re-
! turned to America with new ideas and
a greater interest in forests.
| "A clergyman became my German tutor
at home. BY any by 1 accompanied my
| father again to Carlsbad carrying a let
! ter from my tutor to Herr Katz. OF
Gernsbach, who. unknown to me then.
was a member of the German Reichstag
| and the president of a lumber. company
doing business in the Black Forest. I
| visited at the house Of Herr Katz and
made the acquaintance of his children
and many young people in the neiSnbor-
hood. His company had 5000 acres
of tame and fichtel. which are varieties
OF spruce.
A German Commercial Forest.
The forest had been owned by the Aatz
family for more than 200 years. No more
| timber was cut in any year than was
| grown during the year, and so the forest
was continuous and the reserves were
always the same. Diseased trees and
| dangered those which were in good
health, md therefore had to make room
for seedlings and saplings, as is the Gus
tom in all scientifically managed forests.
Il became a guest in the family of Herr
KatZ after my father returned to the
United States want my children to
learn more about America Herr KatZ
told me. Besides, you may improve
their English accent l remained at his
spent I'm the forest 1 specialized in sew
eral subjects at a German technical
school the following year. Coming home,
/ spent some time in the forests of Can
ada The lumbermen of Michigan and
Wisconsin had begun to realize that the
stock of standing timber in their part of
the country soon would be exhausted.
1t has been said that the pine of the
Northwest was chopped down with vandal
and mercenary axes and much Of II
wasted. That statement is untrue. The
| trees after a growth of two centuries,
had reached their full development. Their
use was wise under the circumstances.
I'VE had heard about the forests Of
Mississippi and Louisiana. l went South
in the year 1881, consequently, on jour
ney of investigation. Long-leafed pine,
L perceived, was the most valuable tree
! in that part OF the country. One day l
made a singular discovery. Fire, l had
noted. never damaged 1ong-leafed pine.
White pine is particularly sensitive to
heat. A slight fire on the floor of
white pine forest will kill the trees.
though it may scarcely scorch the
trunks. l saw a quick and fierce fire
burning up the needles under some long
| leafed pines. When II reached the trees.
| however, II suddenly went out. Gas in
the exuding rosin, low down near the
roots. exploded and smothered the
flames At all events, that is what L
| thought l tested my theory several
times. then and afterward, and found
that il was chemically correct.
Is Afraid to Meet Jay Gould.
The discovery, I believed. was of
value and left the woods and started
for New York. There, at the old Wind
sor Hotel, 1 met a railway official who
was friend of my father. 1 was a
rough looking character, but he was
glad to see me and 1 told him about my
trip. He offered to introduce me to Jay
Gould. I had read that Mr.. Gould was
q very wicked man and the offer was
declined on moral grounds. Mr.. Gould
came to the hotel next day. 1 saw him
and skunk out of n side door into the
street. Then the railway official inform
ed me that Mr.. Gould desired me to call
at his house. Your father he said,
will be displeased if you refuse went,
but with reluctance and some dread.
"A secretary and stenographer were
in the room with Mr.. Gould and I OBJ
served with alarm that the latter was
taking down every word 1 said. I had
never seen a stenographer before, and
his performance made me feel that l
was fast getting into a mysterious and
dangerous place. But 1 soon forgot him
in the excitement of my dialogue with
Mr.. Gould. He went straight to the bot
tom of every matter he touched. He
said that a railway in the South had
put out bonds containing a provision for
their redemption in land granted the
company by the government. While he
was obscure on the point, ! imagined
that he thought of buying some of the
bonds, then far below par, and exchang-
ing them later on for land. There were
two kinds of forests in the South, he
said-har6wood and pine. His friends be-
lieved that hardwood was the more val
liable. He asked my opinion. Rape
seed I replied, sells higher than wheat,
but fits use is limited. Pine. is as staple
,as meat or bread The answer seemed
to please Mr.. Gould. He then spoke OF
the risk of fire. What do you know
about the danger from that cause? he
asked
Gets a Check for $1,000.
ct know all about IT. answered
But I spent long days in the woods
, hunting for information and now that