Evening star., 1916-11-30
contained s.2oo, ,ooo, 600, 900 board feet of

contained 5.2oo, ,ooo, 100000 board feet Of
merchantable saw timber. The forest
service estimates the timber now stand
ing at 2.767, ,0O0. ZOO, 900 board feet Tim
ber is an exhaustible resource because of
the slowness with which. even under IA
vorable conditions. 1t reproduces.
In October the director of the bureau
of mines said that we have probably
reached the climax of our production of
crude oil. adding that the geological sur
vey estimates deposits of petroleum as
yet undeveloped will scarcely furnish a
supply for more than thirty years. If this
estimate is correct, our supplies of natu-
raj gas may not last SO long. Although
our other natural resources of the kind
in question may not show such speedy
exhaustion, they all have the same ten
dency toward extinction.
Waste Is Pointed Out.
in the seam has been said by the direc-
tor of the bureau of mines to be lost so
far as beneficial utilization is concerned
Millions Of barrels of oil have been wasted
by being allowed to flow into the stream by
being mixed with water or by evapora-
tton. There has been no such waste in
any other mining. By passing into the
air from uncontrolled gas wells, from
Oil wells, from giant flambeaus, from
leaking pipe lines and from many other
methods OF waste, natural gas is said to
pc Sacr1f1ced at a rate of not less than
l,O00, ,0OO, 900 cubic feet a day and prob
ably very much more AS for lumber. it
has been estimated that only about So
per cent of the total volume of timber
as II stands in the forest now reaches the
ultimate consumer. The remaining 81
per cent is lost in stump, sawdust. slabs
trimmings. broken timber and logs left in
the woods.
Present conditions not only produce
lrreparaole waste in materials but in
NE ano ilmh The latest estimates.
according to the national chamber com
mittee. indicate that in the United
states each year there are about -, 900
deaths which result from industrial
accidents Over 1000 of them occur
IN metal mining, coal mining and the
lumber industry In these three in
dustrles. with 1.400.000 employees in
1913. the number of fatalities was al
most exactly the same as among rail-
way employees. although there were
"Oo,oo more railway employees In the
three industries in question between
three and four men at an average in
every thousand were killed in 1913, In
other words, if a man remained in
such an industry for twenty years. his
chances for being killed during the
period would be almost one in ten
Commission Has Facilities.
The government supervision which
the committee includes in it's recon-
mendation it believes should occur
through the federal trade commission,
which has facilities for coming to con-
clusions about the public interest in
each case, and about the methods of
operation and their bearing upon prop
er conservation and utilization, as well
as their efficiency in safeguarding life
and limb.
The committee declares that it's rec
ommendation that there should be
remedial legislation to permit cooper
ative agreements in those industries
which involve primary natural re-
sources does not constitute departure
from the course of federal legislation.
On the contrary. it accords with the
purpose of enactments of recent years.