The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1920-04-28
POSSIBLY A TiMsERLEss FUTURE

The prospect that dozen years
may see the merchantable pine tim
Der of Florida practically exhausted
is unpleasant A. government est
mate puts this states pine forest re
sources at 100000 acres and the
possible yield of timber at $4,000, 600,
900 feet Other estimates by experts
give 10000, 100000 feet of standing
timber on about 100000 acres. 1t
is figured out from the basis of the
number of mills that the annual con-
sumption of timber from the Florida
forests is more than 3,OOO,OO0,OOO feet
per annum. The annual cut would
overtake the supply in ten years, or
allowing for growth in twelve years
at least.
Tell the average man that the tim
Der supply of the state will be ex-
hausted in twenty-five or thirty years,
and he will feel little concern. Let
the next generation take care of it.
self, we want all the money we can
make from the supply in hand, would
be his view. But let him see that
dozen years hence there may be not
a sawmill in Florida, not stick of
native timber to be had for building
or other constructive purposes all our
timber imported from the mountain
regions of the Northwest, or from for
eign countries at great cost. All
our merchantable trees having been
culled or destroyed, and he will be
more reasonable. Yet that seems to
be an impending condition.
1T is not alone the large and in
creasing amount of timber used in
construction and in fuel that counts,
large as that is, but the enormous
losses by fire. Burning over the
woods each spring to secure a little
fresh grass for measly runts of cattle
not worth moments consideration
as against the value of the timber that
may be destroyed, carelessness of
campers in leaving their camp fires
burning upon leaving them, stupidity
OF the man who. walking through a
forest in dry time, throws down a
lighted match after light his pipe and
does not look to see where it falls, all
contribute to the loss of many mil
lion feet of timber annually in this
country which it took a century to
produce-as often happens.
Men hardly to be accounted old can
remember the time when wood was
so abundant as to be almost as cheap
as air or water. 1t was used reckless
ly; it was burned up in bonfires with
out a word of remonstrance, when
boxes and barrels all representing SC
mucch human labor were piled high
sometimes, and the match applied
great forests burned and the only con
Germ was to the life, human or other
that was destroyed or imperiled. Il
was always easy to find a piece OF
timber lying around for any purpose
In those days.
Now we see cities becoming dan
gerously crowded and rents so higf
that even the wealthy are content tc
be crowded together rather than pa,
the exhorbitant prices asked for rem
tai or for homes, and mainly because
wood is so scarce and dear that. wher
added to the cost of other buildin,
material and the high wages demand
ed the cost of building is almost pro
hibitive.
Even an enlightened national O
state forest policy would be nov
years too late to restore theold- Tim,
plenty but 1t would help somewha
to put off the evil day of complete an,
general timber exhaustion, for ever,
state in the Union suffers more or les
from growing scarcity Of TIMBER
Jacksonville Times Union.
The Pacific Coast League got ava,