Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1920-03-01
February 2S. 1920.
Editor Morning Journal,
Albuquerque, n. NJ.

Albuquerque, N. NJ.
Dear Sir:-I have read with
much interest your editorial in
today's Journal entitled Bureau
Pushing for Land Monopoly" and
hope you will allow me space for
& reply.
You are entirely right in assum-
ing that the forest service is con-
Quoting a strenuous campaign-not
for land acquisition as such-but
for the increase of forests and
forestry, whether by nation. state,
or individual. This campaign has
been under way for many years,
but chiefly during the last year anu
a half.
AS the custodian of 1855 million
acres of the nations forests, as the
chief and official representative Of
American forestry, the forest serv-
ice has the moral obligation to keep
the American people fully inform
ed of the status of its forests.
whether public or private. 1t has
been giving out this information
with increasing persistence as the
reasons have increased for grave
apprehension for our future tim
Der supply.
In the face of the menace of a
timber famine the familiar SQUAD
Bile over the non ,aXlbility of fed
eral lands becomes of minor i'm
portance. The essential question
is, where are we going to get our
future timber? The nation as a
whole Is now cutting its timber
three times as fast as new timber
grows to replace it. Our timber
lands have, under private owner
ship. suffered ruthless devastation
for decades; and frequently what
little was left from the lumber
mans axe has been consumed by
fire.
The forest service has proposed
o practical program for placing the
forests of this country under at
least a rough form of forestry. 1t
proposes that private owners of
timber land should be restrained
by law from devastating their
lands. Let them cut their timber,
but let them take a few elementary
precautions-such as fire proven
tion--to assure q second crop of
trees, and let the public help pay
the bill of preventing devastation.
The forest service further proposes
that the states and the federal
government should largely increase
their holdings of timber
1t is significant that this pro-
gram has the support not only of
/ the great majority of foresters of
the country. but also of the big
lumber manufacturers, who are
coming to realize that the destruc-
ton Of forests means not only a
timber famine, but the destruction
Of the numbering industry.
In view of the fact that it takes
about 200 years in the southwest
to grow western, yellow pine, it
should be obvious that the grow
ing of this timber is not an enter
prise that will appeal to the pri-
vate investor. What corporation
is going to wait 200 years for its
returns, meanwhile constantly
sinking funds into taxes. fire pro-
| lection and management? OBJ
Iviously-as Europe found out 500
Yeas tiSp XIV SAONlAl1 VI III tet6
as a crop is peculiarly a state en-
terprise. The time is too long for
private investors. Here in Amer
lea the forest service and before it
the old bureau of forestry have for
twenty-five years urged the prac-
tice of forestry on private lands.
The results have been Insignificant.
Doubtless you will admit that
timber has got to be grown by
somebody, and that private owners
have in large part signally failed to
do anything but harvest their ma
ture timber. That they have
so largely failed to do any
thing more is doubtless natural,
and only adds overwhelming force
to the argument for state and fed
eral acquisition of forest lands. If
the state and federal governments
are not to grow timber, and private
owners can not do 50 with reason