The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1921-09-17

Taxation is big factor in this problem Ii we
exempt certain timber lands from taxation, as
they have seen wise to do In some OF the oiuer
countries, it will encourage the seeding OF that
land to timber. As it now stands millions OF acres
that might and really should be yielding timber
are sown to other products and bringing mig
gardly return.
.This is simply because this is timber land and
timber should be on it. The farmers however,
consider that since it is taxed they must SOW some
thing which will bring an immediate return Ihere
are 100000 acres Of nontillable land in Illinois
alone.
"We have in the United States 100000 acres
of what is called denuded land. and more than
4OOOOOOOO acres Of what call cutover land.
Denuded land is land on which forest fires have
occurred and where the fire has eaten its way so
deep into the soil as to destroy the seedlings that
might spring up.
"Cutover land is land from which timber has
been taken and on which second growth is posi-
BILE and often times springs up. Such land VIII
make forests In period Of some forty years II 1t
is taken care OF. Taking care of such land IS
another phase OF the forestry problem"
The National Forests created in 1905, now con-
tain 155OOOOOO acres of forest and grazing land.
They are managed by the forest service, bureau
Of the agriculture department. Col. w. B. Greeley
IL forester Presumably he is well Informed on
forestry conditions Here are some figures he
gives which show how the changed and changing
conditions have affected particular part OF the
country Says Colonel Greeley:
.Chicago is the greatest lumber market in the
world. Since 1890 an average of over 1000 100000
feet OF lumber has come into Chicago every year.
In 1920 the figure was nearly 25O0,0O0OO0 feet, 60
per cent of which went into local construction and
manufacturing industries In 1900 tkexaverage
freight paid on lumber coming into Chicago was
less than So per thousand feet Since that time
fnr I,ic rfDru have
been exhausted one after another. Lumber ship
ments have. traversed greater and greater dis
tances, and the. average freight bill paid by the
Chicago distributor has steadily risen to more
than $12 per thousand feet
aIn other words, the increased transportation
charge on lumber Ahipments. into Chicago as re-
suit Of the exhauAtion Of the forest regions sur
rounding itsrepfesents toll Of $22,500.OOO an
ntlally And while this has happened there have
accumulated in the central and lake states nearly
23OOOOO0 acres Of logged-of forest land which Is
producing, neither farm crops nor timber; $2Z-
100000 il the yearly tax which the wood-using In
dustries and home builders supplied through Chi
cago. pay for the idleness Of large part -of the
soil In the surrounding states which should fur
nish the natural supply for this district. This sum
would plant every year 100000 acres Of land with
forest trees.
.aThis Illustration may be extended to cover the
four states Of Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and
Michigan. These states consume Annually be-
tween 4OOOO 900 600 and SO 600 feet of timber
In furniture factories, sash and door mills fac-
tories manufacturing agricultural implements,
wood-turning establishments and other wood-using
industries Sawmills are excluded from this est
mate, ulso the requirements for general construc-
don and housing, and the consumption OF lumber
on farms.
sThe manufacturers referred to represent an
invested capital Of $76OO0o.0OO and enroll 250OOO
skilled employees. This great manufacturing In
lustry was built up on the softwood forest OF the
lake states and the hardwood forests Of the Ohio
and upper Mississippi valleys, whose products
were available at low transportation cost. In