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

these four states enough forest land to supply In
full the needs of these industries now stands idle.
Concerning the general situation he says.
Eve are cutting our timber probably four times
as fast as timber is being grown. 1t is useless to
decry the generous use which American industry
has made of our forests. 1t has contributed pow
erfully to the industrial development and COM
mercial supremacy of the United States. The for
estry problem does not result from the liberal use
of our forests, but from failure to use our
forest-growing land There is ample area of
land in this country, which is not tiiable, to sup
port all of timber requirements, all of our
wood manufactures. all of our home building and
agricultural use of lumber, indeed an even larger
export trade than at present If that land can be
kept at work growing timber
"Reforestation has not been taken seriously. by
the average business man in the United States.
Reforestation has been looked upon as fad quite
removed from the practical interests of the manu-
facturer as something more concerned with parks
or shade trees or rose bushes. Nevertheless, re-
forestation has now become commercial neces-
sity of the United States"
Here is how a particular state is affected says
Prof. P. S. Lovejoy Of the Forestry faculty, Uni
versity Of Michigan:
"a third of Michigan virtually is bankrupt, un-
able to pay it's way with schools and roads, get
ing poorer instead of richer from year to year. pro-
ducing less and less of value. This third of Mlchi-
gan takes 100000 acres or so, the most OF 1t
being in the northern part of the Lower Peninsula.
the rest in the Upper Peninsula. The bulk OF
these bankrupt lands were originally in pine for
est From 1870 to 1900 Michigan led the world
in the quantity, quality and value OF its timber
exports. Today Michigan is a tremendous I'M
porter of timber and other forest products. This
is unusual but not in itself proof that anything
is radically wrong. Ohio, Also was covered
originally with timber and Is now great I'M
OLE
ing.
"1ut in the case of Ohio, the removal OF the
forests was followed promptly by intensive agri-
cultural developments; the land went from
lower to higher kind of uSe
"NJichpan-grow hemlOck shipped 200 miles,
soils at the same price in Detroit as does mr. grown
IN the Pacific coast and shipped 2,OOO miles. Inc
hickory for the wheels of Michigan automoDiies IS
coming from Arkansas and Mississippi. The oak
For Grand RAPIDS furniture is being cut in Lousi-
ana and Tennessee. Michigan does not even supply
itself with enough telephone poles and railroad
ties. but imports poles from Idaho and ties from
virginia Much Of the paper on which our news
papers are being printed IS made from Canadan
snruce Box.boards are being shipped in from
pennsylvania and Arkansas and California. The
state imports much more timber than 1t cuts and
cuts much more timber than it grows, constantly
GROWS and cuts less and constantly Imports more
~The freight bill on imported lumber alone is
costing Michigan around 100000 year, and
each year the freight bill is due to increase great
" as the sources Of supply recede with the steady
devastation OF the forests of the South and West
Meanwhile Michigan continues to support Io'Voo'
600 acres or so Of idle lands which q few years
AFRO were producing the most generally useful
kinds Of timber the world ever had. White pine
lumber practically is out Of the market. There II
not town of 5000 in the state which does moi
import yellow pine from the Gulf states"
Forest fires In the United States annually de
stroy more than 2.OOO.O00,O0O feet of timber
More than 100000 forest fires have occurred II
the United States during the past five years. 8!
per cent of which were due to human agencies ant
therefore preventable. These conhagrations burnet
over sc. 1885, 600 acres-an area greater than tina
included within the states of Ohio and Pennsylva
nia-and destroyed $S5.7O0O0O worth Of timbe
and property