St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1922-11-11

ties available for development are
better than those Of Tangipahoa par
ish. Tangipahoa is going. ahead.
Are we going to permit ourselves to
fall behind, to be poorer. ten years
from now, because we accept Mr..
Alexander's mistaken judgment that
our lands are fit only for growing
trees? My own faith is that ST.
Tammany parish people are in favor
OF farming developments and oppos-
ed to refOrestation.
| The Yearbook of the Department
OF Agriculture for the year 1921
| urges strongly that it is necessary
in the United States to increase our
agricultural area. It shows that
there are 100 million acres of for
est, grazing and desert lands which
can be used for no other purpose.
Very little Of that land lies in Lou
isiana and none Of it in st. Tam
many parish. On the other hand, it
estimates that there are SO million
acres of forest and cut-over lands
available for agriculture without
drainage and so million more with
drainage. With 100 millions of
acres much of which can be forested
and is fit for nothing else, especially
the mountainous areas, why should
Louisiana make such fuss about
reforestation when it can much more
probably and surely utilize its lands
for farming purposes? The five hun
dred thousand acres Of cut-over lands
should be wholly devoted to agricul-
ture. II we could grow nothing else
besides sweet potatoes, and every
body knows we can grow them any
where In the parish, they would pay
us far better than any forest and
would bring us wealth instead Of
poverty. II the land and business
and farming interests Of this parish
will get together we can quickly
settle up this parish with profitable
farms and farmers.
On the other hand, what are the
prospects in forestry? In the first.
place 1t is well known by forestry
experts that timber growing on the |
Gulf Coast is a very hazardous en-
terprise. Nowhere else in the United
States are the handicaps and hazards
SO great as right here. Thus Prof.
r. q. Bryant, Manufacturers Asso-
citation Professor of numbering in
ale University, says in his book on
Logging: The greatest damage
from wind Is in the yellow pine reg
ion OF the South in the vicinity Of
The Gulf OF Mexico. Many heavy
storms have passed through various
sections In this region destroying
millions OF feet of lumber" ..There
IS greater need for tornado insur-
ance than for fire insurance on tim
Der in the South, but the writer has
10 knowledge of any such policies.
ne percentage of the total stand de-
'troyed by storms in other fores
'egiOns of the United States is conf
'aratively SMALL Certainly thai
ought to be sufficient argument /
against attempting reforestation in
It. Tammany parish, but / will give
mother incident to illustrate.
A few days ago an old timber
nan In this parish told me about Of
er1ng 5000 for tract of timber
cross in Mississippi, which offer was
efused. Two days later it was laid /
at by storm in from the Gulf, and
ne owner had no timber which was +
aleable. That is the chance the a
[mber grower takes. After waiting +
rom 20 to 40 years for the forest
grow into merchantable timber,
ne storm may destroy it all and the 2
Wner have nothing left to recon- c
ense him for his long patience all p
total loss. The farmer often cusses e
Is bad luck, but never does he have |tj
nything to equal the occasional loss a
the owner OF timber suffers. b
st. Tammany has made some III
loney out of timber, but that was I'll
mber God gave it. Most of it cost D
le owners little more than the pres y
It value Speculative value for
Erming purposes) of the land. Isl
n told by one Of the best known Il
mber men in this parish that I'M c.
r the most favorable growing con- T
lions it takes one hundred years Il
natural reforestation to put the u
nd again In tim hor r,,nI, =.