Evening star., 1922-05-21


insist that the forest resources of
the country are matter Of public
interest. just as much as transporta-
tiOn, the business of meat packing
and other industries that the govern
n3ent now regulates.
Certainly in his report on the bill
to the Senate agriculture committee
Secretary Wallace has revealed some
astounding and alarming facts In re-
gard to the lumber situation in this
country. He says:
THE United States is now CONSUME
ing wood nearly four and one-half
times as fast as It Is being grown.
We are steadily eating up what Is
left of our forest capital AS re-
suit the country now faces the
definite prospects ; of growing
scarcity and Increasing cost of every
thing made from wood. 1t is a prob
lem which in the long run affects
every class Of American citizens. 1t
builder and the farmer to an almost
equal degree"
Three-Fifths Of Timber
Already Used Up.
Particularly does the burden fall
upon those sections of the country
where the timber lands have long
since been numbered over and which
are now a long way from the existing
sources of supply. as in the case of
the middle Atlantic states and New
England. -
Originally the forest of the United
States. according to government esti-
mates. covered s22.oo0.00o acres.
They contained 5.2o0,Oo0.0 600 board
feet of timber. Today tive.sixths Of
this huge timber supply area has
been cut over or burned. There are
left in the country about $4,000. 900
acres of virgin timber, $4,000. 900
acres of second growth of saw-tim.
Der size, 133.000,000 acres partially.
stocked with smaller growth and ST.
100000 acres of devastated,and prac-
tically waste land. At least three
fifths in volume OF the timber orig
inally in the United States is gone,
1t is said. Yet the United States, in
point of years, is only in its swaddiine
clothes.
Forest Fires Destroy
More Than In Cut.
What is more. the remaining
forests of the United States are be-
ing cut at the rate of about 5000; 900
acres annually. and from 5000, 900
to 100000 acres are being burned
each yearly forest fires.
sixty-one per cent Of the timber left
is west Of the Rocky mountains.
while. as Secretary Wallace points
out. four-ffths of the population,
four-fifths OF. American agriculture
and nine-tenths Of American manufac-
lures are east Of the Rocky mounx
tains. And in the meantime the rates
for transporting lumber have steadily
increased. Two thirds, of the lumber
users Of the country today pay more
per thousand feet in lumber freight
alone than they paid for the delivered
commodity thirty years ago.
At Lesst Three Generatioss
Needed to Catch Up. ~ q
In order to maintain the present
of lumber the existing
timber lands should be growing tim
ber at the rate Of ffty-two cubic feet
per acre "a year, a yield which is. bare
ly reached in well managed produc-
tiveN forests Of Europe-and q yield
which 1t Is said this country cannot
hope to equal for three generations
to come. even II the country tries for
1t from this day on.
Secretary Wallace has earnestly
that everything possible
be done to bring about the good man
agement of ths-forests and their pro-
lection against fire. Realizing that
tho Capper, bill may appear too big
dose to swallow in one gulp, the Sec
retary has urged the prompt enact
ment of a partial program of refor-
estation covering the following fea-
lures:
1. Extension Of the existing federal
cooperation with the states in forest
protection. 2. Initiation of federal
cooperation with states in growing
and distributing forest trees or tree
seeds for planting. 8. Extension of
the national forests