St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1922-12-02
Effect Is Always To Tax
Some for the Benft
of Others
REFORESTATION NOT
APPROVED IN NORTH
Wisconsin, With Nine Mil
lion Acres Cutover Land
Not So Deluded
By A. E.. Briggs

It is a grave question whether the
government should ever aid any but
a strictly public enterprise, for the
effect Of it is always to tax some for
the benefits of others. That is clear
the promise which the State Depart
ment of Conservation is holding out
to the owners of cut-Over lands. AS
a matter Of fact it would be det-
rimental to the owners of land as
well as to the public, for a reforest-
ing policy in this parish will greatly
reduce present land values and pre-
vent advance in land prices for the
next twenty years or more to come,
for reforested land is worth nothing
for any purpose excepting the tim
ber which grows upon it.
The policy of states which are in
timber until rather recently and
which now have considerable cut
over areas in the North show pretty
clearly what the progressive North
ern states think of reforestation- as
compared to agriculture.
Wisconsin is a splendid example
Wisconsin with her one and three
quarter million dairy cows supplies
considerable butter and canned milk
to Louisiana, which We could more
proftably produce here. But Wis
consin is encouraging farming rather
than reforestation.
Louisiana has statute exempting
certain cut-over lands, but not to
grow timber thereon, and the area
of such exempted lands is limited to
40 acres to any one Individual. But
the Wisconsin statute is to encour-
age the clearing of cut-over lands
for farming purposes. So the Wis
consin law gives to any homesteader
on cut-over lands and remaining
there to clear and farm the same ex-
emption from taxes on 40 acres only
for period of five years.
I believe there is no particular
advantage to the farmer from the
Wisconsin law, and doubt if it ma
terially stimulates colonization, al
though it might under some circum-
stances do SO. But state COLOMBIA
tion schemes so far have had little
merit and sometimes obstruct farm
ing developments. I am therefore
not disposed to belief in political
measures for the benefit of the
farmer.
But Wisconsin, which has between
eight and nine million acres of cut
over lands mostly of poorer grade |
than those in this parish, has seen
too clearly the superior advantages
to the state from the farming and
dairy industry to be deluded and
n tofi
1t Is giving its political backing to |
agriculture rather than reforestry.
The sensible thing for the State of
Louisiana and for this parish is
neither to aid nor obstruct refores- |
tatlon. IT any lumber company
thinks it can afford to reforest its |
lands, let it undertake the same on a |
business-like basis. That no lumber |
company has SO far undertaken to |
retorest more than a very small por-
ton of it's total holdings is the best |
evidence that the timber interests
40 not regard reforestation as a
practical business proposition. The
1ar-famed nursery of Seeding trees
at Bogalusa has available stock for
settlng out only 1900 acres of land.
This is so insignificant in compari-
son to the holdings and cuttings of
the lumber companies in this parish
that If it depended upon such eff
1orts to reforest this parish it would
never be accomplished.
The reforestating which will be
oone here will be by natures meth
ods and without aid Where nature
does not favor reforestation, it is for
Ine most part futile to attempt Ii
growing of trees.
we can make very valuable
FARMING and truck and orchard coun-
try OF this parish by the proper un-
lon OF effort among landowners, and
we should not allow misinformed
and misguided policy of reforestation
10 advertise our parish as fit only for
growing pine trees.