Milford chronicle., 1922-01-20
SAVE THE FORESTS
New Efforts to Get Private Con-
troll of Our National Forests
By a Lobby at Washington.

The following letter addressed to
the Editor of the Chronicle, by Mr..
/ HInchot' calls attention to a condi-
tlon OF very great Importance to the
t people OF the United States. The lei
lear Mr.. Townsend
ooS,iu5 Ie VI the great constructive
s;sonleyements of President Roosevelt
I1. 10 u Ganger. A serious attack on the
- Sniteu ~. states Forest Service will soon
De III the news from Washington Tn
:ne mouse the Curry Bill Oh. r. 59641
- SHe senate the King Bill IS. 2740l
anu the New Bill Is. 2382) proviGe
LUr transferring the Forest Service in
"nole OF IN part from the Department
~ N1sL4culture to the Department of
tne Interior. Hearings have been held
anu VIII shortly be continued.
II lhe Department of Agriculture |
where tney are now, the Forest Ser |
wee and the National Forests are
SdIe' ana so well managed that fey
IepI Ior certain special interests) thew
nave Won the unanimous support of
the Nation. Their purpose is to grow
tlees' and they belong naturally in tbe
department. which has to do with
sIO"lhg all crops, including tree
CROPS from the soil. Forestry is .
part OF agriculture and is so recogniz-
ed the world around.
Inc Interior Department is the real
estate agent of the Government. IT fs
not the business of a real estate agent
TO grow crops on forest or farm. AS
d matter of fact, when the Interior
department had charge of the Nation
al Forests, years ago, they were so
Daly handled that President Roose-
Velt was forced to insist upon their
transfer to the Department of Agri-
culture. The modern progress of for
estry in America dates from that
change.
The Forest Service has little busi-
ness with the Department of the In
terror, and what it has is rapidly di-
mlnlshlng. 1t has many times more
business with the other B haus of :
the Department of Agricult and q
that business is rapidly increasing. It =
is IN constant and intimate co-opera- =
IlOn with every branch of the Depart 4
ment where it is now.
The Department of Agriculture has q
much forest work to do outside the 8
National Forests. There are more
acres by twenty million in woodlots q
on farms than in all the remaining 9
public domain, of which the Interior 3
Department has charge. If the Forest e
Service were transferred, the Depart 4
ment Of Agriculture would be cOmpell- {
ed to build up similar organization, y
thus leading to more duplication in Z
the government service instead of 8
less. 4
Forestry is doing admirably where G
it is. There is not one sound reason 8
Of any kind for the proposed trans d
fer. 1t is neither good administra- (
lion, good business, nor good politics q
20 undo Roosevelt's work. 9
1t is well understood in Washington q
hat the same interests that attempt q
I'd to gobble up the natural resouces 9
If Alaska in Secretary Ballinger's q
ime are at it again. The best stalk e
ng horse of the men behind the grab n
the claim that Alaska is going back 6.
ward. The fact is that from 1910 to SG
92O the exports from Alaska have {.
increased from $13, sos, 1894 to $62,469,- ~
96, or 366 per cent, while during the eQ
anne ten years the exports from the g
hlICu OIdlCo luCIGdSGu lIOu plsOOOs- az
58,9O4 to $8,228, ,016,307, or $40 per ~
ent. Alaskan business has actually "a
cen growing faster than the business e
the United States, although the lat ~
er has been increasing at a rate TX
7ithOut precedent in the worlds his q
Dry. Nl
The National Forests in Alaska, if GS
ley can be saved, will produce two cS
lilliOn cords of pulpwood annually 81
II all time, or enough to supply one SS
lird of the present needs of the 81
nited States. The Forest Service in 81
le Department of Agriculture has GS
1mpleted plans for developing this 50
reat resource in a way to open it SOS
the public but keep the grabbers G9
1t. 81
More than half our timber is gone CQS
ready. Only one-sixth of our virgin q
rests remain, and they are being *
It at rate that will destroy them %
tirely before twenty-five years. Only *
little more unrestricted forest de- S6b
station will bring down upon us &
e dangerous hardships of a timber ~
mine. The cost of pulpwood and %
mber is already proof enough of the S
age to which the scarcity has al 90
ady advanced, and of what is still ~r0S
cad. SS
Little has been heard of all this 60
tside of Washington. The purpose sGS
this letter is to let you know what SS
planned, and to express my hope $2
at when the occasion comes you ~
IL treat the proposal as it deserves.
less the friends of forestry take up az
S matter in earnest, its enemies %
Il win out. If they do, it will mean $S
! ruin of the Forest Service, the 4S
eek of the movement for forest SS
otection in America, and higher *
ces for forest products Of every Sp
Id. It would seem to be the wrong sc
le to take chances with forestry Is
t now, when every clearheaded cit 9s$
n knows that with the utmost care -"
can hardly escape most serious -
uble from the exhaustion of our Cc
o1k