The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-10-18
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
Information, Bureau
FREDERIC J. HAsKIN. Direcsor,
washington, D. O.
SAVING THE WOOD SUPPLY

great American industry, not even the
meat-packing industry, in which by
common repute everything is utilized
but the hogs squeal, is conservation
today receiving greater attention tnan
| in the lumber industry. The lumber
producer, once of all our industrial
giants the greatest and most notorl-
| Gus wastrel, has begun to be provident
| and canny. The industry has been
! forced to it. Its alternative is to
end of greatness. - And what is now
being done to change methods con-
stitutes one of the most interesting
| stories in modern industrial, science.
The fact is that America is nearing
| the end of her timber resources. Even
Lilo years ago the prediction that the
| end was nigh was secuted as the out
cry of the professional alarmist. But
expanding population, the enormous
J demand of the war for lumber, the
I ceaseless forest fires, all have done
| their work. America is faced with
| the unpleasant fact that her once
seemingly inexhaustible forests, which
stretched across 3,000 miles with
| only a break for the Great Plains. are
nearing exhaustion.
| Already the pinch is being felt, es-
pecialIy in the East. The growing
prices tell part of the story. The
consumption of lumber has dropped
| from an average per capita use of
| 500 board feet in 1905 to 316 board
| feet in 1920--a drop of 81 per cent in
| IA years. Carry this out TO the end,
and the consumption of lumber would
cease altogether about the year 1910.
| The remnants of the virgin stands of
| pine in the southern states will be cut
out in another 10 years. That will
leave the Pacific Northwest as the
| sole remaining chief source of 1um-
! Der; and lumber prices in the east will
Lbe based upon Oregon and WaShingA
| ton prices plus the freight rate across
i the continent, a rate that is a greater
sum per ], 900 board feet than east
| erners had to pay for lumber itself,
| including the haulage charge, a few
years ago.
| The Government was first to realize
| the impending doom of the American
forests, and to combat 1t established
| the United States Forest Service to
protect and maintain the timbered
areas of the public domain set aside
| in perpetuity as national forests. Ger
tain states followed the Government
example, establishing state forest
services. A little over 10 years ago
| the Forest Service established at Mad
| ison, Wisconsin, the Forest Products
| Laboratory to study the problems of
| the industry scientifically, devoting
| special attention to the conservation
| of wood after it is cut The industry
at that time may have looked askance
at this innovation as being another
| one of those governm entail bureaus.
Be that as it may, when the Iabora-
| tory celebrated its tenth birthday re-
Gently, lumberTnen travelled thous-
ands of miles to be there and assist
! with their presence. The Laboratory
! has already saved millions to the in
| dustry, and it has only just begun to
show what it can do.
| Finally, the lumber industry itself
| took up the campaign of conserVa-
ton. Thru its own organization, the
| National Lumber Manufa cturers'
Association, 1t is cooperating with
various official bodies as well as pur-
suing its own lines of research.
A Two-F'oEd Problem
There is room here only TO outline
a few of the methods whereby the
timber supply of the United States is
| to be saved. The problem is two-fold,
altho both halves are interknit-
| the conservation in forests themselves,
and. secondly, conservation in the
! mills and int the use of lumber
In the woods the greatest problem
is fire. Even with today's diminished
1 per. capita use of lumber, we are
cutting down trees four times as fast
as nature can grow new wood; but
| in spite1 of all the systems of protec-
| ton, the forest fire continues to be
| even more destructive than the woods
mans ak. The solution OF the fire
| problem seems to be a more elaborate
| system of fire protection and greater
1
| fire protection services on the part of
| private owners of timber land.
| OF the more than $4,000 forest fires
annually, lightning starts about one
fifth of them and human carelessness
| the rest. The tobacco smoker is the
chief offender. A strong effort is be-
| ing made to induce tobacco manu-
| facturers to print fire warnings on all
| packages of cigars, cigarettes, and
pipe tobacco.
| The cbiaP 5a,,apa x,ro,,oI,+ Nv,
forest is not the virgin timber but in
the cutlover lands in which the young
trees have not yet reached merchant
| able size. 1t is b2rning the wealth of
| the future Three-fourths of all cut
over forest lands would re-forest them
| selves, if 1t were not for fires.
The fire hazard, too, is the chief
! deterrent to private owners of cut
| over lands to reforest them. Men
| hesitate to lock up a considerabl BILE in
vestment which is always subject to
| destruction from an unpreventable
cause. A better control OF fires would
| undoubtedly result in an increase in
| commercial reforestation.
| Yet it is a forward looking man who
| will invest in a business the profits of
| which will accrue only TO his grand
,ichildren. The slow, growth of trees
does not recommend forestry as a
business for an impatient man.
! Science, therefore, is coming to the
aid of those who would like quicker
| profits. It is doing this thru what is
| known as laminated construction.
| Illuminated wood construction was
greatly developed during the war by
the Forest Products Laboratory In
plain language, it consists Of glueing
| small pieces of wood together to form
| q large piece and then turning or
| otherwise working or using the large
| piece as il it were a piece of clear tim
Der. Clues have been developed that
| are practically as strong as the wood
| Itself, and they are now practically
waterproof and bacteria proof.
Already such objects as -gunstocks.
airplane propellors, axletrees, bowling
pins, and the like are beng made of
Eliminated wood, and the, development
is expected to produce beams, girders,
and stringers that will be as strong
| and durable as clear timber
Using Laminated Wood.