The Ely miner., 1924-10-17
LUMBER FUTURE
PERTINENT?
EXPECTED THAT AMENDMENT
NO. a WILL ENCOURAGE
TIMBER GROWTH.

w WSQuCSudy AcSLlHS VI LHC Asoi-
airy Club had the pleasure of listen
ing to Senator Fred Vibert of Clo-
quet who spoke on the aims of tim
Der culture as laid down in Amend
ment No. A. Supervisor of the Ma
tional Forest A. L. Richey also gave
his idea of the timber situation in this
section and recommended that the
citizens of Ely wake up and try to
interest wood-conversion projects to
locate here. Mr.. Richey also told
of a considerable amount of timber
which will be placed on the market
within a few years and that pur-
chasers from the East and Wis
consin are inquiring regarding the
same.
The M. E. ladies served fine
dinner and Miss Annie Nichols
favored the Rotarians and their
guests with a harp solo and sew
eral songs were sung. The meet
ing was in charge of the Public
Affairs Committee, A. ]. Thomas
chairman.
Senator Vibert spoke on the grow
ing of timber and told of the value
of wood conversion plants, citing
Cloquet as an example. What Clio
quet has done, Ely can do. The
mill sites at Winton are ideally
located for such plants, water pow
er, water and timber being at hand
to maintain them. He spoke of the
taxing situation that could be car
ried for the success of the industry
providing Amendment No. 4 is
adopted.
'The lumber industry of Mime
sofa has for the past eighty-fve
years been fed by forests which
represented the accumulated growth
of hundreds of years. This was not
looked upon as a growing, renew
able crop, but as an inexhaustible
mine from which the timber was to
be taken as rapidly as possible, the
cut-over land converted into agri-
cultural land, and the lumber indus
try pushed back a little farther out
or the fronties to clear more land
for the oncoming wave of settlers.
'People demanded the lumber
from three-foot logs three hundred
years old and that is what had TO be
cut. Smaller stuff was worthless
and was destroyed in tremendous
quantities. Nobody would have it.
It is no wonder that no one con-
sidered the possibility of growing
such a crop. With lumber selling
from $1,000 to $500 mill run the
growing of a three hundred year
crop-or any aged crop for that
matter-was financial impos-
sibi1ity.
Those days are practically past
here now just as they have been
past in New England for number
of years When the few mills which
are still operating have cut the
small supply of big timber which
they still have on hand the three
foot log will be known in Mime
sofa no more.
"But that does not mean that
there viii be no lumber industry.
1t means only that the character of
the lumber industry viii change.
They do not let trees grow to more
Already mills are operating in this
state for the manufacture of mar
row lumber from our second
growth. That is the kind of lum-
Der we are going to use. Innumer-
able uses are being found for wood
pulp made from small logs of all
kinds. The balsam. popple, birch
and jack pine so much despised in
the early days will find a ready
market-are already doing so in
considerable quantities-and will
produce far more wealth than the
big timber of former days ever did.
They will supply more mills. employ
more men and pay bigger wages
than the three-foot logs.
"And this small stuff can be
grown successfully and in a. COM
paratively short time. From twenty
five to fifty years will see a crop
ready for the mill. There are
thousands of acres of it. partially
grown on our cut-over lands now.
There are only two obstacles in the
way of bringing it to a successful
maturity: danger from fire; and an
unreasonable tax system.
"The fire problem is being ener-
getica1ly and successfully handled.
1t will solve itself as the value of
young timber is more fully realized.
But the tax problem which is quite
as vital to success as the fire haz-