Evening star., 1926-11-28

- for America i'll the near flu
tUre look only to the telling
i Of trees. They don't take
into account that trees grow
again. The Woodmans ak is really
the beginning of forestry. We mine
copper and it is gone. We eat our
cake Of wood and prepare the oven
for the baking of a new cake.
was talking with Theodore
knappen. noted forest economist.
who has been engaged in practical
forestry for a good many years.
Some weeks ago Col. George p.
lhern had told me a startling tale
about the ruthless exploitation of
Americas forests by our great lum-
Der companies. According TO Col.
Ahern a wood famine in the Ur.led
States was only 10 years away AM
yet said Col. Ahern, "the age OF
wood is just dawnjng." To-day we
make rope. carpets, delicate fabrics
and silk out Of wood. IN fact, at
present there are over 4,500 uses for
wood in our commercial life, and yet
with wood becoming hourly more
important to the economic life OF
the Nation our great lumber COM
panieS are hewing us down 70 our
last stick.
Nv hat do you think, Mr.. knappeh,
ABOUT CCl. 2NeIll > tIlGJSe tIldl Oul
lumber companies are cutting four
times our natural regrOWth OF TIM
Der each year and that this tre-
mendouS rate Of oVerCutting is Ger
tain to cause Il wood famine very
shortly ! asked.
See Joker in Charge.
THAT is an often repeated charge
against our lumber companies which
has Joker in it," he answered.
"America can sain nothing by
timber boarding. The way to look
after our forests is to promote tim
her growing. But how can we have
timber growing unless we have tim
bet cutting. The lumberman's ak
doesn't fall on the ungrOWn tree. III
tells the mature tree. II the lumber
mans AK didn't cut down our ma
ture trees the parasitic forces OF
nature would consume them in COM
plete waste and loss.
Take forest for example. It's
trees are mature. III such a forest
there is no such thing as net IN
crement Of growth. y mature tree
is like q mature Individual 1t has
stopped growing. The community
gains nothing from letting mature
trees stand. And if we let mature
trees stand we simply leave them
to be devoured ANA raZed by insects
and PARASITES. When a tree is grown
il should be cut and used. When
we cut mature tree we can both
use it and prepare the way tor a
new tree.
That is why I say that the lumber
mans AK is the beginning of forestry.
We must either cut a mature tree or
permit il to stand for waste. The soiu-
tion of our forest problem is in timber
growing, not in timber boarding We
must not consider that our forests are
being ruthleSSly exploited just be-
cause trees are being felled. That Is
the first step necessary in making
use of wood and in making it possible
for neN trees to grow.
Wood Once Too Plentiful.
We must remember that for
ouite d period in our history forests
had practically no value. Wood was
700 plentiful. Forest; We're actually
a hindrance to community lite ana
urogress. Areas had to lie cleared for
cultivation: rods had TO be cut
through dense forests. Na'ur3 iiy. no
one paid much attention to conserving
forests in this period
But now that oar country has
crown 10 the no!r. where wood is
becoming increasingly valuable, our
Humber companies are taking the
greatest painS to see TO it that they
make out Of our forests perpetual
Investment.
Then, Mr. knappen, YOU don't
foresee any wood famine approaching,
not even a time when we will feel a
wood pinch" l inquired.
II can foreSee possibly Il wood
llnch But it Will not come for 80 or
80 years, and it will be only tempo
,arv. Certainly. / can't foreSee any
wood famine. While we are waiting
for new forests 10 grow we may reach
Il minimum point of production OF
lImber 1t is thought by some that
the minimum balance VIII be struck
about a. or 30 years from now. At
that time we Will probably be cutting
not less than 2U.uon coo 600 board feet
rs against an annual cutting OF 35,-
COO 600 .HuU board feet at present.
New Trees viii Grow.
At the eud of 40 or 30 years We
will have about 410, ,00o. 600 acres OF
land, once denuded Of its trees, that
will he growing and producing at
least 20 600 900 900 hoard feet of lllln-
her annually And from that time on
new areas will I've raising trees 50 that
.,iIi, annuad production of 20.0Uo, 200
oap board feet "a or so Ee3rS from
r.ow Viii he constantly increasing
after that time.
I'm fact, foresters agree that this