NEWS AND NOTES 



Forest Trees of the Pacific Slope 



THE ap]2earance of "Forest Trees 

 of the Pacific Slope" does not in 

 any way fall short of what was 

 expected. At the present time forest 

 trees are playing an important part in 

 our national conservation, and informa- 

 tion on this subject of a practical na- 

 ture is what the public seeks. There 

 are numbers of tree books before us, 

 but with few exceptions, and these too 

 expensive for the average student, they 

 are too technical or too incomplete. A 

 book to be of real value as a text-book 

 nuist be direct, simple, and comprehen- 

 sive. These elements are very evident 

 in "Forest Trees of the Pacific Slope.'' 

 The plainly worded and accurate de- 

 scriptions, together with the natural- 

 sized illustrations, cannot fail to ac- 

 complish the purpose for which the 

 book was written. Too much attention 

 cannot be directed to a matter so vital 

 as our forests and it is highly gratify- 

 ing that the Forest Service authorizes 

 the distribution of such valuable litera 

 ture. Volume 11 will be devoted to 

 trees of the Rocky Mountain region, 

 and two others will take uo the trees of 

 the East and of the South. It is sup- 

 posed that the shrubs of North America 

 will be dealt with as fully as the trees. 

 Particular interest is felt in the Rocky 

 Mountain volume, as this covers the 

 Southwest territory where so little has 

 been done to acquaint us with the arbo- 

 rescent flora of that important region. 

 Mr. Sudworth's ability to accomplish 

 the arduous task assigned him is un- 

 questioned. Any literature on trees 

 bearing his name inspires enthusiastic 

 interest among students and teachers, 

 and the deference of his fellow-workers 

 in the science of forestry. 



To Connect the Atlantic with the Gulf 



THE Mississippi Atlantic Inland Wa- 

 terway Association at its convention 

 at Columbus, Ga., last month, declared 

 itself strongly in favor of connecting the 

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Gulf of Mexico with the Atlantic Ocean 

 by the construction of a ship canal 

 across the Peninsula of Florida. The 

 estimated cost of such a canal is $50,- 

 000,000; it would shorten the route 

 from the Atlantic to the Gulf ports by 

 over five hundred miles, and it has been 

 calculated that it would attract a traffic 

 of 60,000,000 tons a year. Such a canal 

 would be of enormous benefit to south- 

 ern and central American commerce, 

 and in a few years, when the Panama 

 Canal has become an actuality, this ben- 

 efit would be immeasurably increased. 



The proposed Florida canal, however, 

 is only part of a larger project which 

 is thoroughly deserving of support and 

 which only waits the favorable action 

 of Congress. All the way southward 

 from the Bay of Massachusetts the 

 topography of the coast facilitates and 

 invites the creation of a series of wa- 

 terways which will make it possible for 

 sea-going vessels to pass from Boston 

 to New Orleans nearly the whole dis- 

 tance through natural or artificial inland 

 channels. Some of the necessary work 

 has already been accomplished by pri- 

 vate enterprise. Canals which only 

 need to be deepened to serve as links 

 in the chain traverse New Jersey and 

 Delaware, while a private company is 

 engaged in opening a passage across 

 the narrow, sandy strip of land which 

 now compels the making of a long de- 

 tour around Cape Cod. Steps have also 

 been taken toward the enlargement of 

 the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal to 

 the extent demanded by the require- 

 ments of modern commerce, and it may 

 be expected that Congress, whose fail- 

 ure to act in the matter at its last 

 session did it no credit, will not much 

 longer delay to provide the legislation 

 upon which the project waits. 



It will be the less likely to do so 

 if those who appreciate the immense 

 desirability of the vast improvement in 

 contemplation will resolutely keep up 

 and energetically pro.secute the agita- 

 tion in which they are engaged. That 



