EDITORIAL 



687 



A 



TTENTION is called to the 

 article on another ])age about 

 the new roadside tree law ir. 

 Maryland, a law which should 

 be adopted by every other state in the 

 Union. Nothing adds to the beauty of 

 our roads as much as hne shade trees 

 and as there are hundreds of thousands 

 of roads along which there are few if 

 any trees and where trees could readily 

 be grown, the opportunities for the 

 adoption and enforcement of a road 

 tree law in other states, should not be 

 overlooked. While it would take years 



to accomplish it is not beyond the 

 bounds of possibility that many who 

 are now alive will live to see every 

 main road and every road cross country 

 lined with fine trees which are either 

 the property of state, county or munic- 

 ipality. Already the women of the 

 country are interested in a project to 

 plant trees along the proposed Lincohi 

 llighway from ocean to ocean, and if 

 the women remain interested the suc- 

 cess of the movement is practically as- 

 sured. 



A LAB AM A needs a state forestry 

 / \ department, and if the efforts 

 / V of John H. Wallace. Jr., the 

 State Game and Fish Com- 

 missioner, and the American For- 

 estry Association are successful, one 

 will be created. Mr. Wallace will 

 embody in his annual report to the 

 Governor and the Legislature, which is 

 now being prepared, an earnest recom- 

 mendation for the passage of a bill 

 providing for a forestry department, 

 the appointment of a state forester and 

 a liberal appropriation for the work to 

 be done. The American Forestry As- 

 sociation has furnished the draft of a 

 bill suited to Alabama's needs to Mr. 

 Wallace, and this will be included in 

 the report. 



These, of course, are but the prelim- 

 inary steps. Before the bill can pass 

 the people of the state must be told 

 why the state needs a forestry depart- 

 ment and how it will directly or indi- 

 rectly benefit every resident ; and the 

 members of the legislature must be 

 convinced that there is immediate need 

 of the bill being passed. 



It is in this work that the American 

 Forestry Association can best partici- 

 pate. The success of any forestry bill 

 depends upon educating the citizens and 

 the legislators, and there are so many 

 and convincing arguments why Ala- 

 bama should have a forestry depart- 



ment, and in fact why every state 

 should have one, that it will not be 

 difficult to show the people how they 

 and the state will benefit. With the 

 management of the state timber lands 

 under the control of an efficient state 

 forester and with a forestry depart- 

 ment which will teach the owners of 

 timberlands, wood lots, and single trees 

 how to take the best care of them ; 

 how to derive the best financial returns 

 from timberlands ; how to make wood- 

 lots useful and remunerative and how 

 to grow shade trees and foster them ; 

 the citizens of the state will derive 

 practical benefits from the department 

 which will make them sorry they were 

 not wide awake enough to create such 

 a department many years ago. 



Commissioner Wallace has recom- 

 mended forestry bills in previous re- 

 ports, but nothing has come of the rec- 

 ommendations. Now, however, when 

 the state legislature meets in January 

 it is expected there will be such an in- 

 sistent demand for a forestry lav,' that 

 the members of the law creating body 

 cannot possibly ignore it. 



In Virginia last spring, following a 

 campaign of education conducted t)y 

 the American Forestry Association a 

 forestry bill passed the Senate unani- 

 mously and the House by a vote of 86 

 to 3, and if this can be done in Vir- 

 ginia it can also be done in Alabama. 



