RELATION U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY TO PUBLIC 



657 



tion only two, the forests and the water 

 resources, which indeed cannot easily 

 be discussed separately. 



The rivers of Maine now contribute 

 to the industries of the state a total of 

 341,976 horse-power. It is estimated 

 that, fully developed, Maine's water 

 powers might yield with proper stor- 

 age somewhat more than 1,000,000 

 horse-power. This conservative esti- 

 mate gives our state the equivalent as 

 regards power generation, of the coal 

 production of several of the fairly im- 

 portant coal states. 



The development of these water 

 powers is the line for Maine's future 

 industrial progress. The preservation 

 of this source of cheap power is a trust 

 which we of to-day must acknowledge, 

 and waste of this natural resource is 

 criminal, inasmuch as with proper care 

 water power can be utilized to the full- 

 est extent and at the same time be suc- 

 cessfully conserved for use by posterity. 

 The discussion of the conservation of 

 our water resources leads directly to 

 the consideration of our forests. 



Full appreciation of Maine's depend- 

 ence upon her forests and exact knowl- 

 edge of the extent and present condition 

 of this resource are essential if we are 

 to seek to inspire the people to adopt 

 a policy of economy. There must be 

 an educated and aroused public opinion 

 if waste is to be discouraged. First 

 of all, we must not be led by sentiment, 

 but rather be urged onward by prac- 

 tical knowledge. Waste may or may 

 not find some excuse for existence. 

 There is a theoretical waste which it is 

 not practicable to avoid under present 

 conditions, but there is also waste 

 against which both theory and practice 

 warn us. There are the tops and limbs 

 that cannot be taken from the forest, 

 because their utilization would cost 

 more than it could yield ; but there are 

 many forms of waste which may be 

 avoided with profit to all concerned. 

 Chief among these is the annual loss by 

 forest fires. Two well-qualified speak- 

 ers are to address you on this subject, 

 and will discuss the prevention of this 

 form of waste. 



After several years of field work in 

 the states of Michigan and Washing- 

 ton, where I have traversed hundreds, 

 if not thousands, of square miles of 

 territory devastated by forest fires, I 

 feel qualified to add my warning as to 

 the consequences that follow close upon 

 such devastation. The forest is not 

 only of value for the timber it contains, 

 but it is the great conserver of soil and 

 water. We might do without wood, but 

 we cannot do without the forest. The 

 soil that formed under the protection 

 of the forest cover is soon washed away 

 after the forest fire, if indeed the best 

 of the soil was not reduced to ashes 

 along with the forest itself. The 

 streams that had their sources in the 

 forested hills become seasonal torrents 

 after the fire and the burnt-over land 

 is indeed a thirsty land. No caliper 

 surveys, however carefully made, of the 

 burnt-over tract can furnish an esti- 

 mate of the actual loss to either the 

 owners or the people at large. The 

 land at best has been made non-pro- 

 ductive for a long term of years, and 

 if the acreage is large the industrial 

 equilibrium of the state is seriously 

 disturbed. But no truer statement of 

 these disastrous results can be made 

 than that set forth by our IMaine su- 

 preme court, in that opinion which 

 deservedly called forth the admiration 

 of President Roosevelt. 



In this opinion, our jurists have 

 taken an advanced position in the pro- 

 tection of the public's interest in the 

 forest, yet they have not misjudged 

 the state's need of protective legislation. 

 For weeks now we have seen the dan- 

 ger signal each evening as the sun sinks 

 in the west, and the issue of the hour is 

 plainly the conservation of our forest 

 lands. You business men of Maine 

 should stand shoulder to shoulder with 

 your supreme court justices and ask 

 for the prompt enactment of laws 

 which will preserve for our children the 

 forests and water powers of Maine. 



The forestry problem in Maine pre- 

 sents to me a two-fold aspect. First 

 of all, the system of taxation of forest 

 lands must be one to encourage the 

 gathering not of one crop alone, but 



