NEWS AND NOTES 



Lumbermen and Forestry 



Thf members of the National Wholesale 

 lumber Dealers' Association held a most 

 enthusiastic meetine: at Louisville, Ky., early 

 in March, at which, following a report of 

 the Forestry Committee, published in this 

 issue, and an address by P. S. Ridsdale, 

 executive secretary of the American Forestry 

 Association, explaining what the organization 

 is doing, resolutions endorsing the work of 

 the Association were adopted. 



These were as follows : Resolved, That 

 the National Wholesale Lumber Dealers' 

 Association heartily indorses the efforts of 

 the American Forestry Association to secure 

 better State and national fire protection of 

 the forests. Also the effort to protect the 

 head waters of streams and to secure a 

 satisfactory system of time and land taxa- 

 tion and to advocate the use of woods and 

 wood products; and be it further 



Resolved, That the members of this As- 

 sociation lend their support to the American 

 Forestry Association and to encourage sub- 

 scriptions to its magazine, American Fores- 

 try which is its medium of publicity and 

 education, and be it further 



Resolved, That this Association indorses 

 the bill now before the Congress of the 

 United States appropriating the sum of 

 $80,000.00 for the the scientific investigations 

 and eradication of the disease commonly 

 known as the chestnut tree blight, and be it 

 further 



Resolved, That any legislation which seeks 

 to regulate the cutting of trees by prohibiting 

 the cutting of all trees below certain specified 

 diameters would be deemed to be adverse 

 to the best interests of the lumbermen, unless 

 such legislation recognizes the time honored 

 rights of property by providing that compen- 

 sation be madeby the State to the owners 

 of the trees which fall within the provisions 

 of the proposed legislation. 



Protecting the Forests 



At a meeting held recently in Montreal, 

 the St. Maurice Valley Forest Protective 

 Association was formed, having for its object 

 the protection from fire of the timber lands 

 of the St. Maurice River Valley. This im- 

 portant river supplies large amounts of power 

 for Montreal and Three Rivers by means of 

 the Shawinigan Falls and also for the largest 

 pulp and paper companies in this province. 



Lookout stations will be established nn 

 high hills from which fires can be detected, 

 and these will be connected by telephone 

 with the nearest settlements, so that help 

 can be obtained. Telephone lines and trails 

 will be built and fire fighting tools placed 

 in convenient locations. Educational work 

 will be undertaken to teach the settlers and 

 farmers the value of the forests and the 

 necessity of protecting them. 



The officers elected later at Quebec, are : 



President— Mr. Alex. MacLaurin, of Mon- 

 treal, representing the Union Bag and Paper 

 Co. 



Vice President — W. R. Brown, of the 

 Quolicc and St. Maurice Industrial Co. 



Directors— Messrs, R. S. Grant, St. Maurice 

 Lumber Co.; Ellwood Wilson, Laurentide 

 Pulp Co.; Frank Ritchie, Wayagamack Pulp 

 and Paper Co., and H. Biermans, Belgo Pulp 

 and Paper Co. 



Following the election of officers a banquet 

 was given at which Mr. W. R. Brown pre- 

 sided. Speeches were made by W. C. J. 

 Hall, head of the Fire Protection Depart- 

 ment; G. C. Piche, head of the Forestry 

 Department; Hon. J. Bureau, attorney gen- 

 eral of the Dominion ; A. Tessier, M. P., 

 and others. 



The Association comprises 87 per cent of 

 the timberland holders of the St. Maurice 

 Valley, and is the largest ever formed there, 

 representing 7.000,000 acres. The assessment 

 is one-fourth of a cent an acre per year for 

 protection. The Provincial Government 

 gives $3,000 and one head inspector autho- 

 rizes all rangers to aid. also pays one-third 

 the cost of fire protection on the railroad 

 service and one-third the cost of fire fighting. 

 Henry Sorgino, of Montreal has been ap- 

 pointed manager. 



Experiments in Wisconsin 



With the view of developing a plan for 

 the utilization of millions of acres of cut- 

 over lands in Wisconsin, the United States 

 Government has decided to make extensive 

 experiments in forestry at the Sparta Mili- 

 tary Reservation according to word received 

 here today from Congressman H. J. Esch, 

 who took up the matter with the War De- 

 partment and the Department of Agriculture. 



The military reservation contains 20.000 

 acres a large part of which is available for 

 the experiments which are to be made im- 

 mediately at the direction of W. B. Piter, 

 supervisor of the Marnuette and Michigan 

 National Forest Association, and are to start 

 at once. Pines from Northern Minnesota 

 arc to be planted principally. 



Forester Hirst's Views 



State Forester E. C. Hirst, of New Hamp- 

 shire, in speaking before the Portsmouth, 

 X. H. Y. M. C. A., recently said: "Aside 

 Ironi the natural conditions. New Hamp- 

 shire is well situated geographically for the 

 practice of forestry. In the middle West 

 the timber supply is rapidly diminishing and 

 the pine in the Southern States is being 

 heavily cut. The Northeastern States contain 

 large areas of natural forest land on which 

 the eastern part of the country will more 

 and more depend for its timber supply. 



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