430 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



dacks would hardly be cut over and re- 

 planted in a day, the transformation 

 would be so gradual as to be hardly 

 noticed, and a great improvement 

 would be effected in the end. The 

 change is needed but public sentiment 

 is a curious thing and is not easily per- 

 suaded. 



The work of fire protection in the 

 forests of New York State is another 

 story, but it should be said in connec- 

 tion with the reforestation work that 

 the men who are in charge of the 

 State's natural resources realize ^Ir.it 

 the extensive planting now being done 

 will go for naught unless fire is abso- 

 lutely eliminated from the plantations. 

 The present fire protective system is 

 one of the best in the country, and un- 

 der normal conditions can be depended 

 upon to save not only the plantations 

 but such remnants of the original for- 

 ests as remain. 



An object lesson, such as is being 

 given by New York, is needed in many 

 other States, in fact some of the States 

 are not far behind. Through the ef- 

 forts of the American Forestry Asso- 

 ciation a party of lumbermen and pub- 

 lic-spirited business men visited the 

 Adirondacks in early May of this year 

 and saw for themselves the work which 

 is going on. If they did not learn a 

 valuable lesson it was their own fault, 

 and there is every reason to believe 

 that they went home in a new frame 

 of mind and with a much keener ap- 

 preciation of the relationship of the 

 timber-land owner to the State, and of 

 the work which the State in turn is 

 doing to undo what commercial neces- 

 sity and carelessness— not 

 greed — had previously done.* 



riotous 



^Photographs by courtesy of the New York 

 State Conservation Commission. 



RETURNING LAND TO IDAHO 



CO permit the State of Idaho to Under this agreement the State has 

 obtain land in lieu of 90,000 undertaken to retain a designated body 

 acres of school lands included in of land permanently for forest pur- 

 National Forests prior to survey, Pres- poses, provided the Government would 

 ident Taft has eliminated about 4^ permit title to be acquired. The area 

 Townships from the St. Joe National designated comprises largely though 

 Forest. These lands will be held and not entirely the lands for which the 

 managed as a permanent State forest. State made its original application. 

 This action by the President carries This 90,000-acre tract will, under the 

 out an understanding which was agreement reached, be protected by 

 reached with him by Governor Haw- the State against fire and other de- 

 ley and other representatives of the structive agencies, and administered 

 State of Idaho about a year ago. The similarly to the National Forests. Tim- 

 State had tried to make indemnity se- ^^^ ^jn i^^ ^^^^ ^^jy under such stipu- 

 lections for various school sections lost ^^^-^^^^ ^^ ^jU -^^^^^ reproduction of 

 to It through the creation of Nationa ^^^ ^ ^^^ favorable streamflow 

 Forests, but before the acceptance oi ,.,. .,, , • ,,!_j ^^ i. 



the State's filing the intended indem- 

 nity selections also were included in 

 National Forests. To learn what relief 



conditions will be maintained through 

 preservation of the necessary forest 

 cover. The elimination now made by 



could be obtained Governor Hawley President Taft permits the carrying out 

 decided to go to Washington and take of the arrangement, so far as concerns 

 the whole matter to the White House, acquisition of title by the State. 



A N£IV FORESTER. 



Irving Southworth, of Johnstown, N. Y., who has recently finished a course in forestry, 

 and has traveled extensively through the south, west and also in Germany, has secured .« 

 government position on the Blumas reservation, California. 



