32 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



Groenendal. By any of these routes, 

 all of which provide easy and cheap 

 access, the people of Bnissels may reach 

 their forest, and wander among such 

 miles of roads and paths as are not to 

 be found in many a day's journey — and 

 seldom, if ever, beside the very gates of 

 a great and important capital. 



I remember learning from Professor 

 Agassiz, one wintry voyage on the 

 Atlantic when we were two of a ship's 

 company of seven, how the beech at- 

 tained its greatest splendor in the 

 "beech-belt," which bisects the western 

 section of the plain of Northern Europe ; 

 and as the solitary occupants of the 

 smoking-room, with a wild gale raging 

 outside, we held, that night, a sympo- 

 sium a deux upon the glory of the Forest 

 of Soignes. Its beeches are unequaled, 

 although thev differ from our own 



variety in that the branches do not 

 begin to leave the trunk so near the 

 ground, thus affording longer vistas 

 and greater heights. 



One suffers in even thinking that the 

 exigencies of war may demand that this 

 forest, too, shall be sacrificed, for, like 

 the architectural treasures which have 

 already been reduced to ashes and 

 broken fragments, the forest of Soignes 

 is equally irreplaceable. It is the last 

 remnant of the great forests of centuries 

 agonc, when man was slowly and pain- 

 fully struggling upward, laying the 

 foundations of that great Dutch repub- 

 lic, whence has descended that indomi- 

 table spirit which is today confronted 

 with one of the saddest problems that 

 ever befell a nation — the resurrection of 

 Belgium. 



SHADE TREES WORTH $17,000,000 



THE State Forester of New Jersey for the larger trees, are low, but it is 

 has been trying to find out what at least conservative and assiunes a 

 the shade trees standing on the limit to the value of fully developed 

 streets of municipalities may be trees. Though returns have been re- 

 worth. The suggestion that a census of ceived from only seven communities the 

 shade trees be taken was made to each result is startling. 



of the fifty-odd shade tree commissions Bound Brook finds that it has $83,855 



in the state upon the following basis. worth; East Orange has $810,000 worth; 



1. That every tree which appeared to Glen Ridge has $122,263 worth; Hacken- 

 have at least ten vears more life be sack has $259,863 worth; Irvington has 

 tallied. " $184,104 worth; Newark has $1,685,005 



2. That every tree that was badly worth; Rutherford has $80,000 worth, 

 injured or entirely out of place be If these figures are reduced to a per 

 ignored. capita basis and applied to the whole 



3. That species be not considered. State on the basis of the 1910 census it 



4. That size and general condition be appears that New Jersey has upwards 

 the sole factors. of $17,000,000 worth of shade trees. 



5. That all trees be grouped and Though the figure is almost too great 

 values assigned according to the follow- for belief there is no doubt that it 

 Ing table. represents much less rather than any 



Diameter Good Fair "^^re than the actual value of the shade 



Breast Hi^h. Values trees as they now stand. They could 



not be reproduced tor twice the sum. 



Less than 2 $ 3 $2 This inquiry suggests that every city, 



2 to 4 5 3 town and borough in the State would 



4 to 6 10 6 probably find it profitable to inquire 



to y ^u IK) what may be the value of its shade 



9 to 12 40 20 trees, and to make some provision for 



12 to 16 80 30 the preservation of those that it now 



16" and over 100 40 has even if nothing is done toward 



It is admitted that this scale is arbi- getting more where there is place for 



trary, and the values assigned, especially them. 



