120 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan., 



especially so in our warm, sheltered valleys. Around our lakes 

 and upon our hills they still obtain an occasional crop, these local- 

 ities escaping the full effects of our hot, dry summers. At tide 

 water, along our rivers and on the borders of our great interior 

 lakes, the ameliorating influence of these bodies of water still 

 preserves the fruit producing capacities of these regions, but even 

 these localities are affected by the general, continental conditions 

 arising from the sweeping destruction of our forests. Were this 

 audience acquainted with the peculiar localities about me I could 

 point you to this locality and that, confirmatory of my position. I 

 reside in a valley running southwest and northeasterly, hemmed in 

 on the northerly side by mountain ridges, making us oven-like in 

 our imbedded position. We find it impossible to raise fruit there 

 to perfection, while on our exposed hills and in regions having a 

 more open and northerly exposure they raise more comfortable 

 crops. The full effects of our change of climate are here to some 

 extent modified and they do not experience its full force. The 

 forests are not only favorable to the formation of rain, but increase 

 its frequency and more even distribution. When a boy I recollect# 

 with what delight 1 watched our April showers — now almost un- 

 known — and the later showers were more frequent — while rainy 

 days, as a relief to the exhausting labors of the farm came much 

 oftener than for the last few years. There may be exceptional 

 seasons to this state of things, but it seems to have been the gen- 

 eral rule according to my observation; beyond this the well 

 attested observation and experience in European countries con- 

 firms the principle that the destruction of their forests leads to all 

 these disastrous changes. 



The late George P. Marsh, formerly Minister to Turkey, issued 

 many year's since an elaborate treatise upon this and its collateral 

 subjects confirmatory of these views, while their application to our 

 own country has long attracted my attention; and I doubt not 

 has been the subject-matter of serious reflection to us all. If 

 these principles are correct, here is the primary fundamental con- 

 dition essential equally to the normal, healthy development of 

 both the animal and vegetable kingdom, not only assailed and 

 measurably undermined by the wasting of our forests, but the 

 opposite extreme of condition results favorably to the propagation 

 of the insect tribes so destructive to vegetable life. 



As 1 have said, the natural mission of these forests is to pre- 



