16 FOREST commissioner's REPORT. 



first in benefit to her farmers and the owners of her timber- 

 lands and mills. 



The lines of workwhich I would suirgest as proper and 

 profitable for the forest commission of this State are guided 

 by these principles. The first essential to economical and 

 intelligent use of our resources is thorough knowledge of 

 them. By this I mean not the hap-hazard guess of some one 

 acquainted with a minute fraction as to how much timber 

 there is in the country and how long it is going to last. 1 

 mean a thorough surve}^ of mature and growing timber with 

 reference not only to immediate demands, but to the develop- 

 ment of the future. Income and outgo through growth, cut 

 and waste should be studied with similar thoroughness, and 

 the relation of all these facts ascertained to the resources and 

 business conditions of the rest of the country. In a word, 

 full and accurate statistics as to our forests and lumber busi- 

 ness, based sufficiently on direct observation, is the first thing 

 w^anted in this direction. 



The utility of such knowledge as might thus be gained, 

 wall not, 1 take it, be disputed. If we are overcutting our 

 resources, we shall then know it, and moreover in showing 

 that a more saving policy will pay, a remedy will be supplied. 

 In other words the future of business can be predicted, and 

 our resources handled with a view to their productiveness in 

 the long run. j\Iuch particular information of value would 

 also be gained. The amount and value of yearly growth, 

 the question of when and how close to cut, and numerous 

 related ones are matters of concern to lumbermen on which 

 opinions and practice widely vary. Such studies as I have 

 indicated would settle these questions. They would supply 

 to the lumberman those facts in the case which he could not 

 otherwise obtain, enabling him satisfactorily to solve his own 

 particular problems. 



Then too, provided with such information as I have spoken 

 of, a state commission could assist greatly in the establish- 

 ment of new enterprises. Take for instance the hard woods 



