30 FOREST commissioner's REPORT. 



that the state can do for the individual owner is to provide him 

 with the bottom facts in tlie case, facts which he could not get at 

 himself and which can then be applied to his particular circumstances. 



The results earlier worked out in this paper need similar qualifica- 

 tion, both to prevent an}- mistaken inferences being drawn, and to 

 forestall their use for any partisan purpose. While the absolute 

 results arrived at may be relied on as at least an approximation to 

 the truth, no mistake should arise as to the meaning of the percent- 

 ages. These old-growth acres have as great a stand upon them as 

 they ever would have, which makes the percentage of growth to 

 stand low Now it is possible that younger trees having a fraction 

 of the bulk of the old growth might still cover the ground quite as 

 completely, and produce just as large an amount of wood. At any 

 rate smaller trees standing in the proper and natural number would 

 grow yearly a much gi eater percentage of their bulk. The percent- 

 age of the growth to stand or value is a widely varying matter. In 

 land just cut the growth absolutely and relatively would certainly 

 be low. If plenty of young growth of desirable species is left, the 

 trees in time adapt themselves to their new conditions and the pro- 

 duction is raised to the normal amount. This at first bears a high 

 percentage to the stand. But as the growth accumulates, or is 

 added to the stand, the per cent of growth to stand steadily 

 shrinks. There is a time therefore dependent on current rates for 

 money and other factors when it is most profitable to cut. 



There is danger of a still further confusion. The actual growth 

 per acre must not be confounded with the change from the non- 

 salable to the salable class. Suppose again a piece of laud to be 

 stripped of all merchantable lumber and yet retain a liberal stock 

 of young and desirable trees. In a few years these would begin to 

 come into the merchantable class a few at a lime. Two or three 

 per year might equal the absolute growth on an acre, even a well 

 covered acre. Soon while these lager trees continued adding to 

 their bulk, the number of still smaller ones passing the merchant- 

 able limit might render the annual addition to the salable timber 

 many times greater than the annual growth. Frequently in ordi- 

 nary talk this and not the other is what men mean b}' growth. 

 The increase of salable lumber on a tract may be a far different 

 thing from the actual growth on that tract. By this means values 

 may very rapidly enhance. Consideration of this matter may dic- 

 tate a sparing policy, when the actual growth seems insignificant. 



