VERMONT AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 61 



VERMONT'S INTEREST IN FORESTRY. 



Delivered at Vernon, Jan. 15, by Ernest Hitchcock, of Pitts- 

 ford. 



The past twenty years have seen a very rapid increase in 

 the public interest in the subject of forestry in this country. 

 Popular misapprehension as to the objects and methods of 

 forestry have been to some extent dissipated. Appreciation 

 of the importance, if not the absolute necessity, of the appli- 

 cation of its principles to the treatment of our forest and 

 waste lands has become widespread. Gradually the truth is 

 becoming - known that forestry is a practical thing - in its ap- 

 plication to the conditions existing in this country. Preju- 

 dices arising from the mistaken idea that the advocates of for- 

 estry in America contemplated the adoption without change 

 of the expensive and complicated European system are disap- 

 pearing. It cannot be too often or too emphatically stated that 

 forestry does not aim at the creation of a vast park system. 

 Forestry is not landscape gardening. Its aim is the direct 

 promotion of the material, pecuniary interests of the people. 



The continued existence of our forest area in proper pro- 

 portions is necessary. 



1st. As a source of wood and timber. 



2d. To protect water supply. 



I a ) To maintain rivers and steams. 



(b) To supply moisture to crops and pastures. 



3d. Because of its effect on climate. 



Anything like a complete outline of the subject of fores- 

 try, to say nothing of a discussion, is of course utterly out of 

 the question within the limits here available. I purpose only 

 a few suggestions as to how we Vermonters are specially 

 interested in this subject. Our interests are not small. We 

 have nearly six million acres of land in Vermont, of which 

 forty-five per cent, is said to be improved, forty-two per cent, 

 forest and thirteen per cent, waste. My judgment is that our 

 actual waste land enormously exceeds this proportion. We 

 have in this state nearly as manysawmills as the state of Maine 

 the great lumber state of the east, and their capacity is about 

 five-eighths as great. Our lumber interests exceed those of each 

 of the other New England states except Maine. It is obvious 

 therefore, that this interest is sufficiently great to deserve 

 attention. 



It is, perhaps, a question whether we suffer sufficiently 

 from forest fires to make legislation desirable on this subject. 



