i8 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



situation appears to be in certain local shipping sections, particularly 

 in the South. 



A further significance is seen in a comparison with the figures for 

 September 15 with September 12, 1912. As stated the surplus on 

 September 15 of this year was 01,753 and on September 12, 1912, 

 27,380. This would indicate that the car surplus September 15 of 

 this year was 34,373 cars greater than on the corresponding date 

 of 1912. 



Further, the shortage on September 15 was 21,593 as compared 

 with 36,0.00 on September 12, 1912, a decrease in shortage of 14,406 

 cars. Some reason for this is seen in the fact that the total grain 

 crop movement of this year was not up to the movement of 1912, but 

 on the other hand the cotton crop of 1913 is far ahead in volume 

 of that of a year ago. The natural deduction is that the difference 

 in car statistics for the two years was the result of a decrease in the 

 general shipping of the country this fall as compared with the 

 fall of 1912. 



This situation is seemingly well borne out by trade reports cover- 

 ing the various lines of industry of the country. 



Public Ownership of Forest Lands Advocated 



PROFESSOR .TAMES WILLIAM TOUMEY, head of the Yale 

 Forest School, recently published a review of forest history in 

 this country and in Europe in whicli he draws the conclusion that 

 the woodlands of this country should be owned by the general govern- 

 ment, the states and municipalities — that is, there should be public 

 ownership in one form or another. He doubts whether the govern- 

 ment will ever come into possession of much more land than it now 

 ow^ns. It is buying some under authority of the Weeks' law, but 

 such purchases will probably remain small in comparison with the 

 country's whole forest area. The reason why public ownership is 

 to be preferred is that many private owners either will not take care 

 of their timber or will cut it for immediate profit when it should 

 be left to increase in value. Examples in history are cited to show 

 that such has been the case in other countries. 



Professor Toumey writes from the standpoint of the professional 

 forester, and his thorough acquaintance with German methods is 

 noteworthy. If his article calls for any criticism it is because he 

 shows too little sympathy with the kind of forestry which nature 

 has developed and is still practicing in this country. He does not 

 think that natural forests, at this time, are of much real importance, 

 and that no permanent headway can be made in supplying timber 

 until man-directed forestry takes the place of nature's. "American 

 forestry is not much concerned with the remaining stand of timber," 

 he says, and adds: "The sooner cuttings can be made over the 

 remainder of our virgin stands, the better from the standpoint of 

 new growth." 



Many people are not yet ready to subscribe to this view. Natural 

 forests, which grew with no help from man, are yet so estensive that 

 haste should not be made in cutting them down in order that forestry, 

 such as is practiced in Germany, may be substituted. The frequent 

 warnings that lumber supplies are on the verge of exhaustion in this 

 country have produced erroneous impressions, and possibly have 

 misled Professor Toumey into underestimating the true importance 

 of the country's standing timber. The report published last January 

 by the Department of Commerce and Labor gives the latest authentic 

 figures, and shows that the country is not yet in desperate circum- 

 stances. The table which follows gives the standing timber of seven 

 species, and the period each will last at the present rate of cutting: 

 Species Feet hoard tyicasurc. Will last years. 



Douglas fir 521.nnn.ono.0on 100 



Western yellow pine l,-.3..1(in.iinn.non 98 



Redwood lOl.nnn.nod.non 190 



Western hemlock r,7,4nn,n(in.non 315 



Western red cedar 5G,70ii.ni)n.non 100 



Su"ar nine 34.7nn,nnn.nno 350 



Idaho white pine 19,GOU,unu,UU0 80 



It would seem like undue haste to hurry through with cutting this 

 natural-grown timber in order that German methods of forestry may 

 be put into practice. There are some things in which nature can 

 beat Germany. 



All of the above timbers grow in the far western country. The 

 situation is not quite so good in the East, where cutting has been in 



progress much longer ; but forest exhaustion is yet some distance 

 in the future, according to estimate based on the report by the 

 Department of Commerce and Labor quoted above. The hardwoods 

 make the following showing: 



Species. Fcetboanl mmsiire. 



Oak 200.2:'.n.nnn,(ion 



Gum 53,44".non.( 



Ilickorv ig.L'ns.nun.iKin 



AsU . .' 16,.j.'<t. .nnn 



Miscelhineous h.-irdwoods 115,ln.->.nnn,nun 



Total 404.582,000,000 



At the present rate of cutting this will last forty-five years, and 

 the forests of the whole country will last seventy years. 



The o-round on which these forests stand is not yet needed for 

 jilanting. There is plenty of cut-over land for everybody to plant. 

 The governmenr, states, cities, corporations, and individuals may do 

 all the planting they can finance during the next hundred years 

 without touching an acre on which merchantable forests are now 

 standing. 



Public ownership of woodlands will probably come, to a large 

 extent. The tendency is in that direction, but it will not come sud- 

 denly. Wood-lot forestry, such as enables Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois 

 to furnish hundreds of millions of feet of lumber annually, with little 

 apparent falling ofl: from year to year, will spread over the country, 

 and become an important factor in supply. There is not and never 

 will be any call for the government or state to own such woodlots; 

 but the ease is different with large deforested areas which the 

 individual is not able to hold and handle successfully. Public owner- 

 ship may be expected to enter gradually upon the work of managing 

 such lands. 



Proposes Track Scale Control 



PROVISION IS MADE in a bill recently introduced by Repre- 

 sentative Willis of Ohio, at Washington, for government con- 

 trol of railroad scales and regulations and weighing methods used 

 in connection with freight shipments. The Interstate Commerce 

 Commission is the body which would have jurisdiction in the 

 matter. 



June 30, 1915, is the date named in the bill for the putting into 

 effect of this provision. According to its text, after that date it 

 will be unlawful for an interstate common carrier to use a scale or 

 test car not conforming to the standard t3'pe determined by the 

 Interstate Commerce Commision. The bill provided for the prep- 

 aration of a jilan by the American Railway Association in behalf 

 of the railroads covering specifications for railroad scales and test 

 ears, and similar weighing devices that will be of a practical and 

 serviceable nature. The plan should embody suggestions that 

 could be used in connection with the formulation of a code of 

 service for freight weighing. The railroads are given until June 

 30, 1914, to work up such suggestions as they wish to advocate. 

 The bill provides that if such suggestions are not in the hands of 

 the Interstate Commerce Commission by the date named, the com- 

 mission will go ahead on its own initiative in the matter and is 

 given authority to definitely formulate a code of standard rules 

 for freight weighing, and to put such testing devices and scales 

 into operation as it deems proper. 



The commission is also given the power to specify the number 

 of scales that each railroad shall provide for weighing, and to 

 designate their location, and also to determine the frequency and 

 manner of inspection and testing of scales. 



The commission has made earnest efforts to effect a conference 

 between the American Railway Association representatives and 

 representatives of the National Industrial Tariff League for the 

 purpose of working out the problem as expeditiously as possible. 

 Such efforts, however, have seemingly been unavailing, and the 

 commission cabled a conference for September 24, details of which 

 are not yet available. 



The Willis bill seems to be fair in most of its provisions, and 

 it is diflacult to see wherein the railroads should object to gov- 

 ernment regulation of their scales and weighing methods, unless 

 through pernicious methods they have been gaining an undue rev- 

 enue from weighing through wrong methods and incorrect scales. 



