SMITH. CINCINNATI. 



E. GOODLANDLU. MEMPHIS. TENN 

 0IRECTOE 



In my pint no tiilip.s grow. 



Snow-loving pines and ojil<s instead, 

 And rich the sugar mapli' grows 

 From spring's faint flush 



To autumn's red. 



M.v garden is a forest lodge, 



By oldiT forests hound : 

 The woihIs reaeh down to water's edge, 



Then sink in depths profound. 



The millions iu fiur cities need the forests for rest and recreation 

 during the heated term. In my native state. New Hampshire, in .Tuly 

 and .\ugust the woods are full of summer boarders. Now, if I may be 

 pardoned for stating briefly what has been accomplished in Massachu- 

 setls and how : First, we have the support and influence of tlie news- 

 papei-s generally, and second, a large number of public-spirited men and 

 women throughout the state banded themselves together as the Massa 

 chusetts Forestrj* Association. This association, by means of literat\ire. 

 lectures and in various other ways has educated the legislature ami 

 people to the necessity of doing something and getting right at it. 

 The present and past governors have heartily endorsed the movement — 

 the lumlier trade of the coinmonwi'altli has iji'en a powerful factor in 

 helping along the movement, also the Boston Chamber of Commerce of 

 over 5,000 members by its forestry committee, headed by ox-Governor 

 Rollins of New Hampshire. AH these powerful helps have resulted in 

 a definite, progressive forest policy. Wc found out first that of the 

 .5.400.000 acres of land in the state. 3.000,000 acres were unsuited for 

 tillage or agriculture. Third, we found from a thorotigh study of the 

 white pine, the natural tree of our state, that tinder proper forest 

 management it wo\tld yield in fifty years 40.000 feet board measure 

 of .SOO feet annual increase at presi'nt price of stumpitge. six to twelve 

 dollars per tho\isand feet, according to size and location, and an aver- 

 age annual income from $4. SO to $0.00 per acre, or an annual income 

 from the 3.000,000 acres of $14,400,000 to $28,000,000. Economically, 

 the forest crop of the future must play a very important part. AftiM- 

 getting at the facts of what we had and its value properly handled, the 

 next thing was to provide against its devastation by (ire. For this we 

 have provided a very large numtx'r of fire wardens with suitable 

 apparatus for putting out fire and established in all the wooded sec- 

 tions watchmen, with men on the lookotit all the time in dr.v season, 

 and connected by telephone so thtit any ordinar.v fire can be cheeked 

 easily. Under our constitution all property must be taxed at its full 

 and fair value, so that no exception could be made on woodland or 

 young growth. On the recommendation of the state forester, the gover- 

 nor urged upon the legislature the passage of the following amendment 

 to the constitution ; 



Full power and autliorily are hereb.v given and granted to the licneral 

 Court to prescriln.' for wild or forest lands such methods of taxation as 

 will develop and conserve the forest resources of the commonweallh. 



This pa.ssed the past and present legislatures almost unanimously and 

 will be submitted to the voters in November. We have come to tlie 

 conclusion that a crop of young timber should not be taxed any mori' 

 than a growing crop of corn, hay or potatoes. Tax only the land, and 

 when the timber is cut. tax the yield. This encourages the farmer to 

 hold hts timber,^nntil it matures and to reforest the waste places. The 

 state has 3.000.000 young trees in its nurseri4's and is setting out about 

 1.000 acres each year, mostly on land given by 

 by the state. Nearly every stJite is doing 

 great deal in forestry matters 



In national forestry matters there is not a gr' :it deal to report on 

 account of delay in the geological report : not utieh headway has been 



—30— 



DlKF.CTOIl 



DAVID WOLF. GRAND RAPIDS, MICH., 

 DIRECTOR 



individuals or purchased 

 sumelhing and many a 



made in acquiring land in the White mountains of New Hampshire or 

 the Appalachian region. I regret to say there appears to be a dis- 

 position on the part of senators and representatives in Congress from 

 the states where the national, forest reservations are. to disparage 

 and discredit the work of the Forestry Htireau. An effort was made 

 a few days ago to turn the control of these public lands over to the 

 states in which they are located. It was defeated but doubtless will 

 be renewed at the next session of Congress. I believe it would be a 

 terrible mistake to make such a transfer. They are the property of 

 the whole nation, and belong to all the people. North, South, Fast and 

 West, and should be administered for the benefit of all alike. 



Congress has made quite an appropriation to control and stop the 

 chestnut blight — while not perhaps imme<iiately connected with forestry. 



I have watched the government's investigation of the alleged lumber 

 trust. A few weeks ago the officers of the government had a hearing in 

 Roston; abotit fifty of the prominent dealers in the state attended. 

 Four or five witnesses were called and examined. It no better or 

 stronger evidence can be found than was presented there. I do not 

 believe a grand Jury can be found in the nation that would bring in an 

 indictment, or a judge would be foitnd that would not tlirow the ease 

 otit of court. 



I ask this association to go on record in favor of reiiuesting the 

 law oflicers of the government, if they have any evidence of the exist- 

 ence of what they claim, to bring the parties to a speed.v trial ; if 

 the.v have no evidence they should say so and stop the mouths of the 

 defamers. Senator Knute Nelson of Minnesota made this statement on 

 the floor of the Senate, speaking of the amendment which he offered, 

 as follows: "That the secretary of agriculture is hereby authorized 

 and directed to sell at actual cost to homestead settlers and farmers 

 for their domestic use the mature, dead and down timber in national 

 forests." He said, "I wish to say about that amendment, it appears, if 

 you will study the action of the Forestry Bureau, they have been guided 

 in the selling of timber on the forest reserves by the prices that the 

 lumber trust has charged. They have aimed always to keep in liarmony 

 with the rates they have fixed, and owing to the fact that most of the 

 timber stipply of the country now is either within these national for- 

 ests or is owned by big litinber barons, like the Weyerhaeusers. and 

 others, the result is that the national forests have given a monopolistic 

 power to these lumber barons. The Forest r.v Bureau, in selling the 

 timber, aims to keep in harmony with the prices fixed by the lumbermen, 

 the men who own all the rest of the stumpage of the country. Tlie 

 purpose of this amendment is to enable the homestead settlers and the 

 farmers to secure the timber, not for sale or speculation, but for domestic 

 use, at cost. I do not believe that the government should exploit our 

 timber for mere commercial purposes and hold it up and utilize it in 

 the aid of the lumber trust." I wrote a courteous letter to the Senator 

 asking him to give me tht.' facts upon which he made these statements, 

 so I could lay them before this association, and assuring him that if 

 the facts were as he stated we wotild condemn them .iust as strongly and 

 do our best to remedy the evil. To this I received this reply: 



Mr. John M. Woods. 



East Cambridge, Mass. 



Dear Sir : 



Your favor with enclosures at hand. T do not care to enter into an.v 

 controversy with you or those whom you represent in respect to the 

 matter referred to in your letter. I can only say that what I have said 

 in my public utterances on the lumber and stumpagi' iiuestion I adhere to 

 and can sec no reason for changing my opinion. 



Yours truly, 



KxtTE Nelson. 



