44 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF FORESiT WORK IN U. S. 



HON, GEO. B. SUDWORTH^ CHIEF, DIVISION OF FOREST INVESTIGATIONS^ WASH- 

 INGTON^ D. C. 



Like every other art or industry which necessity has developed in this 

 country, the development of forestry in the United States has been exceed- 

 ingly rapid. Like the old world countries where systems of scientific 

 forestry are fairly established, the coming of forestry to us has been 

 marked by two distinct eras : the period of propagandists and their work, 

 and the period of trained foresters and actual forest work. We have 

 passed the one stage and are well begun with the other — forestry proper. 



No one can justly deny, however, that there was need first of the 

 pioneer promoters of a forest sentiment. A great many good things 

 have their beginning in sentiment. Some of these people knew what 

 forestry means, while others were pure sentimentalists. They were 

 working for a conservative forestry which would save the forests; but 

 the conservation was in the spirit of ^'woodman, spare that tree." They 

 did not show the "woodman'' why. On the other hand, the lumberman, 

 the builders of railroads, and the farmers were slaughtering the country's 

 forests — its wealth. They were the enemies of forestry. But the mean 

 things that were thought and said by the sentiment forestry, and the 

 destruction end of forestry were harmless to the principal factions. The 

 gap between them only widened, and the lumbermen continued to cut 

 timber. 



DEVELOPMENT OP GOVERNMENT FOREST WORK. 



Government forest work in the United States began in the seventies. 

 The farmers were given some tree seeds and warned to be careful of 

 their forests. A vast amount of statistical data was compiled and dis- 

 tributed under the early appropriations for forest work. But up to 

 188G there was no recognized forest office. In 1887 the terms of the 

 forest appropriation for the year established a division of forestry. The 

 appropriation was about $8,000. This sum was slowly and reluctantly 

 increased until in 1898 it Avas |28,520. In the meantime some practical 

 work was done. The distribution of tree seeds and seedlings was dis- 

 continued. Farmers didn't know how to use them. The division of 

 forestry did some tree planting itself where most needed in the Middle 

 AYest. with the hope of teaching the farmers by object lessons, and also 

 of finding out what trees were adapted to the soil and climate. This 

 gave some good results, but not the most satisfactory. The main work 

 of the division was in the line of propaganda and the dissemination of 

 useful information on various forest subjects. 



In the meantime public sentiment was being forcibly drawn to forest 

 saving projects. The federal government began to set aside large forest 

 areas in forest reserves and national parks. The purpose was to save 

 the forests and protect game. The general land office was charged with 

 the administration of these forest lands. This gave rise to a division of 



