05 



!it, (lie lime l>.v wIkuii llir lire \\;is sUirlcd ;iihI ;i |M-(.sccuI imi cniilil li;i\r been 

 iiijidc iiiidci- tli(> cxisliiij; lire liiw 1ml mIIIki ihc ;i iil lioiit ics were iidlilicd tlicy 

 dill IK. I indicate any disposition even lo in\csl ii;;ilc (lie mallei-. 



Ill our iieifiiiliorinj; state of Micliij;aii a similar condilion jirexails as it 

 does ill most of tlie states in the I'liion. Our imhlic iiidirfeiH'nee to forest 

 tires is preveiitiiii;- the yrowtli of timber to siipiily oiii- fiiliire wants ami a 

 strinjient Hre law would do moi-e to jieriieluate (Uir fcuesis Ibau would any 

 amount of forest planliiiu on low .t;ra<le stale owned land. In Wisconsin I 

 lia\-e seen lar.i,^' areas of while pine land thai had been burned o\ cr vcar 

 after year until even the humus had been burneil out (d" I he soil ami only 

 the pure sand sub-soil was left. In the same district I lia\-e seen small 

 liatches of huid which have been pi'otected from lire for thirty years or more 

 and now have a perfect stand of pines nearly a foot in diameter. In Mich- 

 iiian I know of one tract of cut over land that has not had a fire in It for 

 sixty years. To one who dees not know Hie history of the place it is 

 thonjrht to 1)0 virgin forest and lo all intents and jturposes it is, for it hears 

 a crop of trees tliat are ri'ady f(u- mai-ket. 



A lypi,-.,] 

 tiiiios IjL'uii uri 



l)y the 



In my own neijilihorhood in Indiana I know of one little tract of white 

 oak laud that has been protected from lire for o\('r thirty years and sup- 

 ports a growth of very iierfect trees nearly all of which are largo enough to 

 cut cross ties and many of tliom will make saw logs. On the same farm is 

 another tract that has heen hurned over at intervals of a few years and 

 the growth on it consists of sas.safras. sumach, hlackherry and tangled vines. 

 If this tract should ho protected for a few years the sassafras even would 

 ipiickly reach a size that it would he valuable. Kep<'ii<''il biiriiaigs have 



