456 JOURNAL OF FORESTRY 



"Whereas the forestry measures now in effect in this country are recognized 

 to be inadequate to guarantee the timber supply which the nation in the future 

 will require. 



"Resolved, That the National Wholesale Lumber Dealers' Association believes 

 that the time is here when a national program of forestry should be constructed 

 and set up to express the aims toward which the nation should work in timber 

 and forestry matters, and to direct and stimulate the Federal Government, the 

 States, and the owners of timber and forest lands in practical lines of activity. 

 The association hereby pledges its active aid in the formulation of a program of 

 this kind and authorizes its officers to take the necessary steps to co-operate with 

 the Federal Government, the States, and timber and forest landowners and lum- 

 ber manufacturers' associations and the National Chamber of Commerce." 



Poison for Killing Trees 



In the Weekly News Letter of the U. S. Department of Agriculture 

 for February 19 there appears an interesting note on arsenic as an 

 effective poison for killing trees. 



In cleaning up pasture land or clearing new land for crops, it is 

 often desirable to kill trees by some method surer and quicker than the 

 old-time method of girdling. In dealing with the kinds of trees which 

 sprout from the stump, such as the oaks, hickories, and red gum, a 

 reliable method of killing is especially needed. 



For the purpose of poisoning trees, arsenic has been successfully 

 used in both this and other countries, often killing trees in a few weeks 

 or a few days which, by the simple girdling process, would require 

 months. Useful directions for making up a poison solution for quick 

 and effective work in all kinds of timber, together with the method of 

 application, are given below, quoted from a recent number of the 

 Australia Forestry Journal. In Australia, it appears, much investiga- 

 tion has been carried on, and this method has been widely used with 

 excellent results. Following is the formula : 



Arsenic, i pound ; washing soda, i pound, or caustic soda, ^ pound ; 

 whiting, ^ pound ; water, 4 gallons. 



Since the ordinary white arsenious oxide of commerce is not soluble 

 in water to any great degree, soda has to be used for the purpose. 

 When large amounts of the poison are desired, washing soda will be 

 cheaper, but for small amounts caustic soda will perhaps be found the 

 handiest. 



To prepare the solution, first dissolve the soda (either form) in a 

 convenient amount of water, using heat, if desirable, to assist and 

 hasten it ; then slowly add the arsenic, previously made into a thin 

 paste (as the housewife treats her corn flour), stirring all the time; 



