APPROXIMATE COST OF FORESTRY 39 



pulpwood. The average annual cut has been five million feet, or one- 

 quarter the total annual cut, and 625 acres have been gone over. With 

 clear cutting 500 acres would have yielded the same amount. It has 

 been necessary then to cut 25 per cent more land. According to time 

 studies on this type, this means 5 per cent more time to get the same 

 quantity of logs or 5 per cent more men to get the logs in the same 

 time. With the average logging costs for the past eight years, this 5 

 per cent means about $26,000, without considering any stumpage 

 values, or 6o cents per thousand, or just $1 per thousand with pre- 

 liminary and annual costs. The ten million feet left represents the 

 investment which must be carried until the next cut, probably 30 

 years. Now if we take preliminary and annual costs and net stump- 

 age value of this ten million feet and carry them all forward 30 years, 

 we get a cost figure per thousand feet which is not pleasant to look at. 

 This would not be just, however, since I am convinced that the in- 

 creased economies coming from increased knowledge more than com- 

 pensate for the preliminary and annual costs, and the value per 

 thousand feet of material used is a litter higher than if the smaller 

 trees had been included. Anyway, I believe conservative lumbering is 

 necessary not only for the good of the State but the private owner. 

 We have, however, a great amount of work to do in studying costs 

 and much more in studying results. These questions the trained 

 forester must answer and the need is great. We are only just begin- 

 ning to know what takes place in the forest under various conditions. 

 We should know what will happen, and why. 



Comment by W. X . Spcirhawk. 



1. Churchill charges cruising of timber against forestry — shouldn't 

 do it — any up-to-date lumberman cruises his timber and maps his 

 holdings in order to log it more efficiently — cost should be charged 

 against logging. 



There are some charges connected with cruising properly chargeable 

 against forestry administration — data on reproduction, silvicultural 

 data, growth, etc. So much of cruising cost as is due to this may be 

 charged to forestry. 



2. Time and expenses for carrying out forestry measures — B is not 

 chargeable to forestry. E is not chargeable to forestry. 



Probably parts of D, F, G are also chargeable to logging rather than 

 to forestry. 



3. As' 'C. suggests, it is likely that average value per thousand 

 feet cut is enough higher where only the larger material taken, to 



