REFLECTIONS ' 

 By Austin Gary 



The talks made thus far this evening remind me of a story I heard 

 at the recent Southern Forestry Congress. Once on a time an old 

 southerner had a pack of hounds of which he was proud, especially of 

 one particular animal. This hound was very swift, and a little heed- 

 less withal, through which combination of qualities he finally met dis- 

 aster. Following the trail one day he ran square into a small, erect, 

 and rigid sapling, the force of impact being such that the animal was 

 split into two halves, from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail, 

 completely. The owner coming up was caused much sorrow but soon 

 a happy device occurred to him. He picked up the two halves of the 

 dog and fitted them together, but, due to haste, in a position reversed 

 from the natural one. This, however, proved to be an advantage in a 

 way, for the dog could run both ways and bark at both ends thereafter. 



The parallel I have suggested appears to me to hold in this way and 

 to this extent, that a number of the speakers have expressed great 

 appreciation of the personal qualities and professional authority of the 

 authors of this report, acknowledged that they have formulated some 

 valuable principles, but then have proceeded to state some strong 

 objections and disagreements. I expect to follow the same course 

 myself in a general way, but in accordance with a temperament recog- 

 nized, as I understand, as a downright one, also in view of the lateness 

 of the hour, what I shall actually have to say here will be mainly in 

 the latter direction. 



In the first place, I disliked the circumstances in which the report 

 was formulated. A group of men representing concentrated and 

 technical interest in the subject matter appeared to go off by them- 

 selves to formulate a policy on this great subject for the country. It 

 has seemed to me a subject too big and too involved for that — one 

 touching too many interests. I approve heartily of the position taken 

 by Mr. Bruce in his postscript, and feel that Colonel Graves' whole 

 method of going at the matter is much sounder — to start the thing 

 moving, to appeal to patriotism, to invite cooperation and counsel. 

 Possibly in this I do injustice to the real intent of the Committee. 



1 Remarks made at a meeting of the Washington Section of the Society of 

 American Foresters, March 11, 1920. 



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