NOTES AND COMMENTS 105 



Numerous "water sprouts" have appeared along the trunks of 

 chestnut, rock oak, and scarlet oak. They are the result of excessive 

 light and abundant food in the case of rock oak and scarlet oak, but in 

 the case of chestnut, on which they are most abundant, the chestnut 

 blight fungus is the causative agent. 



At the time of the cutting (1912) the chestnut blight was present at 

 only one spot near the northwest corner. All infected trees were cut 

 out. At present (1915) chestnut blight is found over the entire area, 

 being heaviest near the original infected spot. A strip siirvey of July 

 23, 1915, showed 61 sound, 97 dying, and 6 dead chestnut trees on an 

 acre. In an unthinned stand, just north of the spot infected at the time 

 of the cutting, are found 82 sound, 56 dying, and no dead trees. The 

 percentage of dead and dying trees is lower in the unthinned than in 

 the thinned stand, even though it is nearer the spot infected in 1912. 



Recent increment borings show that trees attacked by the chestnut 

 blight are now making a poor diameter growth, while the sound trees 

 are making a slightly larger growth than before the cutting. The 

 annual rings since the cutting have an average width of one-tenth of an 

 inch. 



All bHghted material will be cut out during the coming winter. 



J. S. IlvLICK. 



The distinctive feature of the development of timber sales in Mon- 

 tana and Idaho in recent months is the very pronounced demand for 

 timber suitable for paper pulp. The establishment of one or more pulp 

 mills operating on National Forest timber has been proposed, with 

 capacities varying from 10 million to 50 million feet annually. None 

 of these plants have yet materialized, but it seems very probable that 

 one will materialize in the near future. 



In fire protection the development seems to be along the line of 

 more accurate classification of hazard and risk ; risk being interpreted 

 as the possibility or perhaps the liability of fires starting, while hazard 

 is defined as the inflammability or combustibility of the forest cover. 

 The effort to put fire protection upon a more scientific basis is resulting 

 in the development of a distinctive and technical nomenclature. 



The essential facts that may be gleamed from the report of Mr. 

 H. S. Graves, Chief of the Forest Service, in his annual report are 

 that an increase in receipts of more than $340,000 was secured over 

 last year, totaling altogether over $2,800,000, of which from timber 



