A Town Forest 5 



production. To the great mass of the population, the town or 

 city forest can be the only means of demonstrating the aims, 

 methods and results of conservative and scientific handling of 

 timber lands. 



The city of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, has recently established 

 a municipal forest. Within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts 

 there are about one million acres of idle land. The greater part 

 of this land is more valuable for the growing of timber than for 

 any other purpose. The steady decline of those industries directly 

 dependent upon the productivity of the soil has become a matter 

 of grave concern to the more far-sighted of the men prominent 

 in civic and industrial life. The Fitchburg movement means, 

 among other things, that an established but progressive com- 

 munity of straight-thinking people has decided that practical 

 forestry is worth trying at first hand, as an effort to rehabilitate 

 the economic importance of absolute forest land now lying idle. 

 The order establishing the forest was passed by the city govern- 

 ment without a dissenting vote. 



The legislative act under which the Fitchburg City Forest 

 was established constitutes the land in such cases as public 

 domain to be devoted to the culture of forest trees. The man- 

 agement is placed in the hands of the city forester, or if no such 

 officer is employed by the city, the State Forestry Department 

 may be given the control and jurisdiction. A number of States 

 have passed acts under which muncipal forests may be established, 

 but, as far as is known, no other city or town in America has as 

 yet taken advantage of such laws. Many communities have 

 watershed areas and woodland parks which are to some extent 

 managed on forestry principles, but in such cases the prime 

 objects of the reservation are for the purposes stated, and not 

 specifically for the economic practice of forestry. 



It is inevitable that other cities will follow the lead of Fitch- 

 burg and such a movement will have a considerable bearing upon 

 the professional scope of municipal forestr}^ Heretofore, city 

 foresters, generally speaking, have been little more than arbori- 

 culturists. With the establishment of town forests, the municipal 

 forester's work at once approximates its proper scope. The town 

 and city system of Massachusetts is peculiarly adaptable to a 

 comprehensive local forestry policy. Each municipality includes 



