134 Forestry Quarterly. 



Seed collecting, nursery work, planting and seeding are all of 

 a technical nature, and require knowledge, skill and experience 

 to bring the best results. In view of the fact that all the work 

 done on a National Forest must necessarily be done by or through 

 the local Forest officers, the inexperience of most of the officers 

 in such work constitutes one of the greatest drawbacks. How- 

 ever, the planting stations offer the best training school and plans 

 have been made to detail one or several rangers from those 

 Forests upon which planting is contemplated to the nearest plant- 

 ing stations for short periods while work is in progress there. 

 It is expected that some of these will be put in charge of the 

 planting and sowing on their own Forests as well as of the trans- 

 plant nurseries to be established. However, the bulk of the labor 

 at the planting stations, as well as on individual Forests, will have 

 to be hired. Forestry students from the agricultural colleges have 

 proven to be very desirable temporary laborers. The experience 

 acquired in connection with their employment at the planting sta- 

 tions will be of further use to the Forest Service in case they 

 become more permanently associated with the work on a particu- 

 lar Forest. 



In conclusion, all forestation, whether afforestation or refor- 

 estation, whether effected through planting or direct seeding, 

 should be regarded in the light of improvement work, as one of 

 those functions of state which takes into account the public 

 welfare rather than financial returns because these are shrouded 

 in darkness, and it is not possible to prove pecuniary success 

 because too many of the following factors necessary to the calcu- 

 lation are unknown and unknowable : 



a. Minimum cost of establishing and maintaining plantations 

 from seed to maturity. 



b. Rate of growth of trees and time of harvest. 



c. The protective value of Forests reduced to tangible terms. 



d. Final sale value of product at maturity, and, 



e. Rate of interest at various times. 



In this, as in all other important undertakings, there are neces- 

 sarily elements of uncertainty. Were it necessary to wait until 

 there are no more risks, this work would never be started, and 

 the Service would be comparable to a young man who fails to 



