THE NORTHERN NEGROS FOREST. 

 By Heber G. Stout, Forester, Philippine Bureau of Forestry. 



The district known as the Northern Negros Forest was put 

 imder intensive administration in July, 1909. It includes the 

 northern third of the Island of Negros, one of the central islands 

 of the Philippine Archipelago. The total area of the district is 

 about one million acres, about one-half of which is in forest con- 

 taining approximately one billion board feet of standing timber. 

 In dividing off the Northern Negros Forest as a separate adminis- 

 trative unit, two objects were kept in view. First, to test the 

 advisability of creating similar intensive administrative units in 

 various parts of the Archipelago, and second, to serve as a training 

 ground for Filipino rangers. The first object has been well ful- 

 filled, and the establishment of a forest school for rangers has 

 since rendered it unnecessary to use the Northern Negros Forest 

 for purposes of education other than as providing a place for the 

 students to do field work. An unusual importance also attaches 

 to the Northern Negros Forest, as it suppHes the timber for the 

 mills for two of the largest lumber companies in the islands. The 

 Insular Lumber Company was established in 1904 at Fabrica, 

 Negros Occidental ; and the Negros-Philippine Lumber Company, 

 with mills at Cadiz, has only recently begun operations. 



The Insular Lumber Company was the first in the Islands to? 

 install modern methods of lumbering. The plant is situated up 

 the Himugaan River about seven miles from its mouth, and is 

 equipped with a 9-foot band saw, large edger, trimmer, surfacer, 

 and tongue and groove machine, and is easily capable of handling; 

 the large logs which are brought in from the forest. The com- 

 pany has constructed several miles of logging railroad, and pos- 

 sesses two Shay-geared locomotives and five donkey engines for 

 yarding and loading. They are operating under a twenty-year 

 license agreement with the Government, which gives them the 

 exclusive right to cut from a tract of forest of sixty-nine square 

 miles, the greater portion of which is fairly level country. The 

 forest itself is of the Dipterocarp type which furnishes the com- 



