I20 HILLMAN : 



changed condition of the soil of later formations seemed fav- 

 orable to the growth of the afligiosperms which, at the present 

 day, exist in the ratio of five to one, as compared with the 

 gymnosperms. This subsidence seems to have been the first 

 great set-back to the pines in New Jersey. 



The pine has a lower position in the biologic scale than 

 the deciduous trees, and not only has been crowded out by 

 them, but, by more aggressive varieties, has been driven into 

 environments unsuited to its proper development. There are 

 many reasons for the disappearance of the pine. Fifty years 

 ago it was largely used in the iron industry of New Jersey, 

 over 6000 acres being cut annually for this alone ; then the 

 amount used for sawed lumber, as well as for charcoal, was 

 equally great. In more recent years, repeated forest fires have 

 well-nigh completed the work of destruction among the pines.* 



The white oak, Ouerciis alba, so common among the pines, 

 is known by its light-colored bark. The leaves are deeply 



* According to the Annual Report of the State Geologist, between 

 April and September of 1902, sixty-five fires occurred in fourteen coun- 

 ties, in which 98,850 acres of timber land were burned over, with a total 

 damage estimated at $168,323. But one of these fires was, however, in 

 Camden County, and that was near Winslow Junction in April of the 

 above year. Locomotive sparks set fire to 400 acres of pine timber, 50 

 years old, the average loss being $15 per acre — total, f6ooo. 



Throughout the pines there are German, Italian, Russian and other 

 foreign colonies, and many of the most destructive fires have been caused 

 by these people in clearing their farms. Where fire frequently burns the 

 surface litter and hinders the growth of forests, the soil finally becomes 

 sterile and lifeless, from the fact that the organisms in the soil, causing 

 decomposition of hunuis and the preservation of nitrogen, are killed. 



Fires also destroy tlie game and its food supply as well as cause an 

 increase of insects and produce general unhealthfulness, aside from the 

 loss of wood and the crippling of industries depending on it. Pitch pine 

 can resist fire to a great extent and recover after severe injury. The 

 short leaf pine is also able to resist fires, but recovers less readily. It is 

 the thick, corky bark that protects these trees ; it may be burned till 

 fairly charred, and yet the living part of the tree will not be injured. 

 Young trees suffer most, however, on account of their thinner bark. 



The chestnut oak flourishes luxuriantly in the shade of the pine. 



