PAPERS OF GENERAL INTEREST 53 



Certainly in Illinois and in all other states there should 

 be presences of natural conditions in the vicinity of all 

 the larger institutions of high rank. These are needed 

 in connection with all the various biological courses but 

 particularly forestry. Certainly they have a value in the 

 interpretation of literature and art in a great many cases 

 at least, and often as well in the understanding of his- 

 tory. 



Doubtless in many cases the preservation of natural 

 conditions may be combined with recreation projects, 

 tracts may be provided which are in part in their natural 

 state and in part made up of tree-covered pasture land 

 such as the public desires for camping and picnics. The 

 Cook County forest presei'^'es are serving various pur- 

 poses. It is probable that in the more thickly settled 

 parts of the country no tract of forest will be in orig- 

 inal condition; any considerable tract will contain some 

 original stand, some second growth, some joastured area. 

 The second growth is good for forestry purposes, the 

 pastured areas particularly good for recreation, and the 

 undisturbed situations particularly if they lie within 

 these can easily contain certain sample plots of the fores- 

 ter and serve as game sanctuaries and bird presei'ves. 



VI. GENER.\L PROBLEMS RELATED TO PRESERVES 



These are (1) the preservation of portions of the orig- 

 inal flora and fauna, in the semi-natural conditions ac- 

 companying agriculture, including (2) the preservation 

 of the nesting sites of swamp birds, and of the swamp 

 flora and fauna generally, also (3) the drawing of cor- 

 rect conclusions from the conflicting views of bird protec- 

 tors, on the one hand and clean-culture agriculturalists 

 and entomologists on tlie other. They are, however, 

 closely related to the task with which we are concerned. 



1. Clean-culture (roadside mowing; burning) vs. 

 roadside and streamside shrubbeiy and bird and original 

 life preservation. Birds are decreasing because of lack 

 of nesting sites. Entomologists and some agi'iculturists 

 maintain that this destruction is necessary to agricul- 

 ture; while the bird men insist that birds are also essen- 



