114 FOREST VALUATION 



In some localities this is justified, in most places it is not, for usually 

 the sawmill, etc., are worth more to the counties than any direct 

 taxes. Lack of state control and the unreasonable insistence on high 

 local taxes have repeated the story of the goose of the golden egg 

 a great many times in all our forest districts. 



The claims of the local people are usually of this order: the 

 forests were not raised by their present owners but given away by 

 the people at nominal prices to encourage the timber business and 

 general development. The owners are not in the forestry business 

 and have no intention of perpetuating the forest. There is no reason 

 why a man should not pay taxes on a hundred thousand dollars 

 which he invests in timber exactly as if he had invested it in other 

 property. The holding of large areas of forest is a form of land 

 monopoly and generally inimical to settlement and development. 



f. Reform in forest taxation in the United States. 



i. For about forty years efforts have been made to encourage 

 forestry either by modifying taxation or by actual bonus. Among 

 the earliest of these efforts was the Timber Culture Act of 1873, 

 giving United States lands on condition of establishment of a stand 

 of forest trees. Since that time different states have enacted a 

 variety of laws. Usually the aim was to encourage planting of 

 woods in small tracts. 



In some cases the plantation was exempt entirely or partially, 

 in others only the land was taxed and assessed at nominal value, etc. 

 In most cases these laws, excepting the United States Timber Cul- 

 ture Act, produced no results whatever. In the last five years, Con- 

 necticut, Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania have enacted 

 well planned laws. 



In recent legislation the following three essential points in our 

 transition stages of forestry in the United States are considered : 



The requirement of the local people of a continuous income is 

 met by a yearly tax on the land, either on its sale value, or a nominal 

 value. 



Lack of income from plantations and immature stands is con- 

 sidered by deferring the tax on the timber to the time of cutting, i. e., 

 making it a harvest or yield tax. 



The variable and peculiar condition of merchantable timber is 

 taken care of by varying the amount of the yield tax. 



In the Connecticut law of 1913 the following provisions are 

 made: 



i. The application of the new tax law is optional with the 

 owner. 



