10 



MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS. 



protection of the Great Lakes, and these forests 

 in turn so modified climatic conditions as to pro- 

 duce a wonderful region for the growing of 

 fruits. In the thoughtless destruction of the 

 \vuuds a great loss is entailed upon the per- 

 manent producers of .the commonwealth. 



In 1875 Dr. Beal, in connection with the gath- 

 ering of an exhibit of woods for the centennial 

 celebration in Philadelphia, took occasion to ad- 

 vert ise to the world the wealth of varieties of 

 trees and shrubs indigenous to Michigan and 

 called the attention of the public to the rapidity 

 with which our forests were going out of exist- 

 ence. 



No Staying of the Axeman. , 



Tn 187(1 Mr. Lyon again before the State Horti- 

 cultural Society in a ringing address cried out 

 the losses entailed through the wholesale destruc- 

 tion of the forests and appealed to the Board of 

 Agriculture, State Agricultural Society, Granges 

 and the Agricultural College to use their influ- 

 ence in staying the hand of the axeman who 

 seemed intent upon destroying the fair fame of 

 our State as a place to build farm homes, in the 

 interest of swelling the volumes of manufactured 

 lumber; 



In 1877 the venerable John Ball, who had 

 studied the forests of America from Maine to 

 Puget's Sound and had watched with regret the 

 diminishing forest acres tributary to Grand Rap- 

 ids* in a letter to me said in substance : "I de- 

 plore the rapid destruction of timber on every 

 side and wish I could place before the thought- 

 less people, who seem intent upon the final de- 

 struction of all our beautiful and useful woods, 

 the thrilling words of my schoolfellow, George 

 P. Marsh, when he describes the losses entailed 

 upon humanity through the wholesale destruc- 

 tion of our forests. I have in my own experi- 

 ence felt these losses which menace our well- 

 being. Lands which were well wooded and 

 which I sold, and they would not remain sold, 

 came back stripped of timber. The sand and 

 gravel hills are worn into deep gullies by the 

 rushing torrents. In summer drouth reduces the 

 crops. Hot and cold winds are a menace in the 

 varying seasons. If a reasonable proportion of 

 timber had been saved, the income from forest 

 and land products might have been continuous 

 forever. Now we have no forest products and 

 the land is approaching barrenness. I consider 

 the retention of a proper amount of forest as 

 vital to the future of our population. Our 

 grandchildren will with reason criticise and con- 

 demn our waste of cherry, walnut, hickory, bass- 

 wood, maple and oak, for in their time there will 

 be a famine of these species of wood owing en- 

 tirely to our lack of wise forethought. I deplore 

 this waste which helps nobody and entails ines- 

 timable sacrifices upon the part of our descend- 

 ants." 



Appeal Was Not Heeded. 



In 1878 O. R. L. Crozier, a pioneer farmer and 

 ntawa County, and Professor Beal, 

 at a great meeting of fruit growers in Jackson, 

 appealed to the citizens of the State to arouse 

 themselves to the dangers of deforestation so rap- 

 idly going on. Mr. Crozier at this time, as I 

 recall, first suggested the desirability of the State 

 setting aside areas of timber as a permanent pub- 

 lic forest domain. 



For some years following this meeting the sec- 

 retary of the State Horticultural Society, in ar- 

 ranging programs of the quarterly sessions, rare- 

 ly neglected to have some address, paper or dis- 

 cussion upon what he termed the greatest ques- 

 tion before the citizens of our State. There was 

 compiled at this time a pamphlet on "The Forest 

 Problem of Michigan" of seventy pages, which 

 was spread abroad throughout the State by the 

 State Horticultural Society and from which the 

 newspapers quoted very freely. In the transac- 

 tions of this society for 1885 this pamphlet was 

 reprinted. The compiler, in the closing sentences, 

 said, "The question for us today with regard to 

 forestry is : shall we drift along doing nothing 

 but discuss the forestry problem in a sort of 

 dramatic way, hoping all the time that our fears 

 will not be realized and that Providence in some 

 inscrutable way will interpose and stay the pun- 



ishment that seems inevitable as a result of our 

 ruthless timber destruction; or shall we profit by 

 the startling results in China, Italy, Spain and 

 Turkey and wrestle with the problem in a prac- 

 tical way, acting as well as talking, and at once 

 sacrifice, if necessary, the fortunes that are mak- 

 ing for the few, and save the climatic and sur- 

 face conditions upon which the success of agri- 

 culture, the foundation of our national prosperity- 

 depend ?" 



First Forestry Commission. 



As a direct result of the agitation above men- 

 tioned, Mr. Beecher, of Genessee County, a hor- 

 ticulturist, elected to the Michigan legislature, 

 with the aid of Dr. Beal, formulated a bill and it 

 was enacted into law in 1887 which provided for 

 the first Forestry Commission in our State. This 

 consisted of the State Board of Agriculture. The 

 board felt that in the management of the Agri- 

 cultural College in troublous times it had about 

 enough cares on its hands, and, as a makeshift, 

 selected Dr. Beal and one of its own members 

 to go ahead under the meager appropriation and 

 do what they saw fit in the name of the Forestry 

 Commission. The accomplishments under this 

 statute are recorded in a pamphlet issued by the 

 Commission and published by the State. The 

 succeeding legislature provided no means for con- 

 tinuing the work and by enactment wiped out the 

 commission itself. 



Five years previously, in a conversation, Dr. J. 

 C. Parker of Grand Rapids casually remarked 

 that "The area of country about Higgins and 

 Houghton Lakes recently lumbered off is an ideal 

 region for a permanent forest, fish and game pre- 

 serve." His friend, to whom the statement was 

 directed, began studying the geography of this 

 region and became greatly interested in the sug- 

 gestion. Ascertaining that the lumbermen would 

 gladly dispose of their holdings for next to noth- 

 ing for the purpose of avoiding taxes, he con- 

 ceived the idea of having the State purchase ten 

 townships of land thirty miles north and south 

 by twelve miles east and west, including the lakes 

 mentioned. He had far more enthusiasm than 

 knowledge of legislation. The bill which he drew 

 was introduced; the facts that for $100,000 this 

 purchase could be consummated accompanied the 

 bill, and both were so carefully laid away in the 

 back part of the table drawer of a legislative com- 

 mittee that they could never be found. 



In passing it may be well to ask the question 

 in the light of succeedings events, what kind of 

 an investment this would have been for the State 

 of Michigan. Let Prof. Roth suggest the figures 

 for you from his wide observation and experi- 

 ence. 



The present Forestry Commission was created 

 in 1899 and there has been no modifications of 

 the law which created it. History has been mak- 

 ing quite rapidly since that time. The forest 

 reserves of nearly 40,000 acres were set aside by 

 the State, their maintenance provided for and 

 their custody placed in the Forestry Commission. 

 The United States government retired from sale 

 pending action by our State, its holdings in a 

 number of townships bordering on our reserves. 

 The forest school at the University was insti- 

 tuted by the regents in answer to a direct appeal 

 from our Commission. The forestry department 

 at the Agricultural College has been organized 

 and equipped, the Association I am addressing- 

 has been organized and is accomplishing effective 

 work. The crowning event of the epoch is the 

 creation of the commission of inquiry, composed 

 of leading public-spirited citizens, to report to 

 the legislature of 1908 a definite forest and land 

 policy for Michigan. 



Michigan Aroused at Last. 



The State of Michigan is thoroughly aroused 

 upon this subject. Men and women in every 

 community are actively and successfully promot- 

 ing onr cause. The outlook is encouraging. Tree 

 destruction is on the wane because there are only 

 a few more trees to destroy. But tree planting 

 is growing popular, and if the baby trees which 

 are to produce the future forests of onr State 

 can find in the commonwealth itself a cherishing 

 mother, our industries will be maintained, our 

 water powers conserved, our arable lands and or- 



chards protected, a wood famine averted and the 

 dire results following in the wake of thoughtless 

 forest destruction which has brought such terrible 

 calamities upon many of the earth's people will 

 be side tracked from Michigan while our future 

 wants will be intelligently provided for. The 

 goal, however, is not reached, and upon you of 

 the Michigan Forestry Association rests the 

 weight of the burden of maintaining interest in 

 the cause and seeing that the object sought in the 

 beginning and never lost from the view of a few 

 thoughtful citizens of the State shall be accom- 

 plished. 



PROF. ROTH'S ADDRESS. 



Prof. Filbert Roth, of the University of Mich- 

 igan, followed Mr. Gariield, discussing '''The 

 Present Status in Michigan." lie said: 



I hold in my hand all 1 know about this status, 

 and I had put it. together with the thought of ad- 

 dressing a large popular audience. I have before 

 me now the most select and the most well in- 

 formed audience on forestry that has ever been 

 convened in special session m this new world. 

 I feel therefore decidedly unprepared, and you 

 will pardon me if 1 make my story short. 



We have in Michigan today, first of all, consid- 

 erable knowledge among all kinds of people. We 

 realize that our timber is not getting cheaper, nor 

 onr rivers getting better. We realize that it is 

 largely to forestry that we must look to find im- 

 provements on the subject. We want forestry 

 all over the state, and we want it right away. 

 We realize too, that we have the lands whereon 

 to raise those forests. A few years ago we didn't 

 realize it, but today we do realize that we have 

 the lands in Michigan for that purpose. We have 

 the sentiment among the people which will carry 

 this to a successful issue. 



A few years ago when the lumbermen told us 

 that the supply of white pine was inexhaustible, 

 we didn't need" forestry; but today when we pay 

 $50, and even as high as $90, a thousand right 

 at the saw mill right at the saw mill where 

 the timber is being cut, for what we used to con- 

 sider an ordinary grade of lumber, we realize 

 that we do need forestry. These prices are at 

 the mill, and we are invited to pay the freight. 

 And it is more emphasized perhaps when you 

 look around and see (I am glad to say it is not 

 so here ) when you see most of our houses 

 finished, inside, with Georgia pine, when Michi- 

 gan did raise no_t one of the best, but the best 

 grade of white pine. 



Sentiment For Forestry. 



We have the sentiment for forestry in this state. 

 Let me give you some proof. Less than a year 

 ago the newspaper men of North Michigan met 

 at Traverse City; and without any forestry crank, 

 if you will allow the phrase, suggesting to them, 

 those very busy people devoted an entire meet- 

 ing, of their own accord, to the discussion of for- 

 estry, and particularly the discussion of reforest- 

 ation of our land. There is no other body of 

 men that know the public pulse as do these men. 

 They diagnosed the question very carefully before 

 they discussed the remedies; the thing was new 

 to them. Today the newspaper men are the 

 strongest exponents of this idea and doing more 

 to create this sentiment than anyone else, in this 

 state. I hear some one say among the people, 

 "But sentiment doesn't raise trees." And that 

 is exactly where we are usually wrong. Senti- 

 ment does. Sentiment has already done more in 

 actually undertaking forestry work in the United 

 States than has business, one hundred to one. 

 Sentiment lias planted trees in Michigan and bus- 

 iness has not yet begun. 



Much Timber Left. 



We have in the state a large body of timber 

 still left. I mean a large body. The farmer 

 alone perhaps owns the most valuable half of it, 

 or at least nearly half. He is making a good 

 deal of it. The farmer reaps more from his 

 woods today than he does from his orchard. On 

 the other hand we have still a large body of wild 

 woods. And this is one of the points I would 

 like to have you keep in mind. And it is for us 

 to do something for this large body of timber, 

 and not only for the lands that have no woods. 

 On the other hand we have large areas of waste 



