MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS. 



men. clerks, stenographers, etc., who are influ- 

 enced to invest their savings in small parcels 

 of these lands on contracts at long time- Of 

 course, this is a swindle on the purchasers, 

 but something that this department is not 

 accountable for and is powerless to prevent. 

 I have entered on each tract the sum received 

 by the State for it and have endeavored to 

 show just what information this department 

 had concerning the lands.' 



E. R. HAVENS, 

 Chief Clerk of Land Office. 



Extract From Letter Published in Roscom- 

 mon Herald Feb. 13, 1908. 



It is true that the Michigan Central Park 

 Company purchased largely from the State the 

 forfeited lands. They accepted the price and 

 conditions and carried out their obligations in 

 every case. Today we will buy all of the land 

 of the same kind and pay $5.00 to $10.00 per 

 acre. * * * It is true that the Michigan 

 Central Park Company are selling these lands 

 very cheap to settle the country, and in so 

 doing make a profit. * * * There has been 

 more land sold in Roscommon and Crawford 

 counties in the past seven years to active 

 farmers than in all of the rest of the State 

 together. About 40,000 people bought lands 

 and lots around Higgins lake. * * * We 

 do not think there is an acre of State land for 

 sale in Roscommon or Crawford counties to- 

 day. If there is, the Michigan Central Park 

 Company would be willing to pay $5.00 to 

 $10.00 for the same, and more if they are 

 worth it. * * * 



MICHIGAN CENTRAL PARK CO. 



Roscommon county will grow more and bet- 

 ter wheat, oats, rye, speltz, timothy hay, clover 

 seed, beans, field peas, potatoes, cabbages, 

 sugar beets, turnips and rutabages to the 

 acre than any other county in the State, or in 

 Illinois. Indiana or Ohio. * * * 



Our land will pay double the value per acre 

 that the average high priced land of Illinois, 

 Indiana and Ohio does. And yet such land 

 can be bought for $6.00 an acre up. Land 

 upon which, the third year it is under cultiva- 

 tion, a clover seed crop will yield from $75 to 

 $100 per acre. 



ST. HELEN DEVELOPMENT CO., 



St. Helen. Michigan. 



Chicago Offices: 607 Atwood Bldg. 



Corner Madison and Clark Streets. 



The above needs no comment. The State 

 of Michigan confesses itself a party to a 

 "swindle." 



The "other side," represented by such men 

 as Hon. Wm. H. Rose, the state land com- 

 missioner; Frank Leverett, of the United 

 States Geological Survey, and many more, 

 clearly point out that good and poor lands 

 occur in all this region, but that vast areas 

 must be considered as "non-agricultural." a 

 fact which the American farmer who knows 

 from experience has long held and acted upon, 

 by leaving these lands and seeking his home 

 elsewhere. 



Considerable space is devoted to the discus- 

 sion of "Forest Taxation," and it is clearly 

 pointed out that private enterprise cannot 

 undertake the reforestation of the cut-over 

 lands unless a modification of our methods of 

 taxation is secured. To tax a forest planta- 

 tion for land and trees (the crop), while farm 

 land is taxed only for the land, is evidently 

 unfair. On such a plantation the same crop 

 would be taxed for many years, and it would 

 be exactly as if a farmer had to pay taxes not 

 only on the crop of this year but on all the 

 crops for many years back. Tt is also pointed 

 out in this report that the whole matter of 

 taxation of the wooded areas in our State is 

 not a matter of great concern to the State 

 insofar as all the rural property of the region 

 would not make over 5 per cent of the total 

 amount of taxable property in the State. From 

 this alone it is evident that any change or 

 modification is not going to affect the taxa- 

 tion of our State in any serious manner. And 



if it is possible by such modification to en- 

 courage tree planting and the use of these 

 lands the benefit will outweigh any losses 

 more than an hundredfold. 



Concerning the taxation of woodlots on the 

 farm, the commission advocates an assess- 

 ment of land only; for forest plantations a 

 tax on the land and a "harvest tax," i. e., a 

 special tax on the timber whenever it is cut. 

 With regard to the existing forests the com- 

 mission is timid and makes no particular plan 

 but agrees that our present method rather 

 discourages the holding of forests and thus 

 leads to exploitation and devastation. That 

 this is a very Serious matter is realized by 

 most people and it would seem that the time 

 has come when the State should step in and 

 assert its power with regard to the forest and 

 demand its proper treatment and preservation 

 in the interest of "all the people." 



In its recommendations and drafts of bills 

 for the coming session of the Legislature the 

 commission places itself on the broad founda- 

 tion of the general welfare of the State. It 

 assumes that the tax lands (practically all the 

 State lands left) have been "sifted" by our 

 taxation methods, so that they represent the 

 "culls;" that they are widely scattered and do 

 not occupy entire counties; in fact, in no case 

 over 27 per cent of any county. Also that 

 the forest is the only safe and natural crop 

 to be expected from these lands; that this 

 crop will largely come without planting, but 

 does require adequate protection against fire. 

 It also assumes that the State cannot be ex- 

 pected to do all there is need for in the mat- 

 ter of reforestation and that, therefore, the 

 State must make it possible and give encour- 

 agement to private owners of land to take a 

 part in this work. 



Accordingly the commission submits and 

 recommends four distinct measures in which 

 the following points appear most salient: 



Law Concerning the Lands. 



1. The State withdraws at once all tax and 

 tax homestead lands until the legislature can 

 decide more fully what the project proposed 

 shall be. and thereby put a stop to the waste 

 set forth above. That this should be done 

 without delay and should form the first step 

 is patent to every honest citizen in the State. 



2. The auditor general should formally 

 deed the lands to the State according to law 

 and should not hold such lands indefinitely 

 and incur the useless expense of continuous 

 advertising as in the past. 



3. Lands should not be offered for sale for 

 the taxes, when once bid in by the State, and 

 be thus given over to land skinners, often to 

 the detriment of the real, original owner. 



4. The disposal of the tax lands shall 'be 

 in three ways, according to circumstances: 



(a) Where large bodies of these lands oc- 

 cur close together, they shall be used as State 

 Forest Reserves. 



(b) Scattered tracts, not used for State 

 Reserves, may be sold to settlers, providing 

 the land is agricultural. When sold the mini- 

 mum price shall be $5 per acre plus the value 

 of the timber. 



(c) Lands not used by the State and not 

 applied for by purchasers may be applied for 

 by actual resident settlers of the township for 

 use as private forests, under proper regula- 

 tions. Of these private forests no one can 

 have more than 160 acres, and the applicant 

 is obliged to take care of the woods for 25 

 years before he can obtain title. These re- 

 serves, it is hoped, will stimulate an interest 

 in forests and help to correct the serious in- 

 difference with regard to forest property 

 among the local people. 



5. The State Forest Reserves to be under 

 the care of a State commission empowered, 

 as the present commission is. to protect, plant 

 and utilize the forest as seems best. 



6. State and private forest reserves pay 

 taxes at a certain flat rate per acre. 



7. In all disposals of these lands the State 

 reserves the water rights. 



Fire Law. 



1. The State forest warden is placed under 

 the same commission as the lands. 



2. The State warden and his deputies have 

 the powers now given to the game warden, 

 but somewhat amplified at several points. 



3. The State wardens are stationed in defi- 

 nite districts and in these they can: 



(a) Call out citizens to fight fires. 



(b) Call out the supervisors and sheriffs 

 to assist in this work. 



(c) Establish a special patrol in time of 

 danger. 



(d) Declare a closed season during which 

 no one can set fires. 



(e) In cases of emergency, they can em- 

 ploy extra measures to meet the difficulties. 



(f) All wardens and State deputies have 

 the power of arrest. 



4. The State to pay all help. 



5. Spring and early fall of each year are 

 declared danger seasons and the setting of 

 fires is forbidden. 



6. Otherwise the present laws are contin- 

 ued in every important detail. 



This law will need a little strengthening; 

 there is need for a statute compelling the 

 prosecuting attorney to prosecute; and also a 

 statute regulating smoking in and near the 

 woods during dry time, and the behavior of 

 persons on the land of others. During dan- 

 gerously dry times people having no business 

 in these woods should be made to stay out. 

 Then, also, it should be possible to prosecute 

 cases of trespass and fires in counties other 

 than the one where the offence was committed 

 in order that justice may be obtained. 



Law Creating the Commission. 



1. The commission to consist of five men. 



2. Of the five, two are appointed from a 

 list submitted by the Board of Regents of the 

 University; two from a list submitted by the 

 State Board of Agriculture, and one is selected 

 by the governor. 



3. Each member serves five years, and only 

 one member is appointed any one year. 



4. The commission does not receive pay. 



5. It has jurisdiction over all State lands, 

 over State reserves and over the matters of 

 fire and game protection. 



It is hoped that every one interested in for- 

 estry and in the real and continued welfare 

 of this State will join in the effort to bring 

 these matters before our people, before our 

 legislature, and to secure the enactment of 

 the laws as asked for in this report of the Com- 

 mission of Inquiry. 



With half of the lands of Michigan unim- 

 proved wild lands; with at least ten millions 

 of acres in form of cut-over and burned over 

 lands, actual waste land in their present condi- 

 tion; with timber import taking millions of 

 dollars of money out of this State every year; 

 with flood and drought, and with a constant 

 increase in the severity of our climate and the 

 irregularity of our seasons, is it not about 

 time that something be done? 



REFORESTING FARM WOODLOTS. 



The efforts of President J. L. Snyder, of 

 the Michigan Agricultural College, to secure 

 a forester for the purpose of carrying on the 

 reforestation of farm woodlots in Michigan 

 has at last been successful. The United 

 States Forestry service has consented to loan 

 the college the services of one of its inspec- 

 tors and research workers. Bishop by name. 

 Mr. Bishop has done field work along refor- 

 estation lines for many years and will be able 

 to give some valuable information and exper- 

 ience to the farmers of Michigan who desire 

 to reforest their woodlots. 



Mr. Bishop has begun his duties. He will 

 be kept in the field during his entire stay in 

 Michigan, providing that the weather is in his 

 favor. He will visit farmers in different parts 

 of the state and will endeavor to interest them 

 in reforestation work. 



