MICHIGAN 



RMDS 



FORESTS 



DETROIT, MICH., JANUARY, 1910. 



MICHIGAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. 



The Michigan Forestry Association was organized in Grand Rapids August 30, 1905, having for its object the promotion of a ra- 

 tional system of forestry in Michigan. The society is managed by the following roster of officers: President, Hon. Chas. W. Garfield, of Grand 

 Rapids; Vice-President, John H. Bissell, of Detroit; Secretary, Filibert Roth, of Ann Arbor; Assistant Secretary, Henry G. Stevens, Detroit; 

 Treasurer, W. B. Mershon, Saginaw, W. S. Board of Directors Hon. J. E. Beal, Ann Arbor; J. J. Hubbell, Manistee; Mrs. Lena E. Mautner. 

 Saginaw ; Prof. James Satterlee, Lansing ; Fremont E. Skeels, Cadillac ; W. E. Williams, Pittsf ord ; Dr. Lucius L. Hubbard, Houghton ; Mrs. 

 John C. Sharp, Jackson. 



THE SECRETARY'S CORNER. 



The call for suggestions has not been in 

 r ain. One of the readers in a very interest- 

 ng letter suggests that Roads and Forest: 



1. Prepare a primer of forestry. 



-. Print articles giving directions for for- 

 work, planting and the care of woods, 

 uited to Michigan conditions. 



For reasons not necessarily explained here, 

 the secretary has abstained from these obvious 

 . things" in the past, but hopes to 

 make up. 



2. Information. Request frequently comes 

 for information on planting our common for- 



~ees, on the treatment of the wood lot 

 and other forestry topics. 



All persons interested in forestry and in 

 search for information can do no better than 

 write to the 



U. S. FOREST SERVICE, 

 Washington, D. C. 



The Forest Service has published up to 

 date: 



77 Bulletin-. 

 171 Circulars. 



.'.0 Silvical Leaflets, 



besides a number of reprints and official pub- 

 lications. 



Anyone desiring a list of these publications 

 can get it without expense, and most of the 

 publication? will be mailed free to anyone. 



The bulletins and circulars deal with all 

 branches of forestry; the Silvical leaflets each 

 describes the character, habit, planting, etc., 

 of one kind of tree, so that any one desiring 

 information on the elm. for instance, can get 

 this by getting the leaflet on the elm. 



Farmers' Bulletin Xo. 173 is a primer of 

 forestry. 



Of late publications the following are es- 

 pecially valuable and interesting: 



Circular 140, "What Forestry Has Done." 



Circular 97. "Timber Supply of the United 

 States." 



Circular 171. "The Forests of the United 

 States: Their Use." 



Also the "Use Book." which describes the 

 way in which the national forests are man- 

 aged. 



CAUTIONS AGAINST THOSE PINE 

 BARRENS. 



"Some measures must be taken to prevent 

 the sale of absolutely barren lands in Michi- 



gan to ignorant purchasers by land sharks," 

 says Robert Graham, president of the State 

 Board of Agriculture. "There have been new 

 methods of farming discovered by which bar- 

 ren land can be made productive and in this 

 boom which has been started there is an 

 opportunity for people to be robbed of their 

 money unless they are careful to make a thor- 

 ough investigation before buying. I know 

 there is plenty of good, cheap land for settlers, 

 but there are also many acres that will not 

 grow anything in the shape of crops, and we 

 can't afford to have people robbed with that 

 land." 



Asked how some measure of protection 

 could be provided, Mr. Graham said that he 

 understood the state public domain commis- 

 sion intends to withdraw a large quantity of 

 the worthless lands from sale, and will, when- 

 ever requested, furnish prospective buyers 

 with all the information at hand as to the 

 value of land they propose to purchase. 



"I do not want to stand in the way of the 

 plan of some citizens to interest settlers in 

 Michigan, but I do not want to have people 

 buy farms in certain sections of this state with 

 any idea that they can grow crops on them, 

 for I know they cannot. We have plenty of 

 good lands which can be turned into profitable 

 farms by settlers, but it is the duty of the 

 state to see to it that fakirs do not sell worth- 

 less lands to people who are seeking a chance 

 to establish a home." 



It is certainly refreshing and inspiring to 

 see a man of capacity, a successful business 

 man and a man who has distinguished himself 

 in public affairs, come out and speak the truth 

 with regard t" these lands, and the disgusting 

 traffic with regard to them. That this traffic 

 is criminal has been pointed out repeatedly, 

 and that the state should help it by turning 

 over large areas of such worthless lands to 

 the heartless dealers is a shame on this com- 

 monwealth. It is a pcor brand of etiquette 

 to sit by and keep still about this business 

 because a few preudo politicians and others 

 are making a little blood money out of this 

 unholy traffic, and it is a hopeful sign of the 

 times "when men like Mr. Graham come out 

 to call things by their right name. 



$5000 FROM SALE OF CONFISCATED 



TIMBER. 



The first annual report by Supervisor of 

 Trespas-s Glenn Munshaw to the Public Do- 

 main Commission shows that the trespass 

 department has had a busy year. The receipts 

 from the sale of timber, confiscated becaus-e it 



was discovered that it had been cut upon state 

 land, will run about $5,000. The department 

 has records of 171 cases of trespass, as a re- 

 sult of which 28 criminal cases have been 

 started, 666 cases are pending and 28 cases 

 have been settled. The agents have secure'd 

 14 convictions and there are seven criminal 

 cases now pending. The state has now on 

 hand timber valued at $1,900.63, which has 

 been seized and is held for sale at market 

 prices. 



In many sections of the state the trespass 

 agents are hated with a determined hatred as 

 a result of their vigilance in prosecuting tim- 

 ber thieves, but Mr. Munshaw says that as the 

 new law comes to be understood he believes 

 this feeling will die out. 



The above item contains a very serious les- 

 son. While, no doubt, it shows activity and 

 attention on the part of the present incum- 

 bents of the respective offices, it also shows, 

 and shows in a most glaring light, a wretched 

 incompetence mixed with much that savors 

 of dishonesty on the part of the state as a 

 commonwealth. Any one familiar with up- 

 country affairs knows the sentiment which is 

 usually expressed at every trial for trespass. 

 It is this: "Yes, years ago the state let the 

 big thieves steal without let or hindrance, and 

 now that we unfortunate backwoods settlers 

 are trying to eke out a living and cut a few 

 pieces of old dead cedar or pine, we are 

 jumped onto as criminals by that same state. 

 The other lesson which this item teaches i 

 equally interesting and its subject far more 

 deplorable. We have a constitution, and un- 

 der this a system of government provided with 

 sheriffs and other police machinery. And yet 

 the state lands- and timber require a special 

 state police for their protection. In fact it 

 a matter of record that a country sheriff was 

 himself a timber trespasser of the worst kmd^ 

 This form of special police is not restricted 

 to land and timber trespass agents; we hav< 

 game wardens, fish wardens, factory inspector 

 and no end of special police, all a system of 

 useless patchwork office duplication, and all 

 an evidence of incompetence in the enforce- 

 ment of law. And why all this? Simply be- 

 cause we do not compel the incumbent of an > 

 office to do his duty. Office is a polbcal re- 

 ward and not a matter of responsibility. 



If the sheriff of a county knew that he 

 would go to prison if he neglected his c 

 with regard to guarding the gate's property. 

 it would not be necessary to have all sorts o 

 special police to watch state property, or en- 

 force game l 



