MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS 



13 



was succeeful in preventing the passage of the 

 bill at that time, but an agreement was reached 

 by which a vote will he taken on the bill on the 

 15th of February, 1911. 



The handling of this measure for the last 

 three years is conclusive proof that Congress 

 cares nothing for the will of the people. The 

 height of statesmanship in the House was 

 reached by the Hon. Edgar D. Crumpacker of 

 Indiana, in his speech against the bill. He sug- 

 gested the employment of two old-fashioned 

 windmills with pumps at the head of the Con- 

 necticut River as a means of supplying more 

 water in the river and doing "more for naviga- 

 tion than will be done under this scheme in a 

 quarter of a century." The Indiana statesman 

 also said : 



Fifty years ago and more the great prairie 

 states in the Mississippi Valley were covered 

 with swamps and sloughs that were saturated 

 with water the year round. They contributed 

 much toward the rainfall in the valley dur- 

 ing the best days of July and the dog-day sea- 

 son. They gave to the atmosphere vapor that 

 went up into the clouds and made rain. Those 

 swamps have all been drained. Thev are dry. 

 They -are farms and gardens now. The govern- 

 ment might as well enter upon an undertaking 

 for the common pood to reestablish those 

 swamps and slousrhs on those fertile lands in the 

 prairie states, with a view to promoting rainfall 

 in the Mississippi Valley. 



The New York Sun was so impressed with 

 this powerful argument that it remarked, after 

 reviewing the speech at some length: "There 

 were other foolish sreeches made in opposition 

 to the Appalachian forest reserve bill, but the 

 palm must he awarded to the Hon. Edgar D. 

 Crumpacker." 



Tf this bill needed more support than the pow- 

 erful scientific, economic, and lep-al arguments 

 that have heen massed in its behalf during the 

 ten years of discussion this would be found in 

 the fact that the best its opponents can do 

 against it is typified hv the filibuster in the Sen- 

 ate and rrch arguments as Mr. Crumpackcr's in 

 the House. This last excerrt is placed here 

 merely to illustrate that the farts in a cas e are 

 of no consem'efcc in the Confirms anH that our 

 people si ill prefer to be governed and have their 

 laws made hv the very princes of ienorance. 



Any ore interested specially in the Appalachian 

 B'11 will find a full description of Congressional 

 doiiies in the Aiifftist Number of American 

 Forestry, and it is surely pood reading not only 

 for forests but for any citizen who cares to see 

 how and why laws are not made. 



MINNESOTA WAKES UP. 



The Minnesota State Forestry Board will hold 

 a meet'ne to discnss forest fires. Dec. 6th and 

 7th. and the hoard is se'vlintr nut invitations to 

 all people interested in this s'ibiect. in H-e Great 

 Lakes region, particularly Minnesota W?"<"win 

 and Michigan. This will be a notable gathering 

 and is sure to result in some eno'l. The Public 

 Domain Commission will send a representative. 



CONSERVATION AND THE 



NATIONAL ASSOCIATION 



There is so much talk of conservation nowa- 

 davs and so much extension of the term and 

 new applications of the principle, that there 

 is some dantrer that many people will lose 

 sipbt of the main issues and the main facts, 

 and with it the main tasks before our nation. 

 Conservation, as we have it here today, was 

 born out of forestry, and all friends of for- 

 estry are interested at least in the phases 

 affp^tinf forests and forestry. 



The Nnt'ona' Conservation Association, un- 

 der the leadership of Mr. Pinchot. has done 

 admirable work. Last winter a lot of tru'o' 

 dangerous, dishonest legislation was pre- 

 vented, and some good things became law. 



But the agents of the grabber bunch, such 

 men as Carter, Heyburn & Co.. will again be 

 on hand to try to shape legislation in favor 

 of the grabber of land, forest, minerals or 

 water; and it will need concerted action, active 

 work, and especially a perfectly fearless 

 speaking of your minds, to prevent mischief 



Michigan Forestry Association 



HAS FOR ITS OBJECT 



The modification of our laws which will enable the holding and 

 reforesting of forest lands. 



The protection of forest property against fire and trespass. The 

 disposition and management of our state lands. 



Every citizen should be interested in this work and join the Asso- 

 ciation. Membership fee $1.00 per year, including yearly subscription 

 to Michigan Roads and Forests, the official organ of the Association. 



PROF. HUBERT ROTH, Secretary, 



Ann Arbor, Michigan 



next winter, and for several years to come. 

 To any man wanting to take a hand in this 

 immediate fight for the rights and property 

 of our people, there is no better opportunity 

 than to join the Conservation Association, get 

 its bulletins and literature, and get the direc- 

 tions which will tell him when to strike and 

 where and how to strike. For further infor- 

 mntion. address O. W. Price, Colorado Bldg., 

 Washington, D. C. 



The fifth annual meeting of the Michigan 

 Forestry Association, which will be held at 

 Kalamazoo Tuesday and Wednesday. Novem- 

 ber 15 and 16, promises to be the most not- 

 able gathering in the history of the organi- 

 zation. 



The subjects to be discussed are agitating 

 the entire country. Public-spirited citizens 

 throughout the state should rally to the Asso- 

 ciation meeting and carry home a message. 

 All sessions are open to the public, free. The 

 official headquarters will he at the American 

 Hotel. The 'program follows: 



NEW BOOKS AND NOTES. 



"Lumber Saved by Using Odd Lengths." This 

 is the title of a very f'mely little circular which 

 the United States Forest Service is sending 

 rut to show where a great saving in timber 

 may be made. We have, all too long, cut our 

 boards to even feet. 10, 12. 14, 16 ft., etc., and 

 Hnve therehv wasted millions of feet every- 

 where, merely to please the whim of a wasteful 

 build'ng trade. It is clearly shown that in 

 actunl trials, over 2% of the lumber may be 

 saved, an item of over 20.000.000 feet per year 

 on the cut of Michigan alone. 



Protection of Forests From Fire. 

 Under this title comes Bulletin No. 82 of 

 the United States Forest Service, prepared by 

 Prof. H. S. Graves. This is really the first 

 comprehensive statement on this subject ever 

 pub'ished in our country and should be read 

 by everyone interested in the protection of 

 our woods. It is a booklet of 48 pages, amply 

 illustrated and treats the subject from the 

 forester's standpoint. 



Wisconsin Wood Industries. 

 A bock of 68 pages, prepared by a co-opera- 

 tion of the United States Forest Service and 

 the State Forester of Wisconsin gives us for 

 'the first time full and reliable information con- 

 cerning the different wood industries, the kind 

 and ouantity and value of the wood they use 

 for different purposes. It is a most instructive 

 booklet that ought to be in the hands of every 

 forester, wood worker, wood dresser and that 

 should not be wanting in any school library. 

 It is to be hoped, that Michigan will not be 



waiting too long before we are supplied in 

 the same way; a good job for our Public Do- 

 main Commission. 



The State of New York is on hand, as usual, 

 to prove her activities and real leadership in 

 forestry matters. 



"Lopping Branches in Lumbering." 



Written by Mr. John W. Stephen, (a good 

 U. of M. product), describes the methods and 

 results as well advantages of this method 

 cleaning up in the forest. The pamphlet is 

 well illustrated and should be helpful in the 

 great problem of protection. 



The "Annual Report of the Department of 

 Forestry," by Austin Gary, gives us in concise 

 form a clear statement of forestry affairs in 

 Xew York as they are judged and described 

 by an experienced timberman and forester! 

 As usual the report is well illustrated. Among 

 the specially interesting features are the mat- 

 ter of fire protection bv means of stations on 

 the mountains. That New York means busi- 

 ness in this matter is well illustrated by the 

 following, taken from this report: For an 

 area of about 3.000.000 acres or 1-3 of the Up- 

 per Peninsula there were employed patrolmen. 



Forty (40) regular patrolmen were employed 

 at the height of the fire season, supplemented 

 with a larger number of specials, with three 

 watchers of plantations and eight observers 

 on mountain stations. Sixteen regular patrol- 

 men hold over the winter, engaged in enforc- 

 inc the law requiring the tops to be lopped 

 and to some extent employed in maintenance 

 of the State's property rights. 



Game Protectors: 



Thirty of the protectors reside in forest pre- 

 serve counties, and some of them do good 

 service in protecting the State's property frorr 

 trespass and otherwise helping out the work 

 of this branch of the Commission. 



The work on the Forest Reserve called The 

 Highlands of the Hudson," by Forester Moon 

 is a most readable, interesting and beautifully 

 illustrated pamphlet giving some excellent di- 

 rections in various lines of forestry work. 



But again it is the pamphlet on "Reforest- 

 ing Operations." by Forester C. R. Pettis. now 

 State Superintendent of Forests, which attract' 

 our attention most. It is clear that Mr. Petti? 

 work, well supported by Mr. Whipple and 

 Governor Hughes, is making excellent prog- 

 ress and that Xew York is far in the front 

 in this most important work of reforesta- 

 tion. Over a million trees were bought by 

 private parties from the state nurseries, and 

 much more were applied for but could not be 

 supplied. 



The work in these nurseries, the planting 

 of trees in wild lands, the experimental work 

 all are well described and illustrated. There 

 are few books which present these matters 



