MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS. 



11 



FEDERAL FOREST 



IN UPPER PENINSULA 



The first national forest in Michigan will 

 probably be created in Chippewa county. That 

 20,000 acres of government land be set apart 

 for reforestation by Uncle Sam has been 

 recommended to Gifford Pinchot, the national 

 forester, by H. O. Stabler of the forest service. 

 Mr. Stabler's recommendation was ma.de after 

 a thorough examination of this tract, as well 

 as of the government land in eleven north- 

 eastern counties of the state. The land was 

 withdrawn from entry June 17, and brings to a 

 total of 140,000 acres the government land in 

 Michigan which has been withdrawn from 

 entry during the present year. 



The advantage of a forest in this Chippewa 

 county tract is so great that Uncle Sam's 

 administrators will probably not hesitate to 

 set it apart permanently for the public good, 

 although they do not venture any prophecies 

 about it. But the location of the land, to- 

 gether with the character of the soil adapt it 

 more than other government land in Michigan 

 to the purposes of reforestation. The forest 

 service has especially in mind the desirability 

 of teaching a good object lesson about what 

 can be done with the pine barrens in the lake 

 states. Mr. Pinchot knows full well about the 

 C.000,000 acres of waste land in Michigan alone, 

 and he would be glad to show in practical 

 fashion that it will grow good trees if given a 

 fair chance. But this lesson cannot well be 

 taught in an obscure corner of the state where 

 none will see unless that is his only purpose. 



Iroquois National Forest. 



The Chippewa county tract, which may be 

 known as the Iroquois national forest, offers 

 an opportunity to get a good audience for 

 Uncle Sam's lesson in forestry. A great part 

 of it stretches lengthwise along the Duluth, 

 South Shore & Atlantic Railroad. From the 

 railroad it will be possible to see a large part 

 of the proposed forest, especially as the land 

 is flat. The passengers on the railroad will 

 have ample opportunity to observe the pro- 

 gress of the government's operations. And 

 when the trees begin to grow there will be 

 many witnesses to tell the story of the reclam- 

 ation of the pine barrens. In that way encour- 

 agement will be given to the reforestation of 

 the pine barrens by states and ultimately by 

 private enterprise. The proposed Iroquois 

 forest is but thirty miles from the Soo. 



This upper peninsula tract has other advan- 

 tages, too, over the government land in losco 

 county, which has been withdrawn in anticipa- 

 tion of its use for forestry purposes. Much of 

 the 30,000 acres in losco county is badly split 

 up in small pieces. Government land is in- 

 terspersed with state land and to a less extent 

 with land owned by private parties. It had 

 been hoped that this difficulty would be 

 straightened out by congress during the past 

 winter. The agricultural appropriation bill 

 contained a sensible provision that states and 

 the government might exchange land in order 

 that each might consolidate its holdings. This 

 provision went out on a point of order. The 

 government is accordingly powerless as yet to 

 get a compact tract in losco county. 



Original Timber Stolen. 



But the greater part of the land in Chippewa 

 county already lies in a solid block. This fact 

 bears striking evidence to the timber pirating 

 which went on in Michigan in the early days 

 when lumbermen were making themselves rich 

 out of the "inexhaustible" pine forests. The 

 land itself bears mute witness that it was cut 

 over long ago and yet the title has never 

 passed from the government. A lesser part of 

 the proposed Iroquois national forest occurs in 

 isolated forties, eighties and quarter sections 

 and lies south of the main block. It is possi- 

 ble that the area which has been withdrawn 

 from entry may be augmented somewhat by 

 the use of part of the Fort Brady military 

 reservation. This reservation lies close to the 



main block. It has an area of about two 

 thousand acres, only a small part of which is 

 used for military purposes. 



The soil of the proposed Iroquois forest is 

 slightly better than that of the pine barrens in 

 losco county or in the lower peninsula gener- 

 ally. It is nevertheless characteristic of the 

 pine lands found in the lake states generally. 

 It is very sandy and has been impoverished by 

 repeated forest fires. It is the conviction of 

 the experts of the forest service that this land 

 will grow Norway and white pine. 



Mr. Stabler's report says that if fire had been 

 kept out young timber would now be covering 

 the entire area. But after these years of de- 

 vastation it would be a long time before the 

 land would be reforested by -natural means 

 even if the fire were kept out. Accordingly 

 Mr. Stabler looks upon this as a typical in- 

 stance in which artificial reforestation should 

 be adopted. It is proposed that the planting 

 shall be confined almosi entirely to white pine, 

 using Norway pine only on the poorer soil. 



Will Be Hard Job. 



Although this stretch of pine barrens will 

 grow good pine trees, it is a poor place to give 

 them a start. Accordingly it is proposed that 

 a nursery be established on better land at 

 some little distance from the forest. For the 

 nursery two or three acres will be required, 

 and suitable land can be found along the rail- 

 road, probably between Rexford and Sault Ste. 

 Marie. The forest service is without means or 

 power to acquire this land for a nursery and 

 it is altogether possible that some philan- 

 thropic citizen of the upper peninsula may 

 have the opportunity to make a donation. The 

 experience of the forest service is that seed- 

 lings should be given a start under the best 

 possible conditions before they are transplant- 

 ed into the sandy soil of the pine barrens. 



No attempt will probably be made to re- 

 forest the isolated areas lying south of the 

 main block in Chippewa county. They will be 

 included in the forest with a view to exchang- 

 ing them later and to consolidating the gov- 

 ernment holdings. 



The prospect of the proposed national forest 

 in losco county will not be interfered with by 

 the creation of this proposed forest in the 

 upper peninsula. The forest service has shown 

 every disposition to co-operate with the state 

 authorities regarding the losco county project 

 and will doubtless be ready to go farther as 

 soon as obstacles can be removed and a definite 

 plan formulated. 



With a view to helping reforest the worth- 

 less barrens Uncle Sam now holds in trust 

 140,000 acres in Michigan, having withdrawn it 

 within the present year. These lands are not 

 open to settlers. But it apnarently makes little 

 difference whether they are or not. They have 

 been going to waste all these years and so far 

 as has been learned the people of Michigan are 

 glad to have Uncle Sam do something with 

 them. 



WOULD ABOLISH STATE LAND 

 OFFICE. 



As one of the principal recommendations 

 the commission of inquiry into the state tax 

 lands and forests in Michigan will recommend 

 the abolishment of the land commissioner's 

 office. It will urge the legislature to turn the 

 work of the land commissioner's office over to 

 a state forestry commission with much wider 

 powers than the present commission. 



One of the final meetings of the commission 

 was held at Grand Rapids July 22 for the pur- 

 pose of framing up the report. Those present 

 were A. E. Palmer, of Kalkaska; Francis 

 Ring, of Alma; W. E. Osmun, of Montague; 

 Carl E. Schmidt, of Detroit, and President 

 Robert D. Graham and Secretary Charles B. 

 Blair, of Grand Rapids. 



The report will be exhaustive, containing 

 besides the recommendation that the land 

 comissioner's office be abolished, the text of a 

 proposed statute for carrying into effect this 

 and other recommendations. 



The commission is preserving secrecy on 



most parts of the report, which will go first to 

 the governor and by him will be transmitted 

 to the legislature. The report is being drawn 

 up by Secretary Charles B. Blair, who expects 

 to have it completed soon. 



In spite of the exhaustive nature of the re- 

 port it is said that the expenses of the com- 

 mission have not been to exceed about $7,000. 



THE KNELL OF THE FORESTS. 



By George Klingle, Summit, N. J. 



Have you heard the throb of the forest heart? 

 The crash as the shivering timbers part, 

 And a life goes out a forest king 

 Reels to his fate where the ax strokes ring? 



Have you seen the monarch of centuries past 

 Throw down his crown and give over at last, 

 From the struggle of years to bring to its 



height 

 The shaft reaching up to the blue and the 



light? 

 The struggle to gather from earth and from 



air 



The .elements wrought into food by his care; 

 To gather the waters and hold them for you 

 To be fed to the springs, and fed to the dew? 

 The struggle with drought and tempest and 



blast? 

 Oh, the doomed, passing forests! The die is 



cast! 

 Each moment that spins from the wheel of 



Time, 

 Marks a veteran's fall in his native clime. 



There are deserts today, where a while ago 

 The rain-drops brooded, and wild buds could 



blow; 

 Where the arms of the forests were held to 



the sky 

 As a pledge that the water-springs never 



should dry. 

 But the ax of invasion swung in with its 



threat; 

 The forest-heart reeked, where the ax-blade 



was set; 

 And the Earth, in revolt, gave the shafts of 



her dead, 

 But her waters withdraw! The sun burneth 



red, 

 Where Verdure once wrought at her looms, 



and the rain 



Through the forests sung Nature's sweet, joy- 

 ous refrain; 

 But today, where scorched Nature lies burned 



with its brand, 

 The death-angel broods on the wings of the 



sand. 



Shall America, garden of earth, cast away 

 The gifts of the centuries, felled in a day; 

 Till she stands in her poverty, branded, servile, 

 A target for cycles of time to revile? 



Forestry and Irrigation. 



TIN CAN CLUBS. 



B. H. Green, Monterey, Cal., has sent out a 

 circular giving information regarding the Tin 

 Can Clubs through whose beneficent activities 

 he expects to see the country supplied with 

 needed forests. 



The attempts to cultivate tree claims in the 

 Dakotas many years ago were rather discour- 

 aging, says the National Magazine, but Mr. 

 Green insists that he has been successful in 

 planting tree seeds, nuts and cuttings in refuse 

 tin cans, and can now show an oak tree twenty 

 feet high only eight years of age and also a 

 redwood tree, grown from seed, which is now 

 fully thirty feet high and only twelve years of 

 age. 



Mr. Green, insists that a tomato can with a 

 fair-sized hole punched in the bottom and filled 

 with good earth is just the thing needed to 

 start a tree in and that if the earth is never 

 allowed to 'become dry the growth of the 

 young tree will be amazing. Later the little 

 trees are transplanted without removing from 

 the cans, for the rust eats away the can suffi- 

 ciently to allow the roots to free themselves 

 as they need more room. 



