MICHIGAN ROADS AND FORESTS 



FOREST TAXATION. 



The problem of the taxation of forest land 

 in the United States is one that has vexed the 

 legislatures and tax commissioners of the vari- 

 ous forested states tor several years. The for- 

 estry and lumber journals have published an 

 endless number of articles on the subject and 

 it has been discussed from almost every pos- 

 sible point of view by the friends and enemies 

 if there still be any such in this enlightened 

 age of forestry in all parts of the country. 

 However, it is of sufficient importance to war- 

 rant another article here at this time. 



It is generally acknowledged that forest pro- 

 tection is the fundamental basis of all the 

 forestry work in this country. Not only fire 

 protection though that is the most important 

 and often overshadows all the rest but also 

 protection from all the forest enemies and 

 especially the abuse by man. It is an easy 

 matter to show that exorbitant taxation comes 

 under the last named head. How exorbitant 

 the present system is can readily be seen by 

 glancing over the calculations of the cost of 

 raising white pine in New England. In a 

 ninety year rotation the taxes amounted to 

 more than all the ether costs put together. 

 At present prices the total returns would not 

 do more than cover the taxes. No other 

 product of the soil is taxed out of existence in 

 this way. 



In this same system the younger age classes 

 are ridiculously undertaxed through the failure 

 of the assessors to recognize the true value of 

 such growth. This state of affairs can lead to 

 but one result and that one inevitable. Tim- 

 ber owners are forced to cut their forests long 

 before the forests are mature to take advan- 

 tage of the smaller taxes. 



The remedy for this evil is plain, but has not 

 yet been applied in any of the States on ac- 

 count of various difficulties. There are two 

 possible schemes. Tax the soil and the timber 

 separately, the soil annually, the timber only 

 when it is cut. Or tax the soil annually on its 

 productive capacity and the timber not at all. 

 The latter plan is not feasable at present be- 

 cause the productive capacity of the. soil as 

 forest land is not yet known. The former plan 

 would need several slight modifications to suit 

 it to present conditions, but could be readily 

 applied if the attempt were made. 



There is one point in connection with this 

 scheme of taxing the timber only at maturity 

 which is seldom mentioned but deserves more 

 general recognition. It would aid very mater- 

 ially in the fire protection. In a timbered dis- 

 trict the settlers depend very largely on the 

 taxes collected from the timber owners. The 

 more taxes can be gleaned from the timber 

 the less the settlers will be assessed. A fire 

 in merchantable timber is not now supposed 

 to do any damage and the young growth is 

 not considered worth saving. The result is a 

 total indifference on the part of the settlers to 

 all forest fires save for the pay from the State 

 for putting them out. 



What would be the effect of the new system 

 on this phaze of the subject. If there were no 

 young forests there would be no mature for- 

 ests later on. The fire in the mature forest 

 means the loss of all the young growth. Thus 

 a fire in any forest is easily seen to mean no 

 taxes from timber in the future, and no taxes 

 from timber would in turn necessitate heavier 

 taxes from the settlers. In this way every 

 settler would have a direct and easily recog- 

 nized interest in keeping down all forest fires. 

 It might be argued that the losses under the 

 present system would be the same, but the 

 connection is so involved and the results so 

 slow to come that the settler is not easily per- 

 suaded to recognize it. 



MICHIGAN'S NATIONAL FOREST RE- 

 SERVES HAVE A SUPERVISOR. 



S M. Higgins has been appointed super- 

 visor of the two national forests in Michigan, 

 with headquarters at Au Sable. He will take 

 charge immediately. Mr. Iliggins has resided 

 in Michigan several years and was chosen par- 



'When Work Is Done." 



tially because of his acquaintance with condi- 

 tions on the sand barrens which constitute the 

 greater part of the Michigan forest reserve. 



The appointment of Supervisor Higgins 

 marks the beginning of federal forest admin- 

 istration in Michigan. It is known that For- 

 ester Pinchot hopes to develop these waste 

 areas into profitable stands of pine trees and 

 Mr. Higgins will take the preliminary steps. 

 His instructions are to select and map the 

 land which will restock naturally from seed 

 trees, that which is adapted to planting white 

 and Norway pine and that which is too barren 

 for present operation. He will also plan a 

 scheme of fire protection, including the em- 

 ployment of guards and the construction of 

 fire breaks. 



INCREASING U. OF M. FORESTRY 



STAFF. 



Cory C. Hill has been appointed assistant 

 professor of forestry at the University of 

 Michigan. The addition of Mr. Hill to the 

 teaching staff in the department of forestry 

 was made necessary by the large number en- 

 rolled in that department, at present over 160, 

 and the fact that there are record-breaking 

 prospects in sight for the class of 1909-10. 



GRAND RAPIDS TREES ARE SAVED. 



Alderman Kinsey's willow tree resolution, 

 in \vhich he advised the destruction of all wil- 

 low trees in the city of Grand Rapids, aroused 

 the "more beautiful city" committee of the 

 Board of Trade. Its members appeared be- 

 fore the ordinance committee of the Council 

 and as a result there will be no sweeping 

 slaughter mandate issuing from the city hall. 

 Alderman Kinsey will secure the destruction 

 of the two objectionable trees on Charles 

 street which caused him to introduce the reso- 

 lution and the ordinance committee will draft 



an ordinance transferring the custody of the 

 trees from the Board of Public Works to the 

 Board of Park and Cemetery Commissioners. 

 The new ordinance will give the park board 

 authority to destroy all noxious trees in the 

 city streets. 



A LOVER OF TREES. 



With a sincere love for his home city and 

 its beautification, Dr. Edward Hofma, one of 

 the prominent physicians of Grand Haven, has 

 a practical plan for civic improvement. The 

 doctor has planted in his spacious garden in 

 the rear of his home on Washington street, 

 several hundreds of maples, spruces, elder 

 bushes, spireas and other rapidly growing 

 trees. 



When these are large enough to be trans- 

 planted it is Dr. Hofma's plan to place them 

 on Dewey hill. Grand Haven's .sandy, bare 

 mountain overlooking the main business 

 street, in an effort at reforestation. He makes 

 no charge whatever for his service, ascribing 

 it to his love for pretty scenery and a beautiful 

 city. He also expresses his willingness to pre- 

 sent several of the young trees to any person 

 building a new home or wishing to beautify 

 his old one. 



FOREST AREA OF THE 'SOUTH. 



The South, with twenty-seven per cent of 

 the total area of the United States, contains 

 about forty-two per cent of the total forest 

 area of the country. The forest area by states 

 is as follows: Alabama, 20,000,000 acres; Ar- 

 kansas. :.!4. 200,000; Florida, 20,000,000; Georgia. 

 22,300,000; Kentucky. 10,000,000; Louisiana. 

 16,500,000; Maryland, 2.200,000; Mississippi, 17,- 

 500,000; North Carolina, 19,600,000; South 

 Carolina, 12,000.000; Tennessee, 15.000,000; 

 Texas, 30,000,000; Virginia, 14,000,000, and 

 West Virginia, 9,100,000. 



