141 



the cross lies would li;iv(; Lo he woilh, uL the ciid of I he fifty-year 

 period required to |u*oduce tiieiii, eight and one-liair cents ou the 

 stump to return live per cent, cojupounil interest on the entire 

 investment in land, protection and taxes. Any advance in the 

 price of tie stunipage witliin the litty-year period won hi nieau 

 (hat much prolit over tlie percentage given." 



1 have referred to tiiose returns from sprout land simply to 

 show what can be done in the way of ijracticing simple co]>pice 

 effectively over our hard w'ood forests. We can, I believe, stinni- 

 hil(! a market for certain forest pnjducts. I know that many 

 say we cannot lielp the present market conditions, but 1 am op- 

 limistie in this as great nmnufacturing concerns are stimulating 

 (h(* market for certain special products. AN'hy should we not be 

 al>le by showing fully the uses of ciiestnnt stimulate its use to a 

 greater extent than at present, at least? ^\'e must emphasize 

 continually the utilization phases of the problem, it seems to me, 

 in seeking methods which will accomplish the greatest good for 

 owners of chestnut timber. 



Simple cojjpice, which many of our Pennsylvania wood lot 

 owners have been carrying ou, in a ^^ay, for years, is \\ ithont 

 doubt the best method both for the perpetuation of the wood 

 lots and for keeping them in such condition as to insure the 

 chestnut being as hardy as possible against the work of the 

 blight. That is, I believe we can accomplish a great deal by 

 putting our chestnut forests into a more healthful condition. A 

 tree in a healthy, rapid-growing condition, is going to be able to 

 resist the blight and other diseases much more effectively than 

 if it is in the condition in which too many of our wood lots and 

 eluistnut trees are at the present time. Wood lots have been run 

 over repeatedly by fires, the luunus is gone and the soil has been 

 depleted. The trees are just hanging on, we might say, and no 

 wonder they are susceptible to any disease that may come along. 

 ^^^^ can accomplish a great deal by methods of control that will 

 put our chestnut forests into a better growing condition. Unfor- 

 tunately, a considerable proportion of our wood lots, in which 

 there is chestnut, have been cut very carelessly and little or no 

 protection given the developing sprouts from either fire or graz- 

 ing. There has been more or less complaint as to this method 

 because of the gradual dying out of the mother stump. A great 



