220 FUNDAMENTALS OF AGRICULTURE. 



forest fire almost always followed the lumberman and 

 completed the work of destruction which he had only 

 partly accomplished. Vast areas of white pine, one 

 of the most useful of all woods, were cut over in 

 Maine, Michigan and Wisconsin in about twenty-five 

 years. 



Pine Barrens. The soil on which this timber grew 

 was, as a rule, worthless for farming purposes, so the 

 term " pine barrens " is now applied to thousands of 

 acres of land that once supported the most magnificent 

 and valuable forests in the world. 



The South is the Present Destructive Section. As 

 the timber in the Northern States became scarce, the 

 lumbermen transferred their operations to the South- 

 ern States and, in many cases, are practicing the same 

 destructive methods that so quickly ruined the forests 

 in the North. 



Government Control and Study of Forestry. Since 

 about 1890 there has been a steadily increasing inter- 

 est taken in the subject of Forestry, that is, the proper 

 methods of preserving and utilizing our forests in or- 

 der that we may have a permanent supply of timber. 

 The Forest Service of the U. S. Department of Agri- 

 culture was created, and Departments of Forestry 

 were started in a number of colleges and universities. 

 Large tracts of timber land owned by the Government 

 were withdrawn from the market, and put under the 

 care of the Forest Service. Many lumber companies 

 are beginning to realize the folly of past methods, and 

 are endeavoring to save the young growth of timber 

 when the larger trees are cut. 



How a Forest should be Managed. The timber 

 crop needs just the same chance for growth that any 

 farm crop does. It sprouts from seed, grows, ma- 

 tures and decays. In a properly conducted forest only 

 the mature trees are cut for lumber, the young growth 

 being allowed to develop. Loose brush should be 

 piled and burned where it can do no damage. 

 Crooked, ill-shaped trees should be cut out, as they 



