

262 



Canadian Forestry Journal, June, 1919 



"LAISSER FAIRE" IN LUMBERING 



"Despite the warning furnished! by the United 

 States, the prophetic iitterances of leading tim- 

 ber cruisers, and the clarion calls of the Com- 

 mission of Conservation, there are those who 

 still seem to take little stock in the gravity of 

 the situation and evidently think that all the 

 agitation which has been raised on this question 

 savors much of the character of an ordinary 

 political discussion or a passing campaign pro- 

 paganda which, from a party standpoint, is to 

 be taken with a liberal discount." remarks Can- 

 ada Lumberman". 



"There is, however, a deeper meaning and a 

 more intensive character to this problem and 

 to many others, if Canada is to maintain her 

 prestige and predominance as one of the great 

 timber, pulp and paper producing nations of the 

 globe. It was ably pointed out by Dr. Howe, 

 Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto, be- 

 fore a recent gathering of business men in 

 Toronto, that it was part of pariotism as well as 

 of elementary business sens,e to make an effort 

 to sustain an industry that creates annually for 

 the country forest products valued at over 

 $116,000,000 a year, and affords employment 



to many thousands of people. Dr. Howe is not 

 an alarmist and is not given to exaggeration 

 or sensationalism. He strongly emphasized 

 that forestry practice was to maintain unim- 

 paired the capital stock of the forest wealth, 

 and to increase the earning capacity of the 

 capital invested in the forest. This is the ob- 

 ject of every business organization and surely 

 Canada cannot do better than to see that the 

 yearly cut does not deplete the growth to such 

 an extent that the inroads of time and industry 

 will bear so heavily upon our national re- 

 sources that, like the individual who fails to 

 replenish his wardrobe, his larder or his stock 

 of merchandise, from time to time, will wake 

 up some morning to find, before we are fully 

 aware of the true state of affairs, that all we 

 have left of this great natural and national 

 heritage is shreds and patches. The best time 

 to take full advantage of the present situation 

 and adopt wise, aggressive measures, is now. 

 Otherwise Canadians will bitterly realize the 

 fact that so far as our wooded wealth is con- 

 cerned the saddest of all words are "it might 

 have been". 



U. S. PREPARES FOR FORWARD MARCH 



On May 20 at Washington, D.C., was held 

 the first of a series of conferences with a view 

 to formulating a national programme of for- 

 estry The conference was called and presided 

 over by Henry S. Graves. Representatives were 

 present from the states of Virginia, West Vir- 

 ginia, Maryland and New Jersey, and included 

 state foresters, timberland owners, public men 

 and representatives of the Fede.-al Government. 



In opening the conference Col. Graves sketch- 

 ed out the timber situation that exists in the 

 country to-day. 



State foresters and others presented informal 

 statements regarding the situation in their 

 states. These reports indicated the following 

 facts: the original forest has been completely 

 removed in New Jersey and Maryland. It is 

 very nearly gone in Virginia and is rapidly be- 

 ing cut away in West Virginia. In spote of fires 

 in the past reproduction has taken place in most 

 localities, and extensive cutting is going on in 

 second growth. In some of the older localities 

 the third and fourth cutting is being made. Gen- 

 erally the cutting now under was is very heavy. 



either cleaning the ground or taking the trees 

 down to six or eight inches in diameter for uses 

 such as mine props, box material, poles and 

 other materials in which very small trees can be 

 utilized. Many wood-using industries have run 

 short of supplies and some have been compelled 

 to close down their operations. Organized fire 

 protection is being carried on in all the states 

 represented. In those localities where carried 

 on it is effective in accomplishing the renewal 

 of the forest, but some areas have been so 

 heavily cut and burned that they lie completely 

 waste with only a covering of bramble and 

 brush growth. Fire protection of itself does not 

 provide for a highly profitable forest Additional 

 measures such as cleanings, improvement cut- 

 ting, thinning and even planting are necessary 

 to the development of a high-class forest. 



Following the line laid down by the forester 

 the thought of the afternoon session was direct- 

 ed mainly to the following subjects: the step 

 most needed is complete fire protection for all 

 forest areas whether cut over or not. Fire pro- 

 tection affords the basis for forestry. 



