126 The Forest Pkodxcts I.ahokatoky 



ural resources for national efficiency in the long run that tlie world has 

 ever witnessed. 



JNIuch in the way of practical forest conservation has been accom- 

 plished by this vio-orous and growing movement. One hundred and 

 fifty-five million acres of Xational Forests have been established and 

 partially developed for the maximum public service in producing tim- 

 ber and forage and j^rotecting water sources. Some thirty of the states 

 have enlisted in the suppression of forest fires, and in spreading the 

 gospel of wise use of timber-growing land. ]Much has been done in 

 our industries to prolong the life of wood and utilize materials pre- 

 viously wasted. And yet m'c must recognize today that forestry is still 

 just what President Roosevelt called it fifteen years ago — one of the 

 most important internal problems of the United States. The after- 

 math of the war has indeed brought home its magnitude and its seri- 

 ousness much more shar})ly than any previous event in the history of 

 this country. 



Consider for a moment our situation today as a people of wood 

 users. The United States at this moment is short at least one million 

 homes. In comparison with the need, new dwellings are being con- 

 structed at a snail's pace ])ecause of the high cost of lumber, otlier 

 building materials, and of labor. From the shortage of homes arise 

 exorbitant rents, crowded living conditions, and lowered standards of 

 comfort and family life. The average farm in the Ignited States needs 

 about tM'o thousand board feet of lumber every year for new buildings 

 and improvements. Because the average farmer can not obtain lum- 

 l)er at prices within his reach, farm development is handicapped and 

 the efficiency of agriculture suffers. This is a factor of no slight im- 

 portance in our vital problem of food supply and living costs. 



We need six and one-quarter million cords of MOod a vear to make 

 our newspapers, magazines, books, pasteboard boxes, and other prod- 

 ucts manufactured from wood pulp. We are meeting this need at 

 present only by importing a tliird of our paper or paper-making mate- 

 rials from Canada. We recpiii-e from one hundred to one hundred 

 twenty-five million railroad ties each year to kee]) ii]) and extend our 

 railroad lines, aside from enormous quantities of timber used in other 

 forms for railroad construction and the building of cars. We have to 

 have at least six billion feet of timber yearly for boxes, crates, and bar- 

 rels, a requirement M'hich is steadily increasing. In several highly de- 



