162 



tions which I have made upon this disease: So far I have been 

 unable to confirm the observations of Dr. Clinton in regard to 

 the weather conditions. His observations may be absolutely cor- 

 rect, so far as the State of Connecticut is concerned, but in the 

 territory which I have examined it has been impossible to con- 

 firm them. I have on two occasions, found the disease in dense 

 timber on the sprouts, down under the heavy, large growth, when 

 it was impossible to find it in the tops of the trees or at any point 

 near the one on the ground line. I do not know how much 

 that observation will be worth to you, but undoubtedly the sur- 

 rounding trees in the vicinity were not so infected as to make it 

 noticeable in walking through the timber and making careful 

 observations. The only points where we could find the disease 

 at all were close to the ground, and the sprouts there were badly 

 infected. 



THE CHAIRMAN: We will now hear from the State of 

 Pennsylvania. We will call on Deputy Forestry Commissioner 

 I. C. Williams. 



ME. WILLIAMS: In speaking for Pennsylvania, I think 

 probably the subject has been well covered and that I should 

 say little. I want to say something, however, about the appear- 

 ance of the blight in the forest reserves. The Pennsylvania forest 

 reserves to-day are included within twenty-six different coun- 

 ties and aggregate nine hundred and seventy -two thousand acres. 

 The line of reserves on the west approximately follows the dark 

 line on the map, extending somewhat west of it on the north. 

 Beginning with Potter county, which is at the middle of the 

 northern line, and dropping a line southwestwardly to western 

 Clearfield and then southwardly to eastern Westmoreland, you 

 will include east of such a line all the forest reserve counties. 

 The chestnut blight has appeared in the forest reserves equally 

 as it has appeared on private tracts. In the westernmost re- 

 serves, the foresters and other officers are busily at work seek- 

 ing it out and destroying eve^ry infected tree they find. The 

 Pennsylvania Department of Forestry proposes to take no 

 chances in leaving an infected tree stand, out toward the west. 

 That tree comes down. If we can sell it, well and good ; if not, 

 it is converted into ashes to fertilize the ground. That is a method 

 that I think we shall continue to pursue. 



