14 Courses in forestry 



That not all the land in any state can be used for plough- 

 land, and 



That it is wasteful to leave the large areas (in the aggre- 

 gate) of non-agricultural lands in a non-productive waste-land 

 condition. 



As a consequence of this awakening, guided and promoted 

 especially "fey the intelligent and energetic efforts of the United 

 States Department of Agriculture in its Bureau of Forestry, hun- 

 dreds of owners of woodlands have of late called for the advice 

 and assistance of men trained in the right use and care of woods. 

 That this demand for help will increase is certain, and it is rea- 

 sonable even to believe that quite a rapid increase of this demand 

 may be looked for. As it is, there are hundreds of estates now 

 in charge of untrained men, who are unable to provide more than 

 mere patrol service, while the service of a trained man would not 

 cost any more and would certainly yield larger returns. 



Besides the owners of estates whose lands are held for vari- 

 ous reasons, there are numerous parties engaged in dealing in 

 timber lands for purposes of direct exploitation (lumbering) or 

 for speculation, who employ well-paid men as "timber-lookers," 

 "estimators" or "cruisers," to perform the work of timber or for- 

 est survey, usually with a view to determine the present market 

 value of the woods. That a trained man who sees not only the 

 merchantable stem but also appreciates and is able to report in- 

 telligently all features which make up the forest and its wealth, 

 would be more useful than the untrained man, would seem to re- 

 quire no argument. The trained timber surveyor, then, should 

 replace the untrained "timber-looker." 



That this view is beginning to be held by our business men 

 is best illustrated by the following letter recently received from 

 the experienced president of one of the most extensive and suc- 

 cessful business organizations in our State. 



"It has been customary in our Mining Department to keep 

 on our force young men, graduates of the Mining Schools, who 

 commence in humble positions at small salaries, and if they show 

 ability and character, are promoted from time to time, to posi- 

 tions of responsibility. 



"I thought it might be wise to follow out the same thing in 

 connection with our Land Department. Our company controls 

 over a half million acres of forest land. We necessarily have 

 more or less woodsmen constantly employed not only to estimate 

 and look after trespassers and placing monuments, but we also 

 have work for them in the office, keeping up the record, making 

 maps, etc. 



"Why is it not equally practicable and wise for young gradu- 

 ates from the forestry schools to enter into subordinate positions 

 of this kind, in order that they may gradually grow up into 

 positions of responsibility and management? Of course, to be a 

 woodsman and timber estimator would require a lot of time and 



