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AMERICAN FORESTRY 



BOOK REVIEWS 



of conservation of Georgia's forests by " in- 

 stilling in them a deep and lasting affection 

 for nature." 



The Way to Study Birds, by John Dry- 

 den Kuser. G. P. Putnam's Sons, New 

 York and London. Price, $125. 

 The dominant thought of the reader of 

 this book is that it was written by one in 

 whom the love of birds is inherent. Mr. 

 Kuser treats the birds as his intimates, 

 with a familiarity born of close associa- 

 tion and sense of comradeship. He 

 knows their ways, their haunts, their in- 

 dividuality and their music. He knows 

 when, where, and how to find them, and 

 his book shows that he knows how to 

 make them his friends when found. In 

 short, the volume may well be accounted 

 an important addition to bird literature. 

 Fundamentally, the author has sought 

 to make bird identification a simple mat- 

 ter for the non-expert. He recognizes 

 that information on this subject has not 

 been easly available to the beginner in 

 bird-study. His aim has been to supply 

 this information in simple terms and to 

 make it unnecessary for the student to 

 wade ignorantly through a complicated 

 mass of terms or descriptions or to go 

 bird-hunting without the remotest idea 

 of what he may expect to find or how to 

 know when he has found it. With this 

 book as a guide the beginner may attain 

 acquaintanceship with a number of the 

 bird species and acquire a good store of 

 knowledge as to their habits. While in- 

 tended more as a course of study than 

 a book of reference, the volume is valu- 

 able along both lines. 



Of the birds found in the neighbor- 

 hood of New York the book describes 50 

 species and gives suggestions and infor- 

 mation that will make possible identifica- 

 tion of others. The data include haunts, 

 description, field-marks, size and shape, 

 song, seasonal abundance and comprehen- 

 sive remarks as to individual characteris- 

 tics. It is in these " Remarks " that Mr. 

 Kuser gives the impress of his own bird- 

 loving, and no student of our feathered 

 neighbors can afford to miss the liberal 

 education afforded by the ownership and 

 study of the book. 



" The Origin of the Lumber Industry," by 

 William Compton, Ph.D. American 

 Lumberman, Chicago. 

 Mr. Compton is a member of the Fed- 

 eral Trade Commission. The book con- 

 tains a vast fund of information, presents 

 a balanced view, ethically speaking, of 

 the lumber industry, and it develops much 

 that has been poorly understood in the 

 economics of that industry. No publica- 

 tion comes to mind in which so many 

 significant facts relating to timber and 

 the lumber industry are brought into so 

 small a compass. The census figures for 



production of lumber from 1850 to date, 

 the figures on sawmills, their number, 

 capacity, and capitalization, the history 

 of production by regions, a summary of 

 the timber resources of the country, an 

 insight into the degree to which timber 

 ownership is now concentrated, and the 

 figures on stumpage, past and present, are 

 all connected in a logical fabric embrac- 

 ing the most timely and important prob- 

 lems and tendencies in the field. The 

 big feature of the work is his develop- 

 ment of the relations of price. Under his 

 handling that appears as the crucial point 

 of the whole matter. Quantity and qual- 

 ity granted, the desire or necessity of 

 the people is expressed in price, which 

 varies with the economic demand and 

 other factors. Local exhaustion of tim- 

 ber supplies, separation of producing 

 from consuming centers, and increased 

 freight charges are a few of the factors 

 affecting price. The lumber trust bogy 

 is put to rout through a picture of the 

 competition within the industry and a 

 broad study of the history of lumber 

 prices, which, although showing appar- 

 ent increases, involve a slight relative 

 loss from 1907 to 1913. Compton con- 

 cludes that " natural influences furnish 

 adequate explanation of lumber prices." 

 The book is professedly an economic one 

 strictly and as such can be read with 

 much profit by the lumberman, the fores- 

 ter, and the conservationist. 



"Evergreens, How to Grow Them," by C. S. 

 Harrison, President of the Nebraska 

 Park and Forestry Association. 95 pages, 

 19 illustrations. Webb Publishing Com- 

 pany, St. Paul, Minn. 

 This work is written chiefly to aid the 

 farmers of the prairie States in the selection 

 and care of evergreens which will produce 

 lumber, prevent erosion, and beautify the 

 treeless landscape. Brief descriptions of 

 adaptable trees, facts on how to raise them 

 from seed, transplant them, pack them, ship 

 them, etc., make the book practical. At the 

 same time, the numerous illustrations and 

 the well-worded descriptions of scenery, 

 through which the author sprinkles para- 

 graphs which show a broad vision and 

 idealism, add a touch of aesthetic interest. 



" Georgia Forest Trees " has been chosen 

 as the title for the annual publication of 

 the Forest Club of the Georgia State Forest 

 School, Athens, Georgia. It lists seventy-six 

 trees native to Georgia, giving a short de- 

 scription in each case, covering the distri- 

 bution, form and other characteristics, na- 

 ture of the wood, and its uses. Being dedi- 

 cated to the school children of Georgia, it 

 should prove useful in advancing the cause 



The Book of the Peony, by Mrs. Edward 

 Harding, published by J. B. Lippincott 

 Company, Philadelphia and London. 

 Price, $6.00 net. 



This is the only book on this well-known 

 and greatly loved flower, and being such it 

 is complete, practical and beautiful. As a 

 printer's production it is a work of art. It 

 has twenty illustrations in full colors and 

 twenty-two in doubletone. The history and 

 the development of the peony are presented 

 by Mrs. Harding in a delightful manner. 

 She deals specifically with each variety, and 

 gives so much practical information and in- 

 struction that the lover and the grower of 

 peonies will find the book unusually profit- 

 able. 



Forest Fancies, by Lucy C. Kellerhouse. 



Duffield & Co., New York. Price, $1.50. 



Here are seven charming stories of the 

 life and trees of the forest told delightfully 

 by one who knows and loves the trees and 

 woods. The stories are illustrated with 

 twenty- four full-page prints excellently 

 done. The book is one which should ap- 

 peal to every lover of the forests. 



The Forestry Annual, issued by the 

 Forestry Club of the Michigan Agricul- 

 tural College, East Lansing, Michigan, 

 has just made its appearance for the sec- 

 ond time. Attractive in form and make- 

 up and filled with varied and valuable 

 information, it makes a strong bid for the 

 " attention and interest of the student 

 body, alumni, and friends of M. A. C. to 

 the continually widening field of fores- 

 try." The large number of forest schools 

 that are issuing annuals of this nature, and 

 the work being done by the students them- 

 selves, gives an indication of the keen in- 

 terest with which young men are entering 

 the forestry field. The future of forestry 

 in his country is safe in the hands of such 

 men. 



The third annual number of the Empire 

 Forester, published by the Forestry Club 

 of the New York State College of Forestry 

 at Syracuse, N. Y., is a fine piece of work. 

 The policy of its board to largely confine 

 the material in it to student articles on 

 popular phases of forestry, or written in a 

 popular way if technical, gives it an appeal 

 that is not limited to men in the technical 

 field. The selection of a cover design of 

 real artistic value, the use of high-grade 

 cameo paper and duotone ink, the numerous 

 and well-selected illustrations and the evi- 

 dences of careful editing show expenditure 

 of both money and brains. The editors are 

 to be congratulated. 



