Editorials on tke Gifts of Seeds to Europe 



Philadelphia Record: England suffered 

 more forest depletion than did France, 

 though no enemy army marched across the 

 island. England supplied timber nee;ded 

 for the campaigns by chopping down trees 

 wherever found, whether upon private es- 

 tates or in the royal Windsor Forest. 



Now comes Charles Lathrop Pack, pres- 

 ident of the American Forestry Association, 

 upon the anniversary of America's entry 

 into the war, and he presents to France and 

 England 100,000.000 Douglas fir seeds 

 enough to reforest 100,000 acres. It is the 

 first time in all history that a nation or its 

 citizens, desiring to express international 

 sympathy, has been inspired to "say it with 

 forests." These seeds will be propagated, 

 sciejitifically, in nurseries, transplanted, 

 and, for centuries to come, France and 

 England will be verdant with American 

 generosity. 



South Bend News Tribune: One of the 

 very important works that is now being 

 done is that of growing forests in the dev- 

 astated districts of France. Under the 

 direction of Charles Lathrop Pack seeds 

 are being furnished to France from which 

 will be grown the trees that, fifty years 

 hence, will flourish in spots ravaged by 

 the armies. Unless we stop destroying 

 our forests, our country in another gene- 

 ration may be as lacking in forests as 

 France. 



Plattsburgh Press: M. Jusserand, the 

 French .Embassador, preached a powerful 

 forest protection week sermon the other 

 day when he accepted the gift of millions 

 of tree seeds for France from Charles 

 Lathrop Pack, president of the American 

 Forestry Association. He said : "Once 

 more .\merica is coming to the rescue. We 

 did not believe that our gratitude could 

 be increased but it will be by what you 

 are doing. Of few things were we prouder 

 than our forests, but they suffered terribly 

 from the war." France knew how to use 

 her forests and keep them producing at the 

 same time. Then the war came along. 

 Why is it the United States, the American 

 Forestry Association asks and rightly, does 

 not have a forest policy? We should have 

 a forest policy that results in a crop of 

 trees every year, just as we have crops 

 in everything else. Will it take a war, 

 wiping out what we have left, to bring 

 action ? 



AsheviUe {North Carolina) Citizen: 

 Charles Lathrop Pack, president of the 

 American Forestry Association, has recent- 

 ly preserited to the French Government a 

 gift that will not only aid France in the 

 reclaiming of war devastated areas, but 

 will make stronger the ties of friendship 

 between France and the United States. Mr. 



Pack is sending to France 700 pounds of fir 

 seed, or enough to reforest 30,000 acres 

 of timber land. 



New York American : Goodwill between 

 individuals is the dividend on acts of kind- 

 ness, thoughtfulness, courtesy, helpfulness. 

 It is equally true as a promoter of cordial 

 relations between nations. It is simply 

 the fine spirit of brotherhood writ large, 

 not as a vague theory, but as an inspiring, 

 pervading force. 



Treaties, at their best, merely bind gov- 

 ernments; they do not bring the peoples 

 of these nations into closer relations of 

 common understanding, sympathy and help- 

 fulness. The finer spirit of kindness has 

 no fear of "entangling alliances." 



Charles Lathrop Pack, president of the 

 American Forestry Association, is sending 

 to France seven hundred pounds of fir 

 seed, sufficient to plant 30,000 acres of 

 forest land on French battlefields. 



Acts of fine human helpfulness such as 

 these do more to promote real, lasting 

 goodwill between the people of the earth 

 than all the acts of diplomats and gov- 

 ernments. 



Newspaper Enterprise Association : Mil- 

 lions of tree seeds have been given to 

 France by Charles Lathrop Pack, president 

 of the American Forestry Association. 

 England and France both realize the value 

 of trees. Unless we stop destroying our 

 forests, our country in another generation 

 may be as lacking in forests as France. 

 With a little common sense, Americans 

 would raise a yearly crop of trees just as 

 they raise wheat, corn and cotton. 



Washington Post: It was fitting, on the 

 anniversary of the entrance of the United 

 States into the war, that the practical 

 thoughtfulness of the American Forestry 

 Association should crystallize into a gen- 

 erous gift of tree seeds that are to be used 

 in the restoration of the former great 

 forests of France, made desolate by the 

 enemy, and in the upbuilding of those 

 wonderful woodland preserves in England, 

 denuded in time of stress to provide war 

 materials. The seed that is to cross the 

 ocean and bear fruit in the fertile soil of 

 the allied countries represent the hardy 

 growth of this country, gathered in climes 

 comparable with those where they are to 

 thrive and flourish. They will become 

 growing, living memorials to the men who 

 went from here to fight in the common 

 cause. Seeds are little things, but from 

 them grow the great forests, and doubtless 

 they will become the messengers of that 

 goodwill which just now seems to be sorely 

 needed throughout the disturbed world. 



San Antonio Express : France has a long- 

 established forest policy. It is replanting 

 the woods so wantonly destroyed, and 

 seeks to do this quickly and thoroughly. 

 In England and Scotland the great forests 

 were sadly depleted during the war. The 

 British Forestry Commission is hard at it, 

 to restore them to pre-war conditions. 

 These countries are giving an example 

 to the United States. 



Columbus Journal: The presentation by 

 Charles Lathrop Pack, president of the 

 American Forestry Association, to Ambas- 

 sador Jusserand of a large consignment 

 of fir seeds for the replanting of the forests 

 in France had little of the spectacular in it, 

 but it was one of the most significant gifts 

 that America has made to France since the 

 war. 



As evidence of how the French valued 

 their forests and appreciated the gift of the 

 seed, Ambassador Jusserand, in accepting 

 the gift on behalf of his government, de- 

 clared : "We did not believe that our grat- 

 itude could be increased, but it will be by 

 what you are doing." 



The gratitude of the French is not as- 

 sumed for the occasion, for the gift has 

 more than a sentimental value. It will 

 permit not only the restoration of beloved 

 forests, but will prevent a future timber 

 famine in France, and will be of immense 

 economic advantage. The possession of 

 timber supplies was ah important factor in 

 saving France during the war. The am- 

 bassador even went so far as to declare that 

 the French forest policy won the war. 



In her appreciation of her forests and 

 timber resources, France is setting an ex- 

 ample that the United States may well 

 pattern after. We have been so profligate 

 with our timber that the time is not far 

 distant when some one will have to give 

 us seeds for trees, if steps are not taken 

 soon for renewing American forests. 



The cordial reception by France of this 

 American gift, emphasizing, as it does, the 

 necessity for conservation of resources, 

 should stimulate new interest in this coun- 

 try in this movement. 



Louisville Herald: England has for cen- 

 turies cherished and conserved her forests. 

 When war came hundreds of thousands of 

 acres of fine trees were sacrificed. With 

 France the situation was the same, de- 

 nudation there, however, being vastly in- 

 creased by the German destructiveness. The 

 loss has not gone unnoticed by Americans 

 and Douglas fir seeds were formally pre- 

 sented to France and Great Britain by the 

 American Forestry Association. The im- 

 portance of these forests to France was 

 a lesson not lost to .Americans, and a more 

 intelligent interest in forestry conservation 

 for ourselves is noticeable now. 



