AMERICAN FORESTRY 



607 



"WHEREAS, the members of the Association of 

 State Foresters, on their recent trip through north- 

 ern Minnesota, traversed over fifty miles within tlie 

 Minnesota National Forest and are agreed that 

 upon the lands cut over under the five and ten per 

 cent seed tree provisions of the laws of 1902 and 

 1908 the reproduction of Norway pine is abundant, 

 a second growth is assured, and the experiment is a 

 success, and 



"WHEREAS, tKe reservation of the ten sections 

 and the islands in Cass Lake and the protection 

 from fire by proper burning of the slash and by the 

 maintenance of fire-patrol by the U. S. Forest Ser- 

 vice have resulted in establishing the reputation of 

 the Minnesota National Forest as a recreational 

 area of national importance, serving a vast popula- 

 tion in the Mississippi valley and adjoining states, 

 and 



"WHEREAS, the permanent status of this great 

 public reservation and park still awaits a final set- 

 tlemient under which the Indians whose lands and 



timber were ceded to the United States, are to be 

 paid for these lands and for the timber reserved as 

 seed trees and as park areas, 



"BE IT RESOLVED, That the Association of 

 State Foresters considers that the early completion 

 of outstanding timber contracts and the valuation 

 of and payment for this property by the Federal 

 Government is a mattter of utmost public imjxjrt- 

 ance in order that the welfare and interests of both 

 the Indians and the public may be protected and the 

 area permanently established as a National Forest 

 and a recreational center for the middle west." 

 When a group of thirty experienced foresters come to 

 the conclusions contained in the resolution just quoted, 

 one cannot refrain from wondering if the foundations 

 for many of the other charges which have been brought 

 against this forest, are equally fallacious. All in all, 

 the evidence brought forth ought to be abundantly ade- 

 quate to put the fair minded citizen on his guard against 

 the representation which opponents of the forest are 

 making to Congress, in their eflforts to abolish the Forest 

 and thus open it up for real estate barter. 



THE MOVE TO STANDARDIZE LUMBER 



T UMBER, it has been said, is simply lumber. It is 

 -'-^ not sold; it is just bought and no one who buys it 

 knows much about it anyway. The ordinary house- 

 builder, when it comes to the question of grades and 

 values of lumber is lost. 



To all of which the average American will heartily 

 agree. The situation is unfortunate. It is not good for 

 the consumer, it is bad for the industry and it is a heavy 

 handicap to economical utihzation of our declining sup- 

 ply of standing timber. For years, much has been said 

 and much written about the need of clarifying the lum- 

 ber trade, but it has been during only the last year that 

 the lumbermen have made a definite move of real con- 

 structive promise in that direction. 



Under the rather lugubriously sounding term of "sim- 

 plification and equalization of lumber and lumber 

 grades," the lumber industry has taken the task upon 

 its own shoulders and has assumed the responsibility of 

 carrying it through to a successful conclusion. As a 

 prominent lumberman recently said : "The lumber in- 

 dustry is on trial here and we have got to make good." 

 The public should not only follow this movement with 

 close interest; it should lend to it the heartiest support 

 and cooperation because it goes directly to the elimina- 

 tion of waste in wood and money and to the more com- 

 plete utilization of our raw wood supply. 



Briefly and simply stated, the immediate object is to 

 weld the present multiplicity of lumber grades, sizes and 

 standards into a more or less common code, based upon 

 a more scientific conversion of the standing tree into 

 parts which will best adapt themselves to consumers' 

 requirements ; in short, to standardize lumber and the 

 lumber trade. The ultimate possibilities of the move- 



ment are not known. If successfully carried out, there 

 can be no doubt but that it will be a large factor in con- 

 serving our raw wood supply and thus putting off the day 

 of a timber shortage; in simplifying the lumber trade 

 and stabilizing the industry as a whole; in protecting 

 the consumer against lumber jugglery and other sharp 

 practices; in eliminating some of the wastes incidental 

 to lumber distribution and in arousing the wood user to 

 the urgency of more economical utilization. 



AlthSugh involving simplification, the problem is any- 

 thing but a simple one. There are lumber grades, lum- 

 ber sizes, lumber patterns ad infinitum. Among the 

 softwoods, almost every species has its own set of 

 grade and manufacturing standards. The variety of 

 uses to which the more important woods are put is 

 staggering. Custom is of long standing and tenacious. 

 To bring simple and definite standards out of the pres- 

 ent diversity of form and use will tax the sincerity and 

 ability of the industry to the limit. Unfortunately, the 

 industry, itself, is not wholly united on the project. 

 There are lumbermen who oppose it in one respect or 

 another on this or that ground. These are some of the 

 obstacles which will make accomplishment a stronger 

 force than otherwise in winning public confidence. 



Neither is the project one which may be accomplished 

 in a day or a week. It can never be solved properly 

 merely by representatives of the industries or experts 

 in their particular lines getting around a table and com- 

 promising on standards because they think there will be 

 some improvement. Meetings and conferences are, of 

 course, essential, but the stability of business is too im- 

 portant to make fundamental changes unless it is well 

 established that the changes will be beneficial. Stand- 



