744 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



And yet, it is only a matter of a hundred years since 

 the soldiers at Fort Snelling started the first saw mill in 

 the state. It is less than half that long since the Lumber 

 Industry as we know it began its inroads on the immense 

 areas of pine in the state. In that period of fifty years 

 what appeared to \x an almost inexhaustible mine of 

 timber has been dei^leted to such an extent that the few 

 remaining stands of virgin timlier cause comment. In 

 fact, some few sections have been preserved that future 

 generations may know what a wonderful resource this 

 state once possessed. 



Cut-Over Areas Appear As Economic Millstone 



The areas once heavily timbered have been turned into 

 an apparent waste. Comparatively little of it has been 



ness and on a dollar and cent basis. One of the most 

 important things in any business is to know the stock on 

 hand. In forestry the stock on hand is timl)er and land. 

 The latter is easily secured, the former is more difficult. 

 and almost impossible with respect to the younger age 

 classes found on the cut-over areas. The projxjsition of 

 studying the true condition of cut-over lands by an actual 

 stock taking was started by the Cloquet Forest Exiieri- 

 ment Station three years ago. After three years of field 

 work, what seemed like a hopeless and baffling projxjsi- 

 tion is beginning to show results which are more or less 

 startling. The intensive examination of the cut-over area 

 brings out the fact that things are not always as they 

 seem. The situation is not hopeless, or is it beyond the 

 limit of human endeavor to work out the solution. In 



THIS PICTURE SHOWS THAT WHERE FIRES HAVE BEEN KEPT OUT FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS THE VOLUNTEER 

 FOREST BECOMES A REAL FOREST. PROPER PROTECTION FROM FIRE POINTS THE WAY TO REFOREST MILLIONS 

 OF ACRES OF BARREN LAND WHICH IS NOW A LIABILITY TO THE LAKE STATES. 



developed into farm land and we have come to regard the 

 remainder as a necessary evil. The vastness of the area 

 involved and its a]>j)earance of barrenness makes it seem 

 as though it were humanly impossible to remedy the 

 situation. It might almost seem that we are doomed to 

 have the cut-over areas around our necks forever as an 

 economic millstone. 



It is never safe to base opinions on casual glances, 

 especially in such large and important questions as this. 

 It is one of the functions of a Forest Experiment Station 

 to foster forestry. We must consider forestry as a busi- 



fact, the outlook is unusually bright and the economic 

 situation will soon be such that the use of our cut-over 

 lands will be solved. 



It was necessary to confine the study to a limited area 

 in order that the data could be better applied. St. Louis 

 '"ounty was selected because it was typical of the northern 

 (art of the state and was easily accessible because of the 

 wonderful road system. It contains vast areas of cut- 

 ">ver lands and some virgin timber. The statistics given 

 here apply to only St. Louis county, but serve to indicate 

 the condition of the entire northern portion of the state. 



