372 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



"WE MUST CHOOSE 



AS AX example of the co-operation 

 of the newspaper! with the Ameri- 

 can Forestry Association in campaign- 

 ing for a national forest policy the 

 Minneapolis Tribune is entitled to a 

 place in the front rank. The Tribune 

 devoted a big editorial to the news- 

 print situation and on the same page 

 printed the article by R. S. Kellogg, 

 secretary of the Newsprint Service 

 Bureau.' Mr. Rome G. Brown then 

 sent the page to every Asso- 

 ciated Press newspaper in the 

 L'nited States. The article 

 sent out by the Association 

 on the forest situation in 

 this country has been reprinted 

 by many newspapers and much 

 editorial comment based upon 

 the figures. In an editorial the 

 Rochester Democrat and Chroni- 

 cle warns the country as to the 

 need of a national forest policy, 

 and recounts the work the Asso- 

 ciation is doing. The editorial 

 concludes : 



"Will America heed the message 

 and carry on the work begun ? Upon 

 the answer to that question depends 

 more than can be appreciated now. 

 The nation which allows its forests 

 to perish will itself fall into decay 

 and be in danger of perishing. 

 France was saved by her forests. 

 The loss of her forests doomed 

 China. Which of the two nations 

 do we propose to emulate? Which 

 fate do we choose, for we must 

 choose ?" 



The editors of the country 

 have taken up the work of the 

 American Forestry Association 

 in a whole-hearted manner from 

 every side, the planting of 

 memorial trees, "Roads of Re- 

 membrance" and a national for- 

 est policy. Indeed many of 

 them point to the tree planting 

 as the greatest opportunity for 

 educating the individual to the 

 bigger aspects of the situa- 

 tion. Some of the comment follows : 



Btnghamton Sun: A worthy campaign 

 for planting of trees is being carried on 

 by the American Forestry Association. The 

 Association is appealing to motorists to 

 help by planting memorial trees along the 

 highways to beautify the roads. An appeal 

 is also being made to school officials 

 throughout the country to interest the 

 school children in the project. The work 

 of the Association deserves hearty support 

 of every true American. Not only will 



the planting of trees make the country 

 more beautiful, but it will add materially 

 to the corporate wealth. The serious de- 

 pletion of our forest preserves is an im- 

 portant factor in the present shortage of 

 paper. By teaching the younger generation 

 to love trees and appreciate their value, an 

 educational work will be done that will 

 ultimately result in an improved national 

 forest policy, something that is badly 

 needed. Now is a good time to start the 



In these sections, in particular, the sugges- 

 tion of Mr. Pack that memorial trees be 

 planted along the road by the people should 

 be received with cordiality, for the trees 

 would add to the beauty of the route and 

 serve the practical purpose of providing 

 needed shade, as well as inspire all who travel 

 the road with gratitude for its founders. 



PLAN! TKEES 



Joyce Kilmer wrote: 



"Poems are made by fools like me, 

 But only God can make a tree." 



That only Eternal Wisdom can create the 

 seed from which the tree grows is true. Eternal 

 Wisdom also creates the other seed grown in the 

 brain that creates the poem. 



"Only God can make a tree," but a man, or even 

 a child, can PLANT it and have the satisfaction 

 of leaving upon the earth proof of his existence. 



Plant a few trees yourself this year if you 

 live away from asphalt streets, encourage each 

 child to plant one. 



The Christian Endeavorers have promised to 

 plant trees on all occasions. The American For- 

 estry Association, of No. 1410 H street, N. W., 

 Washington, D. C., will send information as to 

 just how to plant a tree. 



Plant a tree in honor of those you like and 

 respect, living or dead. Plant a tree for the sol- 

 diers and sailors that lie under the ground. . . 



Plant trees for yourself, for the benefit of those 

 that are to come after you on earth. No man 

 need leave the earth bare of all proof that he ever 

 existed, for a few good trees planted now will be 

 giving fruit, or shade, or both, years after you 

 are gone. 



The dweller in the city will ask, "How shall 

 I plant a tree?. Would it grow in the backyard, 

 that the sun never visits, or will it sprout through 

 the asphalt, the cobblestones or the sidewalks?" 



No, unfortunately, city dwellers cannot be tree 

 planters, IN THE CITIES. 



But all the more reason to help make the coun- 

 try more beautiful. Nearly everybody goes to the 

 country, nearly everybody CAN GO. 



Go and take your tree with you, find the place 

 by the roadside, or on a high hill. Plant it and 

 leave; go to see it next year. If you cannot 

 be a tree owner, be a tree creator. New York 

 Journal. 



work, and thereby add to the beauty of the 

 city, and help the good work that the 

 American Forestry Association is doing. 



Houston Post: The suggestion of 

 Charles Lathrop Pack of the American 

 Forestry Association that the Bankhead 

 Highway be made a "Road of Remem- 

 brance," in honor of the late Senator John 

 H. Bankhead of Alabama, is most appro- 

 priate, and is worthy of serious considera- 

 tion by the Bankhead Highway Association. 



Denver News: In response to a sena- 

 torial request for information in regard to 

 the depletion of the forests, the Ameri- 

 can Forestry Association has presented 

 figures to show that the New England 

 States are no longer self-supporting in 

 a lumber way ; that the Lake States, 

 once the greatest producers of lum- 

 ber, are now importing lumber to keep 

 alive the many wood using indus- 

 tries in that section ; that the cen- 

 ter of the lumber industry is fast 

 moving to the Pacific Coast, which 

 means long hauls and high freight 

 rates; that the lumber people of the 

 South say they will be through in 

 fifteen or twenty years, so far as 

 yellow pine is concerned. 



Americans in France were much 

 impressed by the destruction by the 

 Germans of great national forests 

 that had been protected by the 

 French Government for hundreds of 

 years, no cutting being allowed ex- 

 cept under official auspices. The loss 

 was so needless and so irrevocable 

 that apart from the destruction of 

 life it figured with observers from 

 this side as one of the most lament- 

 able features of the war. But the 

 American Forestry Association shows 

 that the forest fire loss in this coun- 

 try each year is about $28,000,000 and 

 the area burned over is ten times 

 greater every year than the de- 

 vastated areas of France, yet when 

 such fires are reported in the news 

 columns as they occur, they create 

 only the most passing interest. The 

 Association would like greater pro- 

 tection for even private forests in 

 order to prevent denudation of re- 

 gions fit only for the growing of for- 

 est trees; hundreds of thousands of 

 acres have been stripped of their growth, it 

 is said, and left useless. Under protection 

 trees are cut under official supervision only 

 and no land is cleared. 



It is time that all land owners should 

 give heed to this rapid disappearance of 

 forest trees and do their part, if it is only 

 a little, to offset the scarcity. Few farms 

 but have some corners, hills or ravines or 

 other untillable ground, where trees might 

 be the only crop. It is the selfish argument 

 with some that the planter of a forest tree 



