TRAMPS THROUGH THE GULF STATES II 



547 



things we may find in nature. In denouncing the setting 

 on fire of forests by "two dry branches being rubbed 

 each against the other," he says : "No experienced woods- 

 man or forester will believe such a tale. It belongs in 

 the same category as the two-headed snake," etc. As 

 nearly every extensive collection of reptiles in this coun- 

 try contains one or two specimens of "two-headed 

 snakes," it would have been more to the point had a 

 five-headed snake been selected as the monstrosity for 

 comparison. Notwithstanding such slips, this work is 

 a most excellent one, and has exerted a far-reaching and 

 beneficial influence in inviting popular and governmental 

 attention to the importance of forests and scientific for- 

 estry in this country. 



As far as we can peer back into human history there 

 has always been an intimate relation between man on 

 the one hand and the forest on the other; and it always 

 will be so just so long as extensive forests are to be 

 found on this planet. But then, for man to successfully 

 conserve forest growths and deal with forest protection, 

 he must command, in the way of knowledge, all that he 

 possibly can of what there is in nature that makes for 

 such ends or militates against them. 



TIMBER RAISING IN EASTERN UNITED STATES 

 PAYS BECAUSE 



1. There is plenty of cheap land unfit for agriculture. 



2. The abundant rainfall permits rapid tree growth. 



3. Transportation facilities by rail and water are good. 



4. Numerous large cities furnish an adequate market. 



5. The region is far removed from the virgin supplies 

 of the Pacific Northwest. 





LONGLEAF PINE HAS HEAVY SEED CROP 



/"VXCE in a great while occurs a heavy year for long- 

 ^-' leaf pine seed and forest officers returning from the 

 Southern States say that this year, 1920, is an unusual 

 seed year for this species. This report is confirmed by 

 local lumbermen pretty widely throughout the range 

 of the tree, which is, roughly, from North Carolina 

 throughout the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal plain to eastern 

 Texas. The occurrence is particularly noteworthy be- 

 cause the species matures full seed crops no oftener than 

 about 6 to 8 years. Partial crops, or small amounts of 

 seed occur irregularly during the intervals. 



The seed commonly ripens by early September and 

 falls to the ground soon afterward. If the fall weather 

 conditions are not unusually dry, the seed commonly 

 germinates in one to four weeks after it reaches the 

 ground. Longleaf pine produces a large seed full of 

 rich food so that it is eagerly sought and attacked by 

 insects, birds and native or "razor-back" hogs. If fall 

 and early winter conditions are favorable, the seed 

 Sprouts early in the spring with the coming of warm 

 weather. As a result of the present abundant seed crop, 

 many thousands of acres of longleaf pine forest land will 

 undoubtedly be carpeted with seedlings by next spring. 



The reason foresters are calling attention to the heavy 

 seed crop and promising an abundant crop of seedlings by 

 the spring of 1921 is, that they may bring home to the 

 owners of longleaf pine lands the peculiar need for pro- 

 tecting their lands from fire. They point out that it 

 would cost from 5 to 10 dollars an acre to restock by* 

 artificial means what nature is about to do gratuitously 

 this fall. Owners of longleaf pine lands wishing natural 

 reproduction to take place in this way should not fail 

 to take action towards keeping out fires, commencing 

 with the fall of 1920 and continuing for at least the two 

 following seasons, and longer, if possible. The tender 

 seedling is easily killed by fire during the first year or 

 two. Afterwards, the small tree, although injured by 

 fire, many times succeeds in pulling through. The native 

 "razor-back," if present in any numbers during the early 

 spring months, destroys practically all young seedlings 

 by eating the thick spongy succulent bark around the 

 taproot and must be kept under close limit as to num- 

 bers, or excluded altogether. On lands burned over by 

 fires in the cold season and not oftener than every two 

 or three years, the majority of longleaf seedlings may 

 be expected to survive. Annual burnings by hot fires 

 finally gets practically all of the saplings in the course 

 of a few years. The common belief that fires do prac- 

 tically no injury to longleaf pine, or are even necessary 

 for natural production, is doubtless based upon the re- 

 markable resistance that the tree possess after early 

 life of resisting serious injury from fires. Tender young 

 seedlings are readily killed, and consequently every nec- 

 essity for protecting them in a critical year like the 

 present is particularly urgent. 



A FOREST TRAGEDY 

 By John D, Guthrie. 



He left his camp fire burning to see if the Lookout 



would pick it up. 

 He did. 

 He thought this would be a good test to see if the 



District Ranger was on the job. 

 He was. 

 He wondered if a fire would burn very fast in the 



dry forest. 

 It did. 

 He thought he could get away before the Ranger 



could catch up with him. 

 He couldn't. 



He thought he could bluff the Judge at his trial. 

 He didn't. 

 He wondered if the Judge would have the nerve to 



sentence him to jail. 

 He did. 

 We wonder if he will put out his camp fire the next 



time he is in the forest. 

 HE WILL! 



