2 9 4 



THE FORESTER. 



December, 



"Nothing of more practical value, in formation given in this publication ought 

 our opinion, has ever been issued from the to be in the possession of every American 

 government office than this Primer. The citizen. It is an excellent and most satis- 

 subject is of vital importance to the ma- factory work." Leslie s Weekly, New 

 terial welfare of the country, and the in- York. 



Recent Publications. 



The White Pine ( Pinus strobus Linnaeus) By M. V. Spalding, Professor of 



Botany in the University of Michigan. 



(REVISED AND ENLARGED BY B. E. FERNOW, WITH CONTRIBUTIONS BY F. H. CHIT- 

 TENDEN AND FILIBERT ROTH. BULLETIN NO. 22 OF THE DIVISION OFFORESTRY. ) 



The present volume represents most careful 

 investigations covering more than ten years, 

 the first draft having been prepared as early as 

 i888, since which time it has undergone careful 

 revision and received several important addi- 

 tions. As the title indicates, "The White 

 Pine " is not, strictly speaking, the work of any 

 one person. Professor Spalding, after the first 

 writing, made several revisions, but was then 

 forced from press of other work to abandon the 

 completion of the study, which then fell to Dr. 

 Fernow. Thirty pages out of the eighty- five, 

 however, are definitely assigned to two of the 

 contributors, while, in addition, the important 

 subject of measurements in the field are ac- 

 credited to Austin Gray and A. K. Mlodziansky, 

 the latter of whom also gave a portion of the 

 material bearing upon the " rate of growth." 



The monograph opens with a clear and fairly 

 full account of the geographical distribution of 

 Pinus strobus, followed by notes upon the char- 

 acter of its distribution by regions, with notes 

 upon the boundaries of its distribution, and con- 

 clusions regarding its distribution in the virgin 

 forest. In connection with this topic is a map 

 showing the original distribution of the species, 

 and half-tones showing the White Pine in mix- 

 ture on tracts in New York State. The inter- 

 esting topic of the history of the White Pine 

 lumber industry is next taken up for a couple of 

 pages, with some figures as to the yield of 

 lumber from the Lake States from 1873 to 1897, 

 and other figures. Passing then through the 

 subject of original stand and present supplies, 

 the natural history of the tree is reached. This, 

 including the botanical description and observa- 

 tions on the morphological and histological 

 characters, and on seeding, forms a decidedly 

 valuable section. 



As the object of the monograph is to supply 

 the information necessary to the right utiliza- 

 tion of the species, the topics already considered 

 form properly a mere introduction to the dis- 

 cussion of the rate of growth and of the con- 

 ditions of development, or the silvicultural 

 characters of the White Pine. These latter con- 

 siderations furnish the data upon which all 



treatment of the tree as a forest crop will prop- 

 erly for the chief part depend. The matter of 

 growth is treated consequently at some length, 

 and the tables resulting will doubtless serve as 

 a basis for working plans, when, in any instance, 

 the special conditions of a specific region have 

 also been studied and compared with these gen- 

 eral statements. "'Yield," the whole affair in a 

 word, can then be treated with sufficient thor- 

 oughness. 



This concludes the exposition of the White 

 Pine under normal conditions, and gives place 

 to the discussion of "dangers and diseases." 

 Oa this subject F. H. Chittenden has con- 

 tributed a valuable paper on "Insect Enemies 

 of the White Pine." A discussion of the forest 

 management of the tree here and in Germany 

 follows, the monograph closing with a paper on 

 the " Character and Physical Properties of the 

 Wood," by Filibert Roth. An appendix con- 

 tains numerous tables of measurements, and 

 diagrams of growth. 



In the United States, where much of the 

 highly elaborated financial calculation deemed 

 so essential in Germany is practically valueless 

 at present, and is likely always to receive com- 

 paratively slight stress, it is the thorough 

 knowledge of the silvicultural characters of any 

 given species as well as the fact of growth 

 which must underlie all the earlier stages of 

 forest management. If this be true, the mono- 

 graph under discussion deserves high praise. 

 It adds very materially to our knowledge of the 

 White Pine as a tree and as a member of a most 

 important forest crop. It is to be regretted that 

 this valuable data could not have been collected 

 and put to use before so much waste had oc- 

 curred through ignorance. Yet it is not too 

 late to use it now, and there is every reason to 

 hope that many owners of pine lands may apply 

 to the care of a second crop the principles 

 which were ignored in the harvesting of the 

 first. The book, besides, will serve as a useful 

 example for further work along similar lines. 

 Admirable illustrations and diagrams form an 

 important element in the work, adding much to 

 its completeness. 



