28S 



THE FORESTER. 



December, 



cut, and which (these same foresters say) 

 can be reforested with White and Norway 

 Pine, if the forest fires are kept out, and 

 the young trees are otherwise protected, 

 and allowed to grow. Very little of that 

 land is fit for profitable agriculture. Its 

 value is only nominal. 



It is confidently believed that if the four 

 reservations shall be converted into a Na- 

 tional park, and the General Government, 

 while protecting those forests from fires 

 and spoliation, just as it is doing in the 

 Yellowstone and other National parks, 

 will extend its protection to the surround- 

 ing and contiguous tracts belonging to pri- 

 vate owners, the latter will gladly transfer 

 their lands to the Government, upon being 

 protected in their right to the merchantable 

 Pine, and to cut and remove it upon the 

 principles of forestry, when and as the trees 

 shall come to maturity in the years of the 

 future. 



But those of the friends of the Park who 

 are not foresters, but simply plain, loyal 

 citizens of the United States, having their 

 homes in the Valleys of the Mississippi 

 and St. Lawrence, ask their Government 

 for this park, because they and their neigh- 

 bors and friends, in all these treeless regions 

 sorely need some easily accessible country 

 like this, where they and their children 

 can enjoy respite from toil, and regain 

 health and strength in its primeval forests 

 and on the bosom of its living waters. 



It is pointed out that whilst the General 

 Government has created five National 

 parks, containing 5,434 square miles, and 

 38 forest reservations, embracing over 

 73,000 square miles, not an acre of either 

 is in these two great valleys, but all in 

 the far West, too remote to be visited by 

 most of our people, who now comprise 

 the majority of the inhabitants of the 

 United States proper, raise the bulk of its 



food products, and pay most of its taxes. 



More than that : The magnificent water 

 scheme within the boundaries of the pro- 

 posed park, forms no insignificant part of 

 the water supply for our great river, the 

 Mississippi. So important a part has it 

 played, that for over 20 years the govern- 

 ment has been maintaining immense dams 

 within this very territory, for the avowed 

 purpose of reservoiring these waters, to 

 aid navigation in that river below St. Paul 

 and Minneapolis, and protect its volume, 

 and the regularity of its flow. 



That region will not only furnish a 

 grand play-ground for those in search of 

 recreation, but an ideal sanitarium for 

 those needing its balsamic atmosphere. 



Judging by the experience of New 

 York with its Adirondack Park, which 

 over a quarter of a million people have 

 visited each season for the past two years, 

 and which contains nearly twice the area 

 of this proposed park, I have no doubt, 

 that shortly after the latter shall have 

 been thrown open to the public, it will be 

 found ridiculously small, for the accom- 

 modation of the thousands who will throng 

 it. 



Then will come, year by year, its en- 

 largement, until even the City of Duluth 

 (which is the center of about all the con- 

 certed opposition made to the Park) will 

 be found clamoring, through her Repre- 

 sentative in Congress for more and more 

 land for the Minnesota National Park, 

 which is destined, we (the friends of the 

 Park and of Duluth too) believe, to be 

 for all the future the greatest boon and 

 blessing to Duluth which she has had, 

 outside of her commanding natural situa- 

 tion, her railroads and palatial steamers; 

 and that certainly her whole population 

 will get more direct benefit from it, than 

 any city or town in the country. 



