410 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



September 



forest districts were particularly inter- 

 esting. The Director of Forestry asked 

 many questions concerning each dis- 

 trict, and the reports were thoroughly 

 discussed by the meeting. Commit- 

 tees were also appointed by the Di- 

 rector of Forestry to devise a Philip- 

 pine primer of forestry, to investigate 

 the needs of the service as to field 

 equipment, and to propose and discuss 

 a forest uniform for the Insular Ser- 

 vice. 



In addition to this committee work 

 the following subjects were discussed: 

 "Improvement of the Forest Service ;" 

 "Work of the Foresters;" "Instruc- 

 tion to Rangers;" "Equipment at the 

 Forest Station including herbarium, 

 forest products exhibits, etc. ;" "Pro- 

 posed changes in laws and regula- 

 tions ;" "Free cutting of timber and 

 how to regulate it;" "Improvement in 

 logging methods and use of saws, 

 American axes, etc." 



Representatives of the Philippine 

 Timber Cutters' Association attended 

 several sessions of the conference of 

 the present forest policy. 



Representatives of the Bureau of 

 Public Lands and Bureau of Internal 

 Revenue explained to the conference 

 points in connection with the home- 

 stead laws, land titles and the use of 

 the new Internal Revenue forms for 

 the appraisal of forest products and 

 collection of forest charges. 



The botanist of the Bureau of 

 Science spoke with reference to collec- 

 tion and preparation of botanical ma- 

 terial for identification. 



The entire meeting may be con- 

 sidered a great success and a most 

 pleasurable feature of it proved to be 

 the banquet on the last night of the 

 session. Everyone connected with 

 Philippine forestry was present, and 

 the evening was thoroughly enjoyable. 



THE FUTURE FORESTS OF 



MINNESOTA 



A Prominent Lumber Journal, "The Mississippi Valley 

 Lumberman," Offers Valuable Practical Suggestions 



A MONG the many State publica- 

 ** tions that have had more or less 

 to say about the timber resources of 

 this State and the manner in which 

 they have been exploited, the Pioneer 

 Press is the first to get down to a sane 

 discussion of the subject, and propose 

 something really practical. Most of 

 them have been content to confine their 

 discussions to abuse of the lumber- 

 men for having pursued the only policy 

 that was possible from a commercial 

 standpoint. In the making of dollars 

 and cents, most business men do not 

 mix a considerable amount of philan- 

 thropy. This is not to say that the 

 lumber manufacturers have not been 

 philanthropic. They have been, with 

 the money they have accumulated as 

 a result of strict attention to business, 



but they have not been in a hurry to 

 sink money in the same line of busi- 

 ness in which they have made it. To 

 make the application direct, they have 

 not gone into the business of raising 

 forests when to do so would insure a 

 loss not because there might not be 

 money in it if conditions were right, 

 but because conditions have never been 

 right, and these conditions have been 

 such 'as they could not control. Profit- 

 able forest raising has not only not 

 been made easy, but it has not been 

 made possible. Laws, and the man- 

 ner of their administration have pre- 

 vented the application of any ideas of 

 practical forestry. 



The policy suggested by the Pioneer 

 Press has been suggested many times 

 by The Lumberman, though it may 



