558 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



December 



I am quite aware that there are 

 many things to be taken into account 

 before it can be decided whether it 

 will pay to reserve the smaller timber 

 and maintain a constant supply by 

 rotation cuttings. This is a matter for 

 investigation by the owner. I am of 

 the opinion that on many of our white 

 pine limits this practice could be put 

 into immediate operation to the great 

 advantage of the owners. In other 

 cases where there is very little young 

 timber the reverse might be the case. 

 What I would do if I owned a limit 

 on which there was a stand of pine of 

 all ages, as is usually the case, would 

 be to have a careful examination of it 

 made, giving an approximate estimate 

 of all the pine down to say twelve 

 inches in diameter at the stump and 

 of the quantities below that size, spe- 

 cifying the number of trees at from 

 twelve to ten inches, from ten to eight 

 inches, from eight to six inches and 

 from six to four, and all under that 

 size, with a stem analysis to ascertain 

 the rate of growth per annum. By 

 this means it would simply be a matter 

 of calculation whether I should cut 

 such a limit close, or cut down only to 

 say twelve inches at the stump, taking 

 care to destroy as few as possible of 

 the younger trees in felling. 



Barring one factor, namely, forest 

 fires, no surer basis for calculation can 

 exist. We would have as one factor 

 annual growth definitely ascertained ; 

 another would be the present value of 

 this small timber if marketed at the 

 present time ; and the whole question 

 resolves itself into this problem : Will 

 the value of the increment of growth 

 exceed the compound interest on the 

 present value of this sapling stock? 

 But in favor of the conservative meth- 

 od we should also remember that in- 

 terest is declining in our new country, 

 while the value of stumpage is in- 

 creasing, 



There is, however, another matter 

 which should not be lost sight of in 

 endeavoring to foster the younger 

 growth. In removing the large pines 

 we allow more light into the forest 

 which will be followed by a faster 



growth of the young trees that have 

 suffered from too great shade; but 

 these large pines really do not cast 

 nearly as much shade as the broad- 

 leafecl trees that usually grow mixed 

 among the pines, and in the examina- 

 tion to which I have referred it would 

 be well to have those doing the great- 

 est injury in this way to the young 

 pines marked, and where possible, re- 

 moved. 



In this work of survey or examina- 

 tion of the limit and marking of the 

 timber it is quite unnecessary to mark 

 every pine that is to be immediately 

 cut. With intelligent men instructions 

 to cut nothing under a certain diame- 

 ter should be sufficient. 



The lumbermen now conduct their 

 affairs with great attention to details. 

 They know the cost of logging, driv- 

 ing, sorting of logs, milling, piling, 

 and shipping, to the minutest detail, 

 but it seems to me that they should 

 commence one step further back and 

 in their profit and loss account be able 

 to state the value of the timber on 

 their limits, not only that which is im- 

 mediately merchantable, but that crop 

 which is constantly growing and on 

 which they can rely with the greatest 

 certainty, if proper care is taken to 

 prevent its destruction by fire. The 

 farmer values his growing crop, but 

 a grain crop is liable to be destroyed 

 by rain, or by lack of it, by rust and 

 other destructive agencies which sel- 

 dom affect the growing pine. 



High as stumpage is now, when the 

 increased use of timber is taken into 

 account and the decrease in the supply, 

 it seems inevitable that it will con- 

 tinue to greatly increase in the future. 

 It was thought by many that with the 

 increased use of iron, brick, stone and 

 cement in structural works the de- 

 mand for timber would decrease, but 

 statistics not only show an aggregate 

 but a per capita increase in recent 

 years. When we consider this and 

 take a survey of the visible supply in 

 the northern hemisphere we cannot 

 but regard the warnings of a timber 

 famine as procaimed by the ablest for- 



