End of a Log Slide 



a blow at the development of the dis- 

 trict. This should be recognized, and 

 extreme statements and radical meas- 

 ures avoided by forestry advocates. 



Rut final judgment cannot be formed 

 without considering the other side as 

 represented by the land speculator. In 

 many districts the test of experience 

 has shown the difficulty of profitable 

 farming, and the original settlers have 

 abandoned the attempt. Land specu- 

 lators find in these lands a fruitful 

 source of profit, and induce inexperi- 

 enced or over-confident investors to 

 buy them for homes. 



There seems to be but one way to 

 meet this situation honestly, and that is 

 by acquiring such lands for state forest 

 reserves. We need these lands for 

 growing timber. In such thickly set- 

 tled countries as Prussia sandy lands 

 are being purchased every year by the 

 Government and planted to pine. We 

 must learn in this country to put land 

 to its best use, and be willing to admit 

 that in some cases this best use is forest 

 production. The ability to distinguish 

 between agricultural and forest soils, 



and the power to open the first class to 

 settlers and prevent the improper use 

 of the true forest soils for agriculture 

 can only be developed in a state under 

 a progressive policy of state forest re- 

 serves. 



There are thus strong reasons for 

 state ownership of forest lands in all 

 instances in addition to the need of 

 producing timber. Should the argu- 

 ment be based solely on the necessity 

 for the state to grow timber, it might 

 be held that a state must not compete 

 with individuals in the production of 

 crops. This is true where individuals 

 can supply the demand for the product 

 and where state competition would in 

 any way hamper private effort. But in 

 the production of timber, experience in 

 this country as well as abroad is rapid- 

 ly proving that the individual or cor- 

 poration is seldom willing to invest the 

 money or make the sacrifices necessary 

 to secure a second crop of timber, while 

 under state control the proper steps 

 may be taken with little difficulty. It 

 is certain that all the timber that can 

 be raised by the united efforts of states 



479 



