178 AMERICAN FORESTRY 



cordingly. This can be done at no great cost, since the original ploughing 

 can be contracted for fG.OO per acre and the disking can be done for far 

 less. 



It is not surprising that the settlers of this region take a keen interest 

 in this work, as practically every land locator in this vast, treeless, wind-swept 

 region feels the necessity of a shelter wood that will protect his buildings, 

 garden and small fruits. A picnic is held at the Halsey Nursery each year 

 and the settlers come many miles to observe the progress of the work. 



The Kinkaid Act that was passed by the last Congress, provides that the 

 Government shall distribute trees from the Halsey Nursery to settlers who 

 have taken lands in that region. To provide for this distribution, the output 

 of the nursery will be greatly enlarged, and it is hoped that by another year 

 or two, 25,000 pine trees of different species will be ready for distribution 

 under this Act. Some time will elapse before the nursery can fully meet the 

 demands for this distribution, since from two to three years are required to 

 produce a hardy transplant fit to survive under the rigorous conditions of the 

 region 



THE CHESTNUT BLIGHT CAMPAIGN 



BY PERCIVAL S. RIDSDALE 



HOLLOWING heated discussions as to the value of fighting the de- 

 structive chestnut blight, for which scientific men have been unable to 

 discover a remedy, the Chestnut Blight Conference, held at Harris- 

 burg, Pa., on February 20 and 21, decided to endorse the work of the Penn- 

 sylvania Commission which has directed the cutting down of affected trees, 

 urged the national government, the State governments, and Canada to follow 

 the example set by the Keystone State, and called upon Congress to pass the bill 

 providing an appropriation of $80,000 for the use of the Department of 

 Agriculture in investigating the disease and endeavoring to find some method 

 of eradicating it. 



It was also decided, in order to overcome the financial loss caused by 

 the cutting down of affected trees and to stimulate trade in chestnut timber, 

 to ask the Interstate Commerce Commission to permit railroads and other 

 transportation companies to lower freight rates for the distribution of the 

 unaffected timber and as much cutting as the market will permit was urged. 



It was deemed wise to also arrange for more systematic publicity and 

 educational work so that small wood lot and other private owners may be 

 instructed how to detect the disease and what to do when they discover its 

 presence. 



There is no doubt but that great good will result from the meeting. 

 Twenty-one States were represented, some of them by a number of delegates, 



Canada also sent one expert to learn what he could of the disease. 

 Several papers were read and addresses made on various phases of the blight, 

 its introduction into this country and the methods employed by various 



