No. 4.] REPORT OF STATE FORESTER. 311 



chased at a fair price, and then the valuation is raised, in some instances 

 to an advance of 60 per cent. 



The tendency at present is to increase valuations on forest lands more 

 than formerly, as good growth is scarce, and if assessors tax it at its real 

 value, according to law, owners at once realize the burden and are driven 

 to cut it down. If these conditions applied to mature growth the objection 

 would be slight, but our old growth is largely cut, and the burden comes 

 on young and immature growth that from every economic standpoint, 

 including that of rational taxation, should not be cut. 



The objectionable feature to our present system is the taxing of the 

 growing crop as well as the land. Growing agricultural crops are not 

 taxed. The forest is nothing other than a gro\ving agricultural crop, only 

 that the crop of each additional ring on the trees or increment cannot be 

 harvested without destroying the possibilities of future crops or values, 

 and hence remains dormant until the totals of several seasons are taken 

 together. Were it not for this fact the growth of each year would not be 

 taxed any more than other agricultural crops. Therefore, just because 

 there is in a tree crop an accumulation of annual growing crops, which 

 from the nature of the case is necessarily standing idle to ensure the 

 succeeding annual growing crop on the same land, it should not be taxed. 



Farm lands are assessed at a 'fair average figure per acre, depending 

 upon their productivity of crops, and, as above stated, the crop is not 

 taxed. Why not tax forest lands, or even depleted and neglected lands 

 capable of growing forests, of which there are many throughout the State, 

 at the rate of their annual possibilities of productivity, the same as agricul- 

 tural lands are now taxed? This would determine a basis of yearly per- 

 manent taxation on which the towns and State could depend. It would 

 go farther; it would establish a definite policy whereby one could be 

 assured of a reasonably certain policy in dealing with forest properties. 



Our present law, if enforced by conscientious assessors, results in pre- 

 mature harvesting of the crop, as not only is the growing annual crop 

 taxed, which in itself would not be so objectionable, even if other agri- 

 cultural crops are exempt, but this growing crop is again taxed year after 

 year when- it is standing idle, and this fact is distinctly burdensome to 

 modern forestry development. 



A point I wish to emphasize relative to the importance of having a well- 

 regulated State forest policy, which is impossible with our present uneven 

 taxation law, is that modern forestry encouraged is bound to return an 

 industry to our rural communities, the lack of which is already experienced 

 at the present time. 



It was only a few years ago when every farming district was equally 

 busy in winter as throughout the growing season, utilizing its hired help 

 and teams in the wood lot, getting out saw logs and lumber; not stripping 

 the land, but taking out the ripe trees suitable for lumber, and carrying 

 on a rotation of crops in the forests as it were. The farmer had an industry 

 to follow in the winter as well as in the summer. At present the depleting, 

 or run-out at the heel, forestry conditions, once so thrifty, have, through 



