AMERICAN FOREST CONGRESS 135 



climatic changes. It should be propagated as well as 

 preserved. Individuals will not do it, and the burden 

 will fall on the State and Federal Government. It 

 occurs to me that if it were possible to enact laws 

 similar to those in force in Germany and Sweden, 

 where the lumberman is compelled to plant a tree 

 for every one cut down, the question of the future 

 supply of timber would take care of itself. In some 

 of the European countries, I am told, the State encour- 

 ages the planting of trees on waste places by children, 

 at certain times of the year, where each public school 

 scholar plants a tree, and the idea of forest culture 

 and preservation is one of the studies of the public 

 school system. This idea would be worthy of emula- 

 tion in the United States. Logged off lands should 

 be looked after by a State forester, and should be 

 re-seeded as soon as cut off. In the desert places 

 effort should be made to plant suitable trees with the 

 view not only to timber but other useful purposes. 

 For example, there are large areas of treeless land 

 in Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and Montana, where 

 walnut, cherry and other valuable varieties of trees 

 would grow to perfection. The road commissioners 

 should make it their duty to plant trees along the 

 roadways and a special fund provided for this purpose. 

 This is as important as good roads. 



Care should be taken by the State and Federal Gov- 

 ernment to protect the headwaters of streams. The 

 source of water depends on the preservation of forests. 

 In Spain, the reckless cutting of trees at the head- 

 waters of streams many years ago has converted large 

 sections of fertile lands into arid deserts, and the same 

 is true elsewhere. Trees and vegetation hold moisture 

 and prevent floods and thus create a steady and perma- 

 nent flow of water to irrigate the parched soil and 

 induce fertility in place of drouth. 



