284 AGRICULTURE 



>o should that of the woods. The old trees should be cut so as to 

 spare and benefit the young ones and thus renew the forest. It is 

 :ruly said that a forest is more than a storehouse of wood; it is 

 i factory for wood and a reservoir for water. 



Destructive Lumbering. Suppose a lumberman who feels no 

 nterest in forest preservation has a hundred thousand acres of land 

 n original forest, containing six hundred million feet of lumber. 

 He puts in a big plant so as to cut a hundred million feet a year. He 

 ;uts everything large enough to saw, and injures and destroys 

 ;he young growth. Fungi, insects, and fire are given opportunity 

 'or their deadly work. At the end of six years the lumberman 

 las the money for his six hundred million feet of lumber, but he 

 las destroyed the forest. 



Forestry. Suppose a similar tract of land comes into the pos- 

 session of a forester, a man who wishes to sell lumber and also to 

 Dreserve the forest. He puts in a smaller plant, cuts the mature 

 ;rees, and leaves the thrifty young ones to develop. At the end of 

 >ix years he has taken in less money than the lumberman, but he 

 las property which is paying profits and increasing in value. With 

 :he old trees out of the way, the young ones have more room, 

 lir, sunshine-, and plant food, and so grow faster. 



Do not the two instances remind you of the old story of the 

 man with the goose that laid golden eggs? The wasteful lum- 

 berman kills his goose, the forester keeps his to lay golden eggs. 



The economical care of woodland is the duty not only of the 

 nen who control vast areas, but also of the farmer. It is im- 

 portant for him to take care of his wood lot, though it be only a few 

 icres. By cutting old trees and sparing growing ones, he can pre- 

 serve and increase its usefulness. Rough land and hillsides are 

 nore valuable in forest than for farming purposes. It is often 

 profitable to plant tree on such land. 



