500 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



The educational and technical sides of the work have not 

 been forgotten. A bulletin on thinning was published during 

 the year and is being widely distributed. It tells how to do the 

 work and contains many practical data. Any who have not 

 received a copy and who are interested are invited to apply for 

 one, which will be mailed without charge. Accurate cost data 

 of all operations carried on under our management are being 

 kept. We are now collecting data for an oak log rule, and also 

 volume and yield tables, which we hope will be quite a contri- 

 bution to technical forestry. Several towns in the moth-infested 

 section were mapped this past summer in an endeavor to find 

 out the exact forest and moth conditions. These maps will 

 prove very valuable in carrying on the practical work. 



This winter there are four trained foresters giving their whole 

 time to this work, — two in the Boston office, one resident in 

 the southeastern section, and one working on the technical data. 

 On December 1, we had under our management five crews 

 working on these thinnings in different sections of the State, 

 including two portable saw mills. Before the winter is over we 

 expect to have double that number of crews and mills at work. 

 Besides that, there are a good many more engaged in thinning 

 under our advice or stimulus, although not directly managed 

 by this office. Several thousand acres w411 be thinned over this 

 winter, and at least 20,000 cords of wood cut, also 2,000,000 

 or 3,000,000 feet of lumber and ties, making a total expenditure 

 of private funds of probably $75,000. 



It is hard to make a report at this time because the opera- 

 tions are in full swing, and the work reported on is incomplete 

 and so accurate figures cannot be given. Following is an at- 

 tempt to tabulate just what has been accomplished from Dec, 

 1, 1913, to Dec. 1, 1914: — 



Examinations. — The lands of 20-4 owners were examined by 

 experts from this department, advice given, and in many cases 

 detailed reports written. The total area included in these ex- 

 aminations was approximately 17,000 acres, situated in 81 

 towns or cities of the State. 



Operations. — The following is a list of the thinning and cut- 

 ting operations carried on during the past year, either under the 

 direct management of this department or under its immediate 



