EVERGREENS OF COLORADO 71 



picture. They constitute the very essence of the soothing, restful quality 

 of every delightful mountain retreat where worn and tired humanity longs 

 to retire. Just how much our state owes to her mountain forests of ever- 

 green trees in attracting and holding the tourists which come within our 

 borders for recreation, cannot be definitely known. Many, doubtless, would 

 pass on to more pleasing scenes were these forests entirely destroyed or 

 their charm removed. Thus for their scenic effects, alone, the state of 

 Colorado may well afford such protection to her mountain forests as shall 

 insure their perpetuation and thrifty growth. 



FORESTS AND GAME. 



Another important role played by the forests is in the harboring of 

 game and in the clarifying effects which they have upon the streams where 

 fish abound. Streams which have their sources protected by forest cover 

 are seldom or never as turbid with silt and other foreign matter as those 

 which catch the run-off from denuded areas. Such streams are therefore 

 better suited for our gamiest and choicest fish which do not thrive in 

 water charged with impurities of any kind. Then, too, there is a charm 

 which appeals strongly to the true sportsman in following the chase 

 among the wooded hills or luring the finny tribe along tree-bordered 

 streams. If Colorado is famous as a region where human kind may dis- 

 port itself amid the most healthful and enjoyable surroundings to be 

 found anywhere upon our continent, it is due in no small measure to the 

 beneficent presence of our forests of evergreen trees. 



