The Dawn of a New Constructive Era 17J 



$53.75, or $2.55 an acre. This sort of profit is sufficient to pay 

 all taxes and incidental expenses. 



"Accurate measurement has been taken of the trees in the 

 different lots, photographs taken, and in some cases every tree num- 

 bered and recorded so that comparative figures will give abso- 

 ^olute proof of the growth from season to season. Our method 

 is to let nature take its course in the matter of seeding for re- 

 forestation. This is very satisfactory and there is no expense of 

 tree planting by hand to deduct from the profits when the lum- 

 ber is sold. With long-leaf pine seed crops are infrequent and 

 several years elapse between the crops. This is not so with 

 short-leaf and loblolly ; therefore, reforestation on denuded areas 

 with these species is not difficult if seed trees have been left 

 standing, as a crop can be counted on almost every season. At 

 Urania our records show that there was no crop of long-leaf 

 mast in 1912, a hundred per cent crop in 1913, a 5 per cent crop 

 in 1914-15, and a 50 per cent crop in 1916. In virgin forests of 

 long-leaf, the seed seasons are sometimes five or ten years apart, 

 but vigorous young pines in denuded areas bear seed more fre- 

 quently and abundantly. 



"A record made on an acre in one of the experimental plots 

 shows 251 trees ranging three inches and under to 22 inches D. 

 B, H. will yield at the present time 13,544 feet. By adding four 

 inches to the growth in 20 years it will yield 42,388 feet. Stump- Growing a 

 age now sells at $5 per thousand feet, but twenty years from Forest at $2 a 

 now we will be safe in presuming that it will sell for $10 a Thousand 

 thousand, or $423.88. If converted into lumber and delivered to ^^ 

 Northern markets it will be worth at least $1,200. Mr. Hardt- 

 ner's recapitulation is that the cost of growing timber will be 

 around $2 a thousand feet. 



"Thus have we met the reforestation problem in Louisiana 

 and our theories have been sound, as our results indicate. We 

 can show you that timber can be grown on timber land at a 

 profit. We can demonstrate that lumber that has long been 

 supposed not to perpetuate itself does so if enemies are removed. 

 We have a healthy regard for the dread forest fire, but we have 

 also learned that it is not so bad as we have been thinking it. 



"We also- believe that the owner of cut-over land will find it 

 to his advantage to go timber farming, and that all cut-over land 

 does not necessarily have to be plowed under for crops until 



