FORESTRY /V MASSACHUSETTS 



The Fundamentals 



There are five fundamental conditions that must precede 

 or accompany the permanent development of forestry in any 

 country. The first is the presence of a considerable area of 

 non-agricultural land which is capable of bearing forest 

 growth ; the second is a good market for forest products ; 

 the third is the presence of good transportation facilities ; 

 the fourth is an adequate system of protection from fires ; 

 and the fifth is a fair method of taxation for forest lands. 



(1) Non-agricultural Land 



In another connection it was stated that probably 3,000,000 

 out of 5,321,600 acres in the Commonwealth are available 

 for forest purposes. They are by nature non-agricultural 

 lands ; they are not suitable for other than forest purposes, 

 and therefore ought to be in permanent forest. 



(2) Good Markets 



The second condition, that of a good market for forest 

 products, is also fulfilled in Massachusetts. All through the 

 State there are numerous cities, towns and villages, and 

 wherever these are found there is a demand for the products 

 of the forest. Where building is going on, there is a call 

 for lumber; where manufacturing is going on, wood is being 

 used somewhere in the process of manufacture or in crating 

 the product for shipment ; where there are railroads, there is 

 a demand for ties ; where there are telephone and telegraph 

 lines, there is a demand for poles ; and where farming is going 

 on, there is a demand for lumber for outbuildings, posts for 

 fences and firewood for heating and cooking purposes. The 

 intensiveness of forest cultivation depends largely on the 

 market for forest products, and the market for forest products 

 depends largely on the density and distribution of popula- 

 tion. There is only one State in the Union that has a denser 

 population than Massachusetts, and, although congested 

 around Boston, there is no large section of the State that is 

 not settled. The distribution of cities may be taken as an 



