FOREST CONDITIONS. 357 



It is in the coniferous materials that we are 

 most concerned, for they form three-fourths of our 

 consumption, and their reproduction in competition 

 with the hardwoods and the fires is not promising. 



Some ignorant people — ignorant both as to re- 

 quirements of the wood industries and as to the 

 condition and character of our forest resources — 

 have claimed that the natural growth of young 

 trees, without any attention, following the opera- 

 tions of lumbermen, would suffice to replace that 

 which is removed and would continue to furnish 

 the required material. 



The observant student, not to speak of the pro- 

 fessional forester, can readily see that culling the 

 valuable kinds and leaving the inferior tree weeds 

 in possession of the soil almost entirely prevents in 

 many cases reproduction of the valuable species. 

 In other cases where the production of valuable 

 kinds does take place, as, for instance, with the 

 Southern pines, whenever the young growth is 

 not killed by fires, the development is so unsatis- 

 factory, that where with proper attention a new 

 crop might be available in seventy to a hundred 

 years, twice the time will be required to make 

 clear timber of quality. In most cases recurring 

 fires retard this natural re-growth still further or 

 prevent it altogether. 



Of the character and conditions of the Western 

 forests we have almost more detailed information 

 than of the Atlantic forest, thanks to the various 



