386 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. II. No. 39. 



Commission organized to investigate the ex- 

 tent and character of the forest cover, the 

 removal of lumber, the annual receipts and 

 the general relation of forests to climate, 

 water and health. They are empowered sim- 

 pljT to investigate, but much of their energy 

 has been given to attempts to convince the 

 lumber men that it is for their personal 

 interest as well as that of the State to intro- 

 duce less wasteful and destructive methods. 

 They are also striving to preserve some of 

 the natural beauties of the White Mountain 

 region, as the summer resorts, if destroyed 

 or injured, will cause great annual loss to 

 the State. 



Mr. Joseph B. Walker, of Concord, ISTew 

 Hampshire, followed with a description of 

 the present condition of the forests, espec- 

 ially those in the northern portion of the 

 State. Here large areas are owned by in- 

 dividuals whose sole object is to make the 

 most money in the shortest period, and who 

 have no interest in obtaining a future crop 

 of trees. Everything is cut which can be 

 sold, either for lumber or matches. Vast 

 sections are denuded one after the other, 

 the fires in the ' slashings ' sweeping the 

 ground clean after the lumber men have 

 left. There is a beginning, mainly from 

 the sentimental side, to make an attempt to 

 prevent this great destruction, and the fire 

 laws have been so improved that the Select- 

 men or County Commissioners are required 

 to appoint fire wardens, whose duties in- 

 clude the watching for fires and the sum- 

 moning of aid to prevent their spread. No 

 penalty for failure is provided, but popular 

 sentiment is being aroused to such an ex- 

 tent as to render the law generally effec- 

 tive. The farmer is beginning to appre- 

 ciate the necessity of the forests, as these 

 if properly managed will furnish him oppor- 

 tunity for labor during the winter months. 

 At present he labors seven months of the 

 year and from his farm alone cannot derive 

 revenue for the remaining five months. 



Eev. Julius H. Ward, of the editorial 

 staff of the Boston Herald, read a paper on 

 the present situation in the White Moun- 

 tains. He noted the increased regard being 

 expressed by lumbermen for the young trees 

 which ultimately should become valuable 

 for lumber. He described the ordinary 

 operations and stated that the companies 

 now at work in the White Mountains ex- 

 pected to cut everything before them, not 

 leaving a stick of any value. 



Mr. Charles Eliot, of the firm of Olme- 

 stead & Eliot, of Brookline, Mass., read a 

 paper on the new public forests near Boston, 

 illustrating this by maps of the locations of 

 these forests, and described their general 

 characteristics. The most important of 

 these public reservations is the Blue Hills 

 area, consisting mainly of rugged hills and 

 swamps. Next in importance are the 

 Middlesex Falls, and besides these are 

 numerous smaller localities notable for the 

 beauty of their scenerj'. The chief enemy 

 to these is fire, and to guard against this, 

 the larger reservations are blocked out into 

 fire districts, and watchmen employed to 

 patrol the grounds. 



Mr. E. H. Forbush, Director of Field 

 Work of the Gypsy Moth Department of 

 the Massachusetts Board of Agriculture, 

 spoke of the work in confining this insect 

 pest within certain limits. It originated 

 in specimens imported by an entomologist, 

 these escaping and multiplying until the 

 trees and bushes within many towns were 

 destroyed as completely as by fire. By 

 means of sufficient appropriations it would 

 be possible to exterminate this insect, but 

 Massachusetts has only granted a sum suflB- 

 cient to hold it in check. Thus there is 

 constant danger that the moth may escape 

 and start new colonies in every direction. 

 If allowed to spread it may overrun the 

 whole country. He stated that the native 

 birds will not eat the eggs of this insect, 

 but that i")Ossibly some foreign birds which 



