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THE FARM WOODLOT 



Urge Reduction of Taxes on Woodlands 

 In Illinois to the Point Where They Would 

 Be More in Line With Income From Timber 



REDUCTION in taxes on farm 

 woodlots to a point where they 

 would be more in line with 

 woodiot income was urged by 

 President Charles B. Shuman 

 of the Illinois Agricultural Asso- 

 ciation in addressing the first Illinois 

 Forestry Congress held in October on 

 the University of Illinois campus. 



President Shuman also called for im- 

 proved market outlets for wood from 

 farm forests, including cooperative 

 marketing groups. 



The lAA president also pointed out 



that greater stability of farm prices 

 would enable farmers to invest in im- 

 provements for their woodlots instead 

 of using all income for other farm 

 operations. He also urged that private 

 consulting firms, specializing in man- 

 agement of farm lots, be established to 

 take care of the work of laying out, 

 planting and harvesting of farm timber. 



By CRESTON FOSTER 



Edher, lAA Record 



Above: Illinois busi- 

 noit and educational 

 leaders examine a 

 display of baskets 

 produced In a Union 

 county plant. Left 

 to right. Dr. W. 

 L. Burllson and Dean 

 H. P. Rusk of the Col- 

 lege of Agriculture; 

 Dr. J. N. Spaeth, head 

 of the U. of I. for- 

 estry department and 

 general chairman of 

 the congress; Chester 

 C. Davis, president. 

 Federal Land Bank, 

 St. Louis; and F. W. 

 Cottschalk, technical 

 director, American 

 Lumber and Treating 

 Company. Right: lAA 

 President Charles B. 

 Shuman (left) talks 

 timber with L B. Cul- 

 ver, extension for- 

 ester. 



DECEMBER, 1948 



Plans also were discussed at the 

 congress for setting up an organization 

 to promote forestry in Illinois. Dr. 

 J. N. Spaeth, chairman of the congress 

 and head of the U. of I. forestry de- 

 partment, was authorized to appoint a 

 committee to recommend what type of 

 organization was needed to put the 

 plan into effect. 



This committee will include farmers, 

 lumber representatives, sportsmen, 

 women's clubs, conservationists and 

 others interested in forestry. 



Possibilities of increased farm income 

 through the growing of pulp wood 

 was stressed by George W. Brooks, di- 

 rector, department of research and edu- 

 cation. National Brotherhood of Paper, 

 Pulp and Sulphite Workers, American 

 Federation of Labor. 



Brooks said that finding a source of 

 pulpwood is one of the most urgent 

 problems of the paper industry today. 

 Use of paper is increasing yearly by 

 leaps and bounds and paper pulp 

 sources are dwindling. The shortages of 

 paper that have existed during and since 

 the war have been due mainly to lack of 

 wood pulp and not because of a lack 

 of production machinery or manpower. 



John R. Fornof, publisher of the 

 Streator Times-Press, and president of 

 the U. of I. board of trustees, had 

 earlier pointed out how much paper his 

 publication used in a year, and how 

 little pulpwood is produced in Illinois. 



Chester C. Davis, president of the 

 St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, de- 

 clared that many farmers who treat 

 trees as another crop are making money 

 at it. 



Davis presented some estimates on 32 

 southern Illinois counties with an 

 average of 27,000 idle acres. 



Assume, he said, that this land if 

 reforested eventually could produce 370 

 board feet of timber per acre. At an 

 $8 valuation per thousand board feet 

 these 27,000 acres per county would 

 yield $80,000 per year income. If the 

 farmer owner would harvest the timber 

 himself, an increased farm income of 

 another quarter-million dollars could 

 be had in each of the 32 counties, Davis 

 said. 



Other points stressed at the congress 

 were that Illinois (1) is not making the 

 best use of its timber crop, and (2) 

 is not making full use of the land best 

 suited to growing forest crops. 



Dr. Spaeth pointed out that Illinois 

 has 3.5 million acres of timberland 

 now loafing on the job. With better 

 management, this land could produce 

 almost three times its present yield. 



Illinois has another 2Vi million acres 

 of land that need reforesting because 



(Conlinued on page 34) 



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