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,r> 



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 



RIDUCTION in t.ixc^ on lanii 

 woodlots to a point where they 

 would he more in line with 

 woodlot income was ur^ed by 

 President (Charles B. Shuman 

 ot the Illinois Aj^ricultural Asso- 

 ciation in addressini; the first Illinois 

 Forestry Con^'ress held in (October on 

 the University of Illinois campus. 



President Shuman also called for im- 

 proved market outlets for wood from 

 farm torests. including cooperative 

 marketing groups. 



The lAA president also pointeil out 



that gieater stalnlity ot tarm prices 

 would enable farmers to mvest in im- 

 provements for their woodlots instead 

 ot 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 



Editor, lAA Record 



Above: Illinois busi- 

 ness and educational 

 leaders examine a 

 display of baslcets 

 produced in a Union 

 county plant. Left 

 to right. Or. W. 

 L. Burlison 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 Banic, 

 St. Louis; ond F. W. 

 Gottschalk, technical 

 director, American 

 Lumber and Treating 

 Company. Right: lAA 

 President Charles B. 

 Shuman (left) talks 

 timber with L. B. Cul- 

 ver, extension for- 

 ester. 



I'iaiis also vM.re distusseil at the 

 LOiigress lor setting up an organization 

 to proinote forestry in Illinois. Dr 

 J. N. Spaeth, chairman of the congress 

 anil head ui the L'. of I. forestry de- 

 partineiu. was authorized to appoint a 

 committee lo rei.ommend u h.it type 'it 

 organization was needed to put the 

 plan into effect. 



This lommittee will include farmers. 

 lumber representatives, sportsmen, 

 women's clubs, conservationisis and 

 others interested in forestry. 



Possibilities of increased larm income 

 through the grov^ing 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 

 I'ederation 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 dv\indling. 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 manpov^er. 



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 

 S8 valuation per thousand board feet 

 these 27,000 acres per county viould 

 yield SSO.OOO per year income. If the 

 tarmer owner would harvest the timber 

 himself, an increased farm income of 

 another cjuarter-million dollars could 

 be had in each of the 32 counties. Dav is 

 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 timiierland 

 now loafing on the job. With better 

 management, this land could produce 

 almost three times its present yield. 



Illinois has another 2^2 million acres 

 of land that need reforesting because 



DECEMBER, 1948 



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