6 THE CULTIVATED EVERGREENS 



forest policy that aims to bring about the wise use of all forests, 

 both publicly and privately owned, to the end that the people 

 of the United States may have a continuous supply of wood 

 and of other forest products, adequate for their needs, in 

 perpetuity. 



THE CHRISTMAS-TREE PROBLEM.— Hosmer 



Of all that the forest yields to man, perhaps no gift is more 

 prized than is the Christmas tree. To the children the tree, 

 with its gay decorations, its glittering lights, and at the top the 

 bright star, is the center of the Christmas celebration. To their 

 elders it brings but little less pleasure. In many families the 

 Christmas tree is allowed to stand for a week, or even until 

 Twelfth Night, all the while continuing to give joy to young 

 and old. It is an indispensable part of the happy Christmas- 

 tide, and, even when dismantled, it may still serve out-of-doors 

 as a feeding station for the birds. Without a tree the Christmas 

 festivities are not complete. 



Just how far back in history the Christmas-tree custom 

 goes, no one knows. It is probably of very ancient origin, 

 possibly a survival from the Scandinavian mythology that pre- 

 ceded Christian times. But whatever its origin, the custom is 

 now so wide-spread and deep seated that it has a recognized 

 place in every Christian country. The United States leads the 

 world in the use of Christmas trees. Over five million trees are 

 needed each year to supply the demand in American homes. 

 The following statement is designed to show that the use of 

 trees for this purpose is a legitimate and, if properly conducted, 

 a wise use, and that the purveying of Christmas trees rests 

 on a basis of sound economics as well as on sentiment. 



Many different kinds of trees are used in the United States 

 as Christmas trees, but practically all are conifers. In the 



