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taking ou the State Reserve. There is necessity, however, that the fact 

 should be kept in raind that results sufficiently definite to prove of general 

 application can only be secured as the results of large series of experiments 

 continued through many years. In order, however, that such work may 

 reach its highest value there should be close cooperation with individual 

 land owners throughout the state. Cooperative experimental plats should 

 be found in every part of the state. The seedlings should be furnished 

 from the state reservation and should be planted and cultivated under 

 regulations prescribed by the State Board of Forestry. Regular reports 

 should be made by the owners to the Board and regular inspections of 

 such plantings should be made by its Secretary. The conclusions result- 

 ing from observations covering a wide range of conditions and involving 

 varying degrees of care and attention would evidently be of much greater 

 value than those possible under present methods. 



There is cause for congratulation in the fact that the state realizing 

 the gravity of the problem confronting it is taking steps to avert the dis- 

 aster which our rapidly waning timber supply seems to indicate. Caution 

 in such matters is of course wise, but it should not be forgotten that as a 

 rule a Fabian policy is ineffective in acute cases. There is every reason 

 for confidence, however, in believing that no backward steps will be taken 

 and that as the years pass the development of a wise forest management 

 on the part of individual land owners, will under the guidance of tne 

 state be far more rapid than in the past. There is reason for hope also in 

 the general observance of Arbor Day for it gives assurance that the next 

 generation will have a fuller knowledge and a truer appreciation of the 

 value of our forests than their parents ever possessed. 



Summarizing; the present forestry conditions in Indiana being as 

 stated, three great lines of work suggest themselves as immediately neces- 

 sary if the timber supply of the state is maintained : 



1. An educational propaganda emphasizing the importance of correct 

 forest methods, the value and potentiality of existing wood lots, and of the 

 importance of reclaiming waste lands by tree planting. 



2. A census of the present timber stand, its composition and its dis- 

 tribution. 



3. Cooperative experimental work on the part of the state and indi- 

 vidual land owners, for the determination of suitable species for affores- 

 tation, their silvical qualities and their rate of growth. 



