FORESTRY COMMISSION. 61 



prosecution of the work of the farm ! And how nice it is to be able, now 

 and then, in the winter season, to get in a few logs to the mill, to be cut 

 into such forms of lumber, etc., as shall be of important use for the re- 

 pairing of tools and machinery and fences and buildings on the farm ! 



It is infinitely pleasant, too, to go into the woods — one's own woods — 

 upon his own farm — and to saunter about among the trees, and to note 

 them, and observe them, and study them. Or to lie upon the ground 

 beneath their shade and listen to the stirrings of the woods, to the twit- 

 terings of the birds, and to watch the gambols and doings of the little 

 animals who harbor there. All this the farmer may enjoy, to his inesti- 

 mable advantage, when the mood is on him, if he is only wise enough to 

 have the requisite — the few acres of woods on his farm. 



Michigan is territorially made up of two peninsulas, which have great 

 bodies of water about their borders. Deplete these areas of the timbex* 

 which covered them, leave thein wholly exposed to the sweep of the winds 

 that gather force as they move without obstruction over the surface of 

 these great lakes, and it is easy to imagine how greatly the change would 

 be for the worse in climatic conditions. 



But, alas I it is plain to see how sadly so many of the people of Michi- 

 gan fail to appreciate how much they o^e to its trees. The southern 

 peninsula lies between two great bodies of water, but Nature kindly 

 covered its area with niagniticent forests, that suitably checked the winds 

 that come with unimpeded force over the waters. As the trees have been 

 cut away, the vigor of the storms becomes more manifest, and all may 

 realize the importance, from this point of view, of preserving our trees, 

 guarding them, and having them for- wind breaks, an important matter 

 to our farmers. Again, without question, trees promote the deposition 

 of moisture. Air saturated with moisture, when meeting with obstruction 

 as it moves over the surface of the earth, is forced to give up some of this 

 moisture by reason of the compression Avhich it sutlers, and thus the 

 trees, the woods, of our State are to the farmer, in a measure, an in- 

 surance against drought. 



Thirty years ago I passed a portion of a winter in Kansas and Ne- 

 braska. My business caused me to do much riding over the prairies, and 

 I learned then, as never before, to appreciate the value of timber, the 

 comfort of a good fire, and the utter forlornness of a farmer's home with- 

 out it. The winds which blew continuously unobstructed over the prairies 

 chilled one, even when the sun shone pleasantly, to the extent of longing 

 for a good Are and a warm meal ; but when, in entering a farm house and 

 finding no fire, it seemed cheerless indeed. A handful of cobs and a few 

 chips of wood were sufficient for a blaze wherewith to cook the meal, after 

 which economy reciuired that the fire be suffered to die out. In Nebraska 

 I conversed with a farmer who sat by the stove, feeding the fire with corn 

 stalks, and when the bundle was exhausted he put on his hat and trudged 

 out to bring in another bundle. I could not help but compare this with 

 Michigan. In contrast, a log cabin in the woods in our own State, with a 

 big, blazing fire, seemed like the home of the blessed. To be sure, they 

 could get soft coal at the markets for sixteen cents a bushel, but times 

 were hard, and many of them could not afford to pay the sixteen cents, 

 and so they endured the inconvenience and suffering for want of tire be- 

 cause they could not do otherwise. Some farmers, I found, had wood 

 lotKS along the rivers, and such fortunate ones were regarded with great 



