THE FOREST PROBLEM. 151 



ials; it annually contributed its leaves to the accumulating soil; 

 it harbored worms and other burrowing animals which brought 

 fine soil-materials to the surface; and in its shelter the burden 

 of dust-laden winds was deposited. So man thought that he saw 

 alluring promise in the richness of the forest soil, and this 

 coupled with the prospect of immediate gain from its products, 

 led him to remove the forest. But an awakening has already 

 come, and men realize that with the removal of the riches of the 

 forest they also lose the richness of the soil, for the rains and 

 melting snows quickly strip it from the hillsides. The land is 

 then practically worthless, for it will make neither field nor 

 pasture — it is fit only for growing trees, as it has grown trees 

 in the past. Few counties in the state have suffered more than 

 Winneshiek in this respect. The principal forest areas were in 

 the roughest territory, unsuited to the ordinary purposes of 

 agriculture. Man's greed and thoughtlessness combined in many 

 cases to strip the best, if not all, of the forest from these hill- 

 sides, but this was not the gravest error, for if left to its own 

 resources the forest would renew itself. But an attempt was 

 made in many cases to cultivate or pasture the stripped areas, 

 and this was done on the steepest slopes with uniformly dis- 

 asterous results. More acres were cultivated that still other 

 acres might be secured, under the pretext that the children of 

 the land-holder must not be left without inheritance. The desire 

 for immediate gain was, however, responsible for this, for men 

 had not yet learned that a growing forest is one of the most 

 splendid legacies which they may leave to their children. The 

 best of the legacy which we ourselves received has been dis- 

 sipated, in "Winneshiek county as elsewhere, but conditions for 

 the renewal of the forest are here very favorable. There are 

 three distinct forest areas in the county, drained respectively 

 by the Upper Iowa, the Turkey and the Yellow rivers. Of these 

 the first is much the largest within the county, but all agree in 

 having a relatively large amount of adjacent rough land, as has 

 been noted. Much of this land is worthless, or at least of little 

 value, for agricultural purposes, and it would entail but little 

 present loss, and would vastly benefit posterity, if given over to 

 the cultivation of timber. This would not require a large amount 



