58 



RECREATION. 



90 per cent, of the seedlings should live 

 in the plantation. It is a good idea to go 

 over the plantation in 3 years arfd set out 

 new trees where any have not survived. 

 When the trees average about 15 to 20 

 feet in height, as they generally do when 

 10 years old, it is a good plan to go through 

 the plantation and cut off close to the bole 

 all the limbs that can be reached with 

 a hand ax. In pruning great care should 

 be taken not to injure the bark. 



When the plantation is 15 to 20 years 

 old, about one-half of the trees may be 

 cut. They will make fence rails, posts or 

 fuel and will be 4 to 5 inches in diameter, 

 breast high. The second thinning should 

 be made 40 or 50 years after planting and 

 should take out about one-half the remain- 

 ing trees. The average diameter on poor 

 pasture land at 40 years will be 8 to 12 

 inches, breast high, which will find a ready 

 market as box- boards at $3 to $5 a cord 

 on the stump. On the second cutting 25 

 to 40 cords should be assured, which would 

 leave approximately 600 good trees to ma- 

 ture into first class timber. These trees 

 may remain as long as the owner wishes, 

 gaining in value constantly by the im- 

 provement of the wood" in both quantity 

 and quality. For the next 30 or 40 years 

 the plantation will yield a sure income of 

 5 per cent, per annum at compound inter- 

 est in growth in volume alone. Besides 

 this, the quality of the timber is constantly 

 increasing as it increases in size. When, 

 the remaining stand is 75 to 80 years old, 

 the owner should be able to cut at least 

 30,000 board feet an acre of good timber 

 pine, which at present prices should bring 

 $6 to $10 a 1,000 feet on the stump. It is 

 not unfair to assume that the price of white 

 pine 75 years hence will be at least twice 

 what it is to-day, but figuring on present 

 prices, the owner of our 10 acre planta- 

 tion would have a trial balance something 

 like the following: — 

 Expenses. 



Value of land, 10 acres, at $4 $40 



Cost of seedlings 54 



Cost of planting 50 



Taxes for 70 years 60 



$204 

 Returns. 

 Value of land $40 



300 cords box lumber at $5 i>50O 



300,000 board feet timber at $8.... 2,400 



$3<94° 

 Computing the original expense and the 

 taxes at 4 per cent, compound interest, our 

 original investment stands roughly at 

 $1,800, which sum deducted from $3,040 

 leaves $2,140, or a net annual return of 

 about $3 an acre above the 4 per cent, com- 

 pound interest, 



FORESTRY IN IOWA STATE COLLEGE. 



The turning out of skilled foresters is 

 no inconsiderable part of the valuable work 

 of the Bureau of Forestry. No profession 

 is so little crowded, and none offers a more 

 inviting field to the conscientious and zeal- 

 ous student. That forestry, as a science es- 

 sential to the well beiro- of the nation is 

 steadily growing in popular favor is evi- 

 denced by the increasing number of schools 

 and professorships of forestry that are being 

 established. The latest professorship is that 

 at the agricultural college at Ames, Iowa, 

 called the Iowa State College. To fill this 

 position it has chosen Mr. Hugh P. Baker, 

 of the Bureau of Forestry. Mr. Baker is a 

 graduate of the Michigan Agricultural Col- 

 lege and the Yale Forest School, and has 

 had a wide experience in handling problems 

 in forestry in the West. He will lecture at 

 the college half of each year on general 

 forestry in its application to Iowa condi- 

 tions. The other half of the year he will 

 devote to Bureau work, for the most part 

 investigating forest problems as they con- 

 cern the State of Iowa. 



CHESTNUTS. 



In the fall the dark Italian 



Sells his wares ; 

 And the man who buyeth chestnuts 



Roundly swears — 

 Giving vent to many a strong and 



Angry term — 

 Nearly every doggone chestnut 



Has a worm. 



Loud he says he ? ll never purchase 



Nut again, 

 And repeats with variations 



This refrain ; 

 But ere long he buyeth others 



Fine and firm, 

 And on opening up the first one 



Finds a worm. 



Thus we pass, attentive reader. 



On our way ; 

 Taken in, we're done with trusting 



Loud we say. 

 But forgetting, ah ! how often 



Do we squirm 

 When we ope and in life's chestnut 



Find a worm ! 



— Louisville Courier- Journal. 



It was on the old campground. "Pass de 

 hat," suggested Bruddah Wheatly. But the 

 parson said, "No, sah ; dere'll De no hats 

 about it. Pass a tin box wid a chain to it. 

 De las' time a hat was passed around heah 

 it never came back, an' I had to go home 

 bar'headed." — Chicago News, 



