THE PEOFESSIOX OF FORESTRY. 5 



to planting, and, in general, all problems which deal with the life 

 history and production of the forest. Other men spend more time 

 on the business end of the profession, in devising methods of protecting 

 the forest from fire, in. organizing an efficient system of administra- 

 tion, in determining the cheapest and most effective methods of 

 lumbering, and, in general, in dealing with the problem of the utihza- 

 tion of the forest. 



By far the greater number of foresters, however, have to deal 

 with both the scientific and the business aspects of the profession. 

 They must know how to appraise the value of timber and how to 

 utilize it in the best possible way, as well as how to grow it. They 

 must be able to estimate how much it will cost a thousand feet to 

 log a given tract of timber, at the same time that they predict how 

 soon it will be profitable tp cut the same area again. In other words, 

 the average forester must be a good business man, with a thorough 

 technical education. The scientific equipment is simply a matter 

 of thorough schooling; the business equipment must be secured by 

 practical experience in woods work. 



Many of the men who prepare for forestry should anticipate em- 

 ployment with lumber companies. This ^vi\l usually require several 

 years of hard work in the woods, in logging camps, or at the mill, in 

 relatively subordinate positions, to learn the practical details of the 

 business. This apprenticeship is essential before responsible or 

 attractive positions can be secured, and indeed before a forester can 

 apply technical methods of management to the business intelligently, 

 or can acquire the confidence of his employers so that his recom- 

 mendations ^tII be followed. 



REQUISITES FOR SUCCESS. 



The first requisites for the successful forester are that he have a 

 liking for the sort of life wliich he wtII have to lead, and that he 

 possess the health and constitution to stand it. The forester's work 

 is physically exacting. He has to make long, hard trips in 

 the forest, and under present conditions and those which will con- 

 tinue for a long time to come travel is necessarily rough. Sometimes 

 it means a long trip on horseback, sometimes by canoe, and sometimes 

 very hard and rough walking. The forester is not infrequently 

 subject to actual physical hardships, and in any event he must have 

 the constitution to endure such hardships should the occasion arise. 



It must not be understood from this, however, that the profession 

 is a muscular one, pure and simple. It requires brams, and brains 

 of a high order, particularly at the present stage of the profession 

 in this country, when nearl}^ every forester is doing distinctly construc- 

 tive work. The successful forester must have to a large degree the 

 qualities of foresight and broad-mindedness, and these must be sup- 



