14 PRACTICAL FORESTRY IN THE ADIRONDACKS. 
namely, to remove the old timber above a certain diameter, and, where 
necessary, to leave selected trees above this size for seed. In the 
present working plan 10 inches at 3 feet from the ground has been 
made the average minimum limit for cutting. The State of New York, 
however, could afford to leave standing all trees under 12, or if neces- 
sary all under 14 inches in diameter; in other words, could leave a 
larger amount of money invested in the forest than the private owner. 
The State of New York could, further, carry on thinnings for the 
improvement of the trees left standing, rather than for a profit from the 
sale of the timber. Thus the removal of many one-log Spruce trees 6 to 
10i.ches in diameter, which are usually left standing by the lumbermen, 
would benefit the forest to a considerable extent by giving more grow- 
ing space and light to the trees which remain. In the same way small 
trees which could be used for pulp often stand in dense thickets, and a 
thinning of one-fifth or more of the crop would enable the remainder to 
grow much more rapidly. If a contractor were obliged to cut these 
trees he would undoubtedly raise his contract price. The State of New 
York could pay this price for the benefit of the forest, but at present 
most private individuals could not afford to make such an invest- 
ment. Under certain circumstances the State could girdle some of the 
large crooked hardwoods which are crowding small Spruces and Pines, 
or if necessary cut them down; but for a lumberman in the Adiron- 
dacks such work would not be profitable under the present conditions. 
The State would have a special advantage over the private owner in 
being able to enforce stricter regulations on the contractors in regard 
to the careful construction of roads, sparing the small growth in felling 
timber, in building skidways, bridges, etc., and lopping the branches 
from the tops as a protection against fire. The lumberman can carry 
out these regulations only so far as they do not to any great extent 
affect the cost of logging. Moreover, the State could employ a much 
larger force of experts to superintend the marking of timber and to 
wateh the work of the contractors, or, in other words, could take better 
eare of the forest than the private individual. 
The time will undoubtedly come when the State of New York will 
carry on extensive operations in restocking denuded areas by sowing 
and planting. It is stated on page 19 that forest planting by most 
private owners in the Adirondacks would not, in the judgment of the 
writer, be wise business policy. Whether it would be profitable for the 
State of New York to restock denuded areas artificially is a question 
which will be definitely settled by the experiments now being carried 
on in the Adirondacks under the direction of Cornell University. 
POSITION OF THE PRIVATE OWNER REGARDING THE PRACTICE 
OF FORESTRY. 
The only reason for lumbermen and most private owners to adopt 
forestry is the financial one. Private individuals and clubs, to whom 
the income from the forest is less important than its preservation, are 
