138 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE. 



bearing date July 11, 1CS2, entitled, " Conditions and concessions," 

 offered to such as might become adventurers and purchasers in his 

 province, viz : 



Eighteenth. That in clearing the ground, care be taken to leave one acre of trees 

 for every live acres cleared, especially to preserve oak and mulberry for silk and 

 shipping. 



By an act of the assembly of March 10, 1683, a code of laws was passed 

 making provision for securing the rights of property in timber-lands 

 and for their protection from fire by the following statutes : 



Chap. XCII. Be it enacted, $c., That if any person within this province or terri- 

 tories thereof shall at any time after the publication thereof, presume to cut and fell 

 any timber tree upon the land of any other person without leave, such person shall 

 forfeit to the owner thereof five pounds for every sucb tree as aforesaid. 



Chap. XCIII. Be it enacted, $-c, That whosoever shall presume to set on fire any 

 woodlands or marshes in this province or territories thereof before the first day of 

 the first month, yearly, they shall yearly make good all damages that shall thereby 

 happen to any of the inhabitants thereof. 



In 1G93 the penalty for cutting trees upon the lands of another was 

 fixed at five pounds for black-walnut trees, fifty shillings for every tree 

 of other timber, and double the value for fire or underwood. 



These statutes, so far as they were intended to secure the maintenance 

 of a portion of the woodlands, were not, so far as shown by records, 

 observed in the subsequent grants of land for settlement, and clearings 

 were made without restraint, as in other timber portions of the country. 



In a region extending over so broad an area as this State, with the 

 diversity of soil that exists, there is considerable variety in the species 

 of timber trees. 



Prof. Thomas 0. Porter, in his sketch of the botany of Pennsylvania, 

 suggests that the State might be divided into six botanical regions, in 

 each of ^which, besides certain species common to them all, there were 

 others that were limited to each particular section. He thus classi- 

 fies the regions : 1. Southeastern. 2. IS orth eastern. 3. Northern. 4. 

 Middle. 5. Western. 6. The Lake Shore region. 



In the fifty- eight counties from which reports were received refer- 

 ence was made to the principal species used for timber and lumber; of 

 these, chestnut was mentioned 48 times ; oaks, without further specifi- 

 cation, 31; hickories, 29; maples, 27; white oak, 21 ; pine, 21; locust, 

 21 ; hemlock, 20 ; black walnut, 17 ; ash, 16 ; beech, 14 ; poplar, 8 ; 

 black oak, 7 ; red oak, 7. 



For many years, in the early history of the State, the principal sup- 

 ply of timber for market was floated down the Susquehanna River 

 and its tributaries in rafts. This drained a region abounding in white 

 pine. After a while the Allegheny River afforded the means for bring- 

 ing down large quantities of timber, and for many years afforded occu- 

 pation and employment for a large number of men. 



Since the introduction of railroads the lumbering business has been 

 extended into districts remote from the rivers, and the increasing de- 

 mand has caused new supplies to be sought after, and much timber 

 which had no market value has been brought in demand. 



The white pine, which was regarded as the principal and most desira- 

 ble kind of timber, has been exhausted in extensive regions where it 

 was abundant, and hemlock and other species formerly considered of 

 little value, are now the principal kinds sawed in the mills. 



Timber has suffered very much from peeling off the bark for tanning 

 purposes. 



There are 1,569 saw-mills in operation in the State, and the estimated 



