7 



one case all the chestnut trees had been carefully treated by cutting 

 off all dead limbs and each wound covered with tar or paint. All 

 the trees, several hundred in number, on the estate of Mr. Harold 

 Pierce were in a fine healthy condition. On two other estates, dead 

 trees had been felled during the winter, but in one instance the pile 

 of cordwood contained abundant evidence that the fungus parasite 

 had done its deadly work, and in the other all the wood and brush 

 had been burned, but an examination of the bark on the stump re- 

 vealed the fact of the existence here of enough living spores to in- 

 fect all the trees of the neighborhood, should they find a lodgment on 

 their favorite hosts, the chestnut trees. 



The next trip was to follow up the valley of the Susquehanna to 

 the north of Harrisburg. At Sunbury in Northumberland county, 

 the North Branch and the West Branch unite to form the Susque- 

 hanna river. At this point the forests for a distance of ten miles, 

 along the river and its two main branches, were examined. The 

 chestnut growth was not so abundant as along the slopes of South 

 Mountain. No evidence could be obtained of the presence of the 

 blight. A side trip was taken up the Shamokin valley. This gave 

 an opportunity to examine the Paragon grove of Mr. C. K. Sober, 

 situated about twelve miles in a direct line from Sunbury. This 

 famous grove contains about four hundred acres and all the trees 

 bearing fruit. Here is a demonstration that waste mountain land, 

 on which the native chestnut grows, may be redeemed and become 

 a profitable investment. One year Mr. Sober had two thousand 

 bushels of Paragon chestnuts to sell. And since the selling price 

 has ranged from $5 to |12 per bushel, one can estimate the income 

 from this source. In his nursery, he had approximately three hun- 

 dred thousand seedlings and about one hundred thousand of these 

 were to be grafted in the spring of 1009. In large banks or mounds 

 of sand there were one hundred bushels of nuts which would be 

 planted early in May. The object on all trips was primarily to in- 

 spect the natural woodland. The native growth of chestnut on 

 Herndon Knob was examined and also the opposite ridge two miles 

 away across the valley. There was no sign of the blight in Shamokin 

 valley nor in any other portion of Northumberland county that was 

 visited. 



At Sunbury an inspection was made to the east and south of the 

 Susquehanna, and at Bloomsburg it was to the north or on the op- 

 posite side of the river. No sign of the blight could be found in Col- 

 umbia county. With Mr. S. C. Creasy a drive was taken to Mill- 

 ville, twelve miles from Bloomsburg on the Susquehanna. The chest- 

 nut trees are very abundant in certain parts of Columbia county. 

 Mr. Creasy is well informed on all subjects pertaining to forestry in 



