TREES AS GOOD CITIZENS 
246 
legislation is also necessary to make it unlawful for any 
person to hamper or interfere with the work of an author¬ 
ized employee of the shade tree department in the pursuit 
of his duties in caring for and preserving trees. 
With increasing interest in municipal shade tree activ¬ 
ities there will necessarily be many points on which local 
experience will be lacking. The shade tree authorities 
will find it well to profit by the experience of other com¬ 
munities, for in this way they will learn many of the things 
necessary. One of the foremost of these is that no man 
should accept a position of authority without a full sense 
of his obligation to the community. He cannot afford to 
become lax in his knowledge of shade tree laws or the 
correct interpretation of them, and when he is in doubt on 
any point he should seek the counsel of his municipal, legal 
adviser, or the State Forestry authorities. The tree 
official will find that it is undesirable to antagonize prop¬ 
erty owners unnecessarily. Even in carrying out a 
requirement that causes objection, tact and discretion will 
serve better than arbitrary methods. 
An important point in popularizing a shade tree 
department is that the official in charge make friends 
with the property owners. One of the surest ways to bring 
this about is to consult the owners of adjacent property 
when contemplating important pruning or other work on 
the trees along any street. To go at work of this kind 
without conference frequently causes trouble. Experi¬ 
ence shows that if the property owners are consulted 
beforehand, they will almost invariably agree to the plan 
under consideration. 
Some of the other important points to be regarded by 
the successful tree warden or supervisor are that irrespon¬ 
sible tree peddlers or self-styled repair experts must be 
discouraged, that the rights of the trees come first, and that 
