350 THE CONIFERS (GYMNOSPERMS) — FORESTS 
the houses. Besides, trees were so plentiful that there was 
no need to be careful about using them in any way. This 
attitude has been so thoughtlessly maintained that large 
tracts have been cleared for immediate profit or pleasure 
without thought of the future. Now the time has come 
when forests have to be conserved and additions made 
Figure 324. — What Deforesting Did in China. 
This represents the appearance of 200 square miles of once wooded moun¬ 
tains, which a century ago paid rich revenue on their lumber products. 
to them so far as possible, a condition which will be¬ 
come even more marked as the population increases and 
as the needs for wood and lumber become greater. Con¬ 
servation does not mean locking up the products of forests 
to prevent their being used, but seeing that they are properly 
used and providing for a future supply. Conservation has 
become necessary on account of previous extravagance. 
Formerly, when a settler had cleared the land so far from his 
house that it was a trouble to bring in wood, it was not a 
