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pine, which as you are aware will yield box boards in something less than thirty years, or in terms of the quick growing hardwoods which yield fence posts in eight or ten years and fir wood in maybe ten more, and lumber in perhaps thirty or forty years. Most men are apt to think of the results of tree planting in terms of long lived, slow growing oaks, which take perhaps a century to grow, twelve inches through. To make the facts plain to such men, not only about money returns from tree planting but about how soon these returns can be had, is an urgent task before all foresters.

Now, the next task. That is to get tree planting done so well that disappointment will not be the crop instead of posts or lumber or fire wood. Successful tree planting is a wholly practicable thing. The Germans have demonstrated that fact for well over two centuries; and of course being foresters, you are well aware of the fact that today one-third of the reproduction in German forests is from planted trees.

But we do not need to go to Germany. Go to Biltmore, North Carolina, to the estate of George W. Vanderbilt. You will see forest plantations there, growing on steep hills which twenty years ago were bare and red and gullied by erosion and which today are already yielding useful products. If you do not care to go so far, why then travel in your own State here at home, and see the admirable results already obtained by planting good forest stock from the splendid State nurseries under the direction of Mr. Pettis; nurseries which yield the palm to no nurseries in Germany or France or anywhere else!

Successful tree planting is a practical thing; so is successful farming. But there are farmers who fail. Now what is needed in order to insure as low a percentage of failure as possible among tree planters? My impression is that object lessons are needed more than anything else. One cannot learn how to be a forester from books. You will grant that. I will affirm with equal vigor that one cannot learn how to be a banker from books; and possibly we

will agree that men cannot learn how to do good tree planting wholly from books. They need to see the thing in operation. Of course, the obvious answer is as I have just stated, that successful plantations are to be seen in New York State and elsewhere in America.

But, gentlemen, can you conjure up a life sized picture of an up-state farmer, a thrifty cautious farmer, traveling east and west and north and south, and spending largely of his means to see plantations which contain the trees he wants or the trees which he should-or might or could consider setting out on his worn out lands, or in his woodlot, or elsewhere where trees are needed on his farm? You might say, "Why are forest arboreta needed?" There are a great many arboreta which contain practically every kind of useful tree. Let the prospective tree planter inspect those.

There are such arboreta at Harvard, and elsewhere. Deep and undying credit and honor is due to Dr. Sargent and the other eminent gentlemen who established them. They serve a most valuable purpose to landscape architects, to foresters, to land owners and to all classes of men who wish to study the habits and behavior of individual trees, but they are not planted in forest conditions.

I have made some study of arboreta around and about the world. I think I may say I have seen with some degree of thoroughness nearly all the great tree arboreta of the world, both in America and foreign lands. I do not need to recount to you who are foresters, the wonderful living museum of trees in the Arnold arboretum; nor do I need to describe the great arboretum in Kew Gardens, near London, where many foresters have worked, including possibly some of yourselves; nor do I need to describe the great arboreta in semitropical countries, as in Ceylon on the island of Java, or which are in the making in several other foreign lands.

I am thankful as an American citizen for the Arnold arboretum and for all such wonderful and useful evidences of

the great ability and devotion of scientific men. In promoting, as we have done, the establishment of a forest arboretum at Letchworth Park I feel we are simply carrying the arboretum idea to a further progressive development. For I am convinced we should have here in America, not only tree. arboreta but a forest arboretum - not only one either, but several - but one at a time.

My old friend, William Pryor Letchworth, a man of great beauty of character and of great service to mankind, spent his leisure moments throughout a long and busy life in beautifying and developing his estate, upon the bank of the Genesee river near Portage about sixty miles from Buffalo. In the twilight of his life, Mr. Letchworth felt more and more the need for forest conservation. And through his wide vision and his great generosity, he left Letchworth Park to the people of New York as a public park; and he left a very definite request that it should be used so far as practicable for purposes of useful and educational afforestation, and he also left the means for its accomplishment.

I shall always remember my talks with Letchworth on this subject. And it was with a vigor inspired both by my friendship for him and by my contempt of the great needs of such an object lesson in tree planting as the custodians, The American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society, are now establishing at Letchworth Park, that I have devoted all the time I could to the development both of the forest arboretum idea and of the work itself upon the grounds.

Our purpose is to develop the forest arboretum at Letchworth Park deliberately forest arboreta do not spring up like mushrooms over night and in doing so establish a great object lesson for this region, illustrating the results of forest planting. We wish to see established at Letchworth Park - and a small but satisfactory beginning has already been made - blocks of planted forests seldom left less than an acre in extent, and each containing a useful

tree or a useful combination of trees which will grow in that vicinity. We want foresters, farmers, landscape gardeners and tree planters, present or prospective, to go to Letchworth Park, to walk among those planted blocks of forests, to make a right selection for their uses; and then to go home and plant forest trees for themselves.

At the inception of the movement, the principle upon which the Letchworth arboretum was to be established and certain plans for carrying out the principles were adopted by the custodian society. This principle and these plans are in part as follows: "The principle upon which the Letchworth arboretum be established is that it shall consist of a permanent collection of the various species of the world's timber trees, likely to thrive in this northern climate, planted scientifically to test their value and illustrate their processes of development, thus supplying not only knowledge for knowledge's sake, but also knowledge for practical

use.

"In carrying out that principle we will have a collection of the valuable timber trees of the world and the Letchworth arboretum will become the first of its kind and its contribution to the cause of forest conservation in the United States will be of great economic and scientific value.

"After the arboretum has been established, planted singly and in groups will be every important tree species with which experiment under local conditions of soil and climate will justify, and visitors will thus have ample opportunity to study the value of trees of many kinds for ornamental planting, but the object lessons of enormous economic significance which will lie spread before their eyes will be blocks .of planted forest in each of which has been set out one or more kinds of trees of commercial importance.

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'By this course Letchworth Park will aid materially in laying an exact scientific basis for the successful extension of practical forestry in the United States. Every practical step will be taken, not only to insure results of the

highest scientific value from forest work at Letchworth Park, but also to develop its usefulness as an object lesson to all Park visitors."

I wish with all my heart that this object lesson were in its full fruition. But I do not need to say to foresters that forest trees grow well we won't say slow but not fast, we will say. So possibly after five years, certainly in ten, the Letchworth forest arboretum will have some useful forest lessons to teach; for by that time the little trees will be up in forest formation.

In the meantime we are making experiments with different species; and, we are doing some things which will, and which will not, and which perhaps, may work. All men must do such things who would find out new and useful facts for the uses of other men.

I am hopeful that the Letchworth forest arboretum will be only a beginning. I want to see such forest arboreta established in other regions of the United States; one for example, in the southeast, in the region of the southern pines; another in the Rocky mountains; another on the Pacific coast; and one above all in far southwest where trees are needed more than anywhere else in all America.

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the west, to the woodlots and the timber tracts right here at home, lies your work. I believe that the future of the forests of America is safe in the hands of American foresters.

The above papers and proceedings indicate the keen interest that has been taken in the meeting of the New York State Forestry Association already held, but much remains to be done.

With 7,000,000 acres of idle land enclosed within farms, with 125,000 acres of true forest soil owned by the State that are in urgent need of reforestation, with the forest resources, camp sites, etc., tied up by Constitutional prohibition, a definite plan of forest management is needed and the New York State Forestry Association can and must not limit its activities to papers and dis

cussions.

A broad constructive forest policy representing the combined wisdom and ideas of the various organizations now represented in the State Association. should be prepared, to the end that State and private forest resources shall be wisely and fully used and the future citizens of the Empire State shall receive the priceless heritage of pure

water and abundant forests in a con

dition which reflects credit upon the wisdom of the present generation.

It has seemed to the Board of Editors that the first publication of the New York State Forestry Association could not be concluded in a more fitting way than with the statement of its President, the Honorable James S. Whipple.

President Whipple as former Forest, Fish and Game Commissioner labored for six years in protecting the wild life and the forests of the State. Το Commissioner Whipple, and to the late Colonel Fox, the citizens of New York owe a heavy debt.

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Investigations have proven that forest planting is a splendid investment. If the first cost is not exorbitant a plantation will yield a revenue of 5 per cent. compound interest on land and planting cost.

NEW YORK STATE

By Hon. JAMES S. WHIPPLE

Former Forest, Fish and Game Commissioner, and President New York State Forestry Association

I forestry work is

N all the States the practice of real is very very young. Thought of conserving the forests in America is very old; as old as the time of the first settlement. In fact, those who settled here first knew something about real forestry work. Relating to this subject, there were laws. passed in the Colony of Connecticut as early as 1640. In New Netherlands rules were made as early as 1650. The early history of the Colonies furnish some very interesting things on the subject of conserving forest trees.

But real forestry work commenced in a crude way to be sure, first in the State of New York. It has come on very slowly, and has not yet assumed very great proportions here or in any other State. Thought on this subject was first enacted into law in 1869, when a statute was enacted providing for tree planting along highways. In 1872, a statute was passed providing for a commission to recommend or establish State parks in certain counties. Nothing was really done until 1883, when a law was passed prohibiting further sale of land in certain Adirondack counties. first appropriation was made in 1884. It was for $5,000. A Forestry Commission was established in 1885. Many societies have been organized, notably the Society for the Protection of the Adirondacks.

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Yet through all the years from the first settlements in this country there was no real effort put forth to interest the whole people in this important subject until about 1905. In this State from that time on for the next seven years in the State department, through the commissioner in charge, undertook

the work of generally awakening the people to the importance of the subject and to the necessity of tree planting, conserving and properly managing forest covered land. During that seven years and after this State had commenced the work as above noted, the President of the United States called the Governors of the States together at the White House in Washington in conference to consider the better conserving and using of our natural resources throughout the United States which started a forward movement all along the line.

The Society for the protection of the Adirondacks has done much good work in preventing offenses against State forests, and has exerted a strong influence for better laws, relating to forests, but the activities of that fine body of men have not reached far enough. At all times there has been great need of a broader knowledge in relation to forests and their benefits, other than their use for wood alone. Then too, attention has been largely directed to the forests owned by the State. While those forests are important, no less important are the hundreds of thousands of acres of woodlands throughout the State and the tens of thousands of barren acres that should be growing trees. It is also of vast importance that the people in every town, village and city in the State should understand the necessity of planting up the barren acres acres unproductive for other things with trees. It is equally important that farm lots should be cared for in the same way and that more shade trees should be planted and those we have cared for. For these

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