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REPORT 
 
 Forestry Commission 
 
 STATE OF WISCONSIN. 
 
 PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY, 
 
 MADISON 
 Dkmocrat Printing Company, State Prtmter 
 
 1898 
 
REPORT 
 
 Forestry Commission 
 
 STATE OF WISCONSIN. 
 
 I 7 
 
 PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY, 
 
 MADISON 
 Democrat Printing Company, State Printer 
 
 1898 
 
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 24560 
 
REPORT OF THE FORESTRY COMMISSION. 
 
 To the llonorahh', tJie Le(ji.slaiure of the t>tate of Wisconsin: 
 
 The coiinnissioii which was appointed by the governor, pursu- 
 ant to dhapter 229 of the laws of 1897, for the purposes defined in 
 said statute, and which is composed of Geo. B. Burrows, H. C. 
 Putnani and Ernest Bruncken, respectfully submit the following- 
 report: 
 
 The commission was organized on June 15, lb97, by the elec- 
 tion of George B. Burrows as chairman and Ernest Bruncken as 
 secretary. As it seemed imperative to the proper fulfillment of the 
 objects of tlie commission to have a more* definite knowledge than 
 was then obtainable of the actual, present condition of the Wis- 
 consin forests, an arrangement was made with the State Geolog- 
 ical and Natural History Survey and the Forestry Division of 
 the U. S. Department of Agriculture, for the making of such an 
 inquiry. The result of that investigation may be found in the 
 bulletin of the Gcologicial Survey on "The Forest Resources of 
 Northern Wisconsin/' by Filibcrt Botli. The thanks of this 
 commission are due to the gentlemen connected with the two 
 institutions named, and ])articularly to Prof. Birge of the Geolog- 
 ical Survey; Dr. Ix E. Fernow. late chief of the U. S. Forestry 
 Division; Prof. Filibert Roth, now of (Cornell University, and 
 Prof. L. S. Cheney of the; State T^niversity, for the invaluable 
 a&sistance thus rendered. The following report is in no small 
 measure ba.';ed on the data so ascertained. 
 
 (iENEKAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The meaning of the word forestry; is still somewhat unfamiliar 
 to many people in the United States, and to a misapprehension 
 of its meaning may be ascribed a good deal of O[)position en- 
 countered by the advoeiates of inn proved forestry method* Many 
 persons imagine it to be synonymous with arboriculture, or the 
 planting and care of trees. In reality that is 'but a branch of the 
 subject, and as far as Wisconsin is concerned, by no meanS' on*^ , 
 of the mos;t im]iortant. Forestry is simply the management of 
 lands gi'own wit.li forests. Its obiect is to derive from such lands. 
 
the greatest possible profit for the owner. The interest of the state 
 in forestry lies in part in the direct financial return it may obtain 
 from forests owned by it; and in part in certain indirect benefits 
 conferred on its people by the existence and rational exploitation 
 of forests. Every owner of timber lands who carries on logging 
 operations, ot sells firewood or railway ties, ie engaged in for- 
 estry. It is clear, therefore, that the introduction of improved 
 forestry methods is of the greatest importance to the luanber in- 
 dustry and every other industry which gets its raw ma- 
 terial from the foreots, as well as to the people of 
 the st^ate at large. The plan advocated in the past, with, 
 more or less sucfeess, by well-tmeaning people, of reserving 
 certains portions of natural forest as so-called "parks'' and allow- 
 ing them to remain unutilized wildernesses cannot be dignified 
 by the name of rational forestry. The reasons which have most 
 commonly been given for that policy have been of a sentimental 
 nature. Its advocates have spoken of the beauty of the primeval 
 woods and the good infllience a temporary return to nature anust 
 have on persons overwrought by the ex^treme stress of modern 
 civilization. But these benefits can 'be obtained equally well if 
 not better by a forest wliicli is made to serve the needs of the 
 people in the way of lumber and other sylvatic ]:)roducts. More- 
 over, an uncared-for forest surrounded by a popuh)us conmiunity 
 is sure to fall a victim to fire and Ivecome practically a desert in 
 the course of a few decades. The reservation plan, therefore, is 
 inefiicient and wasteful. It must give way to a more economical 
 and business-like policy. 
 
 Forestry is merely a particuhu- form of agriculrure. AVhero 
 one has the choice of growing on a given tract of land grain and 
 the ordinary farm products, or tiaiber of any kind, the principal 
 question should be simply: Which will pay best, considering all 
 the circumstances of the case? Where a state has large tracts of 
 forest land, which may either be converted into' agricultural 
 land or remain forest, it also should propound to itself the ques- 
 tion: How can the greatest possible amount of we^alth be de- 
 rived from these lands, having regard to long periods of time 
 and all the surrounding conditions? If the answer is: By turn- 
 ing these lands into farms, then the policy of the state should be 
 to encourage that result. If the answer is: By preserving and 
 properly managing the forests growing on them, then the state 
 should pass such l-aws as will help to accomplish that object. 
 
 Wisconsin has in its unsettled portions many thousand acres 
 of fertile lands which can without doubt be put to no better use 
 than to get them into the possession of industrious settlers under 
 aiS easy conditions as possible, who will soon .nake for them- 
 
selves farms and become a prosperous, intelligent and contented 
 community. Tliey may be safely trusted to retain on their 
 homesteads enough of the forest now covering the land, for the 
 purposes of a farming region, just "as the farmers of the southern 
 part of the st-ate are doing. But there are also in this state largo 
 tracts where the returns whieh could fairly be expected from 
 farming operations are disproportionate to the labor and capital 
 required to wring a crop from the inferior soil. Yet these same 
 lands, so uninviting! to the husbandma^n, have in the past'borno 
 magnificent crops of pine and other timber, and there is no reason 
 to doubt that they wnuld,under proper oare, "produce injthe future 
 other crops of timber still moi-e magnificent. It will be the part 
 of wisdom, therefore, for the state to adopt a policy which will 
 encourage the use of such lands for the purpose of raising tim- 
 ber crops rather than agricultural crops proj)er. 
 
 There are other reasons which should prompt a, wise govern- 
 ment to take steps looking towards the maintenance and man- 
 agement of an adequate area as forest. In the first place, the 
 various industries deriving their raw material from the existing 
 ^forests are by far the most important economic interest of Wis- 
 consin, except agriculture. According to the state census of 
 1895, the aggregate value of the lumber and wood manufactur- 
 ing industries of Wisconsin ^\as $58,971,000. This does not in- 
 clude the value of the pulpw^ood used in our paper mills; of char- 
 coal and allied materials; of the enormous number of railroad 
 ties, telegraph poles, fence posts and similar products of the for- 
 est; nor the value of the tanbark derived from our hemlock 
 groves, or any of the minor products of our forest industries. If 
 this vast industry should disappear on account of the disappear"- 
 ance of the forests, it would work nothing short of an economic 
 revolution in the state. Many thousands of men who now de- 
 rive their support from work in the mills and factories would 
 find their occupation gone, and while a. few would undoubtedly 
 become farmers, the great majority of them would leave for other 
 states. What effect such a loss of population would have on 
 the prosperity of the whole state it is needless to picture. 
 
 Again, the influence of the removal of forests on water-flow 
 and climate is one of the most important reasons why the state 
 should pass laws calculated to preserve a reasonable area of land 
 under forest cover. This phase of the subject is adequately 
 treated in the report on the forest conditions of Northern Wis- 
 consin, mentioned above, and it is superfluous to dwell again on 
 the subject in this place. 
 
 An economic consideration of no small importance is the effect 
 
a destruction of forests will have on the steadily growing busi- 
 ness of entertaining summer residents and tourists. Hundreds 
 of thousands of dollars are now spent every year in this state hy 
 travelers from other sections. But what attracts these people 
 is our lakes and forests. The former are to no small degree de- 
 pendent for their beauty and their very existence on the latter. 
 With the removal of the forest, this source of income, which 
 ought to grow from year to year, would be lost to our people. 
 
 Einally, it should not be forgotten that the question of forest 
 preservation is one of guarding our people against a heavy bur- 
 den of taxation. The sale of forest lands has in the past pro- 
 duced a large revenue to the state treasury. 'Jluit source of rev- 
 enue must, in the nature of 'things, soon disappear. But tin 
 experience of other countries has shown that forests, owned and 
 managed by the state, can be onade to contribute greatly to the 
 public revenueis. Ought not a wise legislation to consider 
 whether Wisconsin cannot in the future derive such a revenue 
 from its forests in order to help to bear the necessary expenses of 
 the government, which will otherwise have to be met by taxing 
 the people? 
 
 Taking it for admitted that it is worth while to pass laws oa 
 the subject of forestiy, we will now discuss the question as to 
 what measures should be taken by the state in this matter. The 
 first question to be considered will be that of fire protection; 
 then will come the question of the i-elative advantages of public 
 and private ownership of forests; and finally the consideration of 
 practicable steps for the fostering of either system of manage- 
 ment. 
 
 FOREST FIRES. 
 
 Without scMue efi'ective system of protection against forest 
 fires, there is no hope of placing the forest industries of Wiscon 
 sin on a stable basis. This matter is of more urgent necessity 
 than anything else connected with the subject. The enormous 
 injury done to the forests of the state by fire is fully set forth in 
 the report on Forest Conditions. But the tale there told refers 
 only to the material in the forests tliemselves. ' It says nothing 
 of the homesteads, villages and cities destroyed, noi of the untold 
 misery caused l)y the destruction of human life "n such appall- 
 ing disasters as the Phillips fire, which is still fresh in the memory 
 of the people, or the horrible occurrences at Turtle Lake, Cum 
 berland and elsewhere, during the fall of 1898. 
 
The prevention of foi*est fires is clearly as onuch a duty of the 
 public authorities as the prevention and extinguishment of firet 
 in cities. If the expenditure of money for that purpose is nec- 
 essary, the people will not gnidge it any more than they refusi 
 to be taxed for the maintenance of fire departments in cities. 
 If it is found that the expense of guarding against fires is to- 
 great for the slender means of the towns and counties in tli 
 forest districts, it is but fair that the state at large should con- 
 tribute, for the whole state will be benefited by the result. 
 
 For some years there has been on our statute books a law de- 
 signed- to establish a forest and marsh fire police, and there is no 
 doubt that much good has been accomplished by its administra- 
 tion. The way in which it has worked, together with many 
 wise suggestions as to its improvement, will be found in the bi- 
 (jnnial report of the state forest warden, Mr. Egbert Wyman. 
 There is consequently no need, in further legislation, to depart 
 from the direction already taken. All that is required is r, 
 further development of the measures already adopted. 
 
 The amendments so required, in the opinion of this commis- 
 Bion, are as follows: 
 
 1. There sliould l)e an adequate machinery for the supervision 
 of the local fire wardens. This supervision is now entrusted to 
 the chief clerk of the land ofiice, who may appoint one clerk in 
 said office as his deputy. Tliese two officials have important 
 other duties to perfonn which keep them in Madison. They 
 cannot possibly devote much of their time to work in the field. 
 There is consequently no arieans of seeing to it that the local war- 
 dens do their duty. It s^tands to reason that a warden who 
 through incapacity or negligence fails to see that fires in his dis- 
 trict are prevented or extinguished as far as possible, is as bad 
 if not worse than no warden at all. 
 
 2. The officials appointed to supervise the local wardens 
 should have power themselves to begin proceedings against vio- 
 lators of the fire laws, and it should be the duty of the district 
 attorneys to prosecute such cases whenever called upon. At 
 present) is left to the discretion of district attorneys whether they 
 will prosecute or not. 
 
 3. Local wardens should be encouraged to enforce the penal 
 clauses of the fire law by being given one-half of the fines im- 
 posed after conviction through their instrumentality. 
 
 4. It is not fair that the toAvns in which fiies occur should 
 bear the whole expense of the fire police. The prevention of 
 forest fires is a matter which is of the utmost importance to the 
 whole state, as well as to the immediate neighborhood. Th( 
 
towns in which forest fires are most likely to do damage are 
 mostly among those least able to expend money for their pre- 
 vention and extinguishment. It would be both fair and 
 prudent, if the state cares to have forest fires prevented, to 
 have the towns reimbursed by the state for one-half of all ex- 
 penses incurred under the forest fire law. The fact that all sucL 
 bills must first be audited and allowed 'by the town boards will be 
 a guarantee against excessive and fraudulent claims, as the towi 
 supervisors will presumably have means of ascertaining the facts 
 which state ofiicials at a distance might often lack. 
 
 The exact manner in which these improvements of the fire law 
 can be effected will be discussed below in the detailed comment 
 on the bill accompanying this report. But a few words shoula 
 be added here as to what may and what may not be reasonabl;^; 
 expected in the way of preventing this arch-enemy of Wisconsin 
 forests. It would be too much to hope for an entire disappear- 
 ance of destructive forest fires in the near future. That gnni 
 cannot approximately be reached until the entire forest area of 
 the state has been brought into a condition of cultivation such as 
 is known in the forests of Prussia and Saxony. As long as lum- 
 bering operations leave a mass of uncared for debris; as long as 
 there are hundreds of square miles with practically no roads; and 
 as long as hunters and woodsmen are careless in leaving camp 
 fires unguarded at a distance of miles from the nearest settlement^ 
 so long there will be forest fires. On the other hand, it is imworthj 
 of the prudence and energy of the American people to submit to 
 the annual infliction of such a calamity with the stolidity uf 
 Turks, as if they were unavoidable like earthquakes. It should 
 not be forgotten that practically every forest fire is the result of. 
 the culpable negligence, or worse, of some individual. More- 
 over, every forest fire has a very small beginning and can at firs 
 easily be put out. A community which allows the smoke of 
 small fires to arise for days at a time, during a dry season, with- 
 out taking Steps to extinguish them, has only itself to blame if 
 finally it is overtaken by such frightful disasters as the Phillips 
 fire of 18t)4, or the fires of the fall of 1898. 
 
 The occurrences in Barron County during tlie latter season, 
 when hundreds of settlers lost all they had, and still greater calam- 
 ities were with difficulty averted, has called public attention to 
 this matter of forest fires with renewed force. The charity of 
 the people of the state has not failed to attempt an alleviation oi 
 the suffering. The power of the state has been called in for the 
 same purpose, and properly so. But would it not be more hu- 
 mane, more prudent, and at the same time more economical, if 
 
the state took the necessary steps to prevent the recnrrence of 
 such things? Even when one look^ at the matter simply from the 
 lowest standpoint of donars and cents, it is plain that he people 
 of the stricken community as well as the state at large would be 
 much better off if they spent a few hundred dollai-s annually for 
 the proper policing of the threatened districts. The damage 
 done bj the iires of last autumn is not confined to the immediate 
 destruction of property and the injury done to the soil. Far 
 more serious is the injury arising from the set-back which thi 
 settlecnent and development of every locality must receive in 
 which such disasters threaten the new-ccaner. To fail in doinj. 
 everything possible to remedy this evil, even at much greater ex- 
 pense than will actually be necessary, would justly expose the 
 representatives of the people to the charge of having flagranti > 
 neglected the duties with which they are entrusted. 
 
 The ultimate object of every effective fire law^ must be to make 
 it impossible for any fire to get a start anywhere without coming .k 
 once under the obser^^ation of some one who will make it his 
 business to put it out or to notify immediately the nearest fire 
 warden who will attend to its extinguishment. To accomplish 
 this end it is neeessaiy not only to appoint a large numl)ei- of local 
 fire wardens, but above all to foster the development of a public 
 opinion among the people of the forest districts, which will frown 
 upon negligence in the handling of fire in the woods as a disgrace- 
 ful crime. Every means should be used to create such a public. 
 opinion where it does not now exist, and to this end the school, 
 the press, the pulpit and every other possible agency slutuld be 
 used. 
 
 With these principles firmly held in view there is every reasor> 
 to believe that legislation can be so shaped that forest fires will 
 soon be a rare event among the mature timber, and will be the 
 exception and not as now the i*ule, in areas of new growth. With 
 such a condition of things, any money or effort spent on the 
 permanent cultivation of forests will be a business-like proposi- 
 tion, sure to benefit the people by feeding its industries, and 
 reasonably certain to yield a direct pecuniary return uj^on the 
 investment. 
 
 PRIVATE a:n^d public management of for- 
 ests. 
 
 Apart from questions of climate and water flow the interest 
 which the state has in the forests contained within its area is of 
 
10 
 
 a twofold jiatiire. In the first place, they may be considered 
 as a source of public revenue; in the second place, they are of 
 importance as one of the most important sources of the wealth 
 of the people. A revenue may be obtained from the forests by 
 taxing them as other proprety is taxed. Or the state may own 
 forests and manage them for jirofit as a private owner of forest 
 lands would. Import a'nt as foa-ests are considered as sources of 
 revenue to the state, this consideration is greatly overshadowed 
 in the ease of Wisconsin, by their importance as the foundation 
 of industries and the producers of (^ertain uecessaries of civilized 
 life. 
 
 From whichever side, however, tlie question is approached, 
 the state, in framing its policy, must solve the question whether 
 it is of greater advantage if the forests are owned by the state 
 and its subdivisions; or by private corporations and individuals^ 
 or whether a mixed system is the best. It has not, heretofore', 
 been the policy of the state to hold forest lands permanently, let 
 alone to go into the 'business of managing them for profit. Any 
 departure from the present policy must justify itself by show- 
 ing that the permanent Qiiaintenance of forests is not likely to be 
 accomplished if left entirely to private interests. To show 
 merely that state ownership would produce a revenue is not sufii- 
 cient. For there might be many reasons why one would rather 
 raise such revenues in a diiferent manner. But the protection 
 of the wealth and industry of the people is the foremost consid- 
 eration, and if that can be assured only by state management, 
 then state management should be adopted, no matter how radical 
 a departure from precedent such a policy might appear. 
 
 PRIVATE OWNERSHIP. 
 
 Forests will be maintained by private individuals and associa- 
 tions on one condition only. They must .see a fair prospect for, 
 a reasonable profit on the capital invested in them. It is true 
 that a few scattered tracts may be kept here and there b/ 
 wealthy persons or clubs for the purposes of pleasure grounds or 
 game preseiwes. But such tracts would be too small in their 
 aggregate extent to rely upon for the forests of which the people 
 of the state stand in need. The main question, then, to be con- 
 sidered in this connection is: Have we any assurance that for- 
 estry in Wisconsin, aside from lumbering in the maimer now 
 prevailing, will be so profitable in the near future as to attract 
 investors? 
 
11 
 
 Wood crops are of slow growth; the age at which it is most 
 profitable to cut down a tract of forest is undei' ordinary cii'cum- 
 etances the time wlien the value of the annual increase of timber 
 equals the interest on the investment, together with the cost of 
 management. If the cutting is delayed longer, the progressive 
 decay of the trees which have gone beyond their full maturity 
 decreases the value of the 'annual increase to a figure below the 
 iiiinual cost, and the owners lose instead of gaining every year. 
 If the cutting takes place earlier, the full amount of timber 
 which might be realized from the tract is not harvested. Now 
 this age, for white pine, is in the neighborhood of a hundred 
 years, for most of the other valuable timber trees, a similarly 
 high one, and only a few species of inferior quality have a ma- 
 terially shorter perioil within which to reach maturity. It is 
 true tliat the final cut is not the only revenue which the forest 
 yields. At intervals during the period of growth, much valu- 
 able material may l)e removed from it by thinnings and icnprovo- 
 ment cuttings, and under favorable conditions there may be a rev- 
 enue from certain by-products, as berries, game, etc. But ail 
 this will never amount to a very considerable pecuniary yield. 
 
 Under these conditions a forest owner cannot expect a regular 
 annual profit out of his investment, unless he has tracts of timber 
 in all stages of maturity, from the seedling to the tree ripe for 
 the axe, so that he may cut and market sufficient material every 
 year to yield a profit on the whole investament. It is clear there- 
 fore that forestry, as a l>usiness by itself, must be conducted on a 
 very large scale in order to be prohtable. In Wisconsin, where 
 there are now practically no cultivated forests, a private owner 
 would have to possess so large an amount of land covered with 
 the original forest, that he could divide it up into a hundred lots, 
 each large enough to yield tind)er sufficient to pay a profit on 
 the whole investment, less so much material as could be culled 
 from the other lots, and yet leave their yield large enough when 
 their respective time for cutting arrived. 
 
 ^uch ideal conditions are un/attainalde. In the vast majority 
 of cases a private owner in Wisconsin, who wishes to make his 
 forests permanently profitable, will find himself olvliged, after 
 he has removed the merchantable timber originally foimd, to 
 wait a. more or less prolonged period before he can expect addi- 
 tional revenue. If he owns, as most men do, lands which are 
 entirely denuded of timber, only his children or grandchildren 
 will see a new final harvest. The final yield may be amply 
 sufficient to pay for the costs of management, together ^^dth the 
 accrued interest on the capital invested. But a man cannot live 
 
12 
 
 on profits which will not flow into his pockets until lifty or a 
 hundred years from now. It is very unlikely, therefore, that 
 any investors will undertake the task of caring for the denuded 
 lands in Wisconsin, while the tedious process of restocking them 
 is going on. Here and there a large corporation may see its 
 way clear to take up such an enterprise, and occasionally an in- 
 dividual man of wealth may sink some of his fortune in restock- 
 ing limited areas lor the 'benefit of his descenaant.s. P>ut the 
 greater portion of denuded lands will no doubt be left by their 
 owners to grow up into useless brushlands, as has been the cus 
 ton I heretofore. 
 
 JSTor is there any reason to believe that the pine lauds still 
 stocked with merchantable timber, as far as they are in private 
 hands, will be treated differently, in the future, frcwi the meih- 
 ods now prevailing. The dread of destruction by fire, as well 
 as the growing scarcity of pine, and the burden of taxation, will 
 cause lumbermen to cut trees of every size that will make a mer- 
 chantable log, long before they have reached their maturity 
 The exigencies of the lumber business, as now conducted every- 
 where in this country, demand that the largest possible amount 
 of cash be realized immediately from any given tract of timiber 
 land. Wisconsin lumber concerns would be quite unable to 
 compete witli tliose of other states if they pursued a different 
 policy. 
 
 Even in those countries where lumbering is usually done with 
 due regard tO' the reproduction of the crop, private owners con- 
 stantly succumb to the temptation of converting growing forests 
 into cash by premature cutting. Financial embarrassments or 
 the hope of investing the proceeds in enterprises which promise 
 higher profits than forestry, are sufficient to make them forget, 
 the interests of the connnunity or future generations. It is. 
 therefore the policy of cnost of these countries, notably the Ger- 
 man states and France, tO' gradually do away with private for- 
 ests, and large sums are annually expended by these goveruments 
 to add by the purchase of private lands to the already exteuijive 
 area of state forests. 
 
 There is one class of forest lands to which the considerations- 
 above detailed do not apply. Farmers in all parts of the statR 
 follow the wise custom of maintaining "timber lot.s" for the 
 supply of firewood, fencing materials, and similar vises. Unfor- 
 tunately these tracts are often treated in so unskillful a manner 
 that they constantly deteriorate. The best trees are culled out 
 year after year, and no care is taken for their reproduction, so 
 that after a while only runts and worthless species remain. 
 
13 
 
 Moreover, very often no regard is had for the n aintenance of a 
 proper soil cover and windmantle,., so that the s >i\ becomes pro- 
 gressively less fertile. It is clearly the duty of the state to aid 
 farmers in o'btaining the necessary infomiation for the manage- 
 ment of these valuable portions of agricultural holdings, just as 
 information on other subjects is spread by means of the Agri- 
 cultural Experiment Station, Farmers' Institutes, etc. Further- 
 more, large quantities of excellent hardwood lumber, suitable for 
 manufacturing purposes, are annually wasted as firewood for the 
 lack of a market. The few trees of this kind, annually cut in 
 a given farming region, are not in the aggregate sufficient to 
 waiTaiit the erection of a saw mill in the neighborhood. If 
 there were a sufficient tract of forest land, apart from the faran 
 timber lots, in the vicinity to supply the required amount of 
 material to a mill, the farmers would share in the market so pro- 
 vided, and be able to dispose of some of their timber at profit- 
 able prices. So it appears that even aside from climatic con- 
 siderations the settlers who are now turning a portion of the for- 
 est laiTcls in the northern part of the state into farms are directly 
 interested in keeping another portion permanently under forest 
 cover. 
 
 Leaving out of account these farm timber lots, which by them- 
 selves are utterly inadequate to provide the extent of foresD 
 needed in Wisconsin, there is very little prospect of private cap- 
 ital being attracted into forestry as a business. If the state is 
 to possess forests and lumber industries in the future, it mu'^t 
 rely principally on public action. The state must gradually and 
 with as little of a 'burden on the taxpayers as possible acquire 
 a sufficient extent of forest area. ISText it must establish the 
 necessary machinery to protect, supervise and manage these for- 
 ests on business principles. This machinery should be very 
 simple in its incipiency, but so arranged that it can easily be 
 extended as the need for it arises and the financial condition of 
 the department warrants. In this way the state will be enabled 
 to furnish to the lumbering and other industries which draw theit' 
 raw material from forests a permanent supply. Private capital 
 will feel secure in investing in enterprises which need not be 
 afraid of having their raw material run out, while the people will 
 find their taxes materially reduced by the revenues the stat3 
 wiU derive from its forests. This is the condition of things ex- 
 isting in most countries of Europe, as well as in British India and 
 other laifds where a business-like forestry policy has been 
 adopted. 
 
 This leads us naturally to a consideration of the public lands 
 still existing; in the state of Wisconsin. 
 
14 
 
 PUBLIC LANDS. 
 
 According to the data furnished this commission by the land 
 office there were on the 1st day of {September, 181)8, 364,000 
 acres of state land remaining unsold. jSTearly all of this land is 
 covered with forest and but a small proportion is reasonably fit 
 for agriculture, although a considerable amount might 'be nuado 
 so by proper drainage. Most of these tracts are rather scattered,, 
 it being a comparatively rare thing to find a considerable number 
 of forties in a contiguous tract. 
 
 By far the greater part of these lands were obtained l)y the 
 state under the swamp land act of 1850 and much of it is actual 
 swamp. There are some school lands left, but .very little uni- 
 versity and agricultural college land. There is also a moderatL"^ 
 amount of indemnity land. In additioii there are in the state. 
 outside of Indian reservations, nearly 500,000 acres of govern 
 auent land, subject to entry under the homestead law. 
 
 Heretofore it has been the policy of the state to dis[)()se of its 
 lands as fast as possible. As long as rliere was no ju-ovisiou 
 made for the proper care of the forests covcM'ing must of these 
 tracts, that was undoubtedly the wisest plan, for withdiit such 
 care the standing timber was sure to become a prey to fire an-] 
 windfalls, without any benefit to the state, lint if it is decided 
 that there shall be in the future state forests properly cai-ed for 
 and protected, it would evidently be absurd to sell the small rem- 
 nant of forest land still belonging to the people and afterward^ 
 purchasing new lands which have already been deprived of their 
 merchantable timber and cannot furnish a revv /ine for a long 
 series of years. Very little of these state lands will Uc pur- 
 chased by actual settlers for agricultural pnrposes. The buyers 
 w^ill be lumbermen who will remove the merchantable tinibei 
 and leave the denuded lands to become useless wastes, as so raany 
 thousands of acres of similar land have already been left. The 
 proceeds of the sale of these lands are paid to the school and 
 normal funds, and in part to the counties within the limits oi 
 which they are situated. Over the school lands the legislaturt 
 has no control. The land commissioners, however, may with 
 hold such lands from sale whenever they shall deem it expedient. 
 (Const., Art. X, Sec. 8.) Over the lands granted by the act of 
 1850, the legislature has practically unlimited control. Thi;< 
 has been established by a long line of decisions in both the state 
 and federal courts. The legislature has acted accoitlingly by 
 devoting one-half of these lands to the support of the normal 
 
35 
 
 fichools, while the other half is given to the respective counties. 
 It would be obviously unwise to deprive these beneficiaries of 
 the revenues to be derived from these lands. But if one con- 
 siders that most of them are now sold for less than their fail 
 value, and certainly for much less than they will be worth in tho 
 future, it is evident that the beneficiaries would be the gainers 
 if the sale were stopped entirely for the present. The pine an«i 
 other merchantable titmber on these lands is in such condition 
 that good business policy demands its removal just as soon as 
 feasible with due regard to transportation and marketing facili 
 ties. In all the mature woods the annual increase of materia' 
 is about balanced by the annual decay. But under the condi 
 tions now prevailing in the state, fire, windfalls and the conse- 
 quent damage by insects, destroy so much good timber every 
 year that the loss cannot be approximately made up by the an- 
 nual increase through natural growth. Consequently the state 
 forests are sufi:'ering a constant deterioration. This process can 
 be stopped in no way save by the removal, as soon as practicable, 
 of the dead and down timber and such standing pine, at leas:.' 
 as is in danger of destruction. Tlie rational and business-like way 
 of procedure would be to sell the timber which is to be removed' 
 without parting with the land. The logging should be done by 
 the purchasers under the supervision of the state and with du- 
 regard to the reproduction of the timber by leaving a sufficient 
 nmnber of seed trees and guarding against fire. The proceeds 
 of the timber sales should be paid over to the proper benefici- 
 aries, and it is not unreasonable to expect that the latter would 
 realize in this manner as large amounto as they now obtain from 
 the sale of the fee. The lands, however, would remain the prop- 
 erty of the state, and if properly cared for would in tifme pr<jduce 
 a new revenue, far greater than the first. 
 
 The objection is sometimes raised ti. the maintenance of largo 
 tracts of public lands within a county that the development of 
 the region is thereby retarded, and that the county loses the 
 taxes which the land would yield if held by private parties. It 
 needs no very complicated chain of reasoning to show that thes' 
 objections are ill-founded and short-sighted. The development 
 of all our northern counties has heretofore been based far more 
 on the lumber industry than on farfming. In all those districts 
 where the soil is inferior this will continue tO' be the case. Evei> 
 in the hardwood districts, where the soil is well adapted to agri- 
 culture, the disappearance of the forest industries would be a 
 serious calamity. There are now dozens of cities and villages 
 where the inhabitants have begun to wonder what will become; of 
 
16 
 
 tlieni when the timber is gone and the mills close down. Every- 
 body has seen settlements veiy prosperous ten years ago, which 
 are now abandoned by almost all their former inhabitants. The 
 lands which it is proposed to keep permanently in the hands of the 
 state are of the kind which do not attract the agricultural settler. 
 After the timber growing on them has been cut they will, if left 
 to themselves, become wastes, and what will then be the fate of 
 the villages situated in their midst? They will have neither the 
 industries depending on the forests, nor the trade derived from a 
 prospering farfming country. Real estate and improvements 
 will lose their value, and the inhabitants will have to move to 
 regions where the people have better business sense. So it is 
 clear that every measure which tends to put the forest industries 
 on a permanent footing is of the highest benefit and absolutely 
 essential to the continuous development of every county which 
 has within it tracts of non-agricultural lands. 
 
 The objection based upon the supposed necessity of taxing 
 these lands is equally short-sighted. Pine lands are productive 
 of taxes only as long as merchantable timber is standiug on them. 
 Experience has shown that many owners of pine lands will not 
 pay taxes on them after the timber is cut. Even if they did, the 
 value of cut-over lands is so small that the revenue produced is 
 hardly worth counting. On the other hand, a considerable tract 
 of land, held by the state, properly guarded and managed as a 
 forest should be, will produce a continuous revenue, part of 
 which will in many cases go directly to the county. In additiou 
 the forest will, directly and indirectly, give employment to a 
 large number of people who will pay taxes on property accmnu- 
 lated by them, so that in the end the county and town treasuries 
 "will receive much larger sums than they ever will under the 
 present system. 
 
 If the sale of state lands is stopped entirely for the present it 
 follows by no means that not another forty of state land should 
 ever be sold. After a proper forestry administration has been 
 established, one of its first duties will naturally be to examine the 
 precise conditions of every part of the public domain. If it be 
 found that any particular tract by reason of soil, condition or 
 location, would be more economically used as a farm than as a 
 forest, there is no reason why it should not be sold by the state. 
 
 The lands owned by the government are somewhat larger in 
 extent than those of the state. They are substantially of the 
 same character as the state lands. The greater portion of them 
 will never be required by actual settlers for fairming purposes. 
 In the meantime the timber growing on them is liable to the 
 
17 
 
 same process of deterioration and destruction as that on the state 
 lands. It would obviously 'be desirable that the state obtain 
 title to these lands so that they could be treated in the same 
 manner as the state lands now owned l)y it. It seems I'easona'hle to 
 hope that C-ongress, if it sees that the state is prc^parcd lo manage 
 these lands in a way which will preserve and improve the for- 
 ests growing thereon, will prefer l<» cede them rather than hav;' 
 them reni'ain useless. Every effort should therefore he made by 
 the people of the state and its repr(>selltati\•<^- at the <eat of the 
 federal government, to obtain Wn- the state lith' tn the g()V(n'!i- 
 ment lands within her borders. 
 
 The combined areas of the government and present slate lands 
 would be a sufficient nucleus for a system of state forests. They 
 would by no means be large enough for all future times, l)ut they 
 would be a i>ood beuinnini;-. 
 
 TIIK DEN UDKl) LANDS. 
 
 By far the most dithcult [)arf of the forest problem in AVis- 
 consiu is the (luestion as to what shall be done with tliose large 
 tracts now e:^isting which have heen denuded of the pine for- 
 merly growing on tliem, and now lie idle, subject to the ravages 
 of the fire. The pi'esent condition of these tracts and their })ros- 
 pects for the future are ably treated in the Report on Forest Con- 
 ditions. It ajipears that in their present uncared-for situation 
 tliey are liable to a ju'ogressive deterioration of tiie soil. Thar 
 most (if them are ca})able, however, of i-estocking tlnMnselves 
 vi'ith pine without expensive sylvicultural operations, [)rovided 
 fires are kept out, is just as certain. Sonu' jiarts of these land^^, 
 of considerable extent in the aggregate, but small in proportion 
 to the whole area, have already begun to restock tlu-niselv(^s Iti 
 this manner. The opinion which foumerly widely prevailc'l, 
 that white jiine did not reproduce itself on areas where it has 
 been cut off, luit gave way to poplar and other inferior species, 
 has been proven erroru'ous by ol)servations l)oth in this state and 
 elsewhere. 
 
 AVhile it is perfectly feasible to restock these hinds with pine, 
 it it quite as undeniably true that the bulk of them will not be so 
 restocked as long as they are left to themselves. If no steps are 
 taken towards a proper care these millions of acres will become 
 wildernesses of scrub, covered according to circumstances witli 
 crippled aspen, rants of jack }>ine, dwarf oak, or even merely 
 coarse grass and sweet fern. That cmidition they will remain in 
 2 
 
18 
 
 for an indefinite period. This is no mere assumjDtion, but pre- 
 cisely what has happened in other states where similar conditions 
 have prevailed. In all parts of the East, from JMassachiisetts 
 to the Oarolinas, immense tracts exist which formerly were cov- 
 ered with heavy timber. The forests were cut and the lands 
 left to themselves in the same improvident manner which we 
 have heretofore followed. Now these tracts, although they are 
 still called woodlands, do not produce a single stick of saw tim- 
 ber, nor even firewood, that could be sold at a reasonable price 
 per cord. This condition has existed in some cases for a hun- 
 dred years and there is not the slightest prospect for improve- 
 ment. These lands anight as well not exist as far as the prosper- 
 ity of the community is concerned in which they are situated. 
 Similar tracts can be seen within ten miles of Chicago. 
 
 Some people may think that these cut-over lands will in time 
 become of agricultural importance. Tliey cite the fact that here 
 and there a settler makes his home in sucli places, because he 
 can buy the land for almost nothing, or because he has been 
 misled by ignorance and inexperience. By taking advantage or 
 every depression, where the wash from the adjacent slopes may 
 have improved the soil a little, he manages to raise a pitiable 
 crop. But what can such isolated attcanpts amount to when the 
 entire area of this character comes into play? On other 
 tracts with sliglitly better soil it may be nossible to raise potatoes 
 with profit. But the prosperity of a whole community cannot 
 he based on a single crop. If lands of this character had any 
 prospects of agricultural use one would think that the large sandy 
 tracts along the Wisconsin river, in Adams and other counties 
 which have long been settled, would not remain idle as they 
 do. Moreover, the settlers on such lands, as far as there are 
 any, are usually immigrants who bring from their native coufi- 
 tries very low standards of living. By dint of having very few 
 needs as compared with farmers of native American, German, 
 British or Scandinavian nationality, they manage to cnake a 
 living where those others would starve. But they remain mis- 
 erably poor all their lives, ignorant and unambitious. It cer- 
 tainly cannot be in the interest of the state of Wisconsin to 
 people large portions of its territory^ with ''crackers." 
 
 There is consequently no prospect that our denuded lands will 
 1)0 put to agricultural uses. The only way, therefore, in which 
 they can be made useful is to restO'ck them with the timber which 
 formerly covered them and for which they are peculiarly adapt- 
 ed. But we have already seen that it is improbable that any 
 considerable number of private parties will find it profitable to 
 Take the steps which are necessai-y to reach this end. Yet most 
 
19 
 
 of these lands are owned b.v private parties, principally the lum- 
 bering concerns which have cut the pine. It seems therefore 
 that it would be necessaiy for the state to first obtain title to these 
 lands. 
 
 Other states, notably New York and Pennsylvania, have 
 within a few years appropriated very large amounts of money 
 for the purchase of lands on which state forests are to be main- 
 tained. Wisconsin is hardly in a position, at present, to take a 
 similar step. As these lands may, with proper management, be 
 made to pay some revenue in thirty years, it would be simplest 
 to purchase them with scrip payable after thirty years. The 
 lands would then practically pay for themselves. Unfortunately 
 the state constitution prohibits the incurring of a state debt for 
 such a purpose. It might be feasible, however, to authorize the 
 counties to purchase lands for scrip of this character. The lands 
 so purchased by the counties, might be managed under the super- 
 vision of the state and the net revenues credited to the counties. 
 The commission has not deemed it expedient to insert in the bill 
 submitted provisions for dealing with this branch of the subject. 
 It has been thought better to establish at first the necessary ma- 
 chinery to begin a systematic protection and management of the 
 forests. The disposition to be made of the cut-over lands may 
 be left to a succeeding legislature. There are many different 
 interests to be consulted, and a few years of actual experience, 
 in state forestry management may suggest a better plan of han- 
 dling the subject than could now be devised. 
 
 At the same time, some portions of the cut-over lands are in 
 such condition as to be dealt with more easily. Over 250,000 
 acres are held by counties on tax deeds; considerably more than 
 this is incumbered with outstanding tax certificates held by the 
 counties. There is no reason to expect that any appreciable 
 amount of these certificates will ever be redeemied. The owners 
 have simply abandoned these lands as worthless after taking off 
 the pine timber. The present policy of the counties is to rid 
 themselves of the lands so held at any price whatsoever. Large 
 tracts are often sold at a nominal price. The revenue so ob- 
 tained is so exceedingly small, that it need hardly be taken into 
 consideration. Even after the lands are sold the assessed value 
 is so low that the annual tax derived from them is almost noth- 
 ing. If these tracts, on the other hand, were held permanently 
 by the counties and properly cared for they would soon become 
 of value. After twenty-five or thirty yeare they would be pro- 
 ductive of some revenue, enough to make up for the small loss 
 in taxes, and after a somewhat longer period they might in scene 
 cases be sufficient to pay from their annual revenue the greater 
 
20 
 
 part of the county expenses. In the meantime they would fur- 
 nish employment to numerous people and greatly enhance the 
 prosperity of the whole community. It is therefore eminently 
 proper to authorize counties to hold such lands permanently and 
 provide for their management in conjunction with the state for- 
 ests. 
 
 It has been intimated to the commissioners by several large 
 owners of cut-over pine lands that they would be willing to cede 
 considerable tracts of this character to the state provided the 
 latter would take steps to restock them. The state ought cer- 
 tainly not to refuse such generous offers, and provision is made 
 in the bill herewith submitted for the acceptance of such gifts. 
 
 METHODS OF MA^tAGEMENT. 
 
 It will be a long time before the forests of Wisconsin will be 
 in the high state of productiveness which prevails in the forests 
 of Germany or France. This is not so much, as is imagined by 
 some people, on account of lower cost of production or higher 
 prices of lumber in the old countries. The lower wages of Eu- 
 rope are about counterbalanced by the greater effectiveness of 
 American, highly paid labor, aided by improved tools and im- 
 plements which Yankee ingenuity never fails to devise. On the 
 other hand the prices of lumber are pretty nearly the saone in this 
 country and Europe. There is no reason why an American for- 
 est could not with profit to the owner be brought into as high a 
 state of cultivation, produce as much lumber to tlie acre and be 
 as thoroughly protected as a Prussian state forest. It is all .*. 
 question of time and the judicious application of capital. If 
 this state had unlimited funds at its disposal every acre of forest 
 land could at once be treated in such a way that there would be 
 no question of the final profitableness of the enterprise. But 
 it would require time to do so. Roads would have to be built; 
 working plans made; large tracts would have to be planted with 
 seedlings, and elsewhere the natural growth of trees would have 
 to be supplenjented by planting and seeding. As funds to un- 
 dertake such wholesale operations are not to be had, the state 
 must do the best it can wnth the means available. It will simply 
 depend on the amount of capital which you maj be willing to 
 invest in the enterprise, how long it will take until the natural 
 forest, with its low productiveness, shall everywhere be replaced 
 by the cultivated forest which yields an incomparably larger 
 amount of lumber to the acre. 
 
 As this subject is still a new one to the people and there will 
 
21 
 
 be a natural relnetance to expend large amounts of money on' 
 what to many may seem an experiment, the commission has 
 thonght best to recommend a yery small beginning'. It would 
 obviously be uneconomical to do less than is required to prevent 
 a further loss to the state by fire and other deteriorating influ- 
 ences. Moreover it will l)e necessary, under any system of man*- 
 agemenr, to first of all obtain the necessary data regarding the 
 natural and economic conditions of each future forest tract, so 
 tliat an intelligent and 'business-like ])lan for its treatment can 
 be devised. It will also be necessary to institute a series of in- 
 vestigations and ex])ei'iments with regard to the life conditions 
 of forest trees, for the experiences had in foreign countries or 
 otlier states of the rnion do not invariably admit of direct appli- 
 cation under our conditions. Finally it would be desirable for 
 some time to come to devote some (effort to the s])read of informa- 
 tion regai'ding forestry imatters among the ])eo])le. 
 
 After a beginning has been made in this way, tlu^ time will 
 come for more detailed treatnu'ut of the various poi'tions of the 
 forest area. It will very likely l)e found expedient to divide the 
 whole into districts and place a forester at the head of each. The 
 duty of such lan official it will tlien he first of all to make a plan 
 for the manner of work in his teri'itory. Tliis plan must be 
 based on tlie most carefid consideration of the topographical and 
 soil conditions of the district; on the nature of the trees which it 
 is intended to grow thereon; the cost of the various operations 
 required; the facilities for the transportation of the forest prod- 
 ucts; the circumstances of the markets; and a multitude of other 
 things which will have a bewaring on the success of the under- 
 taking as a business enterprise. This making of a working plan 
 is the most difficult and important part of the whole forestry busi- 
 ness. As it requires a long period of years before the produce of 
 a. forest can be marketed a mistake made at the beginning can ia 
 many cases never, be rectified and may doom a whole district to 
 unprofitableness. 
 
 The ideal goal to be reached in all forestry enterprises is to 
 make every part of the forest ai'ea, yield a profit, without reduc- 
 ing the capacity for repeating the operation. The profit must be 
 computed on the whob^ investment, in which is to be included: 
 The rental value of the land; the interest on capital invested in 
 permanent plant; cost of supjilies and labor, together with inter- 
 est on thti capital expended for these purposes; idiarges of depre-' 
 elation in pernrancnt jdant; cost of administration; and possibly 
 other items dependent on the partieidar circumstances of each 
 •case. (In the case of ]>rivate ownership taxes must be added.) 
 
 Where very large tracts of forest are managed togetlier, as 
 
22 
 
 will be the case in the future state forests of Wisconsin, it will 
 undoubtedly be found that there are some parts of the entire 
 system which cannot be (made to yield a profit, on account of poor 
 natural conditions or bad marketing facilities. In such cases it 
 is sufficient if the entire system is made to show a profit. The 
 unprofitable tracts must be carried along with as little outlay as 
 possible, and may at least be made to yield some revenue. It 
 would be good policy for the state to maintain a system of forests 
 even if it had to run every part of it at a loss. For it needs 
 forests in order to keep its climate from deteriorating and to 
 maintain the prosperity of its people. But there is no reason to 
 doubt that forest management in Wisconsin will yield a reason- 
 able profit. 
 
 After the making of the working plan for each district willcome 
 the actual work of improving the forest. The natural growth of 
 the trees which it is decided to raise is fostered by all the means of 
 the forester's art, while the undesirable species are gradually 
 got rid of and their new growth prevented. AVherever advisa- 
 ble, the natural re-forest"ation is aided by planting or seeding; as 
 time progresses, improvement cuttings are made, and a partial 
 revenue obtained. In the meantime roads are built, and grad- 
 ually everything is brought into readiness for the final harvest. 
 This takes place at difl:"erent times in different portions of the 
 district, so that after a while the district will contain lots stocked 
 with trees of all stages of growth and a portion become ripe for 
 marketing every year. 
 
 These stages in the development of a forestry system cannot 
 be reached in AVisconsin for many years, and it is not necessary 
 to provide the needed administrative machinery at the present 
 time. For. the tasks which will be the first to be performed 
 and which have been enumerated above, the bill submitted by 
 the commission contains the following plan: 
 
 THE FOEESTRY DEPAETMENT. 
 
 There is no reason why the number of administrative boards 
 should be increased. The attorney general, state treasurer and 
 secretary of state, who now perform the same functions for the 
 land office, may just as well constitute the supervising and audit- 
 ing authorities of the forestry department. This will save the 
 expense connected with the work even of unpaid commission.?.. 
 The bill, therefore, provides for the appointment of a Superin- 
 tendent of Forests by the officials named, who shall be the re- 
 sponsible head of the department, subject, however, to the finan- 
 
23 
 
 cial coutrol of the board composed of those officers. The suc- 
 cess and efficiency of the department will depend principally on 
 the qualifications of the superintendent, who should be a man of 
 executive ability, and sufficiently interested in the work to fam- 
 iarize himself with all its details as they gradually develop. In 
 order to obtain such a man it is necessary to offer a fair salary, 
 and to make the incumbent feel secure enough in his position to 
 make it worth his while to put in his best efforts. For this 
 reason the bill makes the term of the superintendent a long one, 
 and one that overlaps with the terms of the elective state officers. 
 A change in the office of superintendent every two years, ac- 
 cording to the exigencies of party politics, would be fatal to the 
 whole enterprise. Such a system may do well enough in offices 
 the routine of which is established and has only to be followed 
 by the new incumbent. But in the proposed forestry deparc- 
 ment everything must firet be created. Methods, routine, prece- 
 dents, and this formative period will extend over a long series 
 of years. 
 
 The subordinate officials ought to be appointed by the head 
 of the department. There need be but few of these at the start. 
 A deputy and a clerk or two is all that will 'be required at first, 
 in addition to the local fire wardens and such temporary help 
 in the field as may 'be from time to time required. The increase 
 of the permanent department staff ought, of course, not- to be 
 left to the arbitrary judgment of the superintendent. The bill 
 lodges this duty with the supervising board. With this board 
 is also left the authority to decide on the selection of lands for the 
 permanent forest reserve, the making of contracts for* the cut- 
 ting, etc., of timber on state lands, the duty of auditing the ac- 
 counts of the department, etc. 
 
 The duties of the superintendent and his assistants cannot be 
 defined in detail, as much regarding the (methods to be pursued 
 must necessarily depend on circumstances as they arise from tim^^ 
 to time. The amount and kind of work done by the department 
 will depend in no small degree upon the size of the appropriation 
 which each succeeding legislature will make for the purpose. 
 The larger the appropriations, the more speedily can the forest 
 system be brought into such shape that it will first pay for its 
 own support and after a while become a source of profit. But; 
 under any circumstances will a certain period elapse before this 
 can be done. 
 
 The first task to be done is, of course, the selection of the land, 
 which must be made, evidently, in conjunction with the present 
 land office. Even if no more state lands are to be sold, the work 
 of the latter department will continue for a long while, to wind 
 
24 
 
 up the transactions now pending witli purchasers of land. But 
 its work will contract considerably, and some of the expense in- 
 cun-ed for the forest department will 'be saved on the score of 
 the land office. After the new department has obtained the 
 lands which it is to manage, it must find out what they are like. 
 For the purpose of forest management this must of course bo 
 done much more thoroughly than has been done as to a part of 
 the state domain by the land office. This part of the work will 
 take, therefore, years to accom];)lisli, and this survey of the land, 
 together with the supervision of the local fire wardens, will take 
 a large portion of the time of the superintendent and his assistant. 
 
 The supervision of the local fire ])nlice should be of such a 
 character that not only should the departmcnr receive regular 
 reports from the local wardens, but the latter slmuld be liable, at 
 any unforeseen (moment, to receive a visit from the superintend- 
 ent, who should have authority to call upon them for explana- 
 tion in cases of neglect of duty, to reoiove them when found 
 guilty, and in flagrant cases of negligence ti) enforce a ]ienalty 
 by prosecution in court. 
 
 A number of experiment stations, wliich slioiiM ;it the same 
 time servo as model forests, should be established by the depart 
 ment at the earliest possible moment. The experiments to be 
 conducted should be of a twofold nature: Partly sylvicultural, 
 partly of a more strictly biological sort, and for this purpose the 
 department ought to have a right to count on the assistance of 
 other scientific agents of the state, notably members of the 
 Geological Survey and the State University. Experiments, of 
 course, ai'e a source of expense, and the value of these stations 
 a.s model forests will necessarily be impaired by the outlay for 
 experimentation. But means will probably be found to keep 
 the two objects of these stations as much apart a.s possible. Re- 
 garding the (wpense of this part of the work, it should again be 
 remembered that much or little can be accomplished with them 
 according to the amount of money available. Even a small ap- 
 propriation, however, should be fruitful of some good. It would 
 be superfluous to enter upon the detail of the work to be done at 
 these stations. It will be of a more or less technical character, 
 and will be useful in proportion to the skill of the persons in 
 charge of it. 
 
 Much importance ought to he attached, especially during the 
 infancy of the systcdn, to the educational work of the department. 
 The superintendent and his assistant should be men competent 
 to deliver popular lectures on forestry subjects, and should do so 
 whenever op])ortunity arises in schools, colleges, farmers' insti- 
 tutes, etc. Thev should also, from time to time, publish bulle- 
 
25 
 
 tins containing inforni'ation regarding forestry affairs, and use 
 all other availa])le means to instruct the people in their specialty. 
 The forest system of the state cannot lie snccessfnl unless it has 
 that energetic and sympathetic support of the peo])le which its 
 importance for the puhlic welfni'c sd richly deserves. 
 
 The provisions of the hill sulimitted herewith, which hiave not 
 been touched upon above, easily explain themselv(\s. They arc 
 of an administrative nature, designed to 1)ring the proposed new 
 department into harmony witli the general srdHflne of the state 
 iidministration. 
 
 In conclusion, this (•niinuission wishes to emphasize once morv^, 
 the following points: 
 
 1. The estiablishment of a system of stare forests is a neces- 
 sity, not only for the protection of the climate and waterflow of 
 the state, hut for the purpose of j)roviding a sufficient supply of 
 raw material to the various lumber and wood industries of the 
 state. The necessary steps toward tliii end cannot be delayed 
 any longer with safety to the public welfare. 
 
 2. The establishment of such a system is entirely feasible. 
 There are no obstacles of a physical, economic or financial nature 
 which cannot with modei'ate effort be overconne. 
 
 3. It will take a series of years and some initiatory outlay 
 to fairly establish such a system. However, the money so ex- 
 pended at first will after a reasonable time return into the state 
 treasury, and the system, once fairly est^iblished, will yield a 
 large annual income that will to a proportionate extent do away 
 witii the necessity of taxation. 
 
 4. The idea of maniaging forests by the state so as to obtain 
 an annual revenue ami yet not destroy the forests themselves 
 is not the project of a dreaming idealist, nor an experiment which 
 may or may not succeed, but has long been an accomplished 
 fact in nearly every highly civilized community outside of the 
 XTnited States, including countries of such widely different con- 
 ditions as Germany, France, Russia and British India. 
 
 Respec tf nil v subm i t ted , 
 
 GEO. B. BUKROWS. 
 H. C. PUTNAM. 
 ERNEST BRUXCavEN. 
 State Forestry Commission. 
 
26 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 POKESTRY PvEFORM MEASUPtES ADOPTED BY 
 OTHER STATES. 
 
 By Ernest Bnincken, Secv. State Forestry Commission. 
 
 The states of the nnioii in which more substantial progress ha^ 
 been made towards a business-like treatment of forestry resources 
 than in any other are ISTew York and Pennsylvania. The secre- 
 tary of the commission ^Yas sent to acquaint himself personally 
 with the conditions existing and measures adopted in thoso states, 
 and found that while in many details the steps there taken cannot 
 be imitated under Wisconsin conditions, in the main the circum- 
 stances of those states are the same as here, and substantially the 
 same remedies which ha\'e served there will be useful to correct 
 existing evils in Wisconsin. The secretary takes this oppor- 
 tunity to express his thanks to the state ofhcials and other gen- 
 tlemen in the states \'isited by him, for the many courtesies ex- 
 tended to him during his investigiations. 
 
 The state of New York is distinguished above many others 
 for the comparatively small loss it has, of late years, suffered 
 from forest fires. This is due in part to natural conditions, in 
 part to adequate and well-enforced legislation. The forests of 
 'New York, as is well known, are practically all located in the 
 region of the Adirondack Mountains. They are prevailingly 
 composed of 'broad-leaved species, especially birches and maple, 
 but there is a very considerable amount of spruce and fir inter- 
 mingled with the hardwood trees. The spruce is the principal 
 tree furnishing commercial timber. Of white pine there is prac- 
 tically no merchantiable supply left; bu.t in many places young 
 pine was observed growing up vigorously. It is said that pine 
 comes up on abandoned farm clearings, while in places where the 
 original growth was destroyed by fire white birch and aspen are 
 the, successors. To what extent this observation is correct, wo 
 are unable to judge. Certain it is that many tracts were ob 
 served covered with aspen of sufficient size to serve for pulpwood 
 if a market could be found for them. In other places the aspen 
 
serves as a iiiu'se tree for spruce, which kills them oif when it is 
 of siifficient size to overshadow therxi. This is illustrated by nu- 
 merous photographs in the office of the superintendent of forests 
 in Albany. On the higher mountain slo])es the trees of all kinds 
 become very sciiibby and quite valueless for lumbering purposes. 
 Some of the highest peaks, such as Mount Marcy, are entirely 
 devoid of forest growth for a considerable distance from their 
 tops down. In fact there are very large tracts of land in this 
 region which on account of their mountainous character and con- 
 sequent inaccessibility will never be made to yield a profit, or 
 even a considerable revenue, even with the most earef\il methods 
 of management. 
 
 Agriculture in the jSTew York forest region plays a ver}'' sub- 
 ordinate part and is confined chiefly to the broader valleys. Lum- 
 bering operations are now carried on principally on the western 
 side of the mountain complex, while little is doue in the northern 
 and eastern portions. The logging is confined largely to spnieo 
 timber, which is cut both for lumber and pulp. Little hard- 
 wood is utilized in any way, and there are very few factories lo- 
 cated in the region, such as arc now established in so many places 
 in Wisconsin for the purpose of converting the hardwood timber 
 into furniture and other wood articles. This is no doubt due 
 largely to the lack of proper transportation facilities. In many 
 parts of the region the native population seems to be dependent 
 for their support chiefly on the large number of summer resi- 
 dents and tourists whom they serve as hotel keepei*s, guides, etc. 
 Considerable tracts of land are o^^^led by clubs and associations, 
 who maintain them as pleasure reseiwes. These clubs usually 
 take fairly good care of their holdings, bnild and maintain roads, 
 prevent fires, the cutting of timber, undue fishing and hunting, 
 and in nuany ways improve the land for the purposes of a summer 
 resort. These private reserves are usually located in the mosL 
 picturesque regions, wdiere on account of the mountainous topog- 
 raphy and the remoteness from railways logging would be un- 
 profitable. It is customars^ for these associations to allow the 
 legitimate use of their lands by tourists and pleasure seekers, 
 under reasonable regulations and the payment of a fair toll. 
 On the whole the system works to the advantage both of the 
 permanent residents of the neighborhood, and of the tourist and 
 fiiimmei* guests. It would seem to be highly desirable that som(* 
 of the hundreds of beautiful lakes and other interesting places 
 in- Wisconsin, which more and more attract pleasure seekers, to 
 the benefit of the entire state, were in similar manner improved 
 by voluntai-y associations, and forests, game and fish protected 
 against wanton and negligent destruction. 
 
28 
 
 Wlien lumbering operations have ceased in a forest region the 
 danger of fire becomes much diaiiinished. At least in AVisconsiu 
 it is well known that fires are most likely to take their start from 
 the dry rub'bish on places where trees have been recently felled. 
 Similarly, in ISTew York it is found that of the comparatively 
 few fires oceurnng most are met within the western part of the 
 district where logging is now actively pursued. Even there ii 
 is rare for a fire to do much damage, as it is almost immediatelv 
 discovered and extinguished. Since the present system of fire 
 police has come into existence, it has been found that the educa- 
 tional efi:'ect u|)on the people is even of more importance than the 
 direct results of the law. Public opinion in the Adirondacks 
 now severely condemns all manner of carelessness in the handling 
 of fire in the woods, and j^eople no longer consider destructivH 
 forest fires as inevitable cahimities like earthquakes and torn/i- 
 do-es, as is still so widely the case in Wisconsin. 
 
 The machineiy by which these and other desii^ahle results arc 
 obtained in the state of New York may be hrietly described as fol- 
 lows: 
 
 There is a board of five (commissioners of Fisheries, Game 
 and Forests, the members of which recei^'e an annual salary of 
 $2,500 each, with an additional amount of $800 per annum each 
 for expenses. The president of the board receives $3,000 per 
 annum and expenses. The staff of employes at the headquarters 
 consists of a superintendent and eight other employes of various- 
 grades, with salaries ranging from $2,500 for the superintendent 
 down to $1,200 each for two stenographers. In addition to this, 
 there are two assistant chief protectors, with $1,500 a year, and 
 thirty-eight j)rotectors who receive $500 a year as salaries, with 
 expenses to the amount of $450 per annum. The assistant chief 
 protectors and protectors are required to spend all their time in 
 the woods and make daily reports as to their doings to the office 
 at Albany. Finally there are large numbers of special protec- 
 tors, appointed from the residents of the forest districts, who re- 
 ceive $1.50 i)er day for work actually done. In addition, both 
 protectors and special protectors receive one-half of alk fines and 
 judgments recovered through their efforts. The per diem of the 
 special protectors is paid by the local authorities, but one-half of 
 it is returned to the latter from the state treasure'. 
 
 It will be seen that the duties of the protectors are purely of a 
 police nature, as no forestry work proper is as yet done 'by the 
 state. They see to the enforcement of the game and fish laws, 
 the fire protection, and guard against trespasses on the st^ate land. 
 The policy of tlie department is to appoint so many special pro- 
 tectors that no fire can get a start anvwhere without coming it. 
 
29 
 
 once under the notice of a protector. It should be rcuiembered 
 that an important part of the department's work is the care of tlie 
 oyster beds in the waters of the state. Three of the protectors 
 are specially detailed for this duty. All officers and employes 
 are in constant communication with the headquarters, and con- 
 venient blanks of various kinds are provided on wliich they can 
 make their reports and accounts. 
 
 There is a. special body appointed from the members of the 
 department, known as the Forest Preserve Board. This body 
 has the duty of purchasing lands within the Adirondack district, 
 to be added to the forest reserve of the state. Until a few years 
 ago the state lands,' like those of Wisconsin, consisted of badly 
 scattered tracts. The state intends to purchase sufficient land to 
 create a continuous forest area belonging to the people. A 
 million dollars has already been appropriated for this purpose, and 
 additional sums will undoubtedly be provided in the future. 
 Unfortunately the state constitution prohibits all cutting of tim- 
 ber on state land. Such wastefulness can be but temporary and 
 must soon give way to the adoption of real forestry methods. 
 
 There are many other proiasions on the statute book of New 
 York which are very instructive. For instance, a farmer who 
 wishes to burn 'brush on his land onust give notice to the town 
 supervisor, whose duty it then becomes to be present and super- 
 intend such burning. The state lands within any township are 
 assessed for local taxes, the same as jmvate lands, and the taxes 
 paid to the local authorities out of the state treasiiry. This over- 
 comes the frequent objection of the local population to have large 
 tracts of public lands within their limits. 
 
 While tlie duties of the Forestry Department of New York 
 are at present confined rather to the protection of forests as they 
 now are, and do not extend to their management for revenue and 
 possible profit, the state has of late taken a first step in that di- 
 rection also. It has endowed a School of Forestry, to be a part 
 and under the management of (^^ornell University. The object 
 of the school is a double one: First, to train students in the 
 whole science and art of forestry so as to fit them for the inde- 
 pendent management of forest estates, either private or publii'. 
 For this purpose a four years' course of study is provided. The 
 entrance requirements for this course are substantially the same 
 as those for other under-graduate departments of the university, 
 including a fair amount) of mathematics, Latin, German, French, 
 etc. The first two years of study are devoted to a thorough 
 grounding in the various auxiliary sciences of forestry, such as 
 mathematics, geology, botany, political economy. Not until the 
 junior year will technical studies in forestry begin. These will 
 
30 
 
 include, among other things, sylviculture, dendrology, the physical 
 and commercial qualities of woods and timbers, methods of log- 
 ging and manufacturing lumber, and other forest products, polit- 
 ical economy with special reference to the transportation and 
 marketing of forest products, forest mensuration and valuation 
 (that is, the computing of the prospective annual increase of 
 wood in a growing forest, and the profit or revenue that may be 
 expected frcni it at any given period, with similar' and allied 
 subjects), and the liistory of forestry. During the summer 
 months, and the whole of the fourth year, the student will be 
 expected to put in most of his time in practical work in the woods 
 and particularly the demonstration forest which it is contem- 
 plated tha school shall possess. 
 
 The second object of the school is to furnish to such students as 
 do not intend to become professional foresters, but who desire 
 an acquaintance with forestry matters as a help in their future 
 business as lumbermen, manvifacturers, farmers, and so forth, a 
 comprehensive insight into the subject. For this purpose, elec- 
 tive courses are offered on sylviculture, forest economy and simi- 
 lar subjects. 
 
 The trustees of Cornell University have selected as the dean 
 and head professor of the new school Dr. B. E. Fernoiv, well 
 known as one of the foretmost authorities in this country in all 
 matters pertaining to forestry and for twelve years chief of the 
 Forestry Division of the United States. One of his assistants is 
 Mr. Filibert Roth, formerly of Wisconsin, who is the author of 
 the report on the forest resources of this state, just published by 
 the Geological Survey. 
 
 The demonstration forest mentioned above is to be one of the 
 most important branches of the new forestry school. It is to 
 contain about 30,000 acres of wood land. The intention of the 
 dean and faculty is not only to use this area for the purpose of 
 giving the students opportunities in practical work, but to dem- 
 onstrate by it how a forest estate can be managed so as to yield 
 a regular revenue and profit, instead of giving a revenue once 
 and thereafter remaining a worthless waste. Furthennore, it 
 is to be used as an experiment station, where questions regarding 
 sylviculture, timber physics, and allied matters are to be investi- 
 gated. As was stated to the secretary of this commission by Dr. 
 Fernow, the two last named objects are somewhat inconsistent. 
 Experiments always cost money, and the profitableness of the 
 enterprise will thereby to some extent be jeopardized. But it i:% 
 intended to keep the books of the department in such a way that 
 the extra expense caused by the experiments can be separated at 
 
31 
 
 a glance, so as to allow a computation regarding the actual profiti" 
 if no such expenses had been incurred. 
 
 The question now arises: "What lessons can Wisconsin deriv?, 
 from the experience of New York? The most obvious one is 
 evidently the possibility of keeping in check the ravages of fire. 
 While with O'ur large areas of pine slashings and half-dried tama- 
 rack swamps we may not be able, for some time, to control fire so 
 completely as is being done in Xew York, we can certainly do 
 far more than has been acccmplished heretofore. Tlie existing 
 fire laws should be improved in all details in which they may 
 have proven inefl:"ectual ; there should be a more effective machin- 
 ery for the supervision and control of the local fire wardens; 
 above all, every possible means should be used to create a public 
 sentiment which will regard negligence in the handling of firo 
 in the woods or marshes as a crime, to be met not only with legal 
 punishment, but with the severest reprobation by all respectable 
 persons. It seems that not only the newspapers, but also the 
 public schools, farmere' institutes and similar organizations, could 
 do very much in this direction. 
 
 Another thought which suggests itself by the example of 
 IS^ew York is that the State University duight well do its share 
 both in the training of professional foresters and the instruction 
 of non-professional students in forestry matters. Finally, h 
 would seem that Wisconsin ought to imitate New York in the 
 establishment of one or more experiment stations for the investi- 
 o'atinn of matters relating to the subiect, for the conditions undei 
 which forests must be managed in Wisconsin are Ijy no means 
 the same as those in New York. 
 
 PENNSYLVANIA. 
 
 In the state of Pennsylvania the forestiy problem has in many 
 respects a different aspect from what it has in New York. The 
 evil which there first led to the appropriation of money by the 
 state for forestry purposes was the rapid washing away of the 
 soil from (mountain sides denuded of tree growth, the consequenc 
 sanding up of the rivers of the state, and the pernicions alterna- 
 tion of very low stages of water with the most violent and de- 
 structive freshets. In consequence an effort is now being made 
 to acquire on the part of the state all lands located on the head 
 waters of rivers, and to keep them under a permanent forest 
 cover. The state forests which Pennsylvania will possess in the 
 future will therefore be mostly in the nature of protective for- 
 ests, as are so many forests in Switzerland and other Alpine conn- 
 
32 
 
 tries. The question of making- the capital invested in these 
 lands yield a profit, or even any kind of revenue to partially re- 
 imhnrse the state for the necessary annual administrative ex- 
 penses, seems to have been entirely left out of view, for the pres- 
 ent at least. Yet the people of Pennsylvauia are willing to be 
 taxed heavily for this purpose because they uuderstand that th^y 
 gain a hundredfold indirectly by the protection which the for- 
 ests afford to the agricultural arul industrial lauds of the com 
 monwealth. 
 
 Pennsylvania has not yet been so successful hi the prevention 
 of forest fires as ISTew York. On the contrary, its loss from this 
 source during the last few years has been enormous. This may 
 be due, in part, to more disadvantageons natural conditions; bui. 
 probably the principal reason is that the fire ])olice system of the 
 state is far less effective than that of New York, and that publiv* 
 opinion has not yet been sufficiently educated to appreciate tlnv 
 criminality of negligence. There are no s])ecial tire wardens, 
 bnt it is made the duty of constables and county commissioners 
 to extinguish forest fires. For this jiurpose they may call our 
 the posse comitatus. The compoisation of poi-sons officially en- 
 gaged in fightiiig fire is $1.50 per day. wliicli is jiaid in equal 
 shares by the county and the state. It is clviw that, however 
 effective such a system may be for extinguishing fires, it fails 
 entirely to provide for the (piick detection of fii'cs just starting. 
 This, however, is the uuist important ])art of tlie task, for only 
 by not allowing fires to get headway can gi'cnt damage be pre- 
 vented. 
 
 The forestry administi^ation of Pennsyl\-ania at pi'esent forms, 
 a division of the state Department of Agriculture. It has at its 
 disposal a fund of $15,000 for all contingent expenses for the 
 period of two years, besides the salaries of its c^uiployes. Tn 
 addition to this, there is an nnlimited apjn'opriation for the pay 
 ment of fire fighters and the ])urchase of land at the ri\'er sources. 
 
 The work of the division has so far been jirincipally one of 
 investigation and education. The conditions of water flow in 
 the rivers have been thoroughly investigated l)y a ca]>able engi- 
 neer, while the Inilletins and reports issued contain much valu- 
 able information regarding the forest conditions of the state. 
 One of the principal duties of the commissioner is to assist in the 
 purchase, on behalf of the state, of forest preserve lands. Three 
 great preserves, neither to be less than 40,000 acres in extent, 
 are to be established aronnd the npper portions of the Delawarf, 
 Susquehanna and Ohio rivers. Besides, the law provides, that 
 the state may acquire all lands on wdiich taxes remain nnpaid. 
 There are considerable tracts in Pennsylvania, as there are in 
 
33 
 
 Wisconsin, from wliicli the timl)er of merchantable species and 
 size has been cut and for which the proprietors do not care to pay 
 taxes. These hinds are often of great vahie as protective for- 
 ests, and nnless the state ac([nired and policed them, the remain- 
 ing wood growth wonld be destroyed iind the soil washed into 
 the rivers. When the secretary of this commission was at Ilar- 
 risbnrg, he learned of a company operating an oil well located 
 in the enidst of a large timber tract, which had jnst offered to 
 convey this tract to the state on condition that they might con- 
 tinue to work the oil well. The hope of the company was simply 
 that the state wonld maintain a sufficient fire police in the forest to 
 render the oil property more secure. 
 
 A solution of the question of the taxation of forest property 
 has been attempted in Pennsylvania by the passage of a law 
 allowing a rebate of taxe^ on lands with growing timber, under 
 certain conditions. The tax (]nestion in Pennsylvania seems to 
 be simpler than in Wisconsin for this reason: A very large pro- 
 portion of timber lands is owned by mining companies. The 
 population of those districts is often in its majority composed of 
 empl()y(\-^ of these coflnpanics. It is easy, therefore, for these 
 corporations to obtain the election of local officials Avho will not 
 only not assess their lands exorbitantly, but on the contrary 
 sometimes give them an unfair advantage dver other j)roperty. 
 
 On tli(^ whok' it may be said that the conditions in Penn- 
 sylvania are so diffei'cnt fiMiu those prevailing in Wisconsin, 
 that few of the details of forestry administration arc directly 
 applicable to our state. AVe are fortunately so sitnate(l that the 
 (juestion of maintaining foi*ests merely for the protection of our 
 streams in places where we wmdd rather see farms is of minor 
 imjxu'tance. We have no apiu'cciable extent of land which is 
 in danger oi being turned into desert by the washing away of 
 soil unless f(»rests are maintained thereon. Xo doubt the quan- 
 tity and regularity of water tlow in many of our rivers will be 
 benefited by the maintaining of forests about their s(un'ces. But 
 this benefit will as a general rule be gained incidentally, if we 
 select our future forest areas from other points of view. On the 
 other hand, there is probably in all Wisconsin no forty -acre lot of 
 woodland which under proper management eannot be made to 
 yield a profit. It follows that this state need spend no money, 
 either in tly; way of land purchases or administrative expenses, 
 for purely protective forests, without expectation of pecuniar- 
 reimbursement. All properly expended funds in A\^isconsin 
 forest management may be expected to sooner or later return to 
 the state treasury. How fortuiiate our state is siruated in this 
 respect will be understood when it is considered that even wath 
 3 
 
34 
 
 the excellent methods of manag-ement prevailing in Prussia, Ba- 
 varia or Saxony, there are large tracts of forests in those states 
 from which no financial return is expected either at present or in 
 the future. There is one valuable lesson to be derived from 
 Pennsylvania, however, and that is the intelligence of the people 
 of that state, who are willing to sink large amounts of money 
 without hope of return simply because they appreciate the im- 
 mense indirect advantages they will <lerive from a proper care 
 of their forests. 
 
 ONTARIO. 
 
 The province of Ontario has for some years maintained a 
 Bureau of Forestry, which is a subordinate branch of the Crown 
 Lands Department. Tliis ^bureau has published a number of 
 interesting reports containing much valuable information. No 
 steps looking towards a more profitable management of public 
 lands have as yet been taken by the government of the province, 
 except that a commission was recently appointed charged with 
 investigating the question of reproducing forests on the cut-over 
 timber lands. This commission has visited all parts of the forest 
 area of tlie province, and will soon make its final report. Like 
 the Geological Survey report on the forest resources of Wiscon- 
 sin, the Ontario commissioners have come to the conclusion thai 
 practically the only obstacle to the natural reproduction of pine 
 forests is the fire. They laugh at the notion still entertained 
 by some Wisconsin lumbermen that tliere must be a "rotation 
 of crops" and that white pine will not grow again in places 
 where it has been cut down. 
 
 The fire laws of Ontarii> are fairly effective. The timber 
 lands belonging to the crown are not sold, but lumbermen can 
 purchase the right to cut timber on these lands, under certain 
 restrictions and regulations. One of these regulations requires 
 that "fire rangciV must bo employed on each timber berth, as a 
 district on which logging privileges have been sold is called. The 
 commission will advise the Parliament to add to this requirement 
 the employment of a similar .system of fire rangers on the lands 
 not comprised in any timber l)erth. Tlie commissioners also 
 favor the permanent reservation and management, by the gov- 
 ernfment itself, frf all timber lands not fit for agricultural pur- 
 poses. Another recommendation will be to prohibit the cutting 
 of trees less than twelve inches in diameter two feet from, the 
 ground by any holder of a logging license. 
 
35 
 
 The most important thing to be learned from the experience 
 of Ontario seems to be the im wisdom of selling the fee of public 
 lands of a non-agricultural character. Such lands are too apt to be 
 despoiled oi their present timber supply and allowed to lie waste 
 ever after, as the example of so many tracts in Wisconsin shows. 
 Ontario, on the other hand, after having received quite as high 
 a revenue from the sale of logging licenses as Wisconsin received 
 froon the disposal of the land itself, still retains the land and may 
 proceed to care for them so that in due time they may again be- 
 come a source of revenue to the public treasury. 
 
B6 
 
 A BILL 
 
 TO ESTABLISH A SYSTEM OF STATE FOKESTS AND 
 PEOVIDE FOE THE MANAGEMENT OF 
 THE SAME. 
 
 The People of the State of Wisconsin, Eeprescntcd in Senate 
 and Assembly, Do Enact as Follows: 
 
 Section 1. There is hereby established a Department of State 
 Forests, to be organized and to perform snch duties as herein 
 provided. The secretary of state, the state treasurer and the 
 atorney general shall constitute ex officio the Board of State 
 Forest Commissioners, and as such shall perform snch duties 
 and exercise snch authority as may be conferi-ed upon them bj 
 law. Any^wo members of said board shall constitute a quorum 
 for the transaction of all business. 
 
 Section 2. As soon as may be after this law sliall have gone 
 into effect the said board shall appoint some comjietent person 
 as superintendent of State Forests. Snch superintendent shall 
 hold office for the term of five years, and shall receive a salary 
 of three thousand dollars per annum, jiayable out of the state 
 treasury in the same manner as the salaries of other state officers- 
 are paid. It shall be the duty of the Superintendent of State 
 Forests, to keep in his office all necessary records concerning 
 the lands under his care as provided herein ; to manage such 
 lands according to the most apjn-oved principles of the art of 
 forestry ; and to perform such other duties as may be prescribed 
 by law. The said superintendent shall appoint an assistant who 
 shall hold office during good behavior and shall receive a salary 
 of two thousand dollars per annum, payable out of the state 
 treasury in the same manner as the salaries of other state officers 
 are paid. The Superintendent of State Forests may also ap- 
 point such clerks, district foresters and other subordinate ofl&- 
 cials as the said Board of State Forest Commissioners may au- 
 thorize, and may engage such temporary help and services as 
 may from time to time become necessary. All permanent em- 
 ployes of the department shall hold office during good behavior, 
 unless otherwise provided by law. Their salaries shall be fixed 
 by the Board of State Forest Commissioners, and shall be paid 
 
from tlie state treasury iti the same inanrier as the sahiries of 
 other state emph>jes are paid. The said Board may, with the 
 advice of the Superintendent, adopt and from time to time 
 amend regulations for the examination, competitiA'e or other- 
 wise, of all a])plicants for positions in the employ of the depart- 
 ment, and if such regidations shall be adopted all appointments 
 shall thereafter be made by the superintendent in accordance 
 with them. The superintendent aud assistant superintendent 
 shall each annually receive the sum of five hundred dollars for 
 expenses of travel. Other othcers and employes of the Depart- 
 ment of State Forests who may be obliged to travel on business 
 of the department shall be allowed their actual expenses. 
 
 Section '>. The said Board of State Forest Commissioners 
 shall audit all the accounts of the Su])erinteudent of State For- 
 <^sts and other officers and emjdoyes of the department, and no 
 claim of any kind against the state, on account of the depart- 
 ment of state forests, shall be ])aid without first being allowed 
 by the said Board. 
 
 Section 4. The department of state forests shall be provided 
 with convenient office accommodation at the city of Madison, 
 and shall be furnished with all necessary stationery and other 
 office sup])lies in the saiue manner as other departments are 
 furnished. 
 
 Section ,^». The sale of all lands belonging to the state, except 
 such as are conuuonly denominated school and university lands, 
 shall cease after this act shall have gone into effect, and no such 
 land sluiill thereafter be sold except according to the provisions 
 of this act ; provided, however, that this act shall not be so con- 
 strued as to affect in any manner the rights or interest of any 
 person or pcu'sons to or in any of the lands lielonging to the state 
 Avhich such ])erson nuiy have acquired ])reviously to the day on 
 wdiich this act shall go into effect. 
 
 Section ('>. All public lands so withdrawn from sale, and 
 such other lauds as the state may hereafter acipiire for that pur- 
 pose shall constitute the state forest reserve. As soon as prac- 
 ticable after this act shall go into effect the superintendent of 
 state forests shall make a detailed inquiry into the character and 
 condition of each parcel of land contained in said state forest 
 reserve and acquire all information concerning the same which 
 may be necessary for the purpose of proper forestry manage- 
 ment. For this purpose he ntay engage all necessary help, and 
 may use the records, maps, plats and other documents of the 
 land office. All information so obtained shall be properly re- 
 corded and preserved in the office of said superintendent. If in 
 the course of such investigation the said, superintendent shall 
 
38 
 
 come to tlie conclusion that it shall he for the best interest of 
 the state that any particular parcel or parcels of the public lands 
 be not reserved as a part of the state forest he shall so notify 
 the Board of Public Land Commissioners, who may thereupon 
 in their discretion proceed to sell such parcel or parcels of land 
 in the manner provided by law. If at any time hereafter the 
 Commissioners of Public Lands shall withdraw any school or 
 university lands from sale they may authorize the superinten- 
 dent of forests to manage such lands as a part of the state for- 
 ests, and the superintendent sball thereupon have the same au- 
 thority and the same duties regarding such lands as he has re- 
 garding other lands in the state forest reserve. 
 
 Section 7. The said Board of State Forest Commissioners 
 are hereby authorized to accept on behalf of the state of Wiscon- 
 sin any grant or grants of any lands within this state for forestry 
 j3urposes. ^STo such grant shall be accepted unless the attorney 
 general shall first certify that he has investigated the title to such 
 lands and that the proposed grantor has title to such lands, free 
 from incumbrance. 
 
 Section S. Any county wliich may now own or hereafter ac- 
 quire any land suitable for forest growth by virtue of any tax 
 deed or the foreclosure of any tax certificate is hereby authorized 
 to maintain such land as a county forest reserve. Whenever the 
 Board of Supervisors of any'county shall by resolution decide to 
 maintain such county forest reserve, they shall notify the su- 
 perintendent of state forests, whose duty it shall thereupon be- 
 come to supervise the management of such county forest. The 
 board of supervisors of such county may annually appropriate 
 a sum of money sufficient for the management of such county 
 forest until the revenue derived therefrom shall be sufficient to 
 pay for the expenses of the management of. the same. All 
 revenue derived from such county forest over and above the 
 necessary expenses of the management of the same shall be paid 
 into the county treasury. I^o expense of any kind shall be in- 
 curred by and become chargeable to the state on account of such 
 county forests. The county board of supervisors may make all 
 necessary rules and regulations concerning such county forest, 
 subject, however, to the ap]>roval of the state forest superin- 
 tendent. 
 
 Section 9. The superintendent of state forests shall as soon 
 as practicable, with a view to the best possible financial return to 
 the state, remove from the lands under his control all dead and 
 down tinker and such other timber as he may deem expedien';, 
 and sell the same at the best advantage in such a manner as thv3 
 Board of State Forest Commissioners may prescribe. All con- 
 
39 
 
 tracts for the cutting, logging, or sale of any timber in the state 
 forests shall be signed, on behalf of the state, by the superin- 
 tendent of forests, or in his absence by the assistant superin- 
 tendent ; provided that no such contract shall be of effect until 
 it shall have been approved by the Board of State Forest Com- 
 missioners. All funds received from the sale of any timber, 
 wood or other product of the state forests which shall be derived 
 from any land known as School, University, Agricultural Col- 
 lege, jSTormal School, J\[arathon County, Drainage or Indemnity 
 land shall be paid into the respective fund into which the pro- 
 ceeds of the sale of such land may now be payable. The revenues 
 from all other lands in the state forest reserve shall be paid into 
 the general fund of the state. 
 
 Section 10. The superintendent of state forests shall have 
 authority to build roads upon the lands in the state forest re- 
 serve ; to cut and sell timber growing on and other products of 
 such forests; erect all necessary buildings, fences or other struct- 
 ures; plant or sow trees; make all necessary rules and regula- 
 tions for the maintenance and government of such forests, and 
 do all other acts which may be necessary or expedient for the 
 protection and rational management of said forests. Provided, 
 however, that no improvement shall be made or other measure 
 adopted involving an expense of more than one hundred dollars 
 without having first been apj)rovcd by the Board of State Forest 
 Commissioners. 
 
 Section 11. The superintendent of state forests may from 
 time to time purchase, in such manner as shall be prescribed 
 by the Board of State Forest Commissioners, all supplies neces- 
 sary for the proper conduct of work in the state forests. 
 
 Section 12. The sui)erintendent of state forests shall as soon 
 as practicable after this law shall have gone into effect, with the 
 approval of the Board of State Forest Commissioners, establish 
 one or more Forest Experiment Stations, on the lands belong- 
 ing to the state forest reserve, for the purpose of conducting re- 
 searches into the best methods of forest management under the 
 conditions prevailing in the various portions of Wisconsin. For 
 the purpose of making such researches the superintendent may 
 co-operate whenever expedient with the State University, the 
 State Geological and jSTatural History Survey, the various scien- 
 tific bureaus of the government of the United States, and other 
 institutions of a like character. The results of such investiga- 
 tion shall from time to time be printed and published in the 
 same manner as other public documents are published, and dis- 
 tributed in such manner as the Board of State Forest Commis- 
 sioners shall determine. They shall as far as possible be written 
 
40 
 
 in uon-teelmieal language, so as to be easily understood by the 
 general public. 
 
 Section 13. It shall be the duty of the superintendent and 
 the assistant superintendent, whenever possible without inter- 
 ference with their other duties, to respond to invitations to de- 
 liver lectures on subjects regarding the value and nature oi 
 sound forestry methods, by Farmers' Institutes, colleges, schools 
 and similar institutions, and they shall in every other available 
 form seek to spread information concerning forestry matters 
 among the public. 
 
 Section 14. I'he offices of state forest warden and deputy 
 forest warden as defined in section 108Gb of the Wisconsin Stat- 
 utes of 1898 are hereby abolished. Their duties are transferred 
 to the superintendent of state forests except as modified by this 
 act. It shall be the duty of the said state superintendent to see 
 that the provisions of law for the prevention or extinguishment 
 of forest and marsh fires are faithfully executed, and for that 
 purpose to formulate all necessary and proper regulations for 
 the government of the several fire wardens, and to supervise 
 them in the performance of their duties. Whenever the super- 
 intendent of state forests or any officer of the department of 
 state forests, or any fire warden shall have good reason to believe 
 that an offense has been committed by any person or persons 
 against any of such provisions, it slftill be his duty to cause the 
 arrest of the party suspected of such offense, and he shall imme- 
 diately notify the district attorney of the proper county, whose 
 duty it shall be to prosecute such person or persons. Every fire 
 warden who shall bring about the conviction of anv person or 
 persons of violation of aily law designed for protection against 
 forest and marsh fires, shall receive (me-half of the fin(> im])osed 
 upon such party. 
 
 Section 15. The superintendent of state forests shall ap- 
 point one or more fire wardens in each organized township, and 
 shall keep a register of the name and postoffice address of each. 
 Provided that if he shall be of the opinion that no useful purpose 
 could be served by the appointment of a fire warden in any par- 
 ticular town he may omit such an a]i})ointmtmt, unles's the town 
 board of supervisors of such town shall recpiest him to make such 
 an appointment. Every fire warden shall before entering upon 
 the duties of his -office take and subscribe the usual oath of office 
 and file the same with the superintendent. He shall take all nec- 
 essary precaution to prevent the improj)er setting or progress 
 of fire in his or adjoining towns within eighty rods of the line 
 of his town whenever the fire warden of the adjoining town is 
 \mable or unwilling to do so, and shall, when credibly informed 
 
41 
 
 that a fire has been improperly set or allowed to burn in any ter- 
 ritory within his jurisdiction take such steps as shall be neces- 
 sary to prevent and in all proper cases to extinguish the fire. 
 The fire wardens shall perform such further duties and receive 
 such compensation as is now provided by law. Any fire warden 
 may be removed from ofiice by the superintendent of state for- 
 ests for incompetence or neglect of duty. 
 
 Section 20. Section lC36e of the Wisconsin Statutes of 1898 
 is hereby repealed. It shall be the duty of the superintendent of 
 forests or such other officer of the department of forests as he 
 may designate, as far as practicable, from time to time to visit 
 each fire warden and ascertain the manner in which he dis- 
 charges the duties of his office. 
 
 Section 21. On or before the first day of December in each 
 year the clerk of each tow^n in which any money has been ex- 
 pended for the payment of any fire warden or the extinguish- 
 ment of any forest or marsh fire in pursuance of section 19 of 
 this act shall certify to the secretary of state the amount of 
 money so expended. The secretary of state shall thereupon 
 cause one-half of the sum so expended by such town to be paid 
 out of the state treasury to the treasurer of such town. 
 
 Section 22. The superintendent of forests shall biennially 
 make a report to the governor, showing the condition of the state 
 forests, the revenues derived therefrom, the expenses incurred, 
 and such other matters as he may deem proper. Such report 
 shall be printed, published and distributed in so many copies and 
 such manner as the governor may direct. The superintendent 
 shall also submit to the legislature at its regular session, Avithin 
 ten days from the convening thereof,. an itemized estimate of the 
 expenditures which in his opinion will be necessary on behalf of 
 the department of forests, during each of the ensuing two years. 
 
 Section 28. The expenses of the department of forests ex- 
 clusive of any sums which may be paid to any town for money 
 expended for the prevention or extinguishment of forest fires, 
 during any one year, and exclusive of any money spent for the 
 proper furnishing of the office of the department, and its supply 
 with the necessary stationery and other office supplies, shall not 
 
 exceed the sum of $ per annum. ISTo liabilit}^ shall be 
 
 incurred by said department in excess of such sum. A suffi- 
 cient sum to defray all expenses authorized by this act is hereby 
 annually appropriated. 
 
 Section 24. All acts and parts of acts conflicting with any 
 of the provisions of this act are hereby repealed. 
 
 Section 25. This act shall be in effect from and after its 
 passage and publication.