Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 164, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 July 1918 — Historic Forests Are Cut Down to Supply the Many Needs of Warring Nations [ARTICLE]

Historic Forests Are Cut Down to Supply the Many Needs of Warring Nations

War, with its greedy demands, is fast sweeping away the carefully tended forests of Europe. Even in England, which has been protected by Its fleet from invasion, the ax of the woodman Is making great changes In the appearance of the landscape. Reports say that the beautiful woodlands, forests and groves that have for centuries formed part of i t;he charm of rural England are disappeai ing. It Is expected that by the middle or this summer the British government will be converting trees into lumber at the rate of 6,000,000 tons per annum. The old, careful methods of Europe, by which trees .which had passed their prime were selected and individually chopped down, leaving the forest undisturbed, are being replaced by a style of lumbering nbore familiar' here, says the Rochester Times-Union. Canadian lumberjacks are swinging their axes in the New Forest and many other historic tracts, cutting a wide swath in much the same fashion as in the woods of British Columbia or northern Ontario. Over in France,* American forestry regiments are making a similar sweep through the woodlands. In Great Britain replanting has followed the lumberman, but It will take a century fully to cover the scars. In France there has been no chance to pay attention to anything but getting what was needed for the war. With European forests thus laid low we should be the more careful to see that our own great resources are not recklessly wasted, and should follow the example of the older countries in making etfen private owners guard forests against fire loss.