growth of wood and valuable timber." That committee reported in favor of devoting lands least adapted to agricultural purposes to the cultivation of trees. It is needless to say the recommendations of the committee were not adopted. Had they been, the State would be much wealthier today and our future wood supply would be assured. Now, a hundred and twenty-seven years after that far-seeing and wise recommendation, and after a loss of nearly all our valuable trees we are trying in a small way to put those recommendations into force.

So far as is known, the effort of the society for the promotion of agriculture, arts and manufactures in 1791, was the first attempt made by this State in the direction of timber preservation and forest culture.

For nearly eighty years the proposition of the committee of the agricultural society went unheeded and slept the sleep that knew no awakening. No other suggestion was made so far as is known, and no other step was taken until about 1869, when the legislature turned its attention momentarily to the subject of tree planting. Then it passed an act to encourage the planting of

trees by the side of public highways, which was not a very forward step in forestry work.

In 1872, the legislature created by an act "A Commission of State Parks." The duty of the park commission was "to enquire into the expediency of providing for vesting in the state the title to the timber regions lying within the counties of Lewis, Essex, Clinton, Franklin, St. Lawrence, Herkimer and Hamilton, and converting the same into a public park." The commissioners named in the act were Horatio Seymour, Patrick H. Agar, William R. Taylor, George H. Raynor, William A. Wheeler, Verplanck Colvin and Frank B. Hough.

That commission recommended that no more lands owned by the State in those counties be sold, and that all lands acquired by tax sales be held for future forest management. ment. Its recommendations were acted upon eleven years later. Truly the legislature did not act too hastily, for this once at least. In 1883 a law was passed to prohibit further sales of land in the counties named and also in the counties of Saratoga and Warren. During the fourteen years between the report of the committee and the enact

ment of the statute, the State continued to sell land and much acreage was thus lost on account of the delay.

The first appropriation was made in the interest of acquiring land and investigation, in 1884. The amount appropriated was $5000. This money was to be used by the comptroller. In July of that year the comptroller (Alfred C. Chapin) appointed a committee consisting of Charles S. Sargent of Cambridge, Mass., D. Willis James of New York City, William A. Poucher of Oswego and Edward M. Shepard of Brooklyn. The com

mittee reported the result of their investigation and recommended a policy for the future. The comptroller said:

The problem in its fullness affects the welfare of many sister commonwealths and of the nation at large. It is eminently fitting that in its solution the Empire State should lead the way.

As a result of the recommendations of the comptroller's committee. the first forest commission was established in May, 1885, by chapter 283 of the laws of that year. The members of the comptroller's committee were appointed as commissioners under the act of 1885.

It will therefore be seen that it was nearly a hundred years after the first suggestion that the State ought to establish and carry out a policy for forest preservation and tree culture, before a commission was appointed pursuant to a definite legislative act to carry that policy into effect.

Under the act of 1885, the first system was authorized to prevent to some extent forest fires. It was a town system and was never effectual.

It was not until five years later that the first act was passed authorizing the purchase of land for the forest preserve. At that time (1890) an appropriation of $25,000 was made for that purpose. This was a mighty small start after a hundred years of recommendations and watchful waiting.

Three years later (1893) this commission was legislated out of office and a new commission provided for, consisting of five members and the personnel of the commission changed.

Two years later (1895) the legislature changed the name of the commission to "Fish, Game and Forest Commission," which new commission took over the work of the forest commission and the fish and game commission, and the personnel of the commission was again changed. This commission was authorized to buy land for the forest preserve and an appropriation of

Poor Adirondack land, lumbered nearly clean and fire has finished the work of destruction. There are hundreds of thousands of acres in this and worse condition. It should be producing a good forest.

In two years more (1897) another change in the commission was made by a legislative act, chapter 220 of the laws of 1897, which created a forest preserve board, for the express purpose of acquiring land for the forest preserve in the Adirondack Park. The board was to consist of one member from the fisheries, game and forest commission and two other members to be designated by the Governor from members of the commissioners of the land office. The members were Timothy L. Woodruff, Charles H. Babcock and Campbell W. Adams, and an appropriation of $1,000,000 was made to buy land. This third step and most progressive, was inaugurated by Governor Frank S. Black. Governor Black was familiar with the forests and understood the need of preserving them. Knowing this and being a man of action, he carried through the first real serviceable plan of considerable size to add to the State holdings of forest land.

Prior to these later dates, and in 1894, by a change in the State constitution, article 7, section 7, all State lands within the forest

preserve, now or hereafter owned by the State, were secured to the State forever, or until the constitution should be changed in that respect, as wild forest lands. That, at the time, and under the conditions then prevailing, was one of the most important and progressive steps looking to forest protection and preservation. It evidenced the intention of the State to acquire and hold forest land. After three hundred years of forest destruction our eyes just commenced to open and we began to observe its importance. In 1885 there were not more than one or two graduates from forestry schools in the United States.

In 1898 the New York school of forestry at Cornell was created by chapter 122 of the laws of that year - another step forward. The same year another appropriation of $500,000 was made for acquiring forest land.

In 1899, the powers of the forest preserve board were enlarged, permitting the board to acquire forest land in the Catskill park, and an additional appropriation of $350,000 was made for that purpose - another progressive step.

In 1900 the name of the fisheries, game and forest commission was changed was changed to

forest, fish and game commission, and the personnel of the commission changed - five in all - and an additional appropriation of $250,000 was made.

In 1901 the commission was legislated out of office and a new commission of three members to serve one year provided for, and the forest preserve board was legislated out of office and the purchasing of land turned over to the forest, fish and game commission. In 1902 the commission was changed by a legislative act, and one commissioner provided for. The statute also provided for a new forest purchasing board, consisting of the forest, fish and game commissioner and two members to be appointed by the governor from the members of the commissioners of the land office.

In 1904 the legislature appropriated $250,000 to purchase forest land.

In 1906 the legislature made a further appropriation of $400,000 to purchase forest land. In 1907 a further sum of $500,000 was appropriated for the same purpose.

In 1909 an entirely new and efficient system for the prevention of forest fires was established, consisting of a system of mountain observation stations, connected with telephones and cared for by an observer at

each station. These stations were soon extended over the whole forest preserve, and a paid force of forest rangers provided, completing the most modern and efficient firefighting system known. Many states and the national government have since adopted and put a like system into operation. This progressive step went a long ways in removing one of the most destructive enemies of our forest growth.

About this time other progressive steps were taken by the forestry department. Railroads were compelled to use oil for fuel on engines passing through the forest preserve. The limbs on soft-wood trees felled on lumber jobs were required to be cut off and to lie flat on the ground, where they would quickly rot and be removed as a fire danger. Lumbermen were encouraged to plant up some of their cut-over ground, and a propaganda of education was extensively carried on all over the State, interesting the people in the importance of a proper amount of forest growth and tree planting. A law was passed providing seedling trees at cost to all who would plant up denuded ground. Many municipalities were induced to plant trees on their watersheds.

Tree gardens were built and a large increase made in the annual production of tree plants. School children were reached through illustrated lectures and boy scouts became interested in planting trees.

forest preserve. Public sentiment had begun to awaken to the need.

In 1911 the legislature, by chapter 647 of the laws of that year, changed the name of the commission to conservation commission, with three commissioners instead of one, and put into its hands and control the duties of the forest purchasing board, those of the commissioners of water power of Black river, and the duties of the State water supply commission, consolidating all power and authority of the three in the conservation commission.

In 1911 the New York State college of forestry at Syracuse was established by chapter 851 of the laws of that year.

In 1912 the legislature, by chapter 444 of the laws of that year, re-enacted the conservation law with several important amendments. In 1915 the legislature again reduced the number of commissioners from three to

one.

In 1916 the conservation law was again re-enacted with many amendments.

Thus it will be seen that through many vicissitudes, changes of policy, with slow steps, and with many hindrances, the State of New York has finally reached for the time being a place far in advance of the starting point, and is equipped and prepared to actually do something in the great work of protecting and acquiring State-owned forests.

One of the very important things done in the last two or three years was the submission to the people of the State, in a referendum, a

This Adirondack forest fire although small is like many that have started after lumbering which have destroyed much acreage of good timber besides burning all that was left after lumber.

proposition to raise by bonded indebtedness $10,000,000 for the purchase of forest lands for the State parks and forest preserve, which the people approved by a large majority vote. Under that appropriation the commission or board now empowered to purchase land has acquired more than a hundred thousand additional acres for the State, at reasonable prices, and is rapidly adding to the State's holdings.

After 1885, for ten years all that was accomplished was by dint of good management and diplomacy on the part of the commission and Colonel William F. Fox, the State forester, which was simply to keep the statute creating the department on the on the books.

Gradually legislators and governors began to take the work seriously, and some progress was made. Some trespassers were caught and punished a little; a small tree nursery was started at Axton, and the first experimental work done in growing seedling trees. Then a few plants were transplanted into the forest, with medium success. Then another small nursery was established in the Catskills and some seedlings grown there, with varying success, and finally abandoned. Then a better nursery was started near Saranac Inn station, which, after much work, produced excellent plants for future trees;

and larger plantings were made in the forest, with better results.

This experimental work was carried on between 1899 and 1905. It was under the charge of a nursery superintendent of exceptional ability, a graduate of the State forestry school at Cornell. As an illustration of the success that had so far been obtained in the art of raising seedling trees in the State of New York, it may be interesting to know that Mr. Schenck, one of the best qualified foresters at that time, who had charge of the Vanderbilt forests at Biltmore, and who was familiar with tree garden work in Germany, after visiting our nurseries, wrote the department and declared that of all the forest tree nurseries he had just visited in Germany, none produced as large and thrifty plants as did our nurseries. The superintendent who had made this showing in the preliminary and experimental work of growing seedling trees for forest planting is now and has been for a long time the superintendent of State forests.

Twenty years had passed and only a small start had been made in producing planted forests for the future. During this time, however, a considerable amount of land had been acquired by tax sales and purchase, and the land held by the State in its forest preserve amounted to about a million five hundred thousand acres. Trespasses on State lands were not so common as in past years, but continued to be too frequent. The State's holdings were widely separated throughout the sixteen forest preserve counties, being composed of hundreds of detached parcels. The boundary lines were uncertain and in many places no line at all, making it difficult to determine the exact holdings of the State.

Purchase of forest land by the State adjoining the preserve is a policy intended to bring together in an unbroken unit this great property of the people.

[To be continued in May issue]