compounding toward the
latter end of the rotation which now appears serious, the chances
are that he will not have a heavy burden before relief of this
kind arrives.

(d) Every owner of virgin timber which he expects to hold uncut
for 10 years or more should consider reforestation of adjacent
cut-over land in the light of fire protection also. It is the
inflammable, sun-dried, brake-covered openings, yearly increasing
in extent, which constitute his greatest fire menace. The conversion
of these into green young growth, too dense for fern and salal and
destructible only by the hottest crown fires, is the best protection
he can give mature timber surrounded by them. Some additional expense
for a few years to accomplish this will usually be cheaper and safer
than the patrol otherwise required for an indefinite period.

(e) Advance in value of the land itself, realizable when the second
crop is cut, will in many cases be great enough to make an otherwise
unpromising reforestation investment profitable.

HARDWOOD EXPERIMENTS

In the foregoing pages consideration has been given to the growing
of native coniferous species only. There is a field, however, yet
to be entered into by the timber grower in the Pacific Northwest,
which gives promise of good returns. This is the growing of eastern
hardwoods. As is well known, the supply of native hardwoods in
this region is deficient and those occurring are of poor quality.
The demand for staple hardwoods is constant, and at present can
be filled only through importation from the East. Moreover, the
manufacturing industry in the Pacific Northwest is as yet only in
its infancy, and as this industry becomes of greater importance
in the future, the demand for hardwood lumber is bound to increase.
This increase in demand, coupled with the rapidly diminishing supply
in the East, seems certain to create a condition under which it
will be profitable to grow hardwoods commercially.

That eastern species will thrive under forest conditions in this
region has not, of course, been demonstrated, but the great variety
of species planted successfully as shade trees in towns and cities, and
in many instances by settlers in the mountains and farming districts,
together with the marked success of various fruits introduced here,
would tend to indicate their adaptability to the climate. In many
respects the climate along the coast of Oregon and Washington is
similar to that found throughout the g