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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 29, 1914)
V curiam ic fokcsts of prance part or national Far From Being and Reserves, Chiefly o Hinder Hie Advance of an Invading Army. o NE of the greatest obstacles to.Jlahon was beaten because this forest the German invasion of France, and now one of the greatest ob stacles of German retreat, has been the French forests, of which so much has been heard since war began and con cerning which so little is known by the average American. In France the forests are as much of a defense almost as the French forts. They have played an important part in every war in which the country has been engaged for the last 200 years. They have alike aided and militated against the French military, but most often they have aided. It was because of the ForeBt of Argonne. that famous wood now so constantly in the news, that the first Prussian invasion of France was repulsed in 1792. In 1815 the forests provided a cover in which Wellington Bprung a surprise on Na poleon at Waterloo. In 1870 the Ger man maneuvers before Sedan were hid den by the tree trunks of Argonne, and later, in 1871, the Forest of Orleans screened the rallying French forces for the last stand. Sixteen per cent of the territory of France is covered with forests. In the French meaning of the word, a forest Is Quite different from or own north western wildernesses. The majority of the forests in France are varying areas of very old deciduous trees. There is scarcely any underbrush such as char acterizes our wildernesses. The big tree trunks tower close together and are singularly clean of impediment. save that afforded by themselves. Mostly they are oaks, beeches, birches and maples. Size of France's Forests. These forests vary in size from 200, 000 acres to 10,000 acres. In point of area they run: Ardennes (Northeastern France), 200,000 acres; Orleans, 70,000 acres; Jura, 30,000 acres; Compeigne, 28,000 acres; Argonne, 20,000 acres; Ramboull let, 20,000 acres. There are several of lesser extent. "The forests of France." said Profes sor Daniel Jordan, of Columbia Univer sity, "have played an Important role in every attempted invasion of France. The first to appreciate the forests as not only possible means of defense, but as valuable in many other respects was Colbert, the Minister of Finance to Louis XIV. Colbert-instituted legisla tion and regulation of forests that are even today held up as models and which till are in effect. "When " the coalition was formed against France in 1792, just after she became a republic, Damouriez, who had succeeded Lafayette, massed his troops in the forest of Argonne the same hilly and wooded section now playing such an important part in the present war and drove back the Prussian in-, yasion with heavy loss. In 1870 Mac- BT ROBERT H. MOULTON. OUT in the deep woods about Kenil worth, a suburb of Chicago, a man is working out a plan to lop a matter of $1,000,000,000 a year off the Nation's cost of living. He is organizing a vast army of allies that are expected to make a series of resist less raids on the high-cost-of -living forces. Already the co-operation of several departments of the National Adminis tration has been enlisted in this blood less war. Officials of the state and municipal government, as well as public-spirited citizens in nearly every state in the Union, have given enthusi astic assurances of assistance in the fight. Charles E. White, grain broker dur ing his business hours, and bird pro tector during his leisure, is the head, shoulders, and, in many instances, fi nancial backer of the movement. His army of allies are the thousands of birds that may be found in the woods about his picturesque place at Kenil worth. Mr. White's plan is a simple one. It contemplates the saving of all insect destroying birds,, which, according to officials who have made a study of the subject, would result in the savins of $1,000,000,000 worth of grain and foodstuff that otherwise is destroyed each year. Statistics prepared by the Bureau of Biological Survey of the United States Department of Agriculture show that the annual damage' caused by insect pests, resulting from a lack of normal bird life, is as follows: Cereals ........... IW 260,000,000 150.000.000 Playgrounds Arc Grown screened the movements of the enemy. At that time there were, as there are today, five passages through Argonne. all of them easily fortified. To effect" a way through the tangle of trees, op posing armies at various times have cut and burned away considerable areas at other points than those occupied by the usual passages. Such was the case in the Franco-Prussian war. German troops leveled sections of the woods for artillery fire, and these positions can be easily determined today because of the smaller second growth of trees marking them. Like Battle of the Wilderness. "Argonne and Ardennes are the for ests which have been the principal scenes of the woodland fighting in the present war. Ardennes, lying north and east of Argonne, has been occupied by both armies in turn. While reports on the subject have been meagre, it is safe to estimate that in the present crisis, where the artillery is heavier than ever before and where the con flict has been particularly desperate, thousands of splendid woodland patri archs have been leveled by shot and shell and by axes to make way for clear fire from the cannon. Similar con ditions must have prevailed in Argonne. further to the south, and in Compiegne.- "These forests crown hilly, rugged country. The average altitude of the Forest of Argonne is 1100 feet, though in places it is 1500 feet above sea level. The eastern side of the forest caps a rocky plateau that rises abruptly in ledges difficult of surmounting. "A3 progress is made into the interior the way of an advancing army is made difficult by deep ravines and gullies that fall away from the crests of the hills. In many of these ravines are tangled morasses and marshes. "The fighting in Argontie must have resembled the battle of the wilderness in the Civil War, where men fought at close range, shielded by tree trunks, and large numbers of old trees were leveled to make passage for the shrap nel fire from field batteries. Foresters AH the Soldiers. "There has been an impression that the French forests resemble large American parks, but that is not so. Ger man forests are much in the nature oi big parks, but the French woodlands are far wilder and less accessible. This is evinced by the fact that nearly all of them are filled with wild game, which we have learned have done much toward providing a food supply for the opposing armies. "The Government maintains in all forests a corps of forest guides, men who live, generation after generation, in the forests, and become intimately acquainted with every foot of ground embraced in them. In time of war it on 75,000.000 Tobacco 20,000.000 Truck crops 7"... 8f.,000,000 ?.u?rs , lu.ooo.ooo f,ruIts 70.0O0.000 farm forests 2r..OOO,0m) Miscellaneous props 10,000 000 Animal products 175,000,000 Xatural forest and forest prod- . uc,ts 125.000,000 Products in Btorage 100.000,000 Grand total ?l,O93,O0O,OO0 One peep between the branches of the overhanging trees near the White home is sufficient to learn how the problem of protection is being accom plished there. There are cozy bird houses of every size and description, fountains and bird bathing beaches for their exclusive use, and. last but of greatest importance, food boxes con taining suet and nest building ma terials for the birds. In his brief period of experimenting, Mr. White has proved that many of the migratory birds that annually desert the North for sunnier lands, do not travel South solely because of the cli mate. Lack of food has starved them out .Thousands of the supposedly mi gratory birds have spent the Winters in the thick shrubbery on the White place an lived on the suet supplied in the food boxes. The work of feeding the birds has resulted in the construction of a spe cial design of food box that may be seen not ,only on the grounds of Mr. White's home, but in the city's parks as well. It was discovered that when suet was placed on the ground or the limbs of trees without protection the bigger birds, after the manner of their kind, crowded out th smaller and Merc Thevj 5 CHE (V)E OF DEFCNSE is provided that these guards shall bo armed, and shall act in co-operation with- fighting armies in the protection against invaders. Several thousand for est guards were supplied with weapons when war was declared between the allies and Germany, and these have taken an active part in guiding French weaker birds and took possession of the entire supply. In order to prevent this the box now in use was constructed. Its back con sists of a curved piece of steel that protects the bark of the tree upon which it is hung. The front is cov ered with a 'strong wire net that is sufficiently coarse to admit the bills of the hungry birds, but too fine to allow them to remove all of the suet supply at once. The result of tho feeding plan is that the musical call of the chick-a-dee, nuthatch, tufted titmouth and other feathered inhabitants may be heard in the vicinity of Kenilworth the entire year. But this is In a comparatively small area, and Mr. White hopes to extend the work of education to every corner of the United States, with the result that nature's balance between the bird and insect worlds will be restored once more. It was established years before' the greedy saws of woodmen, the mur derous firearms of hunters, the toys of small beys and the vanity of women denuded the forests and all but ex terminated the birds of the continent. Census takers among the bird popula tion declare that 90 per cent of the feathery tribe that once inhabited the woods of the country have disappeared because of these enemies. "Charley" White, bird lover, and Charles E. White, board of trade mem ber. have established a balance be tween business and sentiment They have discovered that the woik of the bird lover may be made profitable to the business man. .One would never suspect that so pro- - - - -,',- - - . vjr. ig - ill w - ' - s&B- - . .'"'jrf' A ; . armies through the forests, and in aid- ing commanding officers in selecting the most advantageous points for the mounting of batteries and the station ing of troops. "But it is not alone here that their usefulness stops. They have been brought up in the forests since boy- r" saic a spot as the Chicago -Board of Trade would harbor a lover of birds, whose thoughts continually are filled with bird houses, rippling brooks and the notes of the dwellers in the woods. But Mr. White is an idealist with a broad, practical point of view. Certain ly he is farsighted to study the very thing which exerts a powerful -influence over his business. Scientific trading in "The Pit" has been shorn of all speculation. Proper buying and selling must be based on every known fact obtainable. When a prominent operator enters the market he does so fully fortified with "last minute" reports from field agents. Of course there is one element of risk that cannot be eliminated. It comes with a sudden awakening to the unshakable grip which the In sect pests have secured after months of unseen propagation. Then it is too late. Drastic measures may be taken by farmer and Government together. Perhaps these will prevent further in roads, but that which is gone is gone forever. The flurries in the grain and produce markets may invariably be traced to the ravages of the deadly in sect pest at their beginning. Insect-destroying birds are called the "police of the air" by Henry W. Hen shaw, chief of the United States Bio logical Survey, who has made a close study of their habits. Certain species of birds consume millions of mosquitoes and disease-breeding insects that annu ally collect a toll of death among the cattle. Examination of the stomach of a nighthawk, according to Mr. Henshaw, i LU9N DOLLARS ;A YEAIO? hood. They know every stick of wood in the widernesses that have been their homes. Hence they are able, through their intimate knowledge of the terri tory, to perform useful spy duty, creep ing up to the very lines of an enemy, making " observations of great value and slipping sway in the shadows of revealed 600 mosquitoes indicating a tremendous slaughter among the ene mies of mankind. Insects, it is asserted by Government experts, are more numer ous than any other known form of life., Their appetites are as astonishing as their number. Caterpillars are shown to consume twice their weight in leaves per day-r-which is equivalent to a horse consuming a ton of hay a day. An experiment recently made by E. H. Fosburg in Massachusetts proved con clusively the value of wild birds as pratectors of fruit-bearing trees. An old, neglected orchard ' was selected and during the Winter months special effort was made to attract the birds by means of suet and other food. By this means chickadees, nuthatches, woodpeckers and creepers were at tracted to the orchard, remaining dur ing the Winter months. Observations of the feeding habits and examination of the stomach contents of a few chick adees, showed that they were eating large numbers of eggs of the gall, canker-worm moth, and the-larvae and pupae of other injurious Insects. In the Spring, when the female canker-worm moths appeared in the or chard, the chickadees fed on these. While the trees in the neighboring or chards were badly Infested with the worms, comparatively few were found in the orchard which had been frequent ed by the Winter birds, and the few which did appear were easily dlspose'd of by the Summer birds which cams to the locality. The trees in other or chards were almost stripped of their foliage, while this one retained its leaves, and with one exception was the only orchard In the neighborhood. - to the big trees before detection. These forest guides possess all the stealthy cunning and woodcraft of the Amer ican Indians. "Realizing the value of forests as a defense, the government has enforced vigirous conservation measures. It is a crime to cut down or injure a tree produce any fruit. The exception was the nearest orchard to the one on which the experiment, was tried. This is a single example pointed to ,by Mr. White, friend of the birds, as evidence to back up his assertion that the way to cut down the cost of liv COSSACKS ARE COMING! fContlmiad From Pago 2.) are companies, perhaps entire regi ments, of Bouriattes,- who are Budd hists, spiritually governed by priests called lamas, under the dalailama of Thibet. Of course, you understand, these are exceptions; the mass of Cossacks are devout orthodox Christians, particularly obedient to the exhortations of the monks of TToitzko-Sergulef, the most celebrated monastery of all Russia. Re cently the monks sent out a printed letter to the Cossacks and we are in formed by telegraph that the lamas of the Bouriattes impose It equally upon their consciences. It might be called "Recommendations on .going to war." I quote a few para graphs: "Insult no one, calumniate no one, harm not the enemy who flees, or the enemy who lies losing his blood. One does not strike a man who lies on the ground. "Do not sorrow your guardian an gel, who fights with you. by doing useless harm to your enemy. Do not touch the goods of others. Why soil your conscience by pillage, and, one minute afterwards, behold, your dead Lcs Ardennes and Fontai nebleau Bulwarks of War in one of the German forests. Of the total number of forest acres in France the authorities own about one-third, the remainder belonging to private in dividuals. The care of the forests is . directly under the eye of the Minister of Agriculture, who has a separate de partment of conservation, which has charge of the guards and other fores try sub-departments. In connection with this Is a school of forestry, where practical forestry is taught, and a course in this Is an adjunct to military training. Germans May Destroy Forests. "Most of the forests of France are In the north and east, running along the line from the Vosgea to Lille. In the south there was once extensive forest territory, but following the French rev solution and the division of territory among the peasant classes much of this splendid woodland was cut off and never replaced. Chief among the for ests in the south are Fontainebleau, which is itself but a short distance southwest of Paris. "The present war will do much to ward completing the devastation of for ests started after the revolution and continuing through successive wars. In the German retreat there is little doubt that much fine old timber will be cut for firewood, for breastworks and pos sibly fired, if the wind is right, as a menace to the pursuing allies." Education and Japan. Unbelief in education for the average man is so general among the higher classes that I am afraid we shall have no reform unless some great national disaster Icauses conversion. There is a lesson for England, and, indeed, for all European races, in the recent history of Japan. The old structure of Japan was in many ways beautiful, but it proved to be without physical strength. Its extreme weakness proved its salva tion. Even the teachers of ancient classics saw. that for strength it was necessary to let scientific method per meate the thought of the whole popu lation. And now. at the end of the first chapter of Japan's modern his tory, we find a nation which can not only defend itself, but whicli retains all of its spiritual life which was beautiful. Every unit of the population can not only read and write, but It is fond of reading, and its education did not cease when it left school. It is getting an increased love for natural science, so that it can reason clearly; it is not car ried awoy by charlatans; it retains its individuality. One result of this is that in time of war Japan has scientific armies. Not only are its admirals and generals scientific, but also every offi cer, every private is scientific. Every thing in the whole country is being de veloped scientifically, and we Euro peans, hag-ridden by pedantry in our schools and universities, refuse to learn an easy lesson. Popular Science. ing is to save the birds. That $1,000, 000,000 would be distributed among the pockets of the farmers, fruit growers and small consumers of the Nation each years, he says, is a conservative esti mate of the gain through the saving of the birds. body falls Into the trench and there, your gold, what will it serve you? Be fore God, mountains of gold will not buy you back!" Of course, they are great children. The monks of St. Sergius recommend them not to risk strange foods, drinks or medicines: "Sickness in camp is sad and pain ful. Maladies come because one does not listen to the doctors when one is in foreign lands." And finally: '"Brothers, keep your consciences. Keep chaste And God protect you!" Is it not a curious sight to see the heathen Bouriattes sit down beside the peril Slav, to con the letter, with their clumsy Cossack fingers: "Brothers, keep your conscience. ' Keep chaste. And God protect you!" Bit-Trlmalic In History. Louisville Courier Journal. "My dear, you ought to pass up frivolous things and take an interest in deep subjects. Take history, for instance. Here is an interesting item. Gessler. the tyrant, put up a hat for the Swiss to salute." The wife and mother was a trifle interested. "How was it trimmed?" she inquired.