Pineways To Profit

[Music] times change and we change with them with the great changes of the past few years the farmer has come to depend more and more on the payments which he has received for his woods products he now recognizes the importance of trees as crops in the schools a new generation of farmers is learning that there is money in trees learning how to take better care of trees in order to get more money out of them learning how the pines of the south can be made to bring prosperity the income from woods products puts them in the top ranks of southern farm products [Applause] [Music] the markets for woods products are numerous and increasing a generation ago it was thought that paper could not be made from Southern Pines now to each of the many pulp and paper mills which have been built in the South enormous quantities of pine pulp wood are hauled every day some goes by trucks direct from the woods to the mill from more distant places is brought to railroads which carry it for the mill from still other places it is brought in by barges [Music] after the wood reaches the mill and has churned through huge revolving drums to remove the bark stripped of bark it falls onto an endless conveyor which carries it into the mill for a giant chipping machine cuts it to bits in a few seconds after which the chips are run over shaker screens to get just the right sizes for making Paul in this great storage pile only 10 days output of a large mill there are six thousand four hundred tons of Paul great as is the demand for pulpwood even more wood is needed for sawlogs the lumber industry the first industry to be developed in the new world is still going strong it consumes a large part of our forests output for making boards and other products fulfilled a thousand and one everyday needs of man another market for woods products is that for poles and pilot one has only to think of the countless number of telephone telegraph and power line poles which carry the millions of miles of communication and transmission wires in the country to realize that there is a great use for woods products both for new lines and for replacements in many places certain kinds of pine trees which later will be cut for pulpwood or for timber provide farmers an income from turpentine II everyone is familiar with the stills for the crude gum from the pines of the south is replying to a turpentine and rosin for the picturesque charge of rosin steams for the new vats covered with strainers to remove the dirt needles and twigs and is then ladled into barrels less familiar is the modern still for the rosin flows from the bats into five fly craft paper bags made from pine each holding exactly 100 pounds each bag is sealed by stitching on a specially designed sewing machine [Music] crossties barrel staves laths and bucked Shooks are a few of the many other common uses which maintain the market for the pines of the southern farmer while the use of wood for making rayon is an example of the prospects for an ever-widening mark but it is not alone from the sale of his woodland products at the farmer profits he profits from the direct use which he has for them in everyday life on the farm the fire in the kitchen stove and in the fireplace would cost the farmer real money if he had to buy the fuel from the wood on his own land he can make the shingles to repair his roof or to build a new one or he may fashion the logs with which to build a fine new tobacco bar to help add to his income from another crop and he can cut the fuel with which to feed the fires that cure the tobacco or the posts with which to fence his fields and woods with such splendid opportunities for getting an income and for saving expenses through the proper management of his woods it is not surprising that the farmer is seeking ways to increase his crop of trees and that he has found the first and most important way to do this is to keep fire out of his voids for fire is the greatest destroyer of profit from tree [Music] let's go out in the woods and see what happens when they're burned see just quiet is that the fire is burning Forest dollars in the first place to say nothing of the hidden seeds there are the baby seedlings so tiny that one can hardly see them they are the forests future without them the woods are doomed to pass away the flames which burn the cover of the forest floor are devouring future profits leaving their place ashes of poverty these siblings in an area which has been protected several years have gotten a fine start if my chance fire occurs where the seedlings are larger it often snuffs out their life this sets up not still more of the work which Nature has done to help the farmer to get more profit from his woodland crop [Music] [Applause] one has only to compare lands which have been burned with those which have been protected from fire to see the tremendous loss which results from burning wood [Music] here are the seeds from the few scattered large trees have never had a chance because the land has been burned every year here on the other hand is a similar tract on which the seeds from the large trees have been given a chance to grow into thriving young trees by protecting the land from fires but this is not all fire injures and sometimes kills the larger trees the injured trees like injured people consume their strength in a struggle to get well their growth is slowed up for years fire moreover sets the stage for insects to attack trees when such trees are brought to a lumber mill the damage which fires have done to their butts causes a serious loss to the farmer or it is damage to the most valuable part of the tree [Music] often when such trees are filled their jump buddy the damaged portions not even being sent to the mill it means a serious loss here is a pile of 57 such bucks if they had not been damaged by fire they would have made enough lumber to build a small farm pups examine the end of one of the buttons it tells the story of the terrific Catholic fire his rock at the pulp mill to which the farmer hauls his pulp wood a similar loss is in store for him if he has brought in any charge laws the inspector measures the load spots the burned logs and refuses to accept them to the young farmer who may not be familiar with pulpwood requirements inspector hands a copy of the specifications which say that charred logs will be rejected foreign material in gum from burn faces may degrade the rawson one two three grades causing another cash loss to the farmer [Music] the wise farmer vendors his tree crop and uses every precaution to prevent woods fires if for example he wishes to clear new ground for pasture or for other crops he piles the brush and debris a safe distance from the woods and plows a fire break next to the woods before he burns the brush he also stations men along the edge of the woods to make sure that with shifting wind no sparks or embers will set fire to the woods he lets his neighbors and local fire warden know that he intends to burn the brush and where the law requires he obtains a permit from the proper authorities the farmer knows the plowing of firebreak is good insurance it is something that he can do before a possible fire breaks out something which may save him from great loss this farmer for example is plowing a 12 foot fire break along his fence in this case the protected area is an abandoned field in which natural slash pine trees are getting a good start and may be seen above the sedge grass other farmers have found that effective fire brakes can be made by plowing strips and planting them to carpet grass the carpet grass keeps out wire grass bushes and other hazardous growths and at the same time provides good pasturage for cattle if in spite of all precautions a fire breaks out every minute counts in getting to it this farmer while plowing sees smoke coming to his wood there is no organized protection established here and he must act for himself calling to his two sons who are bowing in a nearby field he runs to the fire fortunately they reach the fire while they're still small the three of them fight the fire and fight it for what it is a dangerous enemy by prompt action and efficient firefighting they have prevented what might have been a serious law they have fought well so well in fact if we're neighbors arrived to help only the mopping up is left to be done neighbors help each other fight fires not only because of goodwill but also because they're fighting in a common cause every farmer knows that someday he may need his neighbor's help this community of interests is leading farmers and woods owners in many parts of the south to join together to cooperate with counties state and federal agencies in setting up Forgan eyes fire detection and firefighting units [Music] to keep losses at a minimum means must be provided to locate fires when they start tall towers are erected from which Watchmen constantly scan the woods to detect the first sign of fire the watchman in one tower sighting a fire telephones its direction from his tower to a central dispatcher who also gets its direction by telephone from another tower in the dispatcher's office is a large map with strings hanging from the locations of the towers by stretching the strings from the two towers in the directions given by the watchman the dispatcher finds the location of the fire at the point where the strings cross he then communicates with a fire truck crew in this particular case by radio and accrual hastens to the fire at the scene of the fire the trained crew with modern tools and equipment quickly gets into action the methods used in putting out fires depend on the conditions the fighters find when they reach the scene in this case some of the men are beating the fire with fire swatters others are using streams of water from backpack pumps which have double nozzles that will throw either a full stream or a fine spray beat down the fire still other men are handling the long hose which comes from the motor driven pump and large water tank on the truck the most effective way of fighting fires in places where it is possible to get the truck near the fire [Music] due to its advantages many sections of the south have organized protection besides the national forests the black areas on the map more than one-third of the private forests are being given protection by local state forestry organizations using funds supplied by landowners counties state appropriations and the federal government under the provisions of the Clark McNary bill they are the gray areas on the map the remaining private forest lands shown in white still lack protection but even where the State Forestry organization has trained men and modern equipment for detecting and fighting fires it is necessary for local farmers and woods owners to give their full hearted cooperation first in preventing fires from starting second in helping to fight them and third in helping enforce local fire law it was a proud moment for this farmer when he was selected by the state Forester as a volunteer fire guard and the district Forester drove up in a fire truck to present him with an honorary Fire Warden certificate a proud moment too for his dear old mother over 16,000 southern farmers have received such state appointments and have pledged themselves to protect their own woods and if necessary given 10 a birds and to the State Fire Protection Organization the great reward for keeping fires out of woods comes in the increasing welfare of the farmer and of the community throughout the entire South Pines grow very rapidly their values increase like money at compound interest and as their values increase the farms become more valuable and the owners more prosperous [Music] when the farmer markets his woods products his profiting from the years of protection which have made them saleable he is cashing in on good judgment benefiting himself his family and the whole community perhaps on a day when he is to be paid for weeks deliveries of pulpwood he takes his wife to town with him on the truck after unloading his truck he returns to the office at the entrance to the yard and receives his check [Music] after going to the bank to deposit part of the money they stopped at a store where the wife buys needed supplies thus The Pines which bring income to the farmer and supply raw materials for mills that pay wages to large numbers of men and directly or indirectly help everyone in the community so it is that to the farmer fire protected woods increase the value and the income of his farm they will help him do the things he longs to do these little trees are growing well they may mean a college education and opportunity for the child they may mean security for the farmer and his wife in their later years they are the children of trees and their growth brings happiness to protect woods from fires is the most important of the pine ways to profit