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Jackson
County 1920
Beetles' Raid on Forest Is Worse Than Fire Ravages
Can bugs do more damage to a forest than fire? It seems so, says the
American Forestry Association of Washington, which is campaigning for a
national forest policy. Investigation of the insect damage to crude
spruce products for airplane stock in the states of Washington and
Oregon showed that the greater part, if not all of the damage, could be
prevented by proper methods of logging and production with little or no
additional cost, the Association points out in calling all to join with
it in saving the forests of the country.
"In Southern Oregon a
study was completed on the interrelation of forest fires and insects on
an area of 8,000 acres," says the American Forestry Magazine.
"This area had been under observation since 1914, and the fire had
burned over about 800 acres in 1918. Records show that previous to the
fire the insects had killed 485,000 board feet of timber. The fire
killed 170,000 feet, and subsequently the slightly fire-injured as well
as the uninjured trees in burned areas were killed by beetles,
attracted from the surrounding areas. It was noticed that the
infestation in the burned area increased more than 1,000 percent, but
it was found that the infestation in the surrounding areas decreased.
Beetles Failed Develop.
"Also it was found that the broods of the beetles in the fire-scorched
trees failed to develop much beyond the original number that attacked
the trees. So the fire did not contribute to an increase of the beetles
in the general area or to the starting or extension of an epidemic of
beetles. This result is of extreme interest and hardly to be expected.
"In the Rogue River area in about 45,000 acres, near Ashland, Oregon,
the western pine beetle in 1914 caused the death of 346,000 board feet
of pine timber. In 1915, 1,615,000 board feet were killed; 1,383,000
feet in 1916, and 608,000 in 1917.
"Count of the young and
matured stages of the beetles that developed in an average foot of
bark, and also of the number of exit holes through which the beetles
emerged showed there was a notable decrease in numbers during the
development of the broods each year in the infested trees on account of
the increase of natural enemies and other disturbing factors. This
helps explain why these beetle epidemics rise and fall within a limited
period of years, and it explains how the western forests of yellow pine
are naturally protected from total destruction."
The facts, the American Forestry Magazine
concludes, are especially significant in connection with the
application of the percentage principle of control, as by aiding the
natural forces which work against the abnormal increase and.spread of
the beetles complete control may be gained.
San Luis Obispo Daily Telegram, August 10, 1920, page 6
Medford is situated in a
rather narrow but very pretty valley, at an altitude of 1,300 feet. But
not by any means a farming valley equal to the Yellowstone. The second
week we were here we were guests at the weekly luncheon of the Chamber
of Commerce and listened to a very interesting talk by Reimer, the head
man from the state experiment station located between Medford and
Ashland. Mr. Lindauer had already made the remark that he never before
had seen a country with as many different kinds of soil; yet we were
surprised to hear Mr. Reimer say that there was 43 different kinds of
soil in Jackson County, and of course a great many of these practically
worthless without certain fertilizers, and even then they must have
irrigation for best results. Alfalfa is the main crop here where fruit
is not raised. Grain does not seem to do as well as alfalfa, and that
does not produce well here without sowing sulfur with it. There is a
small percent of the valley under irrigation. However they are putting
in another project now at a cost of from $100 to $125 an acre. This
with the first cost of the land which runs from $150 to $200 per acre
makes it too expensive for anything but fruit raising. However, there
are two small areas near here where the soil is excellent and very good
crops can be raised without water, according to the county agent, and
we find that it is in one of the areas that Baker Yarbrough has bought.
They have a very nice home equipped with electricity and only five
miles from Medford.
Medford is a town of about 7,000 people
and
very nicely improved with a good many miles of paved streets, and the
climate is sure fine. We can't wonder that the Rogue River people boast
of their climate. Medford by rights ought to be the county seat of
Jackson County, but the voters of the county did not so decree
it. The
capitol of the county is located at a little town called Jacksonville,
five miles from here. It is a very old town built in the early '50s. In
1850 [sic]
gold was discovered
in the hills back of it and a wild rush was made for it and
Jacksonville sprung into existence. I wish my descriptive power was
great enough to make you see the town as it is. It is really amusing to
think that it is the county seat and that the voters out of jealousy
could not see fit to have it removed. In the first place it is five
miles from the railroad and nestles in a beautiful spot close up
against a small mountain. The streets are very narrow with shade trees
on each side that cross their branches over the streets. The business
part was built before the Civil War and now the stores unused are
boarded up. They look as though if they could only speak, that they
could tell wild stories of earlier days. There is left a grocery store,
a kind of a drug store and a bank, or rather there was a bank until a
few weeks ago. There is not a place in the town to get a meal. It has
been years since mining operations there ceased after taking millions
out of the hills and since then there has been nothing to keep up the
town. When the Southern Pacific was built through, Jacksonville offered
no inducements and instead it took in Medford and left Jacksonville
out. But it still continued to live by having the county
business.
There was a fine
old man in the town, president of the one bank, honest and
held in high esteem. This last year [sic] he
died and in the vaults were found many sacks of gold dust left to his
care by early miners in the wild rough days of the town and were never
called for, and the old man kept them all these years for the boys who
never returned.
We drove up on the bluff and looked down
at the
town, and our friends who were with us, the Drs. Carlow, remarked that
they had a friend from the East here, who after viewing it exclaimed:
"A duplicate of Irving's Sleepy Hollow." And so it was named and named
well.
Medford was much disappointed in the
fall election because
she failed to get the required number of votes to move the court house
and now it will be another four years before it can be voted on again.
We expect, if the weather permits, to leave here soon for California.
Respectfully
yours,
MRS. G. F.
LINDAUER.
"Mrs.
G. F. Lindauer Writes Interesting Letter of Trip," Laurel Outlook, Laurel,
Montana, January 5, 1921, page 6
Last
revised October 25, 2024
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