The Conservative *
A pioneer who
TREE PLANTING , came upon the
treeless plains of
Nebraska in 1854 takes inexpressible
satisfaction in the fact that he has wit
nessed the enchontry of transforming
prairies into groves and orchards. It is
now a great effort to revive the mental
image of desolation and treelessness
which reached from the River to the
Mountains. It is almost impossible to
recall the sombre pictures of the first
cabins on these prairies , unprotected
from the blasts of winter and unshaded
from the withering sun of summer by a
single tree. It is a sincere solace to the
editor of THE CONSERVATIVE to have
aided in the beneficent work of planting
trees in Nebraska and throughout the
United States. The following literature
relative to Arbor Day is therefore republished -
published with a personal pride and
gratification which even enemies may
possibly pardon :
"What is now known almost through
out the civilized world as 'Arbor Day , '
originated in Ne-
Arbor Day braska. At an
Its Origin. annual meeting of
the Nebraska State
Board of Agriculture , held in the city of
Lincoln , Jan. 4 , 1872 , J. Sterling Morton
of Arbor Lodge , introduced the fol
lowing resolution , which was unani
mously adopted , after some little debate
as to the name , some present contending
for the term 'Sylvan' instead of'Arbor. '
'Resolved , That Wednesday , the 10th
day of April , 1872 , be and the same is
hereby especially set apart and con
secrated for tree planting in the state of
Nebraska , and the State Board of Agri
culture hereby name it Arbor Day ; and ,
to urge upon the people of the state the
vital importance of tree planting , hereby
offer a special premium of one hundred
dollars to the agricultural society of that
county in Nebraska which shall , upon
that day , plant properly the largest
number of trees ; and a farm library of
twenty-five dollars' worth of books to
that person who , on that day , shall plant
properly in Nebraska the greatest num
ber of trees. '
"Mr. J. T. Allan offered the following
resolution , which was also adopted
unanimously :
Resolved , That the newspapers of
the state be requested by the State
Board of Agriculture to keep the resolu
tion in regard to the anniversary day
for tree planting standing in their
columns until April 10th next , and to
call especial attention of th e people to
the importance of the matter from time
to time. '
"The newspapers of the state were
generous , and kept Arbor Day well
before the people. The result was that
over a million trees were planted in
Nebraska on the first Arbor Day , April
10th , 1872. The day was ngain observed
in 1878 with increased interest and
results. "
DEERFOOT FARM , SOUTHBOROUGH ,
March 26 , 1888.
Dear Sir I thank you for the oppor
tunity you so kindly offer me of uniting
my thanks with those of others to Mr.
Morton on the 22d of April. I heartily
wish all our newspapers could be as
usefully employed on that day.
Our Teutonic ancestors , if they did
not worship trees , at least held certain
species of them sacred , and made votive
offerings to them on certain days of the
year. In this vegetable hagiology the
oak and the beech held the first places ,
for the frugal reason , perhaps , that their
mast furnished a gratuitous food for
swine , the chief wealth , one may
assume , of these dwellers in the primeval
forest. If the Aryan races migrated
westward from Asia , they probably
brought this cult with them , for there ,
also trees are looked upon with religious
veneration. The Greeksin thisas in other
things , had a more imaginative faith ,
and associated the lives of superhuman ,
though not immortal , things with those
of trees.
I willingly confess so great a partiality
for trees as tempts me to respect a man
in exact proportion to his respect for
them. He cannot be wholly bad who has
a sympathy with what is so innocent and
so beautiful. But quite apart from any
sentimental consideration , the influence
of trees upon climate and rainfall gives
to the planting of trees , and to the pro
tection of them where nature lias
already planted them , a national im
portance. Our wicked wastefulness
and contempt for the teaching of science
in this matter will most surely be
avenged on our descendants. Nature
may not instantly rebuke , but she never
forgives the breach of her laws.
I am glad therefore , to join in this
tribute of friendly gratitude to the in
ventor of Arbor Day. I think that no
man does anything more visibly useful
to posterity than he who plants a tree.
I should answer the cynic's question ,
"What has posterity done for me that I
should do anything for it ? " by saying
that it is all the pleasanter to do some
thing for those who can do nothing for
us.
Marco Polo relates that the great
Kublai Khan planted trees the more
willingly because "his astrologers and
diviners told him that they who planted
trees lived long. " Let mo hope that this
may prove true in the case of Mr. Mor
ton. Faithfully yours ,
J. R. LOWELL.
WEST NEW BRIGHTON ,
STATEN ISLAND , N. Y. , March 21.
DEAR SIR I am very glad to join in
grateful congratulations to the author
of the suggestion which has resulted in
so beautiful and serviceable an observ
ance as Arbor Day. Whatever makes a
village or town more attractive pro-
motes that local pride and public spirit
which are the vital and conservative
forces of a great republic ; and if the
planter of one shade tree is a public
benefactor , what shall we say of him
who stimulates the planting of whole
groves and forests ? Truly yours ,
GEORGE WILLIAM OURTIS.
175 W. 58TH ST. , NEW YORK ,
March 26 , 1888.
DEAR SIR I gladly join those who
honor Mr. Morton for his zeal in promoting
meting the planting of forest trees. The
man who does that deserves well of his
country.
I am , dear sir , very truly yours ,
O. SOHURZ.
WASHINGTON , D. O.March 28 , 1888.
DEAR SIR The reformer in this world ,
when he begins his work is called a
crank , when he has succeeded in bring
ing some of the more intelligent people
ple to think and see with him , he is
called an enthusiast , and when the re
sults of his labors begin to show them
selves he is called a hero and is wor
shiped. And well he ought to be ! For
he has had not only the right idea , but
he has had the courage of a hero to
stand by his convictions , be it in the
wide field of political or national de
velopment , be it in the narrower field of
economic or communal development.
The man who starts a new idea de
serves credit first , the man who puts the
idea into practice next , and the man who
gains general recognition of it value
next. I believe the credit belongs in all
these phases to J. Sterling Morton for
the idea of Arbor Day , and I gladly pay
my tribute to the man who started , put
into practice , and promulgated the new
idea , which has fcow become generally
recognized as one of the important edu
cational means of changing a race of
forest destroyers into a race of forest
planters.
As an educational feature , to stimu
late interest in tree culture , Arbor Day
is now recognized by twenty-eight
states ; enough to make its observance
as a national festival possible and desira
ble. As means . to produce actual
quantitatire tree planting in the num
ber of trees planted on that one day I
believe that Nebraska still stands ahead
of all other states , thanks to the foster
ing care which has been bestowed by
the agricultural and horticultural socie
ties and public-spirited men upon keep
ing the interest in the day unflagging.
And while a comparison of the enorm
ous yearly drain upon our forest re
sources equaling probably not less than
twice the amount of possible yearly
wood-growth on our present forest area
with the amount of present tree planting
does not lend strength to the hope that
by sucli tree planting as may be done in
one day , an appreciable amount of what
has been used during the year is re
placed , yet the observance of Arbor Day
is aiding in bringing about a realization