REPORT OF THE AMERICAN RAILWAY ENGINEERING AND MAINTENANCE OF WAY ASSOCIATION
In October, 1908, the National Conservation Commission invited the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance of Way Association, in connection with other technical bodies of this country, to be represented at the Conference in Washington, and to assist the National Conservation Commission with suggestions concerning advisable lines of inquiry, nature of report to be made, and possibilities of accomplishment on the part of the Commission. Acting upon this invitation, the Board of Directors of the Association appointed a Special Committee to cooperate with the Commission. This Committee consisted of eight members of the Association, selected from widely separated sections of the country.
The Association, through its Committee, was represented at the joint Conservation Conference held in Washington beginning December 8, 1908; and the Committee has been keeping in touch with the Conservation Commission through Mr Pinchot and the Secretary, Mr Thomas R. Shipp. Several meetings of the Committee have been held, and in March, 1909, the Committee was addressed by Dr Joseph A. Holmes, of the Commission.
In March, 1909, the Committee, through its Chairman, requested Mr Pinchot to furnish, through cooperation with the Forest Service, suggestions as to the best methods to be pursued by the railroad companies for the prevention and control of forest fires, with statistics of the loss from such cause, and urged upon the Commission the importance of endeavoring to effect reduction in the tariff on cross-ties and in lumber rates, in order to make it possible for the railroad companies to import ties and save thereby the home supply. The cooperation of the Committee was offered with the forest-products laboratory at the University of Wisconsin, or with any of the National or State organizations.
On May 13, 1909, an elaborate report was transmitted to the Committee by the National Conservation Commission, through Secretary Shipp, containing valuable suggestions as to the possibilities of railroad companies assisting the work of Conservation by thorough methods of prevention and control of forest fires and the cultivation of timber for railroad purposes, by the use of sawed instead of hewed ties, the use of treated timber and the extension of the supply of creosote, and other features, many relating to timber resources. This report was transmitted by the Committee to the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance of Way Association, published by the Association, and distributed throughout the country in one of its bulletins. Dealing directly, as it does, with those features of Conservation that affect the railroad companies and their patrons, and having a circulation among railroad officers covering the United States, as well as large portions of Canada and Mexico, the results should be exceedingly beneficial to the cause of Conservation.
In March of this year the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance of Way Association, recognizing the growing importance of the Conservation movement, established the Special Committee as one of the Standing Committees of the Association, at the same time largely increasing its personnel and bringing into membership a number of prominent railroad officers of this country and Canada.
The work of the Committee has been divided into sub-committees for the purpose of specialization; these, with an outline for investigation are as follows:
No. 1—Tree planting and general reforestation
a—Extent of existing forests considered in connection with increase of growth and consumption
b—Judicious selection of tree varieties for planting, and locality and soil conditions considered; possibility of value from growth on cut-over land
c—Methods of planting and cultivation, with cost of same, considering possibilities from cut-over lands
d—Anticipated results at maturity from trees so produced
e—Methods and costs of caring for and protecting existing forests
No. 2—Coal and fuel-oil resources
a—Extent of existing supplies, considered in connection with consumption
b—Extent of waste in production
c—Economic consumption, giving consideration to practical use of by-products
No. 3—Iron and steel resources
a—Supplies of raw material, considered in connection with consumption
b—Waste in production
c—Best methods of protecting finished products from destructive influences
The Committee will continue on the lines of investigation as shown, and holds itself in readiness to cooperate with the National Conservation Commission and its kindred and subsidiary organizations, as well as other National societies, for the furtherance of the great principles of Conservation of the Nation's resources.
The Committee:
A. S. Baldwin,
Chief Engineer Illinois Central R. R. Co. (Chairman)
Moses Burpee,
Chief Engineer Bangor and Aroostook Railroad
W. A. Bostwick,
Metallurgical Engineer Carnegie Steel Company
E. F. Busteed,
General Superintendent Canadian Pacific Railway
E. B. Cushing,
Southern Pacific Company
E. O. Faulkner,
Manager Tie and Timber Department, Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe System
W. F. H. Finke,
Tie and Timber Agent Southern Railway
J. W. Kendrick,
Vice-President Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe System
A. L. Kuehn,
General Superintendent American Creosoting Company
G. A. Mountain,
Chief Engineer Canadian Railway Commission
Wm. McNab,
Principal Asst. Engineer Grand Trunk Railway
C. L. Ransom,
Resident Engineer Chicago and Northwestern Railway
[Signed] A. S. Baldwin
Chairman