Statement by the President: The Diamond Anniversary of Arbor Day.

SEVENTY-FIVE years ago the pioneer settlers of Nebraska dedicated a day to the planting of trees. That was the first Arbor Day. Since then the observance of Arbor Day has spread to every State in the Union and to many countries.

Arbor Day was established by Julius Sterling Morton, one-time United States Secretary of Agriculture, and lifelong advocate of tree planting. As its founder said, Arbor Day is a national observance that looks to the future rather than the past. The trees which start growing today, whether we plant them with our own hands or they are seeded by nature, are the trees that will provide the wood for industry, and beauty and recreation, for the next and succeeding generations.

The Diamond Anniversary of Arbor Day finds the Nation never more appreciative of the indispensable value of trees. There is evidence of this on every hand. Throughout the Nation the movement is spreading to keep America green, to prevent fires which needlessly and tragically destroy trees. Tree farming and tree growing by public and private agencies, and scientific management of our forests for permanent production, are gaining momentum. Only recently, in Washington, a great Forest Congress convened, the third such meeting in our history, bringing together representatives of agriculture, labor, industry, and government to consider the problems of our forests.

And we have today, without question, a very real forest problem. Once, when the Nation's vast forests seemed inexhaustible, we could afford to be lavish, even careless, with this great natural resource. Today, we are coming to think of trees as a crop which, with care and protection, can produce endless harvests of essential timber. The forests of the future will consist of trees we purposefully grow, rather than the trees we found here.

The products of the forests contributed mightily to building this Nation. They will be needed for our continued progress and prosperity. If this country is to be sure of an adequate supply of forest products, it must stop destructive cutting and unwise depletion, and build up timber growth.

The inspiration of Arbor Day is a challenge especially to those who have our forest lands under their stewardship--the farmers and other smaller woodland owners, who own, I am informed, 64 percent of our commercial forest lands, the forest industries who own 11 percent, and our Federal, State, and municipal governments which own 25 percent. To them all, the Nation looks for assurance that the productivity of our woodlands will reach an abundance adequate to our needs.