Like the National Forests, the State Forests already in existence will create an increasing demand for the service of technical Foresters. Indeed, as similar forests are acquired by most of the States which are now without them, as undoubtedly they will be, the extent of the opportunity for professionally trained Foresters in State work is certain to grow.
At present, the demand for Foresters in private work is far less pressing and the opening is far less attractive than it will be in the not distant future. The number of men that will be required for this work will depend on the development of legislation as well as upon the desire of the private owners, lumbermen and others, to protect and improve their property. The time is coming, and coming before long, when all private owners of forests in the mountains, or on steep slopes elsewhere, will be required by law to provide for their protection and reproduction. When that time arrives, the demand for Foresters in private work will increase to very large dimensions, and will probably do so far more rapidly than Foresters can be trained to supply it.
The pay of Foresters in private work, whether in the employ of lumbermen, railroads, shooting and fishing clubs, the proprietors of large private estates, or other forest owners, has so far been somewhat better than that for similar services in Government employ. This money difference in favor of private employment is, in my judgment, likely to continue, and eventually the pay of consulting Foresters of established reputation employed in passing upon the value of forests offered as security for investments, or in estimating the standing timber for purchasers or sellers, or in other professional work of large business importance, will certainly reach very satisfactory figures.
Approximately 110 Foresters are engaged in teaching in the United States to-day. Their pay varies from about $1000 to about $3000, and is likely to increase rather more rapidly than that of other professional teachers, since less of them are available. It is not likely, however, that the number of openings in teaching forestry will be large within the next ten years.
The length of time which his training is to take and the particular courses of instruction which he shall pursue are to the young man contemplating the study of forestry matters of the first importance. The first thing to insist on in that connection is that the training must be thorough. It is natural that a young man should be eager to begin his life work and therefore somewhat impatient of the long grind of a thorough schooling. But however natural, it is not the part of wisdom to cut short the time of preparation. When the serious work of the trained Forester begins later on, there will be little or no time to fill the gaps left at school, and the earnest desire of the young Forester will be that he had spent more time in his preparation rather than less. In this matter I speak as one who has gathered a conviction from personal experience, and believes he knows.