Editorials

Media

Part of Forestry Leaves

Title: Editorials
Language: English
Year: 1954
Rights
Fulltext: The Staff of the FORESTRY LEAVES Organ of the Student Body and Alumni of the College of Forestry, U.P. Auociate Editora: FELICIANO V. BARRER FORTUNATO ARcANGEL FLORENCIO MAURICIO Photographer: KA.SPA AGANWAD Board ol Mattaiement ALFONSO TIAM BENJAMIN BATOON RAFAEL MOLINO BIENVENIDO PARAGAS EDMUNDO CORTES BKRNAROO BURGOS, Jr. College, Laguna 1953-1954 BERNARDO C. AGALOOS Editor in Chiel JULIAN R. MEIMBAN, JR. BusillBsa M~er PELAGIO BAUTISTA Asst. Bua. Manqer Prof. JOSE B. BLANDO Adviser THE. FINAL TEST Managing Editor NAPOLEON T. VBllGAJtA Contributina Editora: BENJAMIN D. ALMONTE TEoFILO A. SANTOS FRANCISCO N. TAMQLANG Circulation Dept. HERMAN AGPAWA ANASTACIO SISON JOSE DE LA ROSA MARIANO V ALBRA JOSE TOMAS At long last, they who have persevered and toiled not over conscientiously are graduates, with a ranger certificate or a B.S.F. diploma to show the world that they have successfully completed the' requirements of their course. They are ready to tackle their chosen tasks, confident that with the many years of intensive training behind them, no problem is too hard to solve, no obstacle too high to hurdle. As they leave the familiar forest haunts and chalk-dusted classrooms where many study-filled days were spent to offer their services wherever needed, they are no doubt, filled with mixed feelings of curious apprehension over the future, of sorrow over partin'.g from friends and faculty, and of joy over the l!Ulmination of an uphill struggle. No more confusingly voluminous lectures, no more exhausting field work, no more exams to sweat over. The faculty has tirelessly taught and trained them through the semesters until it has finally placed its stamp of approval and faith in them. The graduates now face the final test-the lifelong test of actual service where their training, character, ability, and fortitude have to undergo the grind. To justify the faitp that the faculty has placed in them, they must pass this final test with flying colors. Here is good luck to them!-BCA . THE AID HAS COME More than a year ago, the MSA (formerly ECA, now FOA) AID started rolling into the College of Agriculture. When, we wondered, would the Aid reach us? We received a heart-warming answer from a reliable source: "Soon." But how soon is "Soon"? Nobody knew, but in this case, it was almost two years. While buildings cropped up like GRADUATION ISSUE-APRIL, 1954 Pa·~ 43 mushrooms in the College of Agriculture, we did not get anything to boost our morales with. In despair, we almost gave up hope. But now the long wait is over, and the situation has changed. Despair has turned into bright prospects, for with the hum of the machines and the knock of the hammers, the Forest Products Laboratory is gradually coming into being, and it is not coming alone. With it will be a modern electric sawmill, a Central Experiment Station and, if the good old U.P. wills it, a new and spacious College of Forestry building. Our long and painful waiting is at last rewarded; the AID has come.-N.T.V. A GREAT LOSS And now he is gone. For he responded to the sudden call of his Creator. He left the earth to return no more. But in taking his eternal leave from this world where he had faithfully dedicated much of his God-given life to the service of his country, he was able to establish a monument not so much for his own glory as for· those who now live-may those who in their hours of despair and impatience almost abandoned the ship now remember him, the man who stuck to his job to the very end with undiminished zeal and unselfish devotion. This man was Sr. Forester Placido Dacanay who died of coronary thrombosis on the fateful day of February 10, 1954, at the age of 60. The story of Philippine Forestry can not be told in its entirety without mentioning the late Sr. Forester Dacanay whose labor has added several pages, important ones, to the long tale of survival and progress that is the story of forestry in our country. Until his demise as chief, Division of Reclamation and Reforestation, he left no stone unturned to make reforestation-his pet project-gain a big headway. His second name could very well be Reforestation. I would like to conjecture that within the split seconds before he took his last breath the thought that he was going to die not in vain: passed his mind. Indeed, he died not in vain. For his achievements have considerably helped promote the cause of Philippine forestry. Although he died not in vain, yet I can not help feeling, with tears in my heart, that his death is a great Joss because there we.re many things that will make him remembered long. For as a man, he was a gentleman. As a boss, he was understanding, yet upright. To his family, he was a devoted husband and a loving father. As a public servant, he was faithful and patriotic. And above all, he was a friend to everyone-T. A Santos (Footnote: The late Forester Dacanay, to me, had been a second father since 1935. I can recall with nostalgic feelings the father-and-son-like association we had had in the College of Forestry at Los Baiios, during p1·e-war, Japanese occupation, post liberation years and up to the time of his death. We met on Dasmariiias, Manila, on February 8, 1954. It was high-noon then when I met him. He told me that he was going home because he could not hold on until 4: 00 in the afternoon. He gave me his last fatherly advice. Then we parted ways. And that was the last time we met.) HOUSE BILL 324 There is now filed with the lower house a bill jointly sponsored by Congressmen Jacobo Gonzales and Florencio Moreno which seeks an outlay of P185,000.00 for the rehabilitation and expansion of the College of Forestry building. The bill seeks this Page 44 FORESTRY LEAVES allotment as the counterpart of the PHILCUSA aid in the amount of Pl67,000.00 for the above mentioned purpose. The counterpart was supposed to have been put up by the University of the Philippines but as the U.P. found itself in financial handicaps, it passed the task of raising the counterpart to the College itself. Consequently, a bill, prepared by the Bureau of Forestry, the director of which is concurrently the Dean of the College of Forestry, was sponsored by Congressman Gonzales. The original amount asked for was P200,000.00 but the lower house Committee on Public Works although sympatheLc with our cause slashed it down to ?185,000.00. But unless the counterpart could be put up on or before June 30 of this year, the aid would be withdrawn. The alumni have cooperated, to a man, with the forester-in-charge, who left no stone unturned in appealing to them so they would write to their respective congressmen. Every student has likewise written to the congressman of his province. The friends of every alumnus and student also extended their help so that it can be said that the Bureau of Forestry, College of Forestry and friends have done a wonderful job in synchronizing their appeal to members of Congress. Even the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources wrote a memorandum to Malacaiiang urging the President to certify that it is a must bill. Governor Chipeco of Laguna has pledged to the faculty to intercede for the forgotten college of the U.P.-the College of Forestry. It is hard to predict the fate of a bill presented before Congress but often times we have heard it sa!d "that more things are wrought by prayer'', and while we think that under the circumstances, the best thing to do is to cress our fingers, we also believe that when a college and a bureau pray together, the prayer will be heard. The Kind of Men .. WHO MAKE GOOD FORESTERS In addition to good character, industry, in!tiative, native intelligence and judgment required in most walks of life, the following personal characteristics are particularly important to the forester: He should have a genuine and enduring liking for out-of-doors work; those whose interests center in city life seldom make successful foresters. He f='hould be interested in growing things. He should have a reasonable robustness of body and mind; be able to undergo periods of physical exertion and work pressure without playing out or "blowing up" on the job. He should be willing to live much of his life in the smaller towns and commu~ities and at times work under lonely conditions. Frequent moves in the early part of one's career are likely. Foresters' wives should recognize this too. He should have ::t real liking, interest and tolerance for people and be able to live and work with them at all levels. He should have a strong sense of responsibility, service and professional interest that goes beyond the pay check. Forestry is a way of life as well as a means of livelihood. He 8hould be well adjusted and balanced mentally; not overly sensitive and introspective o.nd unable to stand up under reasonable criticism or supervision; not domineering and egotistical and· unable to take advice. There needs to be a good balance between leadership, which is important, and ab:lity to work with and under others. A forester should be a good group worker and yet able to work alone effectively. GRADUATION ISSUE-APRIL, 1954 Page 45 THE COLLEGE OF FORESTRY FACULTY AND STUDENT BODY'S NOTE OF THANKS It is but fitting and proper at the closing of the school year 1953-54, that the College of Forestry Faculty and Student Body should express their heartfelt thanks to those who in one way or another have given the:r help, financial and otherwise, to the College of Forestry's programs and projects. Among these may be mentioned, the Alumni and friends who generously contributed to the Sound Movie Projector Fund, to Congressmen Gonzalez and Moreno. who are jointly sponsoring the H.B. No. 324, which seeks an appropriation of one hundred and eighty-five thousand pesos for the rehabilitation and expansion of the College of Forestry, to Secretary Araneta of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources and to Governor Chipeco who have spoken in our behalf to President Magsaysay, to all alumni in the Central Office and iri the field, especially Forester Cenabre, who have written and personally spoken to their congressmen to help in the passage of the bill, to the U.P. Conservatory of.Mus:c, and to the U.P. Rural High School players, to the L.V.N., and to our advertisers for their cooperation, and above all to Senate President Pro Tempore Briones, who went out of his way, just to be with us on our Moving-Up Day. Without their help, the success of the College of Forestry activities and the printing ·of this graduation issue could not have been possible. Page 46 LOYALTY If you work for a man In heaven's name work for him Speak well of him and stand by the institution he represents -Remember an ounce of loyalty is a pound of cleverness, If you must growl, condemn and eternally find faults Why, resign your position And when you are on the outside, Damn to your heart's content But as long as you are a part of the institution Don't condemn it If you do the first high wind That comes along will blow you away And probably you'll never know why -Elbert Hubbard FORESTRY LEAVES