アメリカ合州国における林業と環境保全運動 (2) : 雑誌"Garden and Forest"とその関係者たち

Abstract

19世紀末のアメリカにおける環境問題の顕在化は環境保全の専門分野としての林業と造園の確立を促した。その理論的運動の一翼を担ったのが "Garden and Forest" という雑誌とその関係者たちであった。それまでの林業とは, 無尽蔵の森林から木を伐るだけの業であり, 造園とは園芸や家の回りの修景でしかなく, 裕福な人々の関心は珍奇な植物の収集に向けられていた。そこから環境と言う広大な空間の保全への関心を高め, 自然公園や都市の緑地計画へ向かう理論づけがなされるようになることに, この雑誌の関係者たちはその論説などを通じて大いに貢献した。

The last decade of the 19th century was an era of environmental awareness brought by urban problems and the destruction of forests in the United States as symbolized by Frontier theory by Jackson Turner. At the beginning of such period, a weekly magazine titled "Garden and Forest" was inaugurated in early 1888. This magazine, conducted by Charles S. Sargent of the Arnold Arboretum, was commercially not very successful, but the contributors were given opportunities to express new ideas and to discuss them freely. Among them were leaders of new professions called forestry and landscape architecture. Frederick Law Olmsted, co-founder of this magazine, could not write to this magazine because he was occupied with many landscaping projects in spite of his age. However, his successors like Eliot, Codman and his step son Charles contributed more often and tried hard to establish their new profession in the society and expanded the field of landscape architecture from park maker to the regional planner. On the other hand, foresters like Fernow, Pinchot and Schenk also took advantage of contributing to this magazine. Death of Stiles, an extremely capable and eloquent editor of this magazine, following Eliot, put an end to this magazine in December 1897. However, during that decade, both forestry and landscape architecture had solidified their base. In 1899, American Society of Landscape Architects was organized, and it was followed by establishment of first landscape architecture curriculum in the United States at Harvard. At the same time, Society of American Foresters was organized, and national forest system began rapid expansion for conservation.