EARLY AMERICAN SOCIALISM

From Forrest McDonald's terrific book, Novus Ordo Seclorum, p. 32:

The principle of reserving certain trees for public benefit, however, was retained in the new United States: under acts of Congress, beginning on March 1, 1817, the cutting of live oaks and red cedars was prohibited by law, on the ground that they were especially adaptable for ships' timbers. These trees were therefore not subject to private ownership, being inherently the property of the United States.