FOREST SERVICE. 329 



During the year 57 applications for projects in whole or in part 

 on national forest land were received by the Federal Power Com- 

 mission. This exceeds by 12 the number for the preceding year, and 

 is over half the total received during the year for permits on alL 

 Government lands and navigable streams. 



The Federal Power Commission referred 33 applications to the 

 Forest Service for engineering report and 20 for administrative 

 report. At the end of the year the Forest Service was supervising 

 and inspecting the operations of 78 permittees or licensees under the 

 Federal water power act. On 16 of these cases, all of which are in 

 Alaska, it is supervising the stream-gauging operations also. 



The utilization of the pulpwood resources in the Tongass Forest 

 in Alaska depends very largely upon the development of water 

 power. As a result of field investigations, especially those made by 

 the Forest Service during the past three years, a considerable 

 number of promising sites have been discovered. Several applica- 

 tions for permit or license have been filed with the Federal Power 

 Commission, the expressed purpose being the utilization of power in 

 the manufacture of wood pulp. By law competition is essential to 

 the sale of national forest timber. To carry out this requirement 

 and comply with the provisions of the Federal water power act, the 

 Forest Service and Federal Power Commission have entered into an 

 agreement under which action upon applications for water power 

 and timber will proceed simultaneously as far as possible. After the 

 completion of advertising and the submission of bids for the timber 

 the Forest Service and the Power Commission will determine to 

 which applicant, ordinarily the highest bidder, both timber and 

 power permit shall be awarded. Both timber award and power 

 permit are subject to cancellation if the right to either privilege is 

 lost. The same period will be allowed for the completion of sur- 

 veys and plans for timber and power development, and the water- 

 power license and the final timber contract will be acted upon as 

 nearly as possible at the same time. 



This joint action places all bidders for national forest timber on 

 an equality and enables the organizers of pulp and paper enter- 

 prises to have equal assurance in regard to both timber supply and 

 water power during the period of investigation and plan making 

 when the expenditure of considerable sums of money is necessary. 



ROADS AND TRAILS. 



From January 1, 1922, to June 30, 1923, greater progress was 

 made in road and trail work on the national forests than in any 

 preceding period of the same length. The following table shows 

 the accomplishments during the fiscal year 1923 and the total accom- 

 plishments and expenditure to the close of that year: 



