REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. 49* 



present time is in connection with the administration of the national 

 forests in Alaska. 



The location of pulp mills in these forests would aid greatly in 

 solving the problem of our future supplies of newsprint. Under 

 regulated use, the Tongass National Forest alone can probably pro- 

 duce forever 1,500,000 tons of newsprint yearly, along with ample 

 quantities of timber for local purposes. By far the most valuable 

 timber in Alaska is that which fringes its western seaboard, the 

 northward extension of the coast forests of Washington and British 

 Columbia. Practically all this coastal area is owned by the Govern- 

 ment. It is under national forest administration, and timber from it 

 is already playing an important part in the industrial development of 

 the Territory. Every sawmill on the coast from Ketchikan to Seward 

 obtains its supply from the national forests. These mills furnish 

 nearly all the lumber used in the region, and forest administration is 

 intimately related to every form of industry and to every community 

 in the coastal area. 



RESPONSIBILITY OF THE FOREST SER\T:CE. 



Because of this relation, a peculiar responsibility rests on the Forest 

 Service in Alaska. To fulfill it effectively under a system of long- 

 range administration is impossible. The public resources in Alaska 

 can be properly managed only liy lodging authority in men on the 

 ground to act without waiting to consult distant superiors, and the 

 Forest Service has consistently followed this policy. There is close 

 cooperation between the Forest Service and the Territorial govern- 

 ment, and the animating purpose of the forest officers is to make the 

 forests serve the welfare of Alaska. 



The greatest need of Alaska is for the investment of capital id 

 enterprises for the development of resources which caii be developed 

 in no other way. The pulpwood supplies of the coast forests offer 

 the best immediate opening for capital. To the task of securing 

 their utilization on a large scale, the energies of the Forest Service 

 are now being directed, with every promise of success. One large 

 sale has already been closed and others are in prospect. Through 

 such enterprises the population of the Territory will be built up, its 

 wealth increased, and other forms of development stimulated. 



AMENDMENTS TO EXISTING LEGISLATION. 



In the early history of the Department of Agriculture its work was 

 directed largely along the lines of research and education. In recent 

 years, its activities have been expanded to include the administra- 

 tion of various regulatory laws relating for the most part, directly 

 or indirectly, to agricultural commodities or operations. Some of 



