FOREST SERVICE. 



169 



176.253,160 acres. Gross area includes all lands within the National 

 Forest boundaries ; net area excludes alienated lands. 



On the face of these figures, an increase took place in the net 

 area. This is much more than accounted for by the fact that in 

 1918 four National Forests — the Alabama, Shenandoah, Natural 

 Bridge, and White Mountain — were proclaimed. These four Forests 

 had a total area of 730,894 acres. Their proclamation, however, 

 merely gave formal status as National Forests to lands already under 

 administration and National Forests in everything but the name. 

 They were four of the so-called " Purchase Areas " established in 

 connection with the acquisition of lands for National Forest pur- 

 poses under the Weeks Law. 



In all, five of the Purchase Areas have become National Forests 

 through presidential proclamation, the Pisgah having been pro- 

 claimed in the fiscal year 1917. All the Purchase Areas, however, 

 are now under a form of administration identical with that of the 

 National Forests. Since no change whatever accompanies or fol- 

 lows the formality of proclamation, the apparent net area increase 

 due to this cause is obviously without significance. The real situa- 

 tion is more accurately expressed if all the Purchase Areas are in- 

 cluded as National Forests. The statement then becomes: 



Area o/ Nafional Forests, including purchase areas. 



.In these figures the gross and net areas of the Purchase Areas are 

 treated as identical. The Purchase Areas comprise (1) lands title to 

 which has actually passed to the Government, amounting at the close 

 of the year to 1.132.792 acres; (2) lands approved for purchase by 

 the National Forest Reservation Commission and under process of 

 acquisition, amounting to 509,011 acres; and (3) private lands which 

 may or may not eventually be approved for purchase, amounting, as 

 the boundaries are now drawn, to 4,646,435 acres. The boundaries 

 of the Purchase Areas, however, are not strictly comparable with 

 those of the western National Forests, which are fixed b}- presidential 

 proclamation. They are tentative limits within which the commis- 

 sion will consider making purchases and may be modified at any 

 time, and at present include much more private land than public. 

 Hence in making up the above figures the Purchase Areas are re- 

 garded as including onl}^ the lands which have been actually acquired. 



Prior to the. fiscal year 1917 each successive year since 1909 showed 

 a decrease in both gross and net areas. Compared with the total 

 area when the Forests were at their maximum, early in 1910, the 1918 

 figures given above show a decline of about 18,000.000 acres gross 

 and 16,000.000 net. This cutting down of the Forest areas has re- 

 sulted chiefly from land classification. After nine years of steady 

 sifting to separate from the Forests such lands as should not be 

 permanently retained in public ownership, the task has, except in 



97335°— AGR 1918 12 



