BUREAU OF SOILS. 229 



that ground alone. It happens also that the regions covered have 

 been those in which the previous knowledge of the soil in possession 

 of the bureau was probably less than in the ca.se of any other equally 

 large area in the continental United States. The results have a very 

 great value to the bureau, therefore, in its work of making a soil 

 map of the United States. Its purely scientific value, in showing 

 the relation of soil character to native vegetation, is of considerable 

 value also. 



ASSISTANCE RENDERED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR BY THE SOIL SURVEY. 



The work of the soil survey has been and still is carried on mainly 

 in those parts of the United States having smooth topography and 

 in which agriculture is the predominant industry. The greater part 

 of such portions of the country were not covered by any base map of 

 sufficient accuracy to be used for our soil survey mapping, a large 

 part of the mapping done heretofore by the United States Geologi- 

 cal Survey covering mountainous regions and regions where mining 

 is the predominant industry. It has been necessary, therefore, for 

 the soil survey to construct its own base map in such regions, it being 

 essential in soil survey work to have a base map that is very full 

 and accurate in its exposition of local cultural and drainage features 

 and their local relation to each other and to the boundaries of the 

 various soils. This has been more true, probably, of the Coastal 

 Plain of the eastern and southern parts of the United States than of 

 any other area of the country equally large. The maps published by 

 the bureau covering counties in the region are, most of them, there- 

 fore, the best maps of those areas in existence, notwithstanding the 

 fact that they do not attempt to show the nature of the topography. 



When war was declared a year ago there was a strong demand for 

 all the definite cartographic information about the country that 

 could be obtained, the eastern coastal region receiving the predomi- 

 nant part of the attention. Our maps were in great demand, there- 

 fore, by A^arious bureaus of the Department of War, copies of all our 

 published maps were called for and in many cases advance informa- 

 tion concerning areas the the maps of which had not yet been pub- 

 lished was supplied. 



lu addition to the data that are accumulated in the course of our 

 work for our own use, the survey has undertaken to collect, through 

 the medium of the soil survey field force, certain additional data of 

 especial value to the Department of War, blanks for recording the 

 information being furnished by that department and distributed to 

 the field men. 



Since the Department of War itself is now doing a great deal of 

 base map making in certain parts of the country arrangements have 

 been made by wdiich an exchange of information will take place, 

 we furnishing data to that department in areas covered bj^ us, they 

 supplying us w^ith the base map data in areas covered by them, so 

 that no duplication of effort will occur. 



In addition to the above, some information has been furnished the 

 department concerning the nature of the soil, in certain localities, 

 required by them for specific purposes, though seemingly this very 

 important information possessed in so great detail by the bureau ha,s 

 not been in so great demand as its value would seem to justify. 



