REPORT OF THE FORESTER. 169 



for 11 timber and stone claims, 8 coal claims, G desert-land entries, 

 and 27 miscellaneous entries. 



Excellent progress was made in classifying and opening to entry 

 the remaining agricultural lands in the Forests. At the close of the 

 fiscal year a total area of 127,156,610 acres had been covered by field 

 examinations and the classification approved by the Secretary of 

 Agriculture. Of this total about 57,000,000 acres was covered dur- 

 ing the past year. There now remain to be examined and classified 

 slightly less than 50,000,000 acres, including 21,000,000 acres in the 

 National Forests of Alaska. In carrying on the work cveiy effort has 

 been made to dispose first of those areas which would make available 

 for settlement most quickly and with the least effort the greatest 

 area of land suitable for farming purposes. It is believed that by 

 far the greater part of the agricultural land has now been made 

 available for homestead settlement and entry, either by listings under 

 the forest homestead act or by. elimination. Nevertheless, much w^ork 

 remains to be done before the classification work is completed. This 

 is largely due to the fact that the most difficult lands have been left 

 to the last. 



Since the passage of the act of 1912, providing funds for land clas- 

 sification, and as a direct result of classification work, 12,039,7-36 

 acres have been eliminated from the National Forests. The effect is 

 very clearly shown in the marked falling off of applications under 

 the forest homestead act. In 1915 the total number of applications 

 received was 4,433. In 1916, owing to the large progress made in 

 classifying and opening the agricultural land, the applications 

 dropped to 2,589, a reduction of 41 per cent. In 1917 the number 

 again dropped to 1,373, a reduction of 47 per cent. A corresponding 

 reduction is shown in the number of individual tracts opened to 

 entry under the forest homestead act. In 1915 the total was 2,356 ; 

 in 1916, 1,102 ; in 1917, 843. 



FOREST MANAGEMENT. 



The total amount of timber cut from the Forests in 1917 was 

 840,612,000 board feet, as against 714,505,000 board feet in 1916.^ 

 The amount of timber sold was more than double that in the previous 

 fiscal year. This increase in sales occurred both in small sales for 

 local use and in large sales for the general market. In all, 11,608 

 sales were made, of which 4,686 were at cost rates to homestead set- 

 tlers and farmers under the act of August 10, 1912. As cutting oper- 

 ations on the large sales made during the year reach their full devel- 

 opment, they should normally result in a still larger cut and larger 

 receipts than those of last year. At the close of the fiscal year labor 

 troubles in the Northwest had caused a temporary suspension or 

 reduction in operations on some sales. 



1 In the Report of the Forester for 1916 the total cut was ftiven as 664,920,000 board 

 feet. Through an error in computation the figures for quantity and value of timber sold 

 in Montana and northern Idaho were interclianged witli the corresponding figures for 

 quantity and value of timber cut. The correction of this error results in the substitu- 

 tion of the following figures in place of those reported last year : Timlier sold under com- 

 mercial sales, fiscal year 1916 — Idaho, ".'^,741,000 board feet, with a value of lf:i.57,495.07 : 

 Montana, 42.58.5,000 board feet, with a value of .$89,697.03; total in all States, 834,004.000 

 board feet, value $1,654,999.92; grand total of commercial and cost sales, 857.321,000 

 board feet, value $1,672,249.77. Timber cut under commercial sales — Idaho. 69.826.000 

 board feet, value $164,503.64 ; Montana, 94,552,000 board feet, value $203,004.27 ; total 

 in all states, 575,552,000 hoard feet, value .I;!. 241, 104. 90 ; grand total of commercial and 

 cost sales, 595.022,000 board feet, value .$1,255,600.75. The average price obtained for 

 timber placed under contract in commercial sales in 1916 was $1.98 per thousand board 

 feet, instead of $2.01, and the average price per thousand obtained in sales at cost rates 

 was $1.24 less than that obtained in commercial sales, instead of $1.27. 



