170 



ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



The timber business on the eastern purchase areas, while still small 

 in amount compared with that on the western Forests, showed a de- 

 cided increase. From these purchased lands 22,317,000 board feet, 

 valued at $51,544.49, were sold, as against 6,279,000 board feet, valued 

 at $6,369.23 in 1916, and 5,435,000 board feet, valued at $7,315.54, 

 were cut, as against 3,875,000 board feet, valued at $3,992.70, in 1916. 

 The material taken in these sales is largely of poor quality, and its 

 removal is an aid in improving the composition of the stand. In a 

 few cases the value of the material sold has equaled the price paid 

 by the Government for the land and timber. This has been clue to 

 the marked increase in the value of some minor forest products, such 

 as chestnut acid wood. 



An aggregate of 113,073,000 board feet of timber, valued at 

 $149,801.86, was cut and removed from the National Forests under the 

 free-use privilege by approximately 41,427 users. Over 17,000,000 

 board feet of this material was secured from free-use areas without 

 written permit by over 13,000 users. 



The average price of $1.86 per thousand feet received for timber 

 placed under, contract in commercial sales during the j^ear is 14 cents 

 less than the average for the year 1916. This is due to the sale of 

 large amounts of low-priced timber in the Pacific Northwest, and it 

 is no indication of the average market value of the timber on all 

 National Forests. The average price received varies somewhat from 

 year to year, according to the location of large sales and the kind of 

 timber involved in them. 



The quantity and value of timber sold and timber cut under com- 

 mercial sales is given by States in Table 1. In compiling this table 

 material of all kinds was converted into board feet log scale. 



Table 1. — Timber sold and cut under commercial sales, fiscal year 1917. 



state. 



Alasta 



Arizona 



Arkansas 



California 



Colorado 



Florida 



Georgia 



Idaho 



Michitran 



Minnesota , 



Montana 



Nevada 



New Hampsliire 



New Mexico 



North Carolina 



Oklahoma 



Oregon 



South Dakota 



Tennessee 



Utah 



Virgima 



Washington 



Wyoming 



Totall917 



Total 1916 



Total sales and cut, 1917 



Commercial 



Cost 



Grand total 



Timber sold. 



Board feet. 



46,385,000 



67,195,000 



21,192,000 



122,133,000 



44,696,000 



9S3.000 



196, 000 



257,316,000 



129,000 



755,000 



194,124,000 



1,906,000 



9,667,000 



163,183,000 



2,594,000 



25,000 



688,513,000 



32,132,000 



1,765,000 



10,044,000 



8,095,000 



290,778,000 



15,632,000 



1,982,438,000 

 834,004,000 



1,982,438,000 

 25,649,000 



2,008,087,000 



Value. 



$61,256.39 



161,215.90 



86, 182. 56 



286,599.66 



76, 745. 61 



2,077.95 



330. 01 



581,962.49 



278. 10 



2, 222. 87 



4.52,113.30 



2,890.46 



24,129.00 



25?, 616. 29 



3,742.54 



21. 25 



1,159,018.95 



64,487.02 



3,768.62 



21,613.33 



19, 574. 31 



388, 547. 18 



43,720.55 



3,695,114.34 

 1,654,999.92 



3,695,114.34 

 20,311.80 



3,715,426.14 



Timber cut. 



Board feet. Value, 



46,621,000 

 52,845,000 

 16, 807, 000 

 66,643,000 

 38,864,000 

 483,000 

 142,000 

 81,278,000 



3,. 582, 000 



101,978,000 



1,391,000 



544,000 



43,8.37,000 



1,028,000 



25,000 



102,461,000 



22,198,000 



1,890,000 



16, 869, 000 



1,831,000 



80,645,000 



21,719,000 



$59,917.14 



120, 661. 25 



53, 277. 05 



143,352.01 



70,125.70 



1, 252. 77 



260. 84 



200,592.06 



10, 672. 72 



244,353.41 



2,352.26 



3,130.00 



96, 415. 00 



961. 68 



21.25 



2.33,25.5.37 



51,924.11 



927. 39 



44, 104. 82 



2, 035. 63 



106, 603. 74 



45,011.17 



706,681,000 

 575,552,000 



1,491,207.37 

 1,241,104.90 



706,681,000 

 20,858,000 



1,491,207.37 

 16,095.66 



727, 539, 000 



1,507,303.03 



