66 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



■which the Government has against fraudiilont ac(niisition of National 

 Forest lands sought under the guise of mining claims for water- 

 power sites, timber speculation, range monopoly, and other purposes. 

 In making them, careful provision is made to safeguard all the rights 

 of claimants, and no unfair or burdensome restrictions are imposed 

 on the mining industry. Unfavorable reports on claims are made 

 only after examination by fully qualified mineral examiners and 

 practical mining men. Reports to the General Land Office on all 

 kinds of unpatented claims covered 1,869 such claims, of which 1,534, 

 or 82 per cent, were reported on favorably. 



Receipts from the National Forests increased over $140,000, or 

 about 7 per cent. The major part of this increase was from the 

 receipts from timber sales. A much more active demand for timber 

 was apparent during the year and resulted in large sales which 

 make certain a verv large increase in future receipts from this source. 



The total receipts from all sources were over $2,100,000. Twenty- 

 five per cent of this amount goes to the States in which the forests 

 are located, as county, school, and road funds, and an additional 10 

 per cent of the receipts of last year were made available by Congress 

 for expenditure in the States within which the receipts were obtained, 

 for the construction of roads and trails within National Forests. 

 These roads and trails will be primarily for the benefit of com- 

 munities, and cooperation with communities will be sought in carry- 

 ing out the work. At the same time the development of the forests 

 will be to some extent aided through the additional facilities fur- 

 nished. I consider this a wise and beneficial expenditure, and I 

 recommend that the appropriation be renewed. 



PBOGBESS IN FOREST MANAGEMENT. 



The total stand of timber on the National Forests, including 

 Alaska, is now the equivalent of nearly 600 billion feet. Plans for 

 thorough protection of this timber against destruction by fire and for 

 the development of the forests to permit the harvesting of the mature 

 timber, and studies of methods by the application of which the highest 

 productivity will be assured and a constant yield provided for, were 

 materially advanced. The progress made in constructive applica- 

 tion of the principles of forestry, in the interest of the best public 

 welfare, to the enormous area and widely varying conditions of the 

 National Forests has been immense. Considering the brief time since 

 the application of forestry by the Government began, an accomplish- 

 ment quite without parallel in any other country has been achieved. 

 How great the public service which has been rendered is, it is almost 

 impossible to realize. Its character is fundamental, for it has estab- 

 lished a firm and safe basis on which will be reared the future system 

 of intensive use. 



