524: JOURNAL OF FORESTRY 



Because of the relatively short life cycles of herbaceous vegetation, 

 as compared with that of a forest cover, many highly fundamental 

 principles in range management can be developed in a few years. For 

 this reason the proper application of the principles is more fruitful of 

 results in a short time than is the application of principles in forest man- 

 agement. On forests where grazing is important, the dependence of 

 satisfactory timber production and the efficiency of important water- 

 sheds on the judicious management of the range is now fully appreciated. 

 Indeed, forest utilization (including certain other phases ordinarily con- 

 sidered as the more strictly forestry activities, exclusive of grazing), 

 owing to the prevailing economic conditions in the West, is so intimately 

 associated with the proper cropping of the forage growth as to require 

 serious consideration of the latter over approximately two-thirds of 

 the National Forest lands. Further, on privately owned forest lands 

 grazing is popular and beneficial not only because it affords a source of 

 revenue during the time that the timber is developing, but also because 

 it affords protection in the control of forest fires. Therefore the train- 

 ing of the professional forester can hardly be considered complete unless 

 he is qualified to determine such questions, for example, as (i) when 

 grazing will increase or decrease the total returns on forested lands, (2) 

 the class of stock best suited to the particular conditions, and (3) the 

 number of stock that a given area will safely carry, keeping in mind the 

 maximum utilization of the herbage growth, yet cropping it on the basis 

 of a sustained yield. Questions of this character have long been of 

 paramount importance in the West ; similar questions have already pre- 

 sented themselves in the East. 



Aside from the application of the study of the subject of grazing to 

 National Forest lands, there are reasons even more urgent than those 

 presented to justify fundamental training in the line in question. Ex- 

 clusive of the National Forest lands, there remained in January, 191 7, 

 approximately 225,000,000 acres of public domain lands — an area 

 larger than that of Germany, France, and Belgium combined — that is 

 subject to settlement. It is estimated that about one-tenth of this acre- 

 age may pass into private ownership within the next few years as a 

 result of the enactment of the 640-acre homestead law. Owing to the 

 low carrying capacity of these lands, it is practically certain that they 

 will sooner or later be consolidated into large holdings. Their economic 

 management is sure to create a keen demand for the services of range 

 experts,^ as well as an exceptional opportunity for men of such training 



^During the past two years several persons formerly in the Forest Service, es- 

 pecially qualified in range technique, have accepted positions as managers of live- 

 stock enterprises. 



