Improvement Systems Cost 249 



worth $2 per M, the sale value is $20 per acre, or $460,800 for 

 the township. If the improvement system has cost $50,700, some- 

 thing over 10 per cent of the sale value of the forest will have 

 been invested in improvements. If the average stand runs 20 M 

 feet b. m. per acre at the same stumpage value, or if it runs 

 10 M feet b. m., as before, but is worth $4 stumpage, the cost 

 of improvements drops to 5 per cent of the sale value of the 

 forest. But such figuring is misleading. The mere fact that the 

 forest improvements guarantee great accessibility and nominal 

 fire losses, automatically increases the value of the stumpage. 

 Who would doubt but that the stumpage on such a township, es- 

 pecially for a long time investment, would bring over 10 

 per cent more than an identical township which was not so 

 improved ? Where is the merchantable forest which has not 

 increased in sale value more than 10 per cent during the last 

 ten years? Who will doubt but that the average forest will 

 double its stumpage value within twenty years? If so, that is at 

 the compounding rate of about 4 per cent per year ; which is to 

 say that a very modest estimate of the rate at which our forests 

 are increasing in value will amortize the construction costs of 

 an improvement system indefinitely more elaborate than any yet 

 attempted, or given serious consideration in this country, and 

 within a maximum period of about three years. 



It is hardly fair to load the protection costs with the entire 

 improvement bill. With the exception of the lookout stations 

 and part of the tools, all the other improvements will be used 

 for purposes of general administration and many of them will 

 be essential to the utilization of the forest resources. For proper 

 bookkeeping, the improvement costs should be charged off to the 

 different lines of forest activity in the degree in which they are 

 essential to it. For the whole forest business, however, the 

 results would be as indicated. 



It would seem quite obvious, from a business point of view, 

 that all the improvements which can be utilized or desired, can 

 be justified for the permanent forest. But comparison with other 

 lines of business makes the case still more convincing. 



A township of agricultural land will support about 70 miles 

 of section-line roads, costing at least $1,000 a mile if the average 

 value of the land, with other improvements, is as low as $50 



