Wilderness Reserves 



The practical common sense of the American 

 people has been in no way made more evident dur- 

 ing the last few years than by the creation and use 

 of a series of large land reserves — situated for the 

 most part on the great plains and among the moun- 

 tains of the West — intended to keep the forests 

 from destruction, and therefore to conserve the 

 water supply. These reserves are created purely 

 for economic purposes. The semi-arid regions can 

 only support a reasonable population under condi- 

 tions of the strictest economy and wisdom in the 

 use of the water supply, and in addition to their 

 other economic uses the forests are indispensably 

 necessary for the preservation of the water supply 

 and for rendering possible its useful distribution 

 throughout the proper seasons. In addition, how- 

 ever, to the economic use of the wilderness by pre- 

 serving it for such purposes where it is unsuited 

 for agricultural uses, it is wise here and there to 

 keep selected portions of it — of course only those 

 portions unfit for settlement — in a state of nature, 



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