218 North American Forests and Forestry 



no voice either in the levy of the tax or the manner 

 of its expenditure. The report of the Wisconsin 

 tax commissioners for 1898 shows, among other 

 things, that in the town of Georgetown, Price 

 County, during the preceding ten years the resi- 

 dents paid but 4.8 per cent, of the taxes levied. In 

 many other towns a similar proportion prevailed. 

 This in itself would be an almost irresistible temp- 

 tation to extravagant expenditure on the part of 

 the local authorities. It should be observed that 

 in Wisconsin the township system prevails, and the 

 town and school-district taxes are levied by the 

 voters in town meeting assembled. But this is not 

 the worst of the predicament in which the land- 

 owners find themselves. Not only do they pay 

 the taxes which others impose, but practically not 

 a penny of the large sums they pay into the public 

 treasury is expended for their benefit, except per- 

 haps so much of it as goes towards the support of 

 the courts. The heaviest expenses in all these 

 newly settled districts are, on the one hand, the 

 establishing of schools, on the other, the building 

 of roads and bridges. For the former the lumber- 

 men obviously have no use, and the latter they 

 do not get, for all improvements are made where 

 the settlers live, and for their benefit, but not in 

 the remote parts where the timber-lands lie. Of 

 late the State of Wisconsin has made a beginning 

 towards establishing a forest-fire police, but the 

 expense which may be incurred for this purpose in 

 every township of thirty-six sections is limited by 



