-2- 



so successful that similar associations h-.ve grown up among 

 other users of the national forests. 



Before range control wri s put into effect, the feed 

 belonged to the man v;ho got his stock on the land first, though 

 thero was no way by which he could hold it except by physical 

 force o Under such a system might made right, and the only 

 thought was to get what feed there was while it lasted. This 

 condition led to serious controversy and out of it grew the 

 range wars which often resulted in loss of life and property. 

 Under the present control, right prevails, and had, nothing else 

 been accomplished, Mr. Potter says, the removal of this one evil 

 alone would have made the work worth while* 



But he goes still further and states that the system- 

 atic use of the ranges has stopped loss of forage and that the 

 feed formerly wasted has been putting the stock in better condi- 

 tion, with the result that, in many cases, the stockmen have 

 been able to sell beef and mutton direct from the ranges where 



they were before producing only animals which had to be fed and 



i 

 conditioned before they could be put on the market. 



He called attention to the experiments of the govern- 

 ment in artificially reseeding the grazing areas to cultivated 

 grasses, and shoved that in some cases the forage crop has been 

 increased as much as 400 per cent*, He maintained, however, that 

 this method is both slow and expensive and said that the great 

 part of the range lands must be improved by protection and 



