SERVICE NOTES FOR OCTOBER. 



These notes contain instructions and necessary information to forest 

 officers, and will therefore be carefully read and kept on file for 

 reference. 



SERVICE ORDER 45. 



Establishment of the Branch of Research 



There is hereby' established the Branch of Research in the Forest 

 Service under the direction of Assistant Forester E. H. Clapp. The 

 changes in the organization and procedure involved will be effective 

 on June 1, 1915, but changes in allotments and accounting records 

 will not be made until the beginning of the fiscal year 1916. 



The Branch of Research is established in conformity with Memo- 

 randum No. 121, issued by the Secretary of Agriculture on March 10, 

 1915. Its purpose is to bring together under one executive head the 

 various lines of research or investigative work conducted by the 

 Forest" Service. Correlation between the various kinds of investigative 

 work has been secured effectively during the past three years by the 

 central and district investigative committees. It is now deemed 

 advisable to make such correlation more complete, which can be done 

 only by bringing the lines of research under the same administrative 

 direction. At the same time it is necessary to segregate investigative 

 work more definitely from administrative work in accordance with the 

 policy established for the department by the Secretary's Memorandum 

 No. 121. It is further the purpose of this change to give the research 

 work and personnel the fullest possible recognition and to develop and 

 strengthen research as a coordinate division of the Service. 



It is essential at the same time to retain intimate correlation 

 between investigative and administrative work in order that the 

 researches undertaken may be adapted as closely as possible to the 

 current administrative needs of the Service, that administrative officers 

 may be kept in close touch with research activities and continue to 

 participate in the consideration of proposed work and development of 

 plans for its prosecution, and that the results obtained may be 

 directly and speedily applied in administration. When desirable, ar- 

 rangements may be made to conduct certain investigations partly or 

 entirely with the administrative personnel and under the direction 

 of administrative officers. The procedure under the Branch of Re- 

 search will therefore be so organized as to insure the participation of 

 the administrative branches in their related lines of research to as 

 full an extent as at the present time. Any cases of disagreement be- 



(52) 



