LAND FOR WILD LIFE AND RECREATION 225 



because of the magnificent scenery and the picturesque life of 

 the Indians. 



Besides the federal parks, there is an area of 6,877 square 

 miles in state, county, and municipal parks. 23 This brings the 

 complete total of land in park areas in the United States up to 

 31,083 square miles. 



Primarily the major use of this land is to provide recreation. 

 But different kinds of people like different kinds of recreation. 

 Thus there are many different kinds of parks. The big national 

 parks and monuments are areas of remarkable beauty which 

 have been set aside to be preserved for all time. Other parks, 

 national, military, and historical monuments like Gettysburg, 

 Pennsylvania, and Morristown, New Jersey, have been selected 

 because they played an important part in history. The Forest 

 Service areas are developed on a different basis. While the 

 Park Service regions have been selected by boards of experts 

 and set aside and developed, the Forest Service recreation areas 

 have grown up as a result of the demand for camp grounds. 



This difference in origin has caused a great difference in 

 the type of recreation area developed by the two services. The 

 National Parks are highly organised regions. The Forest Service 

 camp grounds and other areas are simple places to which 

 people can go and stay in camps. In addition to this, the Forest 

 Service has set aside certain areas in which people are per' 

 mitted to build summer houses. 



Both the Forest Service and the Park Service permit people 

 to set up private businesses in the various recreation areas. The 

 difference is that in a national park these private enterprises 

 are often very elaborate. They include everything from hotels 

 like the Ahwahnee in Yosemite where the rates begin at $12 

 a day, to pack horse outfits, sightseeing busses, and so on. In 

 the parks, there are specialists who give lectures explaining the 



23 A List of State Parks and Related Recreational areas of the United States, 

 Jan. 1, 1937, p. 4. 



