A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 649 



3. Agricultural lands: 31,378.15 acres. Of this area 8,841.15 acres 

 have been patented, 5,927.48 acres are embraced in pending entries, 

 and 16,609.52 acres are vacant. 



Of the revested Coos Bay Wagon Koad grant land the United 

 States still retains title to 62,615.33 acres supporting a stand of 1,750,- 

 013 M board feet of timber. 



MANAGEMENT 



The classification of the land reacquired from both grants, except 

 for water-power sites, takes no cognizance of the physical suitability 

 of the land for agricultural purposes or for permanent forest use. 

 Nor is there provision for holding any class II and III land in per- 

 manent public ownership. Sale of the timber is directed, but no pro- 

 vision for the permanent forest productivity of the land is required. 

 Over 33 billion feet of commercial timber remains unsold on the class 

 II lands ; most of this land is primarily suited only for timber produc- 

 tion. 



Of the million and more acres in class III (agricultural), about 

 three quarters has not been taken up by homesteaders, being unsuit- 

 able for agricultural development on account of soil, topography, or 

 climate; this is however " ultimate forest land", for the most part of 

 high productivity. Much of the class III land which has been cov- 

 ered by homestead entry has been promptly abandoned once the 

 timber was removed. 



The checkerboard distribution of these lands does not lend itself to 

 proper management. For the most part they are the odd-numbered 

 sections, alternating with private lands or with lands in national 

 forests or some other form of Federal ownership. A few townships 

 have been consolidated by exchange with private owners. 



The United States Forest Service is authorized to provide fire 

 protection for these lands. Units protected directly by the Forest 

 Service receive the same treatment as national-forest lands; units 

 outside the national forests are protected through contractual agree- 

 ments with States or with the private association in whose areas they 

 fall, and receive the same treatment as the commingled State and 

 private lands. 



No appropriations have been made to protect the timber on these 

 lands from insects or disease. In southern Oregon this situation has 

 been troublesome. A heavy infestation of bark beetles has killed 

 immense quantities of ponderosa pine. The loss from this cause is 

 es tuna ted to be about 10 times the loss from fire in the same region. 

 Oregon & California Railroad lands in the infested area cannot be 

 neglected without nullifying control work on the surrounding lands; 

 control measures which have been carried on for a number of years 

 by private landowners and by the Forest Service, the Indian Service, 

 and the National Park Service have of necessity been extended to 

 cover Oregon & California Railroad lands. The total expenditures 

 by all agencies since 1924 on the unit within which the Oregon & 

 California Railroad lands lie have been approximately $100,000. 



Logging practice on these lands invites strong criticism. Only the 

 timber is sold; the land remains in Federal ownership. The operator 

 has no incentive for conservative logging or continued protection. 



