830 A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 



putting a new owner in secure possession. To afford some indication 

 of the dimensions of the forest-land problem with which State policies 

 must deal, one way or another, estimates were sought of the amounts 

 of forest land in the several States which have been tax delinquent 

 for the period fixed by law as involving the loss of title. The estimates 

 showed a total of 11,700,000 acres. 



Obviously, these figures can be considered as at most only very 

 broadly indicative of the actual conditions. Much of the acreage may 

 be taken back by the former owners, or at least temporarily got rid 

 of through tax sales to new owners. On the other hand, wherever tax 

 delinquency is widespread a strong presumption is created that a 

 substantial increase in the amount of involuntary public ownership 

 is impending. As an index of the general situation, the figures cited 

 are probably overconservative ; but as an indication of the particular 

 situation at the present tune in each individual State they would be, 

 if distributed, very uneven and in some cases of very dubious value. 

 Consequently, in tabulating the areas of State-owned forest land, 

 tax-reverted lands which have not been incorporated in definite units 

 of administration as State forests or State parks are uniformly not 

 included. The fact remains that the States do actually own a very 

 much greater amount of forest land than is shown. In the case of 

 Michigan, where accurate data are a matter of record, a footnote 

 indicates that the State holds title to 1,250,000 acres of tax-reverted 

 lands in addition to the 871,050 acres shown in the body of the table 

 as the State's total ownership. 



STATE GAME REFUGES AND PUBLIC HUNTING GROUNDS 



The tables do not show to what extent State-owned forest lands 

 are under administration for other purposes than State forests and 

 State parks. Some millions of acres are included in reservations for 

 game refuges and public hunting grounds, but these largely embrace 

 lands also under reservation as State forests and State parks. Fur- 

 ther, the lands are by no means always forest lands. On the other 

 hand, this form of land use so overlaps and dovetails with forest and 

 park administration that it needs to be brought into the picture. 



One of the purposes served by State forests is wild-life conservation 

 and the provision of public hunting grounds. Wild life is in part a 

 forest product. To prevent the extermination of valuable wild life 

 and maintain a good supply of game, fish, and fur-bearers, reliance was 

 at first placed on restrictive laws creating closed seasons, imposing 

 bag limits, and the like. Gradually it came to be seen that more was 

 needed than the enactment and enforcement of inflexible laws. Out 

 of this came the conception of wild-life management. 



Wild life is a renewable resource, like forests. It is a usable resource, 

 in three principal ways. It may be enjoyed, without disturbance, as 

 one of the attractions of the open ; it may be utilized through hunting 

 and fishing, as a means for recreational sport; and it may furnish food 

 and fur. Its main importance as a source of food supply was in the 

 early days of settlement and for the still earlier period of pioneer 

 exploration, when the oncoming white men had to live off the country ; 

 in those days abundance of game sometimes determined where the 

 settlers preferred to locate, more than the character of the soil. 

 Under present conditions the food value of game is incidental. Its 



