FOREST RESERVES IN IDAHO. 



Senator Heyburn to the President. 



Washington, February 29^ 190 J^. 

 The President : 



Pursuant to your recent request that I submit some suggestions in 

 reference to the \Yithdrawal for, and creation of, forest reserves, I 

 have the honor to submit that your order announced on the occasion 

 of my recent interview, that no further withdrawals should be made 

 for forest reserves, or forest reserves created, without first giving 

 notice of such intention, together with the opportunity of being heard, 

 to the Senators and Eepresentatives in Congress from the State in 

 which the reserve is proposed to be created, will in future result in 

 much good. It has not been the practice heretofore to do so, and 

 many withdrawals have been made for forest reserve purposes in tlie 

 State of Idaho that have worked great injury to the State and done 

 much to retard its settlement. 



Under date of February 22, 1897, the Bitter Root Forest Reserve 

 was created, containing an area of 4,147,200 acres. This reservation 

 covers some of the oldest settlements in the State of Idaho, some of 

 the most important mining camps, and many valleys adapted to agri- 

 cultural settlement, also much land valuable for home-making pur- 

 poses. It is not confined to the headwaters of streams or watersheds, 

 or mountain divides, but it was created as marked out upon the map, 

 without definite knowledge or investigation as to the character of 

 the country. 



The system as now executed is paralyzing the growth of the State 

 of Idaho. Business men and mining investors will not invest money 

 within a forest reserve. They will not place themselves in a posi- 

 tion where they must ask permission to do that Avhich they in other 

 parts of the country may do without permission of officers. Ameri- 

 can citizens prefer to have their legal rights established by law and 

 not by consent. 



The Priest River Reserve was created on February 22, 1897, and 

 contains 645,120 acres. This reservation contains a vast amount of 

 land fit for home making and settlement. 



Neither of the foregoing reserves are at the headwaters of streams 

 flowing into arid regions, where there is any necessity of conserving 

 the water supply. A large portion of the Bitter Root Reserve is not 

 conserved with timber at all. I am personally acquainted with the 

 character of these reservations, having passed through and over them. 



The Pocatello Forest Reserve was created September 1, 1903, con- 

 taining 49,920 acres, for the purpose of protecting the sources of 

 streams from which the city of Pocatello derives its water supply. 



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