FOREST RESERVES IN IDAHO. 57 



CASSIA FOREST RESERVE. 



This proposed reservation is situated in the southern part of Casgia 

 County and indudes 323,520 acres. 



The principal streams rising in the area are Goose Creek, Rock 

 Creek, Trapper Creek, and Shoshone Creek, together with smaller 

 creeks, such as Little Cottonwood, Drv, and Beaverdam creeks. The 

 flow from Goose Creek and Rock Creek water large tracts of land. 

 The smaller streams, although they go dry in the summer, are used 

 for early summer irrigation. 



Seventy-five thousand acres of the entire reserve are more or less 

 timbered. The remaining 258,000 acres are covered with sage brush 

 and chaparral. 



Rock Creek, which rises in this area, has a flow of water in the 

 spring of 7,000 to 8,000 miner's inches, but during the summer this 

 falls, off to 200 inches. Dry Creek, which has a fairly large water- 

 shed, nearly equal to that of Rock Creek, is dry during the summer 

 and fall. These conditions also prevail on Trout and the two Cotton- 

 wood creeks, which flow north from the mountains. Goose Creek, 

 the most important stream rising in the area, the waters of which are 

 utilized for irrigation to the last drop, has a greater fluctuation of 

 flow than Rock Creek. It is an established fact that protection cover 

 on a watershed is necessary to prevent erosion and regulate the flow 

 of streams, which shows how necessary the protection of the growth 

 on these watersheds is to the farming communities below. 



There are ranches on every creek flowing from the reserv^e, and 

 every ranch is devoted principally to raising hay for winter feed. 

 Oakley and Rockcreek are the onh- towns of importance near the 

 reserve. 



The great Twin Falls Land and Water Company has constructed 

 canals diverting water from Snake River from a point 23 miles above 

 Shoshone Falls, bringing it to immense tracts of land to the east, 

 north, and west of the proposed reserve. 



The ranchmen in the vicinity of the proposed reserve are dependent 

 upon it for fuel, fencing, and house logs, and these timber lands on 

 the reserve are the nearest to those who are going on the Twin Falls 

 lands, and these settlers are removing quantities of material from this 

 area. 



There is no opposition to this reserve among people of that section, 

 unless it be from a few sheep men. 



I do not recall having seen any objection to this reserve by Senator 

 Heyburn. I am quite sure that he has not as yet made objection to it 

 in his official capacity. 



I will now summarize the forest reserve situation in Idaho. 



Whether or not forest reserves are a good thing in Idaho or any 

 other State depends mainly upon the answers to these three questions: 

 Are the important industries of the State, consequently also its gen- 

 eral welfare, dependent upon its timber and water supply? If so, 

 are these resources where there are no forest reserves so wisely used, 

 so effectually guarded, that it is safe to assume that they will be per- 

 manently adequate to meet every future demand? And if the first 

 can be answered affirmatively, and the second can not, is it desirable 

 to assure the community such protection ? 



