HOUSE EEPORT NO. 2027, 60TH CONGEESS, SECOND SESSION. 



ACQUIRING LAND FOR THE PROTECTION OF WATERSHEDS FOR THE 

 CONSERVATION OF NAVIGABLE STREAMS. 



FEBRUARY 3, 1909. Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state 

 of the Union and ordered to be printed. 



Messrs. WEEKS and LEVER, from the Committee on Agriculture, 

 submitted the following 



REPORT. 



[To accompany S. 4825.] 



The Committee on Agriculture, to which was referred various bills 

 for the protection of the watersheds of navigable streams, submits the 

 following report, to accompany Senate bill 4825. 



After a thorough discussion of the purposes to be accomplished it 

 was deemed advisable to report the accompanying bill, as meeting 

 more fully than any other the needs of the situation. 



Section I proposes to give the consent of Congress to each of the 

 several States of the Union to enter into any agreement or compact 

 not in conflict with any law of the United States, with any State or 

 States for the purpose "of conserving the forests and water supply of 

 the States entering into such agreement or compact. 



Section 2 appropriates the sum of $100,000 to enable the Secretary 

 of Agriculture to cooperate with any State or group of States, when 

 requested to do so. in the protection from fire of the forested water- 

 sheds of navigable streams, and the Secretary is authorized to stipu- 

 late and agree with any State or group of States to cooperate in the 

 organization and maintenance of a system of fire protection on any 

 private or state lands within such State or States and situated upon 

 the watershed of a navigable river. 



The section further provides that no such stipulation or agreement 

 shall be made with any State which has not provided by law for a sys- 

 tem of fire protection, and that in no case is the amount contributed to 

 any State to exceed the amount appropriated by that State for the 

 same purpose. 



Section 3 provides that the Secretary of Agriculture may, for the 

 protection of the watersheds of navigable streams, on such conditions 

 as he deems wise, agree to administer and protect for a definite term 

 of years any private forest lands situated upon any watershed whereon 



119 



