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PARAGRAPH XXVIII. 



PRESENT STATUS OF FEDERAL LANDS IN THE 



UNITED STATES. 



A. AREAS AND STANDS. 



The total area of the pubHc lands under federal control was, 

 once upon a time, 1,141,436,168 acres. 



On June 30th 1904 this total area had dwindled down to 

 473,836,402 acres (excluding Alaska), according to the report 

 of the Public Land Commission. 



Over 300 million acres out of the figure just given are grazing 

 lands. 



The greater portion of the vacant land owned by the United 

 States is found in the timbered regions of the southern states, 

 the Lake region, the Pacific coast; and in the mountainous 

 and arid regions of the far west. The portion of land cultivable 

 without irrigation is comparatively small. 



According to F. H. Newell, only 71 million acres of the land 

 in the semi-arid region (or 1 acre in 71/2 acres) can ever be 

 improved by irrigation. 70 million acres are deserts. 



The military reservations of the United States comprise 

 875,000 acres, situated notably in Montana, New Mexico, Okla- 

 homa, Arizona, Alaska, Nebraska, and Wyoming. 



The Indian reserves aggregate approximately 80 million acres. 



The national forests, 150 in number, cover an, area of 168 million 

 acres, exclusive of the national forests in Alaska comprising 

 27 million acres and of the national forest in Porto Rico com- 

 prising 66,000 acres. 



The "national monuments" (within the national forests) occupy 

 1,426,000 acres, of which 800,000 are situated in the Coconino 

 and Kaibab (Grand Cafion) national forests, and over 600,000 

 in the Olympic national forest. 



The area of the unappropriated land contained in the various 

 states is the following, approximately: 



