50 ANNUAL REPORT OF 



believed to be sufficient for the immediate wants of the 

 service. It is probable, however, that it will have to be 

 enlarged in the future, when increase of population in the 

 Western States and Territories and a greater demand for 

 forest supplies than now exists will make the protection 

 of the reserved forest lands more difficult and will justify 

 more elaborate methods of forest management than now 

 appear necessary, or when now unreserved forest lands 

 of the public domain are controlled by the officers of the 

 forest bureau. 



"When it is remembered that several million dollars' 

 worth of timber are taken every year from the public 

 domain without the Government being able to obtain any 

 payment for it, it would appear a wise and economical 

 policy to spend annually a few hundred thousand dollars 

 on an organization which would prevent such unnecessary 

 drains on the wealth of the nation. It must be remem- 

 bered also that an efficient forest administration would be 

 able to prevent many forest fires on the public domain, 

 and that it is not an unusual occurrence for a single fire to 

 destroy material in a few days worth more in actual money 

 than this forest administration would cost in years, while 

 the loss to the country in impaired water flow through 

 forest fires, which might be easily prevented, is incal- 

 culable. The expenditure, therefore, of $250,000 a year 

 in furnishing means for protecting the forests on the pub- 

 lic domain would appear to be justified by every considera- 

 tion of common sense and economy. 



''The example, moreover, of wisely directed national 

 forests may be expected to be a substantial benefit to the 

 private interests of the citizens of the United States , both as 

 object lessons and in the opportunity they would offer for the 

 special training of foresters. Such examples would grad- 

 ually change the wasteful methods now practiced by indi- 



