ONE of the most important measures passed by the 

 Legislature of 1911 was the bill for the establish- 

 ment of a State Forest Service. This gives Minne- 

 sota the most efficient forest law of any state in the Union. 



The law provides for the appointment of a State Forester. 

 The position is entirely non-political, the appointment being 

 made by the State Forestry Board, whose members are nom- 

 inated by the different societies and institutions of the 

 State. The law abolishes the office of the State Forestry 

 Commissioner and vests all the duties and authority of that 

 office in the State Forester. The chief duty of the Forester 

 at present is the prevention and suppression of forest fires, 

 but he is also entrusted with the management of all the 

 State forest reserves under the control of the Forestry Board, 

 and the encouragement of the practice of forestry within the 

 State. 



Instead of the miserable pittance of $17,000 allowed for 

 forest protection in the past the new law appropriates $75,000 

 per year for the new Forest Service. Although this is only 

 half as much as is needed for the protection of such a vast 

 territory it is a generous increase over past years and prom- 

 ises well for the future. 



The Forestry Board was especially fortunate in securing 

 for the office of State Forester Mr. W. T. Cox, who is prob- 

 ably better suited to fill the position successfully than any 



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