FOREST POLICY. 



loss of taxes. The forest commissioner, as superintendent of the 

 reserves, is empowered to enact rules for management and pro- 

 tection of the reserves; may employ detective service and lawyers 

 in case of forest fires; must publish forest statistics, and may 

 spend $25 annually per mile for improvement of public roads 

 in the reserves, $12.50 per mile for improvements outside the 

 reserves. 



The reserve policy is handicapped by a constitutional clause 

 forbidding the State to take up loans for such purposes of in- 

 vestment as a forest reserve represents. 



8. Reservations: 575,ooo acres of State forest reserves 

 have been created within four years, during the administration of 

 Governor Stone. The reserves are scattered over 22 counties. 

 Only two reserves cover an acreage exceeding 100,000 acres. 



9. Irrigation: 758 acres are irrigated; 93% of this land 

 yields hay crops valued at $23.64 per acre. 



FORESTRY CONDITIONS OF PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: 



1. Area: After Capt. Geo. P. Ahern, 25% to 50% of the 

 islands (or an area of 20,000,000 to 40,000,000 acres) are public 

 forest lands. Mindoro and Paragua contain 5,000,000 acres of 

 virgin forest. Mindanao is almost entirely covered with virgin 

 timber (20,000,000 acres). 



2. Physiography: The Philippines, consisting of more than 

 1,000 islands, separate the Pacific from the Chinese Ocean. The 

 configuration is mountainous, with active volcanos in the south. 

 Mount Apo, on Mindanao, is over 10,000 feet high. The climate 

 is tropical; rainy period from June to November; dry spell from 

 December to May 



3. Distribution: The number of native tree species ap- 

 proximates 700. 



4. Forest ownership: The federal government and, to a 

 certain extent, religious orders, own all forest land. 



5- Use of timber: Forest utilization suffers from the dif- 

 ficulty of transportation, the lack of efficient labor and the vari- 

 ety of growing stock, containing a large number of commercially 

 untested species. 



