138 FOREST VALUATION 



But the damage inflicted on other property caused by the in- 

 creasing irregularity of stream flow, floods followed by almost 

 complete cessation of flow, the silting up of streams and reser- 

 voirs, and the consequent damage to navigation, waterpowers, 

 irrigation and agriculture are additional to the loss of the timber 

 and soil on the property itself. Deliberate ruin or removal of 

 necessary timber cover, and destruction of grass and brush by 

 over-grazing, probably renders the owner of such lands liable for 

 the resulting damages to others. But the connection between 

 cause and effect, while proved beyond a doubt, is very difficult 

 to express in money value. Large areas of watershed contribute 

 to the result, and the damage extends over many years and 

 varies according to rainfall and other circumstances. To deter- 

 mine the proportion of this ultimate probable damage for which 

 the denudation of one acre is responsible, is a mere guess. Such 

 protective areas should be acquired by national or State govern- 

 ments and the damage prevented, rather than to attempt to force 

 private owners to preserve the forest for the benefit of others, 

 or endeavor to collect damages from such owners for the in- 

 juries caused by their abuse of the forest cover. 



In the absence of commercial value, as where forests are in- 

 accessible and cannot be cut, the cost of re-establishing the 

 protective cover, either by natural or artificial means, and of 

 protecting this area from fire until it reaches the same state of 

 effectiveness as that which was removed, can properly be con- 

 sidered as a measure of damages. It is also possible in the case 

 of forest users, such as lumbermen, to set an arbitrary value per 

 acre for the protective influences of the cover, and bind the user 

 by private contract to pay this sum in case of fire occurring 

 through the carelessness of his employees. 



As knowledge of the effect of forests on flow of streams is ob- 

 tained, it will become possible to arrive at a value per acre of 

 the protective influence of the forest cover on different water- 

 sheds. This value may then be used in damage suits. 



147. ^Esthetic Values. The fundamental character of the 

 value represented by an appeal to the aesthetic sense must be 

 recognized in appraising damages ( 4). The gratifications for 



