238 FOREST VALUATION 



to destroy the young timber and clear the land, although in doing 

 so a greater value is sacrificed or wasted than if stump land only 

 were so used. The destruction of merchantable timber in 

 former days was justified on this basis, since the value of the 

 land for agriculture exceeded the total timber values present. 



But pioneer conditions have passed, and the destruction of 

 merchantable timber values is no longer thought of except 

 where these pioneer conditions are reproduced by lack of trans- 

 portation and markets. Even as the former settlers found 

 that with increasing values the uncleared portions of the farm 

 became a source of unexpected wealth, so in the future it will 

 pay the settler to protect young growth and keep a portion of 

 his farm in timber. 



The mature timber upon agricultural land adds a forest value 

 to the value of the stump land. The land is worth just as 

 much more to the settler as the price he can get for his standing 

 timber. The only drawback is that until this is sold and re- 

 moved he cannot begin his clearing. But upon most claims there 

 is enough poorly timbered soil to occupy the time and energies 

 of the settlers until such sale is effected. Should there be no 

 such openings, and the entire claim be heavily timbered, agri- 

 cultural use is inevitably postponed until logging commences, 

 for the relative value of the timber is so great as to preclude 

 any other course. 



250. National Forest Policy in Land Classification. In 

 classifying national forest land in pursuance of the policy of 

 granting homesteads, land should not be listed for settlement 

 while the total forest values exceed the agricultural value of 

 stump land. This necessitates the sale and removal of mature 

 timber from agricultural soils, previous to listing. But owing 

 to the pressure for land throughout the west the tendency is 

 at present to ignore the appraised value of immature timber 

 and even the capital value of forest land, and to permit the 

 listing of lands containing a certain amount of merchantable 

 timber. This reservation is beneficial to the settler for it gives 

 him a subsidy or value in addition to his land. 



Since this procedure clearly sacrifices all forest values except 



