:9Q] 



AMERICAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. 





erly an agricultural subject, he continues. 

 The presence of properly trained foresters 

 in the Department of Agriculture, as well 

 as the nature of the subject itself, makes 

 the ultimate transfer, if found to be practic- 

 able, of the administration of the forest 

 reserves to that department essential to the 

 best interests, both of the reserves and of 

 the people who use them. 



Attention is called to abuses that still 

 exist and form the chief obstacle to the ex- 

 tension of the forest reserve system. 

 Early legislation is recommended as abso- 

 lutely essential to correct the abuses in 

 regard to lieu land selection. 



That the present method of handling 1 

 the reserves is inadequate, is too well 

 known to need repetition to anyone famil- 

 iar with existing conditions. 



The forest reserves of the United States 

 cover nearly 50,000,000 acres and a great 

 variety of technical problems arise in con- 

 nection with their administration. The 

 agricultural, grazing, and mining indus- 

 tries of many sections depend, in a great 

 measure, on an intelligent administration 

 of the timber and water resources of the 

 reserves. The President's strong recom- 

 mendations on this point, in addition to 

 Secretary Hitchcock's, should bring about 

 the desired changes at this session of con- 

 gress. The technical administration of 

 these reserves should be under the direc- 

 tion of the Bureau of Forestry as both the 

 President and the Secretary suggest. 



On the subject of irrigation the Secre- 

 tary has the following to say : 



"There is no one question now before 

 the people of the United States of greater 

 importance than the conservation of the 

 water supply and the reclamation of the 

 arid lands of the West, and their settlement 

 by men who will actually build homes and 

 create communities. The appreciation of 

 this condition is shown by the fact that 

 both the great political parties inserted in 

 their platforms, articles calling attention 

 to the necessitv of national aid for the 

 creation of homes on the public domain." 



< 



Volunteer 

 Firemen. 



In these days of disastrous 

 forest fires it is a great satis- 

 faction to print the following: 

 Colbran, Col., Oct. iSth, 1901. 

 Mr. O. F. Curtis, Forest Supervisor: 

 We the undersigned have formed our- 



selves into what is known as I 

 Company No. 3, in I ! ttlemenl M 

 Forest Reserve, with R R, \ j ,,._ 



Beque as Captain, and to be 1 ailed on 

 him when needed in the vicinity of town- 

 ships .[ and 12 S. K. g . 

 Signed by 



W. J. Van Buskirk, 



of Mesa, Col., and thirteen others. 



Colbran, Col., ( > t. ,,,. , ,,,,. 

 Same, to be known as Forest Fire 

 Company, No. 2 in vicinity of Township 

 n, Ranges 94 and 93. Signed by 



1 Iakky 1' \~, N. 

 Colbran, and seventeen others of V< 

 Egalite and De Beyer. 



McKinley Na- A Bill for the purchase of 

 tional Park. a national foresl reserve 

 in the Southern Appa- 

 lachian Mountains, to he known as the 

 " McKinley National Park and Foresl Re- 

 serve," was introduced in the Hous L . by 

 Representative Brownlow. of Tennessee. 

 Following is the text of the hill. 



Be it enacted by the Senate an J House 

 of Representatives of the United States 

 of America in Congress assembled, That 

 the Secretary of Agriculture is hereby em- 

 powered and directed to purchase land 

 suited to the purpose of a national park 

 and forest reserve in the Appalachian 

 Mountains within the Stales <,| West Vir- 

 ginia, Virginia, North Carolina. South 

 Carolina, Georgia. Alabama, and Tennes- 

 see, in total extent not to exceed four mil- 

 lion acres, and to care for, protect, use, 

 and make accessible the said reserve or 

 any part of it when so purchased for a na- 

 tional park. 



Sec. 2. That the Secretary of Agri- 

 culture is hereby empowered and directed 

 to make such rules and regulations and 

 establish such service as he ma\ deem 

 necessary for the care, protection, and use 

 of such forest reserve, and to sell such 

 wood and timber as may be removed u ith- 

 out injury to the forest: P I'liat 



no wood or timber shall be sold othemv ise 

 than bv public auction, excepl to actual 

 settlers, and in no case at less than the ap- 

 praised value thereof : . \nd f 

 further, That the proceeds of such sale 

 "shall be covered into the rreasurj ol the 

 United States after defraying all e> 



