'igo2. 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION. 



229 



resulted in a request by these companies 

 for a working plan for their entire hold- 

 ings, amounting to more than i ,000,000 

 acres. This request for a working plan 

 was made after a preliminary examina- 

 tion of the tract by Mr. Overton W. 

 Price and Mr. T. H. Sherrard, of the 

 Bureau of Forestry. 



This work by the Bureau will begin on 

 November i , and be continued through 

 the winter months by a force of thirty 

 men, and will undoubtedly prove one 

 of the most interesting pieces of forest 

 work yet undertaken in this country. 



The following facts concerning this 

 tract are taken from the preliminary 

 report of the Bureau of Forestry : 



The forest lands of the Kirby Lumber 

 Company and the Houston Oil Company 

 lieinjaspar, Sabine, Hardin, St. Augus- 

 tine, Newton, Angeline, and Tyler Coun- 

 ties, southeastern Texas. The}- com- 

 prise an area of approximatel}' i , 250,000 

 acres. They include practically all of 

 the more valuable virgin Longleaf Pine 

 land in these counties. 



Although not a continuous holding, 

 these forest lands have been purchased 

 with a view to facilitate lumbering. 

 They occur more in well-defined blocks 

 than in isolated areas of small extent. 

 Except for the narrow band of clear- 

 ings which encircle the towns, and for 

 the small farms here and there, seldom 

 exceeding 160 acres, the forest is un- 

 broken. 



About 12,000 cattle are now grazing 

 upon these forest lands. The largest 

 holder has about 2,000 head. This is 

 an exceptionally large herd, the num- 

 ber varying usually from 150 to 300. 



Cuttings are now in progress at the 

 rate of about 250,000,000 feet yearly. 

 The intention is to increase this cut to 

 400,000,000 feet per annum southwest 

 of Kirbyville. The company is now 

 filling a contract for 7,000,000 cross-ties 

 with the Santa Fe Railroad Company. 

 The ties are cut from lands which have 

 been or are about to be lumbered for 

 saw-logs. 



The merchantable stand upon the 

 virgin forest lands of the Kirby Lumber 

 Company and the Houston Oil Company 

 lias been conservativelj' estimated to 

 average 5,000 feet, b. m., to the acre. 



The presence of underbrush, the flatness 

 of the country, and the lack of swamp 

 and soft ground generally, constitute 

 exceedingly favorable conditions for 

 clean lumbering. The use of temporary 

 railroads and steam skidder greatly re- 

 duce the cost of logging. The problem 

 of labor is simplified by the presence of 

 a permanent population who depend 

 largely upon lumbering and upon work 

 in the saw-mills for their livelihood. 

 The Kirby Lumber Company, with its 

 17 mills and its annual cut of 250,000,000 

 feet, is the chief source of support of 

 about 15,000 people. It is probable 

 that the low proportion upon these 

 forest lands of the cost of lumbering to 

 the value of its product is equalled in 

 the Southern Pine Belt in very few lo- 

 calities only. 



The forest lands of the Kirby Lumber 

 Company and the Houston Oil Company 

 offer what is in a good many ways a 

 singularly simple and direct silvicul- 

 tural problem. The tract consists 

 largely of pure stands of Longleaf Pine 

 whose reproduction is, with reasonable 

 protection, insured. Even under the 

 present lack of provision for reproduc- 

 tion upon the lumbered area and with 

 the entire absence of effect to suppress 

 the annual fires, openings in the forest 

 show a growth of seedlings in some 

 instances sufficient to form the nucleus 

 of a second crop. 



More Forest The Big Horn Forest Re- 

 Reserves, serve, in Wyoming, was 

 increased in size 69,120 

 acres on May 22 by Presidential procla- 

 mation. The recently added portion is 

 located in Sheridan county. The total 

 area of this reserv^e is now 1,216,960 

 acres. 



On the same date the Yellowstone 

 Park Forest Reserve was also created. 

 This new reserve includes a portion of 

 what was formerly known as the Yel- 

 lowstone Park Timber Land Reserve, 

 and in addition 880,533 acres of the new 

 land. The total area of the Yellow- 

 stone Reserve is 1,809,280 acres. It is 

 located in the western part of Big Horn 

 County bordering the Yellowstone Na- 

 tional Park. 



