26b 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



January 



under the second sale 5 per cent, of the 

 timber was reserved for the purpose 

 of insuring the reforestation of this 

 land. 



What was accomplished in connec- 

 tion with the sale of this Indian timber 

 can just as well be accomplished with 

 reference to the matured timber on the 

 public domain. To effect this, how- 

 ever, the Timber and Stone Act must 

 be repealed. 



We also commend the proposition 

 that contemplates the passage of such 

 legislation as will authorize the estab- 

 lishment of national parks, for the pur- 

 pose of preserving natural wonders, 

 by proclamation of the President, in 

 much the same way as the forest res- 

 ervations are now proclaimed under 

 the Act of March 3, 1891. 



FOREST FIRES. 



Were it not that the importance of 

 the subject demands it, we should pass 

 over the well-worn and tiresome sub- 

 ject of the destruction wrought by for- 

 est fires. In the press generally, as 

 well as in forestry publications, the 

 wanton waste of our timber resources 

 from this cause, far exceeding in the 

 total all legitimate consumption, has 

 been dwelt upon year after year; and 

 yet this loss still continues, when in- 

 creased care would reduce it materi- 

 ally. 



To take only the reported fires of 

 the past three months, we find that 

 they have raged in the following 

 states : 



Oregon suffered severely in Septem- 

 ber and October by numerous fires. 

 One fire is reported by timber men to 

 have destroyed $8,000,000 worth of 

 timber in Columbia county. 



Washington had numerous destruc- 

 tive fires during the same two months, 

 in one case a detail of troops from 

 Vancouver Barracks being ordered 

 out to assist in suppressing the fire. 

 At the head of Lake Washington some 

 7,000 acres were burned over. 



In Montana fires of considerable 

 Size occurred in all of the past three 

 months, in some cases clearly due to 

 carelessness, and much game was de- 

 stroyed and driven from the forests. 



California has also been a severe 



sufferer, as fires from all parts of the 

 state were reported in September, Oc- 

 tober and November, in one case the 

 Government Forestry Experiment Sta- 

 tion in Santa Monica Canyon being in- 

 jured to the extent of $5,000. 



Arkansas sustained probably the 

 greatest losses in November of any of 

 the states. 



Not to go into detail, Indiana, Illi- 

 nois, Ohio, Kentucky, Missouri, Ten- 

 nessee, Texas, Colorado, Idaho, Geor- 

 gia, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsyl- 

 vania, New Jersey, Kansas, and Indian 

 Territory all report losses of greater 

 or less magnitude. 



FOREST WORK OF THE GENERAL LAND 

 OFFICE. 



As is well known, at present, the 

 General Land Office, under the super- 

 vision of the Secretary of the Interior, 

 is charged with the responsibility of 

 administering and protecting the Fed- 

 eral Forest Reservations. This has 

 grown to be a very important part of 

 the work of that office, and the Com- 

 missioner's annual report deals exten- 

 sively with the subject. Considering 

 that this branch of the service has only 

 been in operation for the past six 

 years, and that it had to be created de 

 novo, we feel that the office is entitled 

 to our commendation for what it has 

 done in the face of very great difficul- 

 ties. 



The Forest Reserves of the United 

 States now number sixty-one, and em- 

 brace a total area of 63,348,656 acres, 

 being an increase in the area of forest 

 reserves since June 30, 1903, of 585,- 

 162 acres. During this period there 

 have been eleven new forest reserves 

 created, and one has been abandoned 

 (the Crow Creek Forest Reserve, in 

 Wyoming). The areas of four re- 

 serves have been somewhat reduced, 

 two have been enlarged, and two have 

 been consolidated. To properly ad- 

 minister this vast area requires con- 

 stant patrolling to suppress incipient 

 fires and to apprehend timber trespas- 

 sers. Under the appropriations for 

 this purpose during the past year it has 

 been possible to employ at any one 

 time 484 rangers as the highest num- 

 ber, who were placed in the field at the 



