STOCK ON RANGES IN NATIONAL FORESTS 221 



administered as such, and put the privilege up under 

 competitive bids, the amount received would be greatly 

 in excess of what is now paid. 



Possibility of Competitive Bids. Between two stock- 

 men, one grazing his herds on the open public ranges 

 and taking his chances in obtaining its use for his stock 

 as against his neighbor, and one grazing his stock on 

 the National Forests where he is secure in the posses- 

 sion of his range, the latter has by far the better of it 

 and should under all commercial principles pay a much 

 larger sum for the use of the range in order to equalize 

 matters. 



It is possible that eventually, due to the strong de- 

 mand for range, the Forest Service will be forced in 

 self-protection to meet this question by some system 

 of competitive bids where after taking care of the small 

 settlers for a certain definite number of their stock at a 

 fixed per capita charge the rest of the range will be 

 given to those who bid the most for it. Such a system 

 will possibly result in more or less range monopoly and 

 in some cases may crowd out the intermediate man, who 

 is neither entitled to recognition as a small owner nor 

 able to command the capital to compete with the larger 

 owners. 



Result of Competitive Bids. That this may happen 

 has been indicated by the success of the Indian office 

 in selling the grazing privileges on the various Indian 

 reservations in the West. 



Prices from two to four times those charged by the 

 Forest Service have been received for these lands on 

 which the grazing is practically the same. 



The White Mountain Indians in Arizona receive 30 



