NECESSITY OF USING THE FOREST RE- 

 SERVES FOR GRAZING PURPOSES 



BY 



SENATOR FRANCIS E. WARREN 



President National Woolgrowers' Association 



pOREST protection in the United States by Govern- 

 ment interposition is of recent origin, dating from 

 March 3, 1891, when in the act to repeal the timber 

 culture laws, a section was placed conferring upon the 

 President authority to set apart and reserve public 

 lands, wholly or in part covered with timber or under- 

 growth, whether of commercial value or not, as public 

 reservations. 



If the law authorizing the creation of forest reserves 

 had been enacted half a century earlier, the people of 

 the United States would to-day be richer than they 

 are by billions of dollars, the value of countless acres 

 of timber wasted in the ruthless rush for earlier devel- 

 opment of the country and destroyed by fire for want 

 of adequate protection, mainly the latter. 



The forestry reserve law which took the place of 

 the timber-culture law (under which nine millions of 

 acres of public lands passed into the ownership of 

 individuals), is simple in terms and occupies but brief 

 space in the statutes. But its efifect has been far-reach- 

 ing, and under it has grown up in the brief period it 

 has been in existence a new and important branch of 

 governmental administration. 



The forest reserve law has been taken advantages of 

 during every year since its enactment for the creation 

 of forest reserves, excepting during the years 1894, 



