THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF WORKING PLANS 237 



this was seldom required; for inaccessibility and competition 

 with private timber restricted the bare possibility of national 

 forest sales to a point far below what the forests would support. 

 Thus in 191 1 the annual cut which the national forests were 

 estimated to be able to sustain permanently, totalled 3,274,- 

 000,000 board feet. The actual cut under both timber sales 

 and free use permits was, in 1916, 665,000 M., but Uttle over 

 20 per cent of the actual yield of the forests. 



SECTION THREE 



PRESENT PROCEDURE * 



The decentralization of working plans control resulted in a 

 most unequal progress in forest organization. Starting with the 

 same foundations in December, 1908, there were, in matters of 

 working plans, much confusion and wasted effort. This un- 

 fortunate condition was relieved by the issuance, late in 1911, 

 of the forest plans section of " The National Forest Manual " f 

 which restores system and purpose to the work of forest organ- 

 ization and is a big step in advance towards unif}'ing the work- 

 ing-plan procedure of the various districts. | 



This has not been superseded by the National Forest 

 Manual of November, 1914. " When the National Forest Man- 

 ual of 1 9 14 was issued it was decided to omit from it discussions 

 of technical practice. It was felt that these subjects could 



* See " Working Plans: Past History, Present Situation, and Future Develop- 

 ment " by Barrington Moore, Proc. Soc. Am. Foresters, Vol. X, No. 3, pp. 217- 

 258, especially pp. 233 to 251. 



t " The National Forest Manual: Instructions to forest officers, relating 

 to forest plans, forest e.xtension, forest investigations, libraries, cooperation, 

 and dendrology. Issued by the Secretary of ,*\griculture to take effect Novem- 

 ber I, 1911." Washington, Government Printing OOice, 1911. 



J This has been aided by the issuance of " Instructions for Reconnaissance 

 Surveys and Maps," June 9, 1913, amended and incorporated in the " Topo- 

 graphic Survey Manual " of 1916, and of " Instructions for Intensive Timber Recon- 

 naissance," .\pril 3, 1914, amended and reissued as the " Timber Survey Manual " 

 on June 3, 1916. 



