﻿182 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  4500 
  square 
  miles. 
  The 
  area, 
  therefore, 
  of 
  the 
  proposed 
  Oatskill 
  

   park 
  is 
  only 
  about 
  15 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  area 
  of 
  the 
  Catskill 
  

   Forest 
  preserve, 
  which 
  includes 
  the 
  catchment 
  area 
  of 
  the 
  

   headwaters 
  of 
  the 
  streams 
  as 
  enumerated 
  on 
  a 
  preceding 
  

   page. 
  The 
  balance 
  of 
  the 
  territory 
  is 
  mostly 
  deforested, 
  and 
  

   chiefly 
  in 
  use 
  for 
  grazing 
  purposes. 
  In 
  the 
  Catskill 
  region 
  

   therefore, 
  the 
  forested 
  area 
  would 
  be, 
  om 
  this 
  basis, 
  about 
  1/7 
  of 
  

   the 
  deforested, 
  or 
  the 
  real 
  effect 
  on 
  stream 
  flow 
  would 
  be 
  to 
  in- 
  

   crease 
  it 
  1/7 
  of 
  5 
  inches. 
  An 
  average 
  annual 
  increase 
  of 
  about 
  

   0.7 
  of 
  an 
  inch 
  may 
  be 
  expected. 
  

  

  Moreover, 
  if 
  forestation 
  is 
  valuable 
  in 
  increasing 
  stream 
  flow, 
  

   there 
  should 
  be 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  other 
  forest 
  parks 
  in 
  various 
  parts 
  

   of 
  the 
  State. 
  Genesee 
  river 
  issues 
  from 
  the 
  Allegheny 
  water 
  center. 
  

   With 
  the 
  exception 
  of 
  a 
  small 
  tract 
  of 
  timber 
  at 
  the 
  extreme 
  

   headwaters, 
  this 
  stream 
  is 
  practically 
  deforested, 
  with 
  the 
  result, 
  

   as 
  shown 
  by 
  table 
  No. 
  43, 
  Runoff 
  Data 
  of 
  Genesee 
  River, 
  that 
  the 
  

   average 
  annual 
  runoff 
  for 
  a 
  period 
  of 
  nine 
  years 
  is 
  only 
  14.2 
  

   inches, 
  while 
  the 
  minimum 
  runoff 
  is 
  6.7 
  inches. 
  If 
  forestation 
  is 
  

   specially 
  valuable 
  for 
  increasing 
  the 
  flow 
  of 
  a 
  stream, 
  here 
  is 
  a 
  

   marked 
  case 
  to 
  which 
  it 
  could 
  be 
  applied. 
  The 
  writer, 
  however, 
  

   does 
  not 
  wish 
  to 
  be 
  understood 
  as 
  stating 
  that 
  forestation 
  is 
  

   not 
  of 
  value, 
  and 
  he 
  cites 
  from 
  the 
  Genesee 
  River 
  Storage 
  Report 
  1 
  

   the 
  following 
  specific 
  case, 
  showing 
  that 
  on 
  Genesee 
  river 
  foresta- 
  

   tion 
  has 
  value 
  in 
  increasing 
  the 
  summer 
  flow. 
  The 
  proposition 
  

   is 
  that, 
  by 
  itself, 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  of 
  enough 
  value 
  to 
  justify 
  any 
  such 
  

   expenditure 
  as 
  has 
  been 
  proposed. 
  The 
  benefits, 
  in 
  short, 
  are 
  

   not 
  commensurate 
  with 
  the 
  expense. 
  

  

  Gagings 
  of 
  the 
  low-water 
  flow 
  of 
  Genesee 
  river 
  were 
  made 
  by 
  

   Daniel 
  Marsh, 
  C. 
  E., 
  in 
  July 
  and 
  August, 
  1846, 
  and 
  the 
  quantity 
  

   flowing 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  was 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  412 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  second. 
  

   Mr 
  Marsh 
  gives 
  this 
  figure 
  as 
  the 
  average 
  of 
  nine 
  gagings 
  made 
  

   at 
  various 
  times 
  during 
  the 
  summer 
  of 
  1846. 
  The 
  meteorological 
  

   records 
  of 
  western 
  New 
  York 
  for 
  the 
  years 
  1844-46 
  show 
  that 
  the 
  

   period 
  covered 
  was 
  one 
  of 
  low 
  rainfall. 
  At 
  Rochester 
  the 
  rain- 
  

   fall 
  for 
  the 
  storage 
  period 
  of 
  1846 
  was 
  only 
  11.57 
  inches, 
  and 
  

   the 
  total 
  for 
  the 
  year 
  was 
  36.03 
  inches 
  ; 
  in 
  1845, 
  the 
  total 
  for 
  the 
  

  

  *3d 
  Genesee 
  River 
  Storage 
  Report, 
  Jan. 
  1, 
  1897, 
  pp. 
  40-41. 
  

  

  