United States National Forests 73 



Government in reserving them. There was there- 

 fore much opposition to them. 



At first, also, there was not enough money forth- 

 coming to pay for a proper survey of the land, 

 and so the first national forests were made without 

 knowing exactly where their boundary lines should 

 run. Some good farming land was taken in, much 

 good timber land was left out. 



Later, men and money were found for careful 

 and accurate field work, so that the old carelessly 

 made forests have been re-surveyed and re- 

 mapped, and the land which should not have been 

 included has been put back into the public domain. 



The plan in setting aside land for a national 

 forest is to make and keep that land as useful as 

 it can be to the nation and for all time. National 

 forest lands are seldom such as farmers or ranch- 

 men would desire. They contain much ground 

 impossible to cultivate, and many of them are so 

 high above sea level that snow lies deep in them 

 for three-quarters of the year. But these bleak 

 highlands can grow woods to ensure a timber 

 supply and to keep the rivers full and strong. 



When, as sometimes happens, little bits of tilla- 

 ble land are included in a forest so that it is im- 

 possible to cut them out, such lands are opened 

 for settlement under what is known as the " Forest 

 Homestead Act." 



A home-seeker may travel through the forest, 

 pick out the tillable land he wants, apply for it, 



