24 OUR NATIONAL FORESTS 



quarters in a large city or town centrally located 

 in the group. The District Office acts as sort of 

 clearing house for all National Forest business. 

 All matters in the administration and protection of 

 the National Forests that cannot be settled on the 

 Forest or appear to be of general importance to 

 the district are taken to the District Office, which 

 is in charge of a District Forester and several as- 

 sistants. Beginning in 1909 Forest Experiment 

 Stations were established in each district and in 

 1910 the Forest Products Laboratory, the first one 

 of its kind in the world, was formally opened at 

 Madison, Wisconsin. The Weeks Law, passed on 

 JNIarch 1, 1911, provides for the acquisition of for- 

 est lands on the watersheds of navigable streams in 

 the Appalachian and White Mountains. Up to 

 June 30, 1917, over 1,500,000 acres have been ap- 

 proved for purchase in these mountains. The 

 Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina was 

 recently organized from purchased lands. 



THE PRESENT ORGANIZATION OF THE FOREST SERVICE 



The Administrative Districts. The administra- 

 tion of the National Forests and the conduct of all 

 matters relating to forestry which have been placed 



