MINING IN THE FOREST RESERVES. 



BY 

 MAJOR F. A. FENN 



Supervisor of Forest Reserves in Idaho and Montana 



I N many of the Western States where forest reserves 

 have been established, mining holds the foremost 

 place among our industries. With coal mining we 

 have little to do; hence, in the remarks that I shall 

 make, the term mining will be confined to metalliferous 

 mining. No other industry is more directly and inti- 

 mately connected with the administration of forest 

 reserves than mining. The preservation of timber and 

 the conservation of the water supply — the two great 

 purposes of the forester — are exactly suited to meet 

 the demands of the two chief branches of the mining 

 industry, lode mining and placer mining. The lode 

 miner must have timber for his underground workings ; 

 and without water, the placer miner is helpless. The 

 Government has ever guarded the miner's interests 

 most carefully. Every inducement has been given 

 the prospector, and the development of the mineral 

 resources of the country has been encouraged and 

 stimulated. Consistently with its steadfast policy, 

 Congress took pains to see that the law authorizing 

 and setting apart portions of the public domain as 

 forest reserves should contain nothing of detriment 

 to the mining industry. The act of June 4, 1897 (com- 

 monly called the Forest Reserve Law), among other 

 things provides as follows: 



"It is not the purpose or intent of these provisions, 

 or of the act providing for such reservations, to author- 



