SURVEYS OF FOREST RESERVES. 49 



because careless and unaware of sylvicultural results. An illustration 

 may be drawn from the forests of the southern AHeghenies. Certain 

 lumbering operations were undertaken there under the direction of a 

 professional forester, and were carried out by small contractors with but 

 slight differences from the usual way. The result has been a plentiful 

 reproduction of the yellow poplar, or tulip tree, over the whole area of 

 the cut. This is the first instance known to me in which this result has 

 been either sought or obtained. The yeUow poplar, one of the most val- 

 uable timber trees of the region, has been uniformly believed by lumber- 

 men to be incapable of reproducing itself after cutting. Although the 

 trees removed were yellow poplars almost "without exception, the pres- 

 ence of a far larger proporition of this species in the future is assured. 



To harvest its product while securing the perpetuity and improve- 

 ment of the forest is the special work of the forester. The cost of his 

 work, as compared with that of the ordinary destructive methods of 

 lumbering, shows an increase usually so small as to be wholly out of 

 proportion to the value of the results obtained. 



Lumbering operations in the reserves should not be undertaken by 

 the GovernmcDt. The function of the forest oflBcers in this regard 

 should be restricted to the selection of the trees to be cut, their sale at 

 public auction, and the enforcement of rules governing their felling and 

 removal, and the disposition of the tops and other waste. 



Since each part of each forest must be treated with special regard to 

 its character, it is diUncult to formulate general rules. It may be said, 

 however, that all regulations and all work should aim at the following 

 results : 



1. Safety from fire. 



2. The reproduction of the forest. 



3. Its improvement in composition and yield. 



4. The satisfaction of local demand for forest products. 



5. A fair return in money to the Government. 



The application of these general principles to the reserves will lead 

 to widely different results in different forests. In some places great 

 bodies of burnt land or young timber will require nothing but pro- 

 tection from fire for years to come. Elsewhere old trees, long past their 

 prime, should be removed, while in very many localities the timber 

 needed for local use can be taken, under the direction of trained men, 

 with safety and advantage to the fore.st. 



FOREST BBAIJDS. 



In reserves where timber is sold it will be necessary to indicate unmis- 

 takably before the cutting what trees are to be cut, and afterwards to 

 ascertain that these trees, and these only, have been taken. Similarly, 

 trees to be cut under permit must be designated, and in many other 

 cases an official timber mark is imperatively demanded. Provision 

 should therefore be made for providing rangers and forest guards with 

 branding hatchets, the brand made by each of which should show, by 

 its general shape and particular figure, the executive charge and pro- 

 tective beat to which it belongs. Each brand should be registered in 

 the State where it is used, and a special regulation of the Secretary 

 should make the penal provisions of the act of June i, 1897, applicable 

 to the illegal manufacture, use, or possession of a Government branding 

 hatchet. Xo other regulation will do more to facilitate the practical 

 management of the forests in the reserves. 

 S. Doc. 189 4 



