SURVEYS OF FOREST RESERVES. 51 



Miaing is expecteil to develop extensively. 



Agricaltiire is not possible within the reserve. 



About450,000 sheep pasture within the reserve. Their grazing retards reproduction, 

 and should be regulated. 



Adjacent settlements should be supplied with necessary timber and fuel from the 

 reserve. , 



The Big Hora Eeserve is situated in northera Wyoming, and occu- 

 pies about two-thirds of the Big Horn Mountain Range, which lias a 

 length from north to south of from 75 to 100 miles, and a breadth from 

 east to west of from 30 to 50 miles. The boundaries of the reserve 

 include an area of 1,127,680 acres, none of which is railroad land. 



The Big Horn Range consists of a broad flat plateau rising abruptly 

 from the plains to an elevation of from 8,000 to i>,000 feet. Along the 

 center of the plateau is a granite crest which attains in Cloud Peak an 

 altitude of 13,100 feet. The climate is dry, with little rain during the 

 growing season. It is too severe for agriculture. Frosts occur during 

 every month in the year, and snow lies from jSTovember to June. 



The forests of the range furnish a small amount of lumber to the 

 settlements east and west, and nearly two million railroad ties have 

 been cut. 



THE FOREST. 



The forest is distributed chiefly along ridges parallel to the central 

 backbone, and consists almost wholly of lodge pole pine, locally known 

 under various names. On the whole, the region is lightly forested, 

 while probably one- half of it bears at present no timber at all. About 

 84,000 acres are estimated to contain timber of merchantable size at 

 present, and the total stand of this area is believed to be 210,000,000 

 feet B. M. In other words, less than 10 per cent of the total area of 

 the reserve now contains merchantable timber. A half million acres, 

 it is estimated, are covered with young growth capable of yielding, 

 after from thirty to fifty years of protection from fire, a merchantable 

 crop. By assuming the very moderate yield of 2,000 feet per acre, this 

 young growth will produce, when mature, 1,000,000,000 feet of mer- 

 chantable timber. In addition it may be made to furnish, under proper 

 management, a regular annual product for an indefinite period. But 

 for the fires this vast resource would be available now. 



The lodge-pole pine is distribiited from the plains to the timber line. 

 Here, as elsewhere, on account of its vigorous reproductive power, its 

 distribution is increased by the prevalence of fires. It reoccupies the 

 ground from which forests of other trees have been removed by fire. It 

 is capable of yielding an inferior quality of lumber, good fencing and 

 building material, and great quantities of railroad ties. The average 

 size of mature trees may be given roughly, as follows: Height, 70 feet; 

 diameter, 1 foot ; length of clear trunk, 25 feet. 



The spruce, while not present in great numbers on the reserve, is 

 widely distributed on both high and low elevations in moist places. It 

 is larger, on the average, than the lodge-pole pine. 



The larger part of the reserve south of Tongue River appears to have 

 been burnt over about twenty-five years ago, as is indicated by the 

 young growth which has sprung up since that time; and clear traces 

 of other older fires may also be discerned. The open grassy parks, 

 which are estimated to cover at least one-half of the reserve, are 

 directly due to fire. Repeated burnings finally overcome the reproduc- 



