38 ANNUAL REPORT OF 



law of the United States any mature timber in a United 

 States forest reserve may be sold at its appraised val- 

 ue, but not for shipment out of the state in which it is sit- 

 uated. Any person, under the regulations of the Interior 

 department, can enter a forest reserve for all lawful pur- 

 poses, including that of prospecting, locating and develop- 

 ing the mineral resources thereof; and more than that, 

 can have free use of timber and stone for carrying on 

 his work. Besides, the Interior department may restore 

 to the pubHc domain any public lands in a forest reserve, 

 which, after due personal examination by a competent 

 person, shall be found better for mining or for agricultural 

 purposes than for forest use. The setting apart of lands 

 that are suitable for the purpose as a forest reserve is, 

 therefore, beneficial to the public, though it may not 

 be beneficial to the speculator in timber. Having be- 

 come satisfied that it would be for the best interest of 

 the public that the above mentioned area be set apart 

 as a forest reserve, I, on the loth of May last, address- 

 ed the following recommendation to the U. S. Com- 

 missioner of the General Land Office: 



St. Paul, Minn., May lo, 1902. 

 Hon. Binger Hermann, Commissioner General Land OfHce, 



Washington, D. C. 

 Dear Sir: I have the honor hereby to recommend that the fol- 

 lowing townships, all public land, situated in Cook and Lake 

 counties, in Minnesota, and comprising (after deducting water sur- 

 face) an area in round numbers of five hundred thousand acres, 

 be set apart by the President as a forest reserve, namely: 



Township 59, ranges 5, 8 and 9 west. 



Township 60, ranges 4 to 9 west. 



Township 61, ranges 5 to 11 west, both inclusive. 



Township 62, ranges 5 to 10 west, both inclusive. 



Township 63, ranges 5 to 7 west, both inclusive, and south 

 half of township 63, range 8. 

 Ten of these townships are surveyed and all of the lands are 

 practically vacant, with these exceptions: that only half of town- 

 ship 59, range 9 west, and township 60, range 8 west, are vacant, 



