timber, in response to public sentiment and eco- 
nomic circumstances, was in a stand-by status. ‘The 
war marked a turning point. The difficulty in 
filling urgent timber needs from other sources 
clearly called for a speedy opening up of additional 
national-forest supplies. Output was tripled, rising 
from 1.3 billion board feet in fiscal year 1939 to 
about 3.8 billion in 1947. It can be further in- 
creased in coming years. 
Larger demand for national-forest timber has 
created certain administrative problems. Among 
them is how to stay within the limits of sustained 
yield on each working circle—to withstand the pres- 
sures to overcut. ‘These pressures often grow out of 
serious local timber shortages and are accentuated 
by the urgent need of lumber for housing and 
other purposes. Nevertheless, adherence in the long 
run to sustained-yield principles—producing to the 
full without overcutting the forests, and building up 
the growing stock where necessary—is fundamental 
in national-forest management. 
Major requisites for increasing national-forest 
output include a greatly enlarged system of forest 
roads to open up hitherto inaccessible tracts, mostly 
in the West; and more sales cutting for thinning 
and other timber-stand improvement. Looking 
further ahead, better protection against fire, insects, 
and disease is also needed to cope with the added 
hazards that accompany active operation. And 
planting of denuded areas and fail spots will help 
maintain output in the future. 
More intensive management is needed for other 
reasons as well. ‘The national forests represent the 
Nation’s greatest opportunity for large-scale multi- 
ple-use management. But for this they need phy- 
sical improvements and much cultural work to 
put resources in good condition and to assure their 
most effective use. A great deal of capital-improve- 
ment work of various kinds is needed.3? This 
should include, in addition to the foregoing: A 
large amount of range improvement and reseeding; 
wildlife and recreation facilities, now grossly inade- 
quate; and watershed-protection works to safeguard 
water and soil. 
An important corollary is expansion of the na- 
tional-forest system—both consolidation of Federal 
ownership within existing units and establishment 
of new ones where needed. The rate of acquisi- 
tion has been far too slow. Regular appropria- 
37 Forest Service estimates in 1946 indicate that capital- 
improvement work on national forests would afford the 
equivalent of 90,000 full-time jobs for 6 years. 
Forests and National Prosperity 
tions, 1910-46, ranged from 75 thousand to 3 
million dollars annually.?8 In addition, about 48 
million of emergency funds was made available for 
acquisition from 1934 to 1937. About half of 
the 18 million acres purchased to date was acquired 
in those 4 years. 
The national forests are a great public asset capa- 
ble of a much larger sustained output of timber 
and other products if more intensively managed. 
They are the backlog of America’s public-forest 
holdings, destined to contribute increasingly to 
local and national economy. A most pressing need 
is to get a maximum contribution from them con- 
sistent with sound conservation principles. We can 
do this only by investing more in this resource. 
Other Public Forests Are Also Important 
The 92 million acres of other public-forest lands 
also have a large potential for furthering com- 
munity and national welfare and, in some respects, 
have similar management problems. Some 10 or 
more agencies manage the 54 million acres in Fed- 
eral jurisdiction, most of which is under the De- 
partment of the Interior: 
Federally owned or administered for- 
est lands other than national forests} 
(million acres) 
All Commer- Noncom- 
forest cial mercial 
Classification: 
Grazing districts 200.0... 17.0 1.0 16.0 
Indian lands ooo. 16.4 6.6 9.8 
Other, Federal. 2) nh 220.3 7.8 12.5 
BOtalimee sie ee ee eee 53.7 15.4 38.3 
1 Approximate data for 1945. 
2 Includes about 9 million acres in public domain; 7 million 
in national parks and monuments; 2 million in Oregon and 
California revested lands; and 2 million administered by 
other agencies, including the Reclamation Service, Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Soil Conservation Service, and the military 
departments. 
The 17 million acres in grazing districts and 9 
million in the unreserved public domain—all in the 
West and administered by the Interior , Depart- 
ment’s Bureau of Land Management—is mostly 
noncommercial and of value chiefly for range and 
watershed protection. Mainly these are arid forest 
lands intermingled with or merging into open 
range. Fire protection has been sporadic and 
management has gone little beyond initial attempts 
to better the range. 
88No appropriations were made in 1916, 1918, 1919, and 
1921. 
89 
