3, 1891. These lands have always been in Federal ownership. In 

 1905, the forest reserves were placed under the administration of 

 the Secretary of Agriculture and the Forest Service was created to 

 administer them. Later their name was changed to National Forests 

 to reflect a conservation policy of resource utilization rather than of 

 preservation. 



Most of the National Forest land in the East was purchased under 

 the Weeks law of 1911, as amended in 1924, which authorized pur- 

 chase of lands to protect the watersheds of navigable streams and for 

 timber production. 



Pursuant to the act of June 4, 1897, the 1911 act, the Multiple Use- 

 Sustained Yield Act of June 12, 1960, and others, the National Forests 

 have been administered under the dual policies of sustained-yield and 

 multiple-use principles. 



The National Grasslands were created from land utilization proj- 

 ects administered by the Department of Agriculture. By Secretary's 

 Order of June 24, 1960, these lands were named National Grasslands 

 and made a part of the National Forest System. These, and 29 re- 

 maining land utilization projects, are largely forest and range lands, 

 submarginal for private ownership, and acquired by the Federal 

 Government during the 1930's for purposes of conservation and re- 

 habilitation. The lands are administered under Title III of the 

 Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act of July 22, 1937, and with the 

 same general sustained-yield and multiple-use objectives as the Na- 

 tional Forests. 



The National Forests and Grasslands yield water, timber, forage, 

 recreation, game and other wildlife, and minerals. Western agricul- 

 ture and industry are dependent on water flowing from National For- 

 est watersheds ; hundreds of thousands of people earn their livelihood 

 processing timber grown on National Forests; millions of domestic 

 livestock graze National Forest and Grassland ranges ; and many mil- 

 lions of people seek the National Forests for rest, relaxation, and 

 spiritual uplift. All of the renewable resources are to be utilized at a 

 high sustained level of productivity and in harmonious relationship 

 each with the other. This is the basic policy. 



Most National Forest resources and services, such as recreation, 

 wildlife habitat, waterflow, and scenery, cannot be evaluated in mone- 

 tary terms. There is no known way to measure the multiple intangible 

 values and services of the National Forests and Grasslands; but the 

 timber, forage, and land alone are appraised at well over 7 billion 

 dollars. 



The National Forests and Grasslands are revenue-producing proper- 

 ties. Twenty-five percent of such revenues is distributed to counties 

 in which these lands are located. In F.Y. 1960, revenues from Na- 

 tional Forest and Grassland resources and other lands administered by 

 the Forest Service amounted to 148.2 million dollars. More than a 

 billion dollars has been received in total from the sale of National 

 Forest goods and services. Nat ional Forest payments received by the 

 counties, coupled with Federal expenditures for roads and fire control 

 which Stales of counties would otherwise make, substantially exceed 

 the taxes that the National Forests would pay if subjected to ordinary 

 assessmenl and levy. 



