THE PROFESSION OF FORESTRY. 11 



land owners who are mlling to pay the expense of the necessary 

 examination. Work is also done in cooperation with the States in 

 general studies of their forest conditions, in outlining State forest 

 policies, and in recommending legislation. 



The investigative work in forest products is largely concentrated 

 at Madison, Wisconsin, where the laboratory of forest products is 

 located. There are branch offices in Washington and in several 

 of the District offices, and cooperative work is carried on at Seattle 

 in connection with the University of Washington, and at Boulder, 

 Colo., in connection mth the University of Colorado. The total 

 number of technical men engaged in investigative work in forest 

 products varies from about 40 to 50. Of these, however, only a 

 comparatively small number are technical foresters, the rest being 

 engineers, chemists, and speciahsts in other fines. Very detailed 

 studies are made of such problems as the preservative treatment of 

 timber, the physical and mechanical properties of wood, wood dis- 

 tiUation, the use of different species for paper pulp, and the decay 

 of wood. 



A new line of work recently undertaken by the Forest Service is 

 the examination of land in the White Mountains and Southern 

 Appalachian Mountains for purchase under the provisions of the 

 Weeks Law. A force of about 30 technical foresters is engaged on 

 this work, and temporary men are employed from time to time as 

 occasion arises. Under the provisions of the Weeks Law assistance 

 is also given to various States in protecting from fire the forested 

 watersheds of navigable streams. This work requires the employ- 

 ment of several hundred Federal patrolmen to perform duties similar 

 in a large measure to those of the ranger or guard on the National 

 Forests. 



HOW THE FORCE IS RECRUITED. 



All permanent positions in the Forest Service are in the classified 

 civil service. The main force is recruited through two civil service 

 examinations, that of forest assistant and that of forest ranger. 

 The first is a highly technical examination, and requires a training 

 equivalent to that given at the best forest schools. The ranger 

 examination is of a very practical nature, requiring field training and 

 experience, together with some knowledge of several phases of 

 technical forestry. There are also a number of technical positions in 

 other lines of work which are occupied by specialists recruited from 

 special civil service examinations. Among these are mineral exami- 

 ners, lumbermen, scalers, engineers in timber tests, chemical engi- 

 neers, draftsmen, land examiners, land law clerks, and others. 



The important positions in the Forest Service along executive and 

 administrative lines are filled by the promotion of men who have 

 shown special merit. Most of the forest supervisors and deputy 



