6 THE FORESTS OF THE UNITED STATES: THEIR USE. 
ern white pine, and Douglas and other firs abounding locally. The 
Rocky Mountain forest covered about 110,000,000 acres, with a stand 
of 400,000,000,000 board feet. The Pacific forest was nearly all ever- 
green, chiefly Douglas fir, western yellow pine, redwood, western red 
cedar, sugar pine, and several other firs, cedars, and spruces. Its trees 
were the largest and its stands the heaviest recorded by history or by 
geology. The Pacific forest probably contained 90,000,000 acres, with 
a stand of 1,400,000,000,000 feet. 
As well as these great forest regions, the United States probably 
contained 100,000,000 acres, chiefly in the West, of scrubby forests 
and brush land, of great value in conserving stream flow and for fuel, 
posts, and other small material. 
Our present forests, except upon the Pacific coast and in the Rocky 
Mountains, are all that remain of those which once covered 45 per 
cent of the country. Clearing for agriculture, logging, and fire have 
reduced this to 29 per cent, or 550,000,000 acres, with a probable stand 
of 2,500,000,000,000 board feet. The northern forest now contains 
90,000,000 acres, or 60 per cent of its former area; the southern forest 
150,000,000 acres, or 68 per cent; the central forest 130,000,000 acres, 
or 46 per cent; the Rocky Mountain forest 100,000,000 acres, or 91 
per cent; and the Pacific forest 80,000,000 acres, or 89 per cent of 
its original acreage. 
Fire, careless cutting, and excessive grazing have greatly injured 
the composition and quality of existing forests. No native tree has 
yet become entirely extinct, but the commercial supply of every kind, 
except those of the Pacific forest, is seriously reduced. 
Forests publicly owned are nearly all in the West. They consist 
of National Forests, national parks, Indian reservations, military 
reservations, the forests of the unreserved public domain, and state 
forests. They contain over 100,000,000 acres of merchantable tim- 
ber, with a stand of 484,200,000,000 board feet, distributed as follows: 
Public forest lands. 
Total stand. 
Tn “National MOrests 22555 se ate eee ev ee ae vee board feet__ 390, 000, 000, 000 
In national, Parks. 22 os Se ee ee a eer do____ 11, 000, 000, 000. 
In unreserved) public -domain2 = 22 62 422) 2a ee aire do____ 14, 000, 000, 000 
In Indian, reservations. leases Ve eS eee ee ee do____ 34, 000, 000, 000 
Fn military reservations: 2222 So50 2 ai ee ee eee Gdo- ks 200, 000, 000 
In state: forests. 2s Fk ee ee ee ee do__-- 35, 000, 000, 000 
Tota. ee ae ea eA ee 2 ee ee ne do____ 484, 200, 000, 000 
Forestry is practiced on 70 per cent of these public forests. 
Forests privately owned fall into two classes—farmers’ woodlots 
and larger private holdings. Woodlots contain 300,000,000,000 board 
[Cir. 171] 
