2 
Each forester keeps a record of his official acts and reports a sum- 
mary of it, with important details, monthly to his chief. The monthly 
payment of salary is contingent upon the receipt of this report. The 
chief forester reports to the commission all cases of neglect of duty 
or negligence on the part of the foresters, and he also makes a monthly 
report of the operations of his department. 
The commission may, in its discretion, appoint or remove special 
foresters recommended by any board of supervisors, but such special 
foresters receive no compensation from the State. All peace officers 
have the same powers as foresters in the enforcement of the fisheries, 
game, and forest law. 
Article XII, Chapter 395, Laws of 1895, describes the forest pre- 
serve (sec. 270), and defines the powers and duties of the commission 
(sec. 271), whose duty it is (1) to have the care, custody, control, and 
superintendence of the forest preserve ; (2) maintain, protect, and 
promote the growth of the forests in the preserve; (3) have charge 
of the public interests of the State in regard to forestry and tree 
planting, and especially with reference to forest fires in every part of 
the State; (4) possess all the powers relating to the preserve which 
were vested in the commissioners of the land office and in the comp- 
troller on May 15, 1885; (5) prescribe rules and regulations affecting 
the whole or any part of the preserve for its use, care, and adminis- 
tration, and alter or amend the same; but neither such rules or regu- 
lations nor anything contained in this article shall prevent or operate 
to prevent the free use of any road, stream, or water as the same 
may have been heretofore used, or as may be reasonably required in 
the prosecution of any lawful business; (6) take measures for the 
awakening of an interest in forestry in the schools and imparting 
elementary instruction on such subject therein, and issue tracts and 
circulars for the care of private woodlands, etc.; (7) print and post 
rules for the prevention and suppression of forest fires. 
Section 272 provides that all income from the State forest lands, 
including receipts for trespasses, shall be paid into the State treasury, 
and constitute a fund for the purchase of lands within the Adirondack 
Park; the comptroller shall audit the accounts of the board, and an 
annual report of all its doings shall be made in January of each year. 
Section 273 provides for the division of lands within the forest pre- 
serve in which the State owns an undivided interest with individuals. 
Section 274 provides for the taxation of the forest preserve. All 
wild or forest land within the forest preserve shall be assessed and 
taxed at a like valuation and rate as similar lands of individuals 
within the counties where situated. The assessors shall file with the 
commission and the comptroller a copy of the assessment roll of their 
towns, and shall state (under oath) which and how much of the 
lands assessed are forest lands and which are lands belonging to the 
State. The comptroller, after hearings, shall *‘ correct or reduce any 
assessment of State land which may be in his judgment an unfair — 
proportion to the remaining assessment of land within the town,” 
and shall otherwise approve the assessment. No such assessment 
shall be valid without the approval of the comptroller. No tax for 
the erection of schoolhouses or road opening shall be valid unless 
such erection or opening is first approved by the board. Payment of 
taxes on State lands shall be made by the State treasurer crediting 
the county treasurer with the amount of such taxes due on such lands 
