9 
This permission has in practice been construed by the railroad compa- 
nies into a license to cut timber wherever, whenever, and for whatever 
purpose they saw fit, before and after construction. 
That the timber on the public domain had a special value, and also 
that it needed, like all movable property, to be looked after and pro- 
tected, was recognized by the act of March 2, 1831, under which, for the 
care and custody of the timber on the public domain, 
a system of 
agencies under the supervision of the Solicitor of the Treasury was es- 
tablished. When, in 1854, the management of the timber interest was 
transferred to the General Land Office, and the registers and receivers 
were expected to act as timber agents without additional pay, an ex- 
ceedingly loose construction as to the right to take timber, and naturally 
a lax enforcement of any laws, prevailed until 1877. In fact, until 1876 
the collection of stumpage, when found out, was the only penalty for 
timber stealing, and a regular revenue, payable quarterly at the disere. 
tion of the receivers, was attempted to be collected from 
the saw-mill 
men without any sanction of law. [From the year 1872 until 1877 an. 
nual appropriations were made for this service, amounting 
gate to $48,000 ($45,624.76 expended). 
in the aggre. 
In 1877 the Commissioner of the Land Office instituted a service of 
special agents, and in 1878 a special appropriation of $25,000 was made 
‘¢ to meet the expenses of suppressing depredations upon timber on the 
public lands.” The system of special agents was gradually enlarged 
and the appropriations increased, with the results during the last seven 
years as exhibited in the table below. 
Depredations on the public timber during seven years. 

Estimated value of tim- 

ber reported stolen, | Amounts ‘ 
actually re-| Appropria- 
Year covered, tions tor 
; partly by | protection 
na as com- service. 
Market. | Stumpage. promise. 
OLS SE Cee See Ee eee ae $891, 888 $225, 472 $41, 680 $40, 000 
ee eee ie atm aiawiere'= © «.- 2, 044, 278 511, 069 77, 365 40, 000 
1883 (2. deectiogt< ot eee eee 8, 144,658 | 1,709, 824 27, 741 75, 000 
eee eee at ty 7, 289, 854 | 1,093,178 52, 108 75, 000 
ico Ae ee 2, 862, 530 489, 255 49, 451 75, 000 
OL ee eee 9, 339, 679 | 1, 726, 516 101, 086 75, 000 
ete ee ie Pee o as wa & oe < 6, 146,935 | 1, 138, 320 128, 642 75, 000 
Lh ESSE eS ae Tie hale ea 36,719, 852 | 6, 893, 634 | #78 073 455, 000 

* Actual number of agents employed for shorter periods. 
With more and more urgency have the Commissioners 

Agents employed. 


Months 
Number. Rie 
ployed. 
17 (2) 
; - (?) 
Lv 
) *13 } 12 
26 ; 
; 44 : 12 
ae 
} a : 8 
21 
; is ; 12 
26 12 

of the Land 
Office, the officers to whose care, under the Secretary of State, this prop- 
Nore.—Daring the thirty-three years from 1855 to 1888 the sums recovered from trespassers amounted 
in the aggregate to $491,172. 

