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CONTENTS. 



Page. 



Report of the Secretary of Agriculture 13 



Nature and extent of this investigation 14 



The Appalachian region 16 



The Southern Appalachian region 17 



The Southern Appalachian Mountains 18 



The forests 21 



Forest clearing and agriculture in the Southern Appalachians 25 



Forest clearings, the rivers, and floods 28 



The climate of the Southern Appalachians 33 



How can these forests be preserved 34 



Conditions of purchase and management 36 



Conclusions 38 



Appendix A. — Report on the forests and forest conditions in the Southern 



Appalachians 41 



Description of the forests and forest conditions by mountain groups 46 



Forests of the Blue Ridge 46 



Forests of the White Top Mountain region 47 



Forests of Roan, Grandfather, and the Black mountains 49 



Forests of the central interior mountain ridges 51 



Forests of the Great Smoky Mountains 53 



Forests of the southern end of the Appalachians 54 



Changes in forest conditions of the Southeri Appalachians 55 



Forests cleared for farming purposes 57 



Forests injured by fires 55 



Lumbering in the Southern Appalachians now and under Government 



ownership and supervision 61 



Application of conservative forest methods to this region by the Govern- 

 ment practicable and profitable 62 



Some evils of the present system of lumbering 63 



Recent lumbering methods more profitable, but also destructive 64 



Objects and policy of forest management under Government ownership. . 65 



Improvement in general forest policy necessary 66 



Considerations that should govern in the management of the proposed 



forest reserve 67 



Description of the Southern Appalachian forests by river basins 69 



New River Basin 69 



South Fork of Holston River Basin 70 



Watauga River Basin 72 



Nolichucky River Basin 74 



French Broad River Basin 76 



Big Pigeon River Basin 78 



Northwestern slope of Smoky Mountains 79 



Little Tennessee River Basin 80 



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