TIMBER GROWING IN THE LODGEPOLE PINE REGION H 
ing forest cover, which is a powerful agent in regulating and conserv- 
ing the flow of water. Forests of the loclgepole pine region are lo- 
cated on the headwaters of innumerable important streams supplying 
irrigation water for an enormous acreage in a number of States, in- 
cluding several far removed from the forested lands. 
Although it would be difficult to place a value on this use of the 
forest, its importance is obvious enough, as is also the interstate char- 
acter of the benefits to be derived. It is fitting that the Federal Gov- 
ernment should continue to take the lead here in watershed conserva- 
tion through fire protection and the practice of forestry. 
RECREATIONAL USE 
The maintenance of fish and game resources is an important 
consideration in the recreational use of the forest, a use that is be- 
coming of increasing importance to residents of cities and towns 
throughout the country. Nor is this use of the forest by any means 
inconsistent with the practice of forestry. Properly regulated timber 
cutting increases the attractiveness of the forest at the same time that 
it promotes forest growth. In many ways, as experience has shown, 
good forest practice can be and should be correlated with recrea- 
tional use. If this is to be accomplished, it is certainly essential that 
forests be maintained in a productive condition, and that the forested 
area be not reduced. 
Every form of recreational use is dependent upon the protection 
of the forest. People do not camp on barren hillsides nor build 
summer homes on the open plains. Most kinds of game are de- 
pendent upon the perpetuation of the forest for a home, as are fish 
on the well-regulated flow of forest streams. In these and many 
other ways protection, which is the first essential of the practice of 
forestry, automatically extends its benefits to the human users of 
the forests. 
EXTENT AND MANNER OF LOGGING 
The cutting which has taken place in different localities is closely 
related to the length of time adjacent settlements have been devel- 
oped. The eastern-slope forests, tributary to the Great Plains region, 
particularly in Colorado, were drawn upon heavily in the early days, 
and the same is true in the vicinity of highly developed mining 
camps, such as Cripple Creek and Leadville, Colo. ; Butte, Anaconda, 
Red Lodge, and Helena, Mont. ; and Bingham and Clear Creek, 
Utah. No organized fire protection was given to the forests until 
1905, and fires were often permitted to burn unchecked until ex- 
tinguished by natural causes. Lodgepole pine has recovered best 
from this heavy use and lack of protection; the greatest lasting 
damage resulting from the early cuttings seems to have occurred in 
the spruce and fir types, where extensive fires swept the remaining 
slashings so thoroughly that the forest even after an interval of 60 
years or longer has not yet been completely reestablished. The slopes 
of Pikes Peak offer one of the most striking examples. 
The bulk of the cutting at present is on national-forest lands. 
Not more than 20 per cent of the production is from other areas, 
and this percentage will probably decrease steadily, since the supply 
