| Show Us S department OF agriculture chief forester graves is on wa his way war to san baa francisco to make final arrangements range ments under which a california lumber company will purchase million feet of timber on tho the sierra national dional forest tho the timber has as a already rc been awarded after public advertisement tte ti to tho the highest bidder but finder indar tho the terms of tho the advertisement th the final signing of 0 the contract will not take taka place until tho the company comi any has keen chonin eho n on tho the ground what timber the 60 government Gofern mont will croul in order arder ardetto to preserve prea arve erve good forat f fy conditions and provide for cepro duct ioa olao company will bai avowed its mil full SOO million feet but naturally it will not be allow allowed ed to cut clean As I 1 a rule the forest service reserves something like one third of the forest eland in applying forestry on government holdings A marking board made up of one man sent from washington me from the district office in san francisco and tho the local forest supervisor will carefully mark a sample area to show how the restrictions on cutting will bo be applied representatives of the collany colpany company will then go eo over the area ala after which chief forester G graves raves and hl his assistants will alt it ia fe expected mako make final arrangements with the company in an fn san francisdo francisco and the contract of sale will be signed the forest reserve said sir air graves in speaking of this sale has received a number of inquires whether in selling so much timber to a single purchaser the may not be opening the way to a monopolistic control of local lumber markets other correspondents are disturbed lest the sale prove a bad bargain for the government through the rise in value sat bf tho ilia timber in tho the twenty two years during which which the company will cut such large and longtime long time sales of 0 national forest timber as that to the california company are a now new develop ment in the forest service great bodies of matu mature e but inaccessible timber can pe be put oo 00 0 the market only it i sale contracts are let on t erms which will justify a very heavy initial investment in transportation facilities in entering into such contracts however special safeguards to protect the public against agal monopoly and to prevent an undue profit to the purchaser are employed rhe national forests contain in all the equivalent of 0 nearly billion feet of timber now of merchantable size besides young growth for future liar harvest yest because of its remoteness from froin market and the wild mountainous country without transportation facilities in which roost most of it lies only a small percentage taga can now be sold gold on cw terms most of it would cust pioma to get it out than it would bring flip sale bale of 0 less than one fifth ot of one per cent of or total supply to one company leav leaves es plenty of 0 room for competition by other companies 11 the ilie timber willal hm beon been sold to t the california corp company liany lieo lie well back bach in t tile be sierra 1 erra nevada mountains arid and will require tho the construction of 0 70 miles of standard s ta n dard gauge gau gg railroad to op otti n up tip th the area since this road vill also open up lip other motional forest timber limber anil and mil aill hoa common 0 carrier carrier it creates another safeguard safe slate guard against ino Dio noply the company is given a cut it ting ng period of twenty two years to remote mo e vie tb e timber besides an additional two years for the construction of logging and manufacturing facilities the salo sale was publicly advertised for six sit months in order to give an opportunity for all who wished to compete for the contract to make bids as Is done in all large national forest sales no business organization would undertake tho the heavy investment necessary in such cases unless the handling of a largo large body of 0 umber timber and a sufficient period in which to remove it under practicable logging conditions are assured the great difficulty in making such long term twin sales lg Is to establish a price which will bo be fair to both sides no ono one can caa foresee future conditions well enough to know what stumpage pago will be worth teu ten fifteen or twenty years years hence consequently the terms ot of sale provide tor for the readjustment of stumpage paga price every five years the basis tor for fixing the prices will be in each caso case the prices of 0 manufactured lumber in the markets where the umber timber Is sold bold during the preceding two years for several years tho the forest service has been selling belling in the neighborhood of 0 a million dollars worth of national forest stumpage pago per year but this combined with what is cut for free use is only about one eighth of what might bo be cut without reducing the permanent stock of the forests the supply will bo be kept up tip through growth by making long term sales it will be possible greatly to increase the amount available for present needs of the timber consuming public without endangering dan gering future supplies through ov er cutting it will always remain true however that vastly the greater part pan of aur our timber sales will be to small purchasers who are favored wherever Ahe rever possible monopoly is impossible as long as tile the door is kept open for such purchasers out of over sales made in the fiscal year 1911 about forty were for over worth of timber to a single purchaser |
