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Show USE OF NATIONAL FOREST i RESOURCES ON INCREASE Growth In Volume of Business Arising From Use 'of Forests Hatr Created Serious Administrative Problem. Washington. Tho actual use of tho varied resources of tho government's 108,000,000 acres of national foroet land Is on tho increase according to tho report of the work for tho fiscal year 1908. Tho report says that from an administrative standpoint tho most striking fact of the year was the re-markablo re-markablo Increase which took place In the volume of business transacted. This growth in business done by tho United States forest service las) year over the previous year Is partly brought out In the following statement showing percentages of Increase: In tho number of Umber Bales, 236 pot cent; In tho amount of timber cut under Bales, 102 per cent; In tho number num-ber of free timber permits, 7G pet cent; In tho number of grazing pen xnlts, 11 por cont, and in the number of Bpeclal-uso permits, G7 per cent. That tho additions to existing national forests and now creations caused this lncreaso only to a small extent Is shown by tho fact that tho area ln creaBcd Is only 11 per cent. In speaking speak-ing of this feature of tho work of tho forest servlco In his nnnual report, tho secretary ot agriculture says In part: "Tho growth In tho volume of business busi-ness arising from use of tho forests has created a very serious administrative administra-tive problem. Last year 78 por cent of the tlmo of tho administrative and protective forco was taken up by tho demands of national forest business. The average forest area to each officer of-ficer supposedly available for patrol duty was about 120,000 acres; but with moro than throo-fourthB of tho time of these ofllcers occupied with timber-solo, grazing, and other business, busi-ness, tho forco nctually available for patrol was equivalent to about ono man to each 500,000 acres. That under un-der these circumstances the flro losses In a year of exceptional danger wero kept down to a very small figure In comparison with tho value of the timber tim-ber exposed and the damage from forest for-est flres clscwhero Is a matter of congratulation. con-gratulation. . " "Tho risk Incurred, however, is out of all proportion to the added cost which moro adequato protection would involve. I am convinced that the pro-i vision mado for the caro and use of the national forests has becomo inadequate inade-quate to their needs, and I have therefore there-fore submlted estimates for tho fiscal year 1910 which ask for a substantial Increase in the appropriation. With tho further growth In business which Ib certain to take place during tho present year, even less protection can bo given than has been given In the past Indeed, tho point has now nearly near-ly been reached at which it Is not even a cholco between providing for the needs of thoso who would use tho forests and protecting tho forests themselves." |