Part 4 (1/2)

No 8 Alaska District, Juneau, Alaska

(Alaska)

Each of the National Forests is under the direct supervision of a forest supervisor and is split up into froer district is in charge of a forest ranger who has an area of froe

The National Forests are, for the ion of the West, with small scattered areas in the Lake States, and the White Mountains, Southern Appalachians and Ozarks of the Eastern and Southern States Many of thee task to protect these forests against the ravages of fire Fire fighting takes precedence over all other work in the National Forests Lookout stations are established on high points to watch for signs of fire Airplanes are used on fire patrol over great areas of forest Where railroads pass through the National Forests, rangers operate motor cars and hand-cars over the tracks in their patrol work Launches are used in Alaska and on soe lakes, to enable the fire fighters and forest guardians to cover their beats quickly Every year the National Forests are being i of permanent roads, trails and telephone lines

Special trails are built to and in the fire protection areas of reood roads is constructed in every forest to i activities as well as to afford better means of communication between towns, settlements and farms The road and trail plan followed in the National Forests is mapped out years in advance In the more remote sections, trails are first constructed Later, these trails ress annually appropriates large su of roads in the National Forests Over 25,000 miles of roads and 35,000 miles of trails have already been constructed in these forests

Cohout the National Forests is had by the use of the telephone and the radio or wireless telephone Signalling by ions that have no telephones Arrangements made with private telephone companies permit the forest officers to use their lines The efficient communication systems aid in the ad fire fighters quickly at the points where sricultural and forestry experts have surveyed the lands in the National Forests Thus they have prevented the use of lands for forestry purposes which are better adapted for far Since 1910, more than 26,500,000 acres of lands have been excluded frorazing than for forestry Practically all lands within the National Forests have now been exaress has cole tracts Government lands outside the National Forests have also been traded for state or private lands within their boundaries

Thus the forests have been lined-up in more compact bodies

Careful surveys are made before such trades are closed to iven to Uncle Sam is valuable for timber production and the protection of stream flow, and that the Governed

The National Forests contain nearly five hundred billion board feet oftimber in the country Whenever the trees in the forest reach reen trees to be cut are selected by qualified forest officers and blazed andis done carefully so as to protect the forest and insure a future crop of trees on the area

Timber is furnished at low rates to local far iiven away The reer in the forest

Over a billion feet of timber, valued at more than 3,000,000, is sold annually froenerally does not think of meat, leather and wool as forest crops Nevertheless, the National Forests play an important part in the western livestock industry Experts report that over one-fifth of the cattle and one-half of the sheep of the western states are grazed in the National Forests These livestock are estimated to be worth nearly one-quarter billion dollars More than 9,500,000 head of livestock are pastured annually under permit in the Federal forests In addition, sorazed free of charge

[Illustration: SEED BEDS IN A FOREST NURSERY]

The ranges suitable for stock grazing are used to pasture sheep, cattle, horses, hogs and goats The Secretary of Agriculture decides what nuraze on each forest He regulates the grazing and prevents injury to the ranges fro overstocked with too razing units Generally, the cattle and horses are grazed in the valleys and on the lower slopes of the h rassy raze live stock on the forest ranges are for the ranted to stockmen n improved ranch property and live in or near one of the National Forests The fee for grazing on forest ranges is based on a yearlong rate of 120 a head of cattle, 150 for horses, 90 for hogs and 30 a head for sheep

At ti on the Governes For example, when mature timber has been cut from certain areas, it is essential that sheep be kept off such tracts until the young growth has rounds needed for recreation purposes by the public are excluded froe of the water supply of a neighboring town or city threatens, or if floods or erosion becoe is closed to live-stock and allowed to recuperate Where artificial planting is practiced, grazing is often forbidden until the young trees get a good start

The total receipts which Uncle Saraze their cattle and sheep on the National Forests amount to nearly 2,500,000 annually As a result of the teachings of the Forest Service, the stock animals are kept in the herds and flocks Many of the fat stock now go directly froe to the market Forrain in some of the Middle Western States to flesh them for market Experies of new feeding and herding ether in livestock associations, which cooperate with the Forest Service in es

It costs about 5 to sow one acre of ground to tree seed, and approxi trees The seed is obtained from the same locality where it is to be planted In many instances, cones are purchased fro them The Federal foresters dry these cones in the sun and thresh out the seed, which they then fan and clean If it is desired to store supplies of tree seed from year to year it is kept in sacks or jars, in a cool, dry place, protected froround, poison bait ophers,seed broadcast on unprepared land has usually failed unless the soil and weather conditions were just right

For the iven better results than direct seeding Two men can set out between five hundred and one thousand trees a day

The National Forests contain about one million acres of denuded forest lands Much of this was cut-over and so severely burned before the creation of the forests that it bears no tree growth

Some of these lands will reseed themselves naturally while other areas have to be seeded or planted by hand In this way the lands that will produce profitable trees are fitted to support forest cover Because the soils and climate of our National Forests are different, special experiments have been carried on in different places to decide the best practices to folloo method of reforestation are commonly practiced In soround and, thereafter, may or may not be cultivated This method is limited to the localities where the soil and rowth

Under the other plan, the seedlings are grown in nurseries for several years under favorable conditions They are then moved to the field and set out in permanent plantations

CHAPTER X

THE NATIONAL FORESTS OF ALASKA

There are two great National Forests in Alaska They cover 20,579,740 acres or about 5-1/2 per cent of the total area of Alaska The larger of these woodlands, the Tongass National Forest, is estimated to contain 70,000,000,000 board feet of ti Stands of 100,000 board feet per acre are not infrequent This is the Alaskan forest that will soe amounts of timber to the States It has over 12,000 miles of shore line and ninety per cent of the usable timber is within twothe timber and load the lumber directly from the forests to the steamers This forest is 1500 miles closer to the mainland markets than is the other Alaskan National Forest

In ers ride around their beats on horseback The foresters in the Tongass use motor boats