The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1889-11-15
the national domain should he the with


belonging to the nation. It will not be
necessary 10 preserve and maintain all
these forests permanently, but the cx'
tent of forest territory which will be
required by u practical plan of forest
preservation and management for oul
western mountain regions cannot be al
once precisely determined. A thorough
examination of those regions, and ol
the agricultural country depending up.
on them for its water supply, will be
necessary. in order 10 show what for.
csts must be retained, and what tracts
OF timber can be put upon the market
without injury TO the important inter.
ests involved. Until such an eXamin:l.
tion has been made, none OF the forest
lands now belonging TO the United
States should be sold.
The second step should be 10 ,.ommi,
To the United States army the care and
guardianship Of the forests belonging
to tho nation. There is in time ol
peace no other work Of national defense
or protection so important us this which
the army can perform, and it is plain
that under existing conditions the for.
ests on the national domain will not be
indeed, cannot bc-adequatcly guard.
ed and protected by any other means
The measures which have been tried
including those now in operation, OF
nominally in operation, have proved
almost entirely Ineffective. The fol.
ests on the public lands are pillaged by
settlers and by the employees Of rail
road and mining companies withou,
scruplc or limit. Other instrument.
will have to be employed if the forests
are to be preserved. Their complete
and final destruction, with that of the
soil which sustains them, is, under the
present system or want of system, only
q question of time and of u very shor,
time.
The officers of the United State.
army arc educated by the nation for il.
service, and they constitute Il body o
men not cq,n,lcd by any other in ou,
country in their equipment for guard
ing and protecting The great forest re-
gions belonging to the nation. The,
possess every kind of fitness for thi.
work in greater degree than any Other
class of men. and if authorized by law
to undertake this service they would
have the power aud the means neccs.
sary for its performance, while every.
body else is at present inevitably
powcrless and incapable. AS there is
likely to be very little work for the
army hereafter in the care Of the In.
dians, it will he available for this SER
vice OF guarding the national forests.
The work can be done well by the
army, and it would cost nothing, on
very little. while any other plan would
necessarily be both Ineffective and
costly. This guardianship and defense
OF the nations forests by the army OF
the nation should be continued and
maintained until II sufficient number of
adequately trained and equipped for.
cstcrs has been provided by the nation
al government for the administration
and policy for the management of the
forests on the public domain.
This brings us to consider the third
step. This should bc the appointment,
by the president, of Il commission te
make Il thorough examination Of the
condition of the forests belonging tc
to the nation, and OF their relation t.
the agricultural interests of the
regions through which the streams
flow which have their sources in these
forests, and to report, with the facts
observed, IL comprehensive plan fol
the preservation and management OF
the public forests, including IL system
for the training, by the government, ol
IL sufficient number of forcstcrs for the
national forest service.