Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1901-11-23
NATIONAL FOREST RESERVES.
Secretary Hitchcock Outlines his Future
Policy Governing Them.


Secretary Hitchcock Outlines his Futur,
Policy Governing Them.
In outlining the principles to govern
the administration of the National For
est Reserves the secretary ofthe interior
has made the following statement of hi.
future policy, says the Washington cor.
respondent Of the Sioux City Journal
under date of November 18th.
Before the opening of the next field
season the rules and regulations govern
ing the forest reserves should be thor.
oughly revised and enough copies should
be printed to insure familiarity with the
provisions on the part of all settlers 10.
Gated within them and those who make
use of the reserves. At present unfor.
tunate ignorance Is The rule. The sa q
Of mature timber whose removal will
benefit the forest should be encouraged.
The relations between the government
and the purchaser should be made as
simple, direct and business like as posi-
BILE. Dead, down, and hopelesslJ injured
timber should be disposed of in all cases
as rapidly as possible. It's presence is
always threat to the forest. the forest
soil and the conservatism Of the water
supply. Timber ready for the ak should
he advertised in advance Of applications
and marked and measured in
advance OF sale whenever the
condition of the forest, the probable
market and the force available will per.
init. Purchasers will thus know exactly
what they are paying for and principal
cause Of injustice and complaint will dis.
appear.
$50 far as the law will allow and eiFi-
cheney and safety will permit, the cost
of advertising timber sales should be re-
duced. A register Of timber ready for
sale should be kept for public inspection
in the Office Of every supervisor. Mar
ket prices should rule. Applications for
timber cutting should reach the general
land Office from the field accompanied
by all papers necessary for decision.
The present practice OF returning such
applications to the field for report should
be discontinued. Every effort should be
made to act promptly on such applica.
tions Authority to grant applications
for small amounts of timber within care
fully fixed limits should he vested in the
forest officers in the field. A record Of
timber sold, as we'll as ofapplications for
sales, should be maintained. The cut
ting of unmarked timber should be alb
solutely prohibited, and so far as posi-
BILE all timber sold should be marked
and measured in advance OF sale. For
est officers should be required to live iu
the reserves where they work. Super.
visors who have much to do, as is not
ably the case in the Black Hills, are ut
present tied to the Office by the amount OF
routine correspondence which claims
their attention. Such officials should
have a clerk or stenographer and should
be given the assistance in the field of
rangers of higher grade than those at
present employed. As occasion serves
head rangers, with pay of 81, ,0o0 a year,
should be given charge Of number of
ordinary rangers and should occupy to
some degree the position Of assistants to
the supervisors. Two such men should
be employed at once in the Black Hills.
Permanent rangers should receive not
less than $75 month instead of the
present rate of $50 and should be re-
quired to keep as many horses as the
official performance of the work de-
mands. This charge should be made
very gradually, no ranger being pro-
NOTED until it has been positively ascer-
tanned that he is fit man for permanent
retention.
"The first duty of the ranger is to pro-
tect the forest against fires. Rangers
should be ordered, as they are now for.
bidden, to leave their own beats when
necessary to protect forests in adjoining
beats. 1t should be made known that
all timber killed by fire after January /,
1902, will be charged for at the same rate
as green timber. Prompt payment Of
temporary assistants engaged to fight
fires should replace the present dilatory
practice which has seriously interfered
with fire protection by discourasing the
settlers. 1t should be the duty of every
forest officer to report at once any fraud.
ulent entries or claims within his charge.
Lists of ownership Of all lands within
the forest reserves should be prepared
at once by the general land Office and
placed in the hands of the field men.
Fraudulent mining claims in consider.
able numbers have been located, notably
in the Black Hills reserve, in order to
secure possession of timber. If the law
permits. it would be extremely desir-
able to require the assent of the local
forest officers before mineral claims in
forest reserves were accepted as valid"