Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1906-11-22

the reclamation service Not only
are they to preserve steady flow
in the streams at whose head
waters they are located, but in
preventing too rapid run-off in pre-
cipitous regions they will also pre-
vent the filling of the completed
reservoirs with silt brought down
from the mountains in rapid flow
and released as soon as it strikes
the quiet water of the reservoirs.
The Lernhi forest reserve, which
insurcs protection to three noun
tain areas, lies in the cast-ccntral
part of the state. One of these
areas takes the form of narrow
strip of country in Lcmhi county,
skirting along the Montana boun-
Diary line, extending from a point
three miles east of the town of
ShouP to the north boundary of the
Lemhi Indian reservation The
second area cmbracse a strip about
90 miles long, containing the Lem
hi range and affecting the drainage
of Big and Little Lost rivers The
arid area, lying directly west of the
Little Lost and Pshsimcroi rivers,
covers a narrower tract about 90
miles in length and containing the
Lost river mountains. In these re-
serves the value of the forest over
lies primarily in its protection to
the main streams heading in three
mountain ranges. The waters of
these streams are depended upon by
various farming communities in
adj accnt valleys
The Occur d'Alene reserve, in
the northern part of Idaho, extends
equally TO the north and south of
the town of Wallace and contains.
the area which was originally con-
tcmp1atcd as reserve to be known
as the Shoshonc- 1t lies in Ncz
Perce, Shoshone and Kootenai coun-
ties, between Lake Pend d'Oric1lc
on the north and Bitter Root forest
reserve on the south. The value of
the reg ion lies wholly in it's timber,
water and mineral resources. Fires
are making serious inroads in the
forest area and have recently de-
stroyed millions of feet of timber.
Unless effectiev measures are at
once taken to prevent such fires,
great portion of Nez Perez and Sho-
shonc counties will in time become
a barren waste
SIN this reserve the future min
era1 development, which will UNI
doubtcdly be great, depends upon a
sufficient supply of timber to meet
the demands of prospecting and
mining. Already fire has destroyed
practically all of the timber con-
tiguous to the Occur d Alcnc min
ing district, w h ich alone consumes
annually more than 1000, 900 feet
of timber Further, the mining
industry, in the very heart of the
forest area, is beginning to suffer
from the decreased flow in the
Occur dA'lcnc river, caused by for
est destruction at its hcadwatcrs.
Also regular and sure stream
flow from the mountains in the
reserve benefits the reclamation
service projects in Washington,
since the ST. Joseph and Occur
d'Alenc are important branches of
the Spokane river, to be utilized in
the Big Bend project in central
Washing ton. In short, the govern
rnent's efforts are to insure in every
possible way the fullest develop
mcnt and use of enormous wealth
of this reg ion, represented in its
wood, water, mineral and other re-
sources
The Raft river forest reserve
lies in Idaho and Utah, and con-
siSts of group of four areas, the
largest one containing III, 500 acres
in Box Elder county, Utah, and in
GLIDING the greater portion of the
Raft river mountains The three
smaller areas, aggregating 29S, zoo
acrsc, lies in Cassia county, Idaho
THE Salmon River forest re.
serve, embracing a tract of noun
tain land, unfit for cultivation, con
tains about 1, $40, $50 acres, extend:
from Stanley basin, at the head o.
Salmon river, in Custer county
north ward to the great bend made
westward by the river, in Lemh
county, and is bounded on the cas-
by Salmon river valley, and on the
west by the middle fork of the
Salmon river This whole area
which is exceedingly mountainous
and contains the broad, wild mas
of peaks known the Salmon
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