The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-18

Washington, Jan. 17-(Special.)-- Listing receipts and expenditures and explaining them in plain English much as railroad president reports to his Board of Directors. Clifford Pinchot, forester, has just made a retrospect of the work of the United States Forest Service for the fiscal year 1908.
 For the administration and protect ion of the 1s2 National Forests in sev- enteen States and Territories and Alas ka, the government spent e2.526.09S.02. or about one and one-half cents an acre. Permanent improvements, including the construction of 3.4o0 miles of trails. 100 miles of wagon roads. 3.200 miles of telephone lines. $50 cabins and barns, 500 miles Of pasture and drift fences. 250 bridges. and forty miles of fire lines cost $692, ,169.19. Telephone wire to build approxima teIy zoo miles of additional lines was shipped to the Forester. but with the funds available before the close of the year the work of construc- tion could not be completed. Some of this work was done on each of the for ests in the United States.
 Although many needed Improvements could not be undertaken. the benefits of what has been accomplished are seen in the more convenient and economical manner in which the forest officers are enabled to carry on their work and in the opening up to forest users of ter- ritory hitherto inaccessible. The re- maining $297,S40.40 of the total of g. 4l6,107.61. disbursed on account of work of the Forest Service. was used in for est investigations costing $235,s55.14, and in diffusion of forest information and Federal cooperation.
 The Forest Service is one of the branches of the government where ev- erything Is not out-go Last year the receipts from sales of timber, grazing fees, and permits for special uses of forest resources amounted to S1,S42.- 2s1.S7. an increase of $271,222.43 over the 1907 figures. The per acre receipts from the National Forests were a lit- tie more than one cent, less than i've mills under the per acre cost of admin istration and protection of the forests.
 The amounts paid the States and Ter ritories to be expended for roads and public schools from the years receipts. amounted to 47,063.97. Chiefly because of increasing the revenue to the States from 10 per cent in 1907 to 25 per cenL last year, there was total increase of $2s4.031.e2 in the amounts payable to the States.
 In addition, the National Forests yielded heavily to the public in free use. There were SOFIA permits grant, ed for the free use of timber by set- tiers, schools and churches, during the year against 17,39s in 1907. The num- Der of board feet used in this way by the public amounted to 131. 1882. 900. va1- ued at $16S,720. compared to 63,000, 900 feet, valued at $75.o00 in 1907.
 The aggregate of free use of the For ests for grazing can not be exactly known, slnce no permit is required to be taken out, and there Is therefore no record preserved. It added perhaps 10 per cent to the amount of stock carried by the, Forests. Settlers living on or adjacent to the Forests, and prospec- ters, campers and travellers in them are milk cows. work animals, or horses in use, and purchasers of timber and stockmen on the Forests are given the same privilege for the horses needed in their work. Tn Arizona and New Mexico milk goats to the number of thirty may be grazed free in place of milk cows.
 Of free special-use permits there were issued during the year 1.76S. as against a total of 1.471 previously granted. Of the latter. s6S were in force during the year.
 The grading receipts for 1908 were $962,S2S.40. and were paid by the hold CTS of 19.S46 permits to graze 1.sS2,221 cattle, horses, and hogs, and of 4,2S3 permits to graxe 7.OoI.1l1 sheep ana goats. Receipts of $S49,o27.24 from timber sales were paid by approximate ly 6,lSs purchasers. who cut the equiv alent of 392,f92.00O board feet of tim Der. The receipts from special uses amounted to S3O.425,2S and were paid by 2.0s5 permittees.
 The years receipts represent profit able use of the Forests by some 30 900 individuals or concerns, fin addition 70 more than 30,o00 getting free use of timber and other resources. About one fourth of all the timber cut from the National Forests was under free-use permits.
 The purpose of this free-use privilege is to make the forests contribute most effectively to the public welfare. The timber given to individuals Is given for the development of the country through settlement,
 The total receipts from timber sales each year since the National Forests have been under the administration of the Forest Service have been as fol- lows: 1905. $60.19s.s2: 1908. S245.01S49; 1907, S6ss,s1312; 1908. $s4S, S,027.24
 At the end of the last fiscal year. when business was heavier than at any other