The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-01-20

we have received the tollOWlng let
ter from an Idaho subscriber on the
question of leasing the public lands for
grazing purposes. and are glad to give
space to it:
Clayton, Idaho. January II. 1911.
Editor TribUnc:-ln the issue of Janu-
AIRY OF The Tribune there appeared an
editorial favoring the leasing Of forest
reserves to shccpmen.
To lease any part OF tho forest reserves
TO sheepmcn or anyone else for a term
of years. and make a monopoly OF II. is
all wrong. The yearly permit system is
good enough. and should not be changed
Already. the sheepmen have nine
tenths Of The western ranges. and now
they are clamoring for the other tenth.
know how il is here In Idaho. especial
ly in the Stanley Basin and east fork OF
Salmon river where range is allotted 10
cattlemen. The sheepmen drive their
sheep back and forth across the cowrange
at VIII. The cowncn pay for the range.
but the shcepmen get the grass The
object OF the forest service Is good. but
so far as protecting the timber goes.
the forestry service is failure, The
present supply of timber Is all the people
will ever have 10 do with In any sense.
so long as the forests are used for graz
ing purposes. The first year OF It's life
the little pine grows about two inches
high. and continues to grow In this
ratio until ten years of age. After that
the little tree takes on new life and
shoots up rapidly.
The forcsters. as rule. are very
pleasant, genial men; but some OF them
appear to be afraid Of work. ! know OF
men that are foresters that never could
hold a Job or make living until they
got into tho forest service. Does IL not
appear hard to ask these men To lay
down n dime novel and get out I'm the
sun and steer sheep herds from off the
cowrange? All the foresters are not Of
this class. but Il good many OF them
are. ] wish / were forester; it's easy
money.
No stockman tries to protect the range.
Tho only object any stockman has is to
make all the money he can while the
opportunity lasts. TOM. JOHNSON.
Our correspondent is mistaken if he
thinks that we advocated leasing as
system TO be preferred in itself The
editorial which he refers to simply pre-
sented the question of leasing as an al
Tentative 10 the irksome and oppres-
sive regulations that are enforced by
the forestry service. And in answer
TO the proposition that the sbeepmen
would. il allowed. destroy the ranges
by overfeeding, our suggestion was that
If leases were given for a period Of
wears, 1t would be to the advantage of
they would want to preserve the forage
in good and ample measure in their
own interests. They would not over
feed. because 10 ovcrfecd would neces-
sarily reduce their Aocks
It may be. AS our correspondent says,
that such leasing would create "A mo-
nopoly, but surely no monopoly Of that
kind would be worse than the monopo-
lies already established and contin.
ually fostered by the forestry service.
AS TO the contention between sheepmen
and cattlemen, alluded to by our CORE.
spondent VIC have said nothing; no
general rule would work as to them,
That is something that is bitter in MANY
localities. and is fruitful source of
anger and trouble
The contention in the last paragraph
of Mr.. johnson IS communication is pre-.
cisely the matter that we had in view.
Under present conditions it is true