Arizona republican., 1912-08-09
SCHOOL LANDS
 0N RESERVES
Settlement of the Question of Administration Be- tween the State and the Government; State Rev enues From Forests

What was reported as a clash" tetween the land commission and the officials of che forestry service con- corning school lands in forest re- serves has been very nicely adjusted to the satisfaction of all concerned In justice to both the commission was never any clash" between them. It was merely an effort to harmon ize the friction that existed between forestry regulations and the enabling act on one side and state laws on the other in order to get them in practical working order. It was ac- compliShed by carefully studying the facts and by the forestry service making a slight modification in the regulations of the service generally, in favor of Arizona, to meet the To- cal conditions
 Under the territorial government the territory was given two sections in each township in the forest re- serves, sections 16 and 36 The en- abling act also granted two more D, / /, but the act also provided that the school lands in forest reserves are to be administered by the forestry ser vice." which shall turn over to the state its portion of the revenues de- rived from such school lands.
 Now it happens that the general regulations of the forestry service among other things greatly restricts the practice of fencing lands used for grazing. When the old sections or school land 16 and 36, formerly leased by county boards of super visors, came under the forestry ser vice for administration, the officials naturally made their regulations ef- fectlve and ordered all fences re- moved. Clearly that was a hardship and loss to those settlers who had previously leased the lands, improved them and thrown fences around thelr water holes, etc. These settlers pro tested to the land commission and in support of their protest secured lega! opinion to the effect that they could not be disturbed in the rights they had acquired from the territory un- der which they built their fences. and that the state could continue to ad- minister such lands
 The forestry officials have now modified their order to the effect that those who have leased areas un- der fence may retain the fences and any other improvements. thus re- moving the embarrassment that con frOnted them. The lands are still un- der their administration and any new fences or improvements desired will be subject to the forestry regula- tiOns
 The subject of state revenues from the forests is probably understood by only a small number of people and an explanation of the situation will therefore be timely Respecting the two sections in each township over which the forestry service now assumes control, it must turn over tO the state, the same proportion of the grass revenues from any reserve that the area of school sections in the reserve bears to the whole re- serve, or four sections in each town ship which is one ninth of the whole area or little over II percent. This is in addition to the 25 percent of the gross revenues from the forest area which under existing general laws must be paid to the school and road funds of any county wherein a forest area lies.
 In further addition, under an amendment to the agricultural ap- pro bill. there is set apart another ten percent of the gross revenues from each forest reserve, to be spent by the forestry service in road build ing in the reserves in the counties whence the revenues are derived.
 A recapitulation of what the state and counties secure as revenue from the forest reserves therefore shows total of 46 percene of the total rev enues of the reserves, as follows:
 Twenty-Five percent of the gross revenues for the county road and school funds: eleven percent of the gross revenues, being that derived from the four school sections in each township and which is paid to the state treasury; and ten percent which is set apart for road building in the reserves by the forestry service, total of 46 percent.
 The government which takes "A percent of the total revenues bears all the expense of forest adminiS- tration, the states part being net. It is cOntended by some that the gov ernment is still getting the lions share but whether that be true it is a fact that there are few reserves that pay back to the government an amount equal to the cost of their ad-