The Alaska daily empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1912-1926, 1920-05-11
TELLS
WHAT BUREAU is
DOING FOR pulp
H. F. Graves Outlines Fores-
try Bureau Policy in Letter
To Gov. Thomas Riggs, Jr.

The following letter from H, F.
Graves. Chief Forester of the United
States, to Gov Thomas Riggs, Jr,
gives in detail the plan of the For
estry Bureau for the development of
the wood pulp and paper business
in Alaska. The statement of See
rotary of Agriculture Edwin T. Mer-
edith indicates that the Department
has extended the duration of its
proposed contracts five years. and
would make further concessions if
necessary to get the industries
started soon.
Hon. Thomas Riggs, Jr.,
Governor of Alaska.
MY dear Governor Riggs
Confirming my conference with
you:
THE terms of the sale offered by
the Forest Service IL 1877 for a
pulpwood development are typical
of the negotiations when we con
Quoted with several different appli-
cants from 1913 to 1917, none Of
which, however, resulted in an actual
sale In this instance we offered an
initial contract for one million feet
approximately two miiliCn cords)
which was estimated tn run Is per
cent of spruce and y per cent of
hemlock, with a cuC-iag period of
% years with an additional two
years for the installation of I'M
Tho rrOnnCp1 4
included an agreement on the part
of the Forest Service to reserve an
additional area containing approx
imately 500,000,000 board feet (Or l.
100000 cords) which would be APP
praised and offered for sale during
the last year of the contract COW
erng the first amount. The initial
rates offered were $100 per thousand
feet Tor so cents per cord) fol
spruce, including also a small guam
tity of western red cedar, so ce~.s
per thousand feet Tor 25 cents per
cord) for western hemlock, includ-
ing small quantities of cottonwood,
and $3.50 per thousand feet for
small amount of Alaskan cypress.
These rates were to hold for the first
seven years of the contract, that is,
for the two years provided for the
installation of improvements. together
with the first five years of actual
cutting. 1t was then provided that
at the expiration of the seventh
year and at the expiration of each
fifth year thereafter, the Forest Ser
vice should have an opportunity to-
reappraise and fix the value of tim
Der not yet cut The provisions of
the proposed contract ON this point
read as follows:
"(b) On each of the foregoing
dates the Forester shall reappraise
and designate the value of each spe.
cies in consideration of current oper
ating conditions and markets in
Southeastern Alaska, including the
operation of the purchaser, such re-
appraisals to include the timber on
the entire tract, and to be based
upon an equitable profit to the pur-
chaser under the operating condi
lions prevailing throughout the re-
gion.
"(c) 1t is further agreed that the
Secretary of Agriculture will, upon
written application from the pur
chaser showing good and sufficient
reasons therefor and specifically the ]
existence of serious emergency
arising from changes in market con-
ditions since last reappraisal, at his
option. when action of either char
acter is necessary to relieve the pur
chaser from hardships either
90 Redetermine and establish the
stumpage rates and designate date
when the rates as predetermined
shall be effective. which date shall be
within six months of the date Of
application; or
"(2) Grant an extension of time
within which the respective amounts
of timber specified in Section 4
shall be removed, not to exceed the
total period allowed for cutting all
the timber.
ANY stumpage rates predetermined