The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1923-06-27
LAND EXCHANGE
within FORESTS

Inc lanO exchange act receHCi
passed by congress makes it possible
for individuals holding title to lands
within national forest boundaries to
consolidate their holdings in any de-
sired locality or any national forest
within the state. An opportunity is
now offered to stockmen to consoli-
date scattered holdings, which should
facilitate their grazing problems and
be of great value to them. This ex- |
change HI offers an opportunity
tina. should not be lost sight of b.
those desiring to consolidate theif
holdings within the national forests.
The act of March 20, 1922, entitled
"An Act to Consolidate National For
est Lands" reads as follows:
That when the public interests will
be benefited thereby, the secretary OF
the interior be, and hereby is, au-
thorized in his discretion to accept on
behalf of the United States title to
any lands within exterior boundaries
of the national forests which, in the
opinion of the secretary of agricul-
ture, are chiefly valuable for nation
al forest purposes, and in exchange
therefor may patent not to exceed an
equal value of such national forest
land, in the same state. surveyed and
non-mineral in character, or the sec
rotary of agriculture may authorize
the grantor to cut and remove an
equal value of timber within the ma
tional forests of the same state; the
values in each Ease to be determined
by the secretary of agriculture; pro-
vided, that before and such exchange
is effected, notice of the contemplate
ed exchange, reciting the lands in
volved, shall be published once each
week for four successive weeks in
some newspaper of general circula-
ton in the county or counties in
which may be situated the lands to be
accepted, and in some like manner
newspapers published in any county
in which may be situated any lands or
timber to be given in such exchange.
Timber given in such exchange shall
be cut and removed under the laws
and regulations and supervision and
IN accordance with the requirements
of the secretary of agriculture. Lands
conveyed to the United States under
this act shall upon acceptance of t.
tie, become parts of the national for
est within whose exterior boundaries
they are located.
All preliminary negotiations relat-
ing to an exchange under the act are
to be conducted with the local repre-
s~entatives CT the forest service, and
any owner of land subject to exchange
who desires to take advantage OF the
privileges conferred by the act must
file with the local national forest of
flcers an informal application de.
scribing the land to be conveyed as
well as that to be selected, or if tim
Der is desired in exchange, the lanc
on which such timber is located. The
land must be specifically described
according to government subdivisions
and nothing less than a legal subdivi.
sion may be surrendered or selected
The selected land or timber must be
entirely within national forest bound.
aries and in the same state in which
the relinquished lands are located.
. The applicant must show by aft
davit, or other evidence satisfactory
to the forest service, that he is the
owner Of the land to be conveyed, anC
that the land relinquished and the
land or timber selected r equal il
value.