The Daily Alaska empire., 1947-07-14
President Makes Appeal 70 Two Industries
Homesiead Bill Threatens Ruthless Exploitation of
 Southeast Alaska Forests

1 $. House of Representatives recom- mended the passage of H. R. 4O59, the Alaska Veterans Homestead ing Act
 If this legislation is adopted it would block the plans for immed- fate development of the forests of Southeast Alaska by large pulp and paper companies and probably open the way to a ruthless ex- ploitation of Alaska's forests to the detriment of not only the Terri tory of Alaska, but the entire na- tion. Not only would a valuable \ resource be destroyed, but the na- ton would be deprived of an addi- tional source for scarce pulp for newsprint at a time when the supply is the lowest in history and other pulp producing areas cannot be found.
 The old Timber and Stone Act, enacted by Congress in 1878, allow ed anyone to patent timber claims of 160 acres from the public do- main upon payment of s25O per acre. As this was long before the National Forests had heen with drawn from the public domain, the lest and most heavily timbered lands of the West were then open to purchase. The utilization of the timber to any appreciable extent by the individual owner was inn practicable, and millions of acres so patented were sold for song to large lumber corporations who consolidated them into immense blocks. These lands were then logged, and being privately owned, no restraints were placed on the logging methods employed, the de- gree of utilization practiced, the leaving of seed trees to reforest the areas, and the protection ot cut-over lands from fire.
 Result
 The result has been that the orl- ginal fine forests have been de- vestated on most of the vast acre age that went out of public own ership under the Timber and Stone Act.
 Thirteen years later, in 1891, the Timber and Stone Act was repealed and the best of the remaining pub licly owned timber of the Western States, a meagre portion and decid- edly of lower quality, was placed in the then newly established Forest Reserves which later became the National Forests The law requires that the timber of these National Forests be harvested as crop, and the forest in all ways managed so that it will continue to be produc- tive of lumber, pulp and other wood products for all time.
 In addition to giving away public 1 timber under the Timber and Stone Act, 160-acre homesteads could likewise be alienated at that i time from the public domain with a minimum of development and with little regard to the suitability of the land for farming. Conse- ouently, millions of acres of valu- able timberland were taken up this way by individuals and found their way into the huge blocked holdings of timber corporations.
 Alaska Safe Then
 But the destruction of the public timberlands in those days did not extend to the then remote forests of Southeastern Alaska, and when the National Forest period came along. the forests throughout the jlength and breadth of this 100 by 400 mile region were taken lnto the National Forest system almost intact. Neither had they been gut ted by fire through the carelessness of the miner, trappsr or Indian since the heavy rainfall proved natural protection.
 The fortunate result is that now, when Americas demand for timber lis outrunning the supply, especial fly with respect to timber suitable for pulp and paper, there remains intact in Southeastern Alaska some 85 billion board feet of fine virgin hemlock and spruce which Is ad- mirably suited and primarily valu- able for newsprint and higher grades of paper.
 | One million tons of neWsprlnt per year can be fed into the United States market from this source for ever, if the forests are harvested as crop.