Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 196, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 August 1914 — MORE FOREST LANDS [ARTICLE]

MORE FOREST LANDS

Government Increases Its Holdings in North Carolina. Ground Approved by National Forest Reservation Commission for Purchase by the United States Includes 13,575 Aores Washington.—Lands Just approved by the national foreßt reservation commission for purchase by the government include 13,575 acres in North Carolina, of which 11 tracts comprising 12,400 acres are situated in Buncombe, Yancey and McDowell counties in the Mt. Mitchell' purchase area. The remaining 1,155 acres are on the Chattanooga river' watershed in Macon couut7 and the Savannah purchase area. These lands are to be acquired in accordance with the general policy under which national forests of good size are being built up in the eastern mountains, both north and south, through successive purchases. Tracts are bought within certain designated areas, of which North Carolina has eight. The lands just approved by the commission bring the acreage of the Mt Mitchell purchase area up to 66,000 acres and the acreage of that part of the Savannah area lying in North Carolina to 34J800 acres while the total acreage in the state approved for purchase amounts to 244,000 acres. Most of the lands approved for purchase today are well timbered with valuable woods such as poplar, oak and chestnut, the largest tract which contains over 7,000 :»fres having a stand of sawtimber and other valuable products of more than 6,000 feet per acre. The lands approved for acquisition by the government for national forest purposes in the east since the purchase policy was inaugurated in 1910 are now 1,104,000 acres, having a purchase price of $5,560,000. About $2,000,000 of the original appropriation remains available for further purchases In the fiscal year 1915.' The lands favorably acted on to date include 133,000 acres in the White mountains of New Hampshire, while 971,000 •ores are in various parts of the southern Appalachians from Virginia to Georgia. Nearly 400,000 acres were approved for purchase during the past year, at an average price of $4.96 per acre. As areas of suitable, size are built rip by the government through/ successive purchases they are placed under a system of organized administration, with local officers of ther government’s forest service in charge. The first object of administration is to protect the forest against firs, for the twofold purpose of steadying streamflow and Increasing timber production. There is, however, provision for y aU forms of use of the forests not inconsistent with their permanent welfare as sources of timber and water supplies. Some of the areas are already bsftanlng to yield revenue to the government through the sale of timber which can be removed with benefit to the remainlnf stand. BvenfoaUy it

is expected that they will prove excellent Investments, besides yielding important public benefits.