rk. He should
instruct the states how to protect their forests against fire. He
should teach them how to renew their depleted woodlands. He
should work for a gradual and regular expansion of the National
Forests. The United States Forest Service should have the power
to help the various states in matters of fire protection, ways of
cutting forests, methods of renewing forests and of deciding
whether idle lands were better adapted for farming or forestry
purposes.

Experts believe that the Government should spend at least
$2,000,000 a year in the purchase of new National Forests. About
one-fifth of all our forests are now publicly owned. One of the
best ways of preventing the concentration of timber in private
ownership is to increase the area of publicly owned forests. Such
actions would prevent the waste of valuable timber and would aid
planting work. For best results, it is thought that the Federal
Government should own about one-half of all the forests in the
country. To protect the watersheds of navigable streams the
Government should buy 1,000,000 acres of woodlands in New England
and 5,000,000 acres in the southern Appalachian Mountains. The
National Forests should also be extended and consolidated.

Federal funds should be increased so that the Forest Service can
undertake on a large scale the replanting of burned-over lands in
the National Forests. As soon as this work is well under way,
Congress should supply about $1,000,000 annually for such work.
Many watersheds in the National Forests are bare of cover due to
forest fires. As a result, the water of these streams is not
sufficient for the needs of irrigation, water power and city
water supply of the surrounding regions.

Right now, even our leading foresters do not know exactly what
the forest resources of the country amount to. It will take
several years to make such a survey even after the necessary
funds are provided. We need to know just how much wood of each
class and type is available. We want to know, in each case, the
present and possible output. We want to find out the timber
requirements of each state and of every important wood-using
industry. Exact figures are needed on the timber stands and their
growth. The experimental work of the Forest Service should be
extended. Practically every forest is different from every other
forest. It is necessary to work out locally the problems of each
timber reservation. Most urgent of all is the demand fo