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conditions will be avoided by gradual adjustment after due notice, and where conflicting interests must be reconciled the question will always be decided from the standpoint of the greatest good to the greatest number in the long run."

ORGANIZATION.

The administration of the National Forests and the conduct of all matters relating to forestry which have been placed upon the Department of Agriculture by Congress are, under the direction of the Secretary of Agriculture, in charge of the Forester, who is the Chief of the Forest Service. The office of the Forester is in Washington, D. C.

Administrative districts.

For the better administration of the National Forests six districts have been established, with headquarters at the following places:

District 1, Missoula, Mont.

District 2, Denver, Colo.

District 3, Albuquerque, N. Mex.
District 4, Ogden, Utah.

District 5, San Francisco, Cal.

District 6, Portland, Oreg.

Each administrative district embraces a number of National Forests, and is in charge of an officer known as the district forester, who is responsible to the Forester for all administrative and technical work performed within the district. Each district forester is aided by several assistant district foresters and specialists in various branches of the work.

QUALIFICATIONS AND DUTIES OF FOREST OFFICERS.

All permanent positions in the Forest Service are in the classified civil service. Vacancies are filled through selections from eligibles certified by the Civil Service Commission and by promotion in rank. Definite information as to the times and places at which examinations are held may be obtained only from the Civil Service Commission, Washington, D. C.

Supervisors and deputy supervisors.

Each National Forest is in charge of a forest supervisor, who plans the work on his Forest under the instructions of the district forester and supervises its execution. When the amount of business on a National Forest warrants it, the supervisor is assisted by a deputy supervisor, who has such duties and authority as may be delegated to him by the supervisor.

The positions of forest supervisor and deputy supervisor are filled only by the promotion or transfer of experienced men from classified positions in the Forest Service.

Supervisors' headquarters are located in towns conveniently situated with regard to the Forests.

Forest examiners.

Forest examiners are employed upon such lines of technical work on the National Forests as the examination and mapping of forest areas, reports on applications for the purchase of timber, marking, scaling, and managing timber sales, survey of boundaries, nursery work, and forest planting. The forest examiner is placed directly under the supervisor, who directs his work and to whom he submits his reports. The position is filled through a technical examination, calling for a great deal of specialized knowledge. Only applicants with the following minimum training and experience are eligible for examination: (a) Not less than one full school year's theoretical and practical experience in forestry at a forest school or an established department of forestry in an institution of collegiate grade; (b) for those who have not attended a forest school, not less than two years' experience in practical forestry in the field. The examination is held in March of each year. The entrance salary, for the grade of forest assistant, is $1,100 per annum, and the appointee may be required to supply his own horse and riding equipment.

Rangers.

Routine work involved in the supervision of timber sales, grazing, free use, special use, and other contracts and permits, the carrying out of the protection

and improvement plans, and other administrative activities is performed by rangers. Each Forest is divided into ranger districts of such a size that, under ordinary conditions, all the regular work can be handled effectively by one fully qualified ranger with the necessary temporary assistants. The average ranger district has about 60,000 acres, but where means of travel and communication are good, or where there is only a small volume of business or the fire hazard is low, very much larger districts may be established.

The district rangers have their headquarters at the nearest business center, or if that is not practicable, permanent headquarters with barn and pasture are provided on the Forests.

The requirements for assistant forest ranger, the grade to which appointments are made, are as follows:

REGULATION G. A.-1. Only citizens of the United States and those who have declared their intention to become such, and who are between the ages of 21 and 40, are eligible for ranger examinations. Selection for appointment will be made when practicable from qualified citizens of the State in which the National Forests, respectively, are situated. These qualifications will not be waived under any circumstances. (Issued August 12, 1912.)

The entrance salary is $1,100 per annum, and the appointee will nearly always be required to provide his own horse or other means of transportation, though a limited amount of forage is usually supplied by the Service.

Physical soundness and endurance are essential on account of the heavy labor and exposure involved in such work as building improvements and fighting fire. The examination consists of a written test, a field test embracing compass surveying, timber work, and the handling of horses, and a rating of training, experience, and fitness. In the Southwest a knowledge of the Spanish language is also required. The examination is usually given in October of each year, at each supervisor's headquarters. The most successful rangers are usually those who have been brought up in timber work or on ranches or farms, and who are thoroughly familiar, through long residence, with the region in which they are employed.

Lumbermen.

Lumbermen are appointed after a civil-service examination, which requires much previous experience in woods work and a high degree of proficiency in cruising, logging, and milling. A thorough knowledge of scaling methods is absolutely necessary. Lumbermen are assigned temporarily to Forests where the need for their work arises.

Scalers.

Scalers are appointed after a civil-service examination, which requires much previous experience in scaling and woods work.

Planting assistants.

The position of planting assistant requires special training in nursery and planting work. The duties include the preparation of seed beds, seed sowing, transplanting and care of seedlings, and field planting.

Forest guards, field assistants, and temporary laborers.

Skilled and unskilled labor of a temporary character required in the use, protection, and improvement of the National Forests, is performed by forest guards, field assistants, and temporary laborers. These positions are not in the classified civil service, but are filled through selection by the forest supervisor or by officers in charge of field parties, to whom application for employment should be made.

Forest clerks.

Only

Clerical work in the supervisor's office is performed by forest clerks. male applicants are admitted to the examination, which is held as required. Proficiency in stenography, typewriting, and the elements of bookkeeping is tested. The entrance salary is from $1,100 to $1,200.

Minor clerks and stenographers are selected from the register established for the Government service åt large, in which no sex limitation exists. The entrance salary is ordinarily $900 per annum.

2268°-13-2

AUTHORITY OF FOREST OFFICERS.

All Forest officers have power to arrest without warrant any person whom they discover in the act of violating the National Forest laws and regulations, or if a violation of such laws and regulations is committed out of the view of such officers they have the authority to secure a warrant from a United States commissioner, or, if one is not convenient, from a justice of the peace, and use it as the visible sign of the right to arrest, and also to arrest for any such violation on a warrant obtained by any competent person.

ACCESSIBILITY OF PUBLIC RECORDS.

REGULATION G. A.-5. In general, the papers on file in the offices of the Forest Service relating to the transaction of National Forest business are public records, and as such are open to the public. Information should not be refused to persons whose interest is legitimate. Recommendations on matters pending should not be made public. Equal opportunities for information must be given to all persons having an interest in any transaction. In conformity with the practice and at the request of the Department of the Interior, all reports on public-land claims will be treated as confidential, and may be examined only by duly authorized officers and employees of the Government. Personnel reports are confidential, and may be examined only by duly authorized officers of the Government. Under no circumstances will inquirers be permitted to take papers from the files outside of the building. (Issued August 12, 1912; amended to read as above May 9, 1913.)

ASSOCIATIONS OF FOREST USERS.

REGULATION G. A.-10. Wherever any association whose membership includes a majority of the local residents using a National Forest, or portion thereof, for like purposes, shall select a committee, an agreement on the part of which shall be binding upon the association, such committee, upon application to the district forester, may be recognized in an advisory capacity on behalf of the association, and shall be entitled to receive notice of proposed action and have an opportunity to be heard by the local Forest officer in reference to any proposed changes likely to materially affect the use or interest in the Forest or portion thereof enjoyed by such permittees. The general principles of recognition and responsibility governing cooperation with live-stock associations are herewith extended, so far as they are applicable, to the other regular lines of business conducted on the National Forests. (Issued July 3, 1913, to take effect July 15, 1913.)

HOW TO REMIT MONEY.

Forest officers are prohibited from receiving payments for the sale of timber or the use of any forest lands or resources. All such payments must be made to a designated depository of the United States Treasury. The remittance to the depository should be in the form of a draft on New York or a postal or express money order, and must be accompanied by a letter explaining the purpose of the remittance. Form letters of transmittal for this purpose will be furnished by Forest officers.

The designated depositories are as follows:

District 1, Western Montana National Bank, Missoula, Mont.
District 2, Denver National Bank, Denver, Colo.

District 3, First National Bank, Albuquerque, N. Mex.

District 4, First National Bank, Ogden, Utah.

District 5, First National Bank, San Francisco, Cal.

District 6, Lumbermens National Bank, Portland, Oreg.

PART II.—TIMBER SALES, TIMBER SETTLEMENT, FREE USE.

TIMBER SALES.

NATIONAL FOREST TIMBER FOR SALE.

All mature timber on the National Forests which may be cut with benefit, in accordance with the principles of forestry, is for sale, and will be offered as demand arises. Only stumpage is sold, the title to the land remaining with the Government. Timber may be sold in amounts ranging from a few thousand feet up to whatever amount may be necessary to warrant the investment required for constructing a railroad or other means of transportation into comparatively inaccessible regions.

PURCHASER'S FIRST STEP.

The first step for anyone desiring to purchase Government timber is to communicate with an officer of the Forest on which the timber is located. If the amount desired is small, the local ranger can arrange the sale without delay. Amounts valued at more than $50 can be sold only by the supervisor or by the district forester or the Forester, according to the size of the sale. (See Reg. $-3. This and other regulations relating to timber sales are grouped on pages 25-29.)

Many remote timber areas have been cruised, and supervisors are in possession of reports showing the location, amount of timber, and the other facts upon which an opinion of the chance is usually based. Information with regard to available areas or the sale of National Forest timber may be secured by addressing the Forester, Forest Service, Washington, D. C.; the district forester at either Missoula, Mont.; Denver, Colo.; Albuquerque, N. Mex.; Ogden, Utah; San Francisco, Cal.; or Portland, Oreg.; or the Forest Service, Federal Building, Chicago, Ill.

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All sales exceeding $100 in amount must be advertised, except those made to homestead settlers and farmers under the terms of Regulation S-9. Procedure in an advertised sale is as follows: After the applicant has selected the body of timber which he wishes to purchase, he will be furnished by the supervisor with a sample application stating the area, etimated amount, minimum stumpage price, period allowed for cutting and removing the timber, and other conditions to be complied with, following as closely as possible the form of the final sale agreement. If the applicant accepts these conditions, he is required to deposit an amount exceeding the total estimated cost of advertising by approximately 25 per cent. The minimum deposit is $10. A notice of the sale of the timber is then published, the choice of mediums and number of insertions depending upon whether the sale is of local, regional, or general interest. This notice describes the timber, gives the minimum stumpage prices that will be accepted, and specifies the date upon which sealed bids will be

received. The period of advertising will be at least 30 days, and in large sales may be 90 days or 6 months. Forms for bidding will be furnished to the original applicant and others who signify their intention to bid.

DEPOSIT WITH BID.

A deposit is required with all bids to show the good faith of the bidder. large transactions it is usually from 3 to 5 per cent of the purchase price.

AWARDING A SALE.

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On the date specified in the advertisement the supervisor (or district forester) opens all bids received and awards the sale to the highest bidder. A sale contract is then prepared and executed by the purchaser.

FINANCIAL STANDING OF APPLICANT.

A specific statement of financial ability will be required in all sales of 10,000,000 feet or more and in smaller sales in the discretion of the approving officer (Reg. S-14). Such a statement may be required when necessary in the judgment of the approving officer before the approval of a sale application, either formal or tentative, and in any event before the timber is awarded to the successful bidder.

BONDS.

The contract must be supported by a suitable bond given by two responsible sureties or by a surety company authorized to do business with the United States (Reg. S-14), The following table indicates the amount of the bond to be furnished:

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In sales exceeding 100,000,000 feet the amount of the bond required is approximately 5 per cent of the value of the timber at the initial stumpage rates. For bonds in connection with steam sawmills, see p. 68.

THE SALE CONTRACT.

The sale contract contains in full all the conditions under which the cutting is to be done.

General stipulations.

In all sales of National Forest stumpage the contract provides that no timber shall be cut until it has been paid for, and that it shall not be removed until it has been scaled by the Forest officer. All live timber will be marked or otherwise designated before cutting, and any merchantable timber utilized for improvements will be scaled and paid for. The maximum stump height ordinarily is 18 inches, and merchantable timber must be used to a specified diameter in the tops, which is adjusted for each species in accordance with local manufacturing and market conditions. The officer in charge of the sale is authorized to vary the stump height and top diameter in individual cases when those specified in the contract are not practicable. Tops must be trimmed up and, as a rule, brush must be piled and burned, or burned without piling, under the direction of Forest officers. Merchantable timber which is not cut and removed, and unmarked trees which are cut, must be paid for at double the specified stumpage rates.

All camps, buildings, railroads, and other improvements necessary in logging and manufacturing the timber may be constructed upon National Forest land without charge. Railroads which open up inaccessible regions may be required to be made common carriers or to transport logs or lumber for other purchasers from the Government at reasonable rates.

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