Mr. SISSON. Except in the case of the other fund for the Forest Service, he might lop off the balance of the year's business. You see he actually pays this out of any fund he has and this appropriation reimburses that one.

Col. GREELEY. Yes.

The CHAIRMAN. It might make some difference whether you made an agreement with these people to get the protection for the $25,000 that was available or simply for the protection without any stipulated cost.

Col. GREELEY. We made no contract, Mr. Chairman, stipulating the payment of a specific sum of money. An agreement was made with them to protect these lands and to extinguish fires which occurred upon them, and under that agreement we undertook to pay our pro rata share, acre per acre, of the cost of doing this work, subject to the appropriation of funds by Congress. To us it was an opportunity to have the work done more economically than if we put a separate organization of our own in the field which would duplicate the organization on the surrounding lands maintained by this private association.

The CHAIRMAN. I do not think there is any doubt about your authority to do that.

Mr. Wood. How did they measure this cost, by the work actually done?

Col. GREELEY. In a pro rata basis of the cost of protecting the unit in which these lands formed the alternate sections. You see, these lands are checkerboard lands, every other section. A fire might threaten all the land in one section, and therefore it must be handled as a unit.

Mr. WOOD. The fire might or might not occur on our land and might be on their land, but if let alone it would run onto our land, is that the theory?

Col. GREELEY. That is exactly it.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1921.

PREVENTION OF LOSS OF TIMBER FROM INSECT INFESTATION ON PUBLIC LANDS IN OREGON AND CALIFORNIA.

STATEMENT OF HON. NICHOLAS J. SINNOTT, A MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF OREGON.

The CHAIRMAN. You may proceed, Mr. Sinnott.

Mr. SINNOTT. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, I can add but little to Mr. Greeley's statement; but the people in southern and central Oregon and in California are very much. alarmed over the depredations of the beetle in the Government. timber, and also in private timber. The various commercial bodies. in that section have passed resolutions regarding the same. The matter has been taken up by the Oregon State Board of Forestry. I myself have been in some of the timber. I took up a timber claim a number of years ago in what looked to be very fine timber. I sold

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that claim several years ago. I had not been in that same section of the country for several years until last year, and I could not recognize the country from the timber. Every third or fourth tree seemed to be dead. I was told that that was caused by the insect.

The CHAIRMAN. What is the area over which this trouble exists? Mr. SINNOTT. It exists over a great many square miles of area. I have a statement from the State forester of the Oregon State Board of Forestry, Salem, Oreg. May I read that?

The CHAIRMAN. That may be incorporated in the record. Mr. SINNOTT. Very well. I feel the committee will read it. (The letter referred to by Mr. Sinnott follows:)

Hon. N. J. SINNOTT,

OREGON STATE BOARD OF FORESTRY,

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

Salem, November 4, 1921.

DEAR MR. SINNOTT: A meeting was held in San Francisco on October 29, 1921 at which were representatives of the United States Forest Service, the Bureau of Entomology, and various private interests of the Pacific Coast States, the main purpose of which conference was to discuss machinery for cooperation among the different agencies involved in the event of the passage of your House resolution 7194 and that of Senator McNary, Senate bill 2084. The area of both Government-owned and privately owned lands affected by the pine beetle is so large and the project is of such magnitude and prompt action is so essential that all agreed there was need of perfecting, so far as possible in advance, exact plans for control work. Active work will probably not start before the beginning of next March, and as the number of trained men available for carrying on the work is limited, it is feared that as your bills now read it may not be possible to organize the work to advantage.

I have been requested to take the matter up with you with the idea, if possible, of having your measure amended, making the appropriation available until June 30, 1923 or better still, until expended. A great deal could be accomplished before June 30, 1922, if the funds were made available within a short time, but it is thought better results could be secured if plans could be perfected with a view of considering the treatment of the areas as continuous. project and without the necessity of figuring on a lapsing appropriation.

We are all very grateful to you and Senator McNary for the manner in which you have taken up this matter, and are very sorry to have to ask for further changes; however, we think you will appreciate the desirability of extending the time during which funds will be available.

I am not writing to Senator McNary, as I think Mr. C. S. Chapman, forester, Western Forestry and Conservation Association, is writing him, and as we know that you are working jointly in the matter. I shall appreciate hearing from you regarding these bills as to the probability of their passage and as to whether you think it advisable to make the change requested herein.

I am inclosing herewith a resolution passed by the Association of State Foresters at Chestertown, N. Y., September 20-22, 1921; also a resolution passed by the Twelfth Pacific Logging Congress in regular session at San Francisco, Calif., the latter part of October, 1921.

Very sincerely, yours,

F. A. ELLIOTT, State Forester.

OCTOBER 23, 1921.

RESOLUTION ON INSECT CONTROL.

Whereas insect infestations in southern Oregon and northern California have already resulted in loss of over 2,000,000,000 board feet of merchantable yellow-pine tumber and are causing an additional annual loss on Government and privately owned lands in excess of $500,000; and

Whereas it has been fully demonstrated by the United States Bureau of Entomology, Forest Service, and private owners that successful control work may be conducted at reasonable cost; and

Whereas private owners in the region now stand ready to undertake beetle control on their lands, but, due to intermingling of ownership, concerted action of Government and private owners is essential; and Whereas there is now legislation before both Houses of Congress to provide an appropriation of $150,000, whereby control work may speedily be undertaken on Government-owned lands contingent upon private owners also, and at the same time instituting proper control in their holdings; and Whereas the increasing yearly losses constitute a serious menace to Government and private owners alike, and it should be the policy of the Federal Government not only to protect its own interests but likewise to put no stumblingblocks in the way of proper protection of privately owned lands: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Twelfth Pacific Logging Congress in regular session assembled, That we urge the passage of legislation now before Congress to the end that insect-control work may be undertaken on publicly owned lands in southern Oregon and northern California, thereby permitting similar treatment of privately owned areas; and be it

Resolved, That a copy of this resolution be sent to Members of congressional delegations of every Pacific coast State, to the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior, and to heads of the Forest Service and Bureau of Entomology.

Mr. SINNOTT. I also have a resolution from the Lake View (Oreg.) Chamber of Commerce which I should like to have inserted in the record.

The CHAIRMAN. Very well.

(The resolution referred to by Mr. Sinnott follows:)

Hon. NICHOLAS J. SINNOTT,

LAKEVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE,

Lakeview, Oreg., September 30, 1921.

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

DEAR SIR: On behalf of the Lakeview Chamber of Commerce, I inclose you herewith a copy of the resolution recently adopted by our organization in reference to the pine-beetle menace that has taken such a serious aspect here.

Our resolution urges that you heartily indorse the McNary-Sinnott bill now pending before Congress.

Hoping that our resolution will be duly recognized, we are,

Yours, very truly,

LAKEVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, By B. K. SNYDER, Secretary.

At a special meeting of the Lakeview Chamber of Commerce held at Lakeview, Oreg., on the 17th day of September, 1921, Hon. E. H. Smith presiding, the following resolution was unanimously adopted:

Whereas Lake County is located within the limits of a great body of pine timber comprising more than a million acres in extent, and the said county depends very greatly for its future prosperity upon the conservation and ultimate exploitation of said timber;

Whereas recent investigations have disclosed that the pine beetle is causing a tremendous amount of destruction of valuable timber in said area; and Whereas, owing to the fact that said timber is owned by many private persons and corporations and also by the Federal Government, and it has been found impractical both from the point of view of the impossibility of concerting action, and also from the standpoint of the great expense involved properly to combat the menace without the cooperation and assistance of the Government; and Whereas, owing to lack of transportation facilities, the unsettled conditions of the lumber industry and the prevailing financial stringency, it would appear to be out of the question to expect that this timber will be cut for some considerable time, and in the meantime there is a great danger that the beetle pest will render all or a greater part of said timber commercially valueless: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Lakeview Chamber of Commerce, That it is the sense of this association that the Government of the United States should bear an equal part with the private owners of said timbered area in concerted action to eliminate the pine beetle pest. This association heartily indorses the McNary-Sinnott bill now pending before Congress having this end in view, and most respectfully urges the Members of Congress to support this much-needed legislation and thereby aid the people of this section in conserving the most valuable body of pine timber remaining in the United States. We take this action fully realizing the great financial burdens which the people of the country are called upon to bear at this time, but feeling that to ignore the imminent danger of wholesale destruction of one of our most valuable natural resources would be a most disastrous policy, and in the end infinitely more expensive than the comparatively small outlay which will be entailed in combating the beetle pest without further delay: Be it further

Resolved, That copies of this resolution be mailed to the delegations in Congress from the States of Oregon, California, and Washington.

LAKEVIEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, By B. K. SNYDER, Secretary.

Mr. SINNOTT. Here is an article from the Bend Press, Oreg., of October 21, 1921, which I should like to submit to the committee. (The article referred to by Mr. Sinnott follows:)

LOSSES BY PINE BEETLE HEAVY,

WASHINGTON, D. C.

Ravages of the pine beetle in forests cause bigger loss than forest fires. This is shown in a report from J. F. Kimball, secretary of Klamath-Lake Counties Forest Fire Association, of Klamath Falls, Oreg., to the American Forestry Association. Facts and figures as to this form of forest devastation were placed before Senator McNary and Representative Sinnottt, of Oregon, who are urged to put forth every effort for the passage of relief measures now in Congress.

The report from Secretary Kimball shows that on an area of less than 800,000 acres there has been an annual loss of $300,000 for 10 years. The loss by fire was 10,000,000 feet of pine, while the loss caused by the beetle reached 1,000,000,000 feet. Inasmuch as private timberland owners would be spending money uselessly if the United States Government does not coopearte in fighting this pest on public lands adjoining private holdings, the American Forestry Association is asked to direct the campaign for gettng action through Federal legislation.

Now is the time to start the warfare against the beetle the association points out. From now on until next March is the time to locate the infested trees. The limbs and main trunks can be cut down and burned. If 75 per cent of the infested areas can be treated the remaining timber can be protected for several years. Investigation shows the beetle can be attracted to girdled and felled trees. As a rule two or three "trap" trees to the acre are enough to get results.

The pest is a borer and is particularly destructive to the timber in the mountains of California, northward into Oregon and Washington, and eastward into Montana. The bugs dig winding egg galleries in the bark and the result is a stripped and dead tree.

Railroad officials and chambers of commerce throughout the infested section are urging action on the McNary-Sinnott measure.

Mr. SINNOTT. The newspapers have taken up the matter. I have several other newspaper articles on the matter.

I have a letter from Mr. T. A. McCann, vice president of the Shevlin, Carpenter & Clarke Co., one of the biggest operators in that country, in which he speaks about it. He says:

We are proceeding with some work done to combat the insect infestation which has become quite pronounced on some of our lands, and we are glad to

note that the Forestry Department will likewise have available some money if your bill passes

I introduced a bill for this purpose

as it does not help us materially to have their lands infested when they adjoin ours and not be taken care of.

Their lands are intermingled with the Government lands.

Mr. KELLEY. If we do this, Mr. Sinnott, are there any private holdings, you suppose, where the holders will refuse to cooperate so as to render the whole service of no value?

Mr. SINNOTT. I would not think so. The holdings are pretty large in that section. Of course, there may be an isolated case here and there, but there is a state law which compels the private owner to eradicate the pest which has been declared by statute a public nuisance.

Mr. KELLEY. Is there any activity on the part of the State itself to prevent this insect from spreading?

Mr. SINNOTT. Yes; the Oregon Legislature this year (chap. 198 of the session laws of Oregon for 1921) passed a law declaring these pine beetles a public nuisance and required the owner to eradicate them. The law also requires the owner to notify the State forester of the pest on his timber and on adjacent timber lands. It is then made the duty of the State forester to investigate the pest and he may then, with the approval of the State board of forestry declare a district or zone of infestation; then, on application of 60 per cent of the timber-land owners in said zone or district, the State forester must notify all the owners in said district to eradicate the beetles. If any owner refuses it is made the duty of the State forester to eradicate the pest in the timber of the refusing owner, and the State file a lien upon the timber land of the refusing owner to pay the expenses of the eradication.

Mr. KELLEY. Of course, to make this a success there would have to be close cooperation between the owners of the private land, the State, and the Federal Government.

Mr. SINNOTT. People interested in the timber in the State are proceeding along that line. I understand the Secretary made his recommendation conditional that the other people would cooperate, and they should cooperate.

Mr. KELLEY. I think that is the language contained in the bill. Mr. SINNOTT. Yes, sir; they will have to cooperate.

The CHAIRMAN. It would not do any good for the Government or any private individuals to undertake this unless they all did it together?

Mr. SINNOTT. Yes, sir; they will have to get together and cooperate to eradicate this pest.

I have one or two other letters, Mr. Chairman, which I should like to have inserted in the record.

The CHAIRMAN. They may go into the record.

Mr. SINNOTT. Here is a letter from Mr. J. F. Kimball, of Klamath Falls, Oreg., Secretary of the Klamath Falls Chamber of Commerce. He goes into this beetle infestation at length, and I should like to have that go into the record.

The CHAIRMAN. Very well.