The Forest Ranger performs such routine work as the supervision of timber sales, grazing, free use, special use, and other contracts and permits, the carrying out of the protection and improvement plans for his district, and other administrative duties. The average Forest Ranger has a territory of from 75,000 to 150,000 acres to take care of. On June 30, 1917, there were about 1,100 Forest Rangers employed on the National Forests who were assisted by over 900 Assistant Forest Rangers and Forest Guards. The protective force was therefore about one man for every 77,800 acres or about 121 square miles. The Forest Ranger must be a man who is physically sound and capable of enduring great hardships. He is often required to do heavy manual labor in fighting fire under the most trying conditions. For this reason he must have great endurance. They are usually men who have been brought up in timber work, on ranches or farms, or with the stock business. They are therefore thoroughly familiar with the region in which they are to be employed and especially acquainted with the rough, semi-primitive life which is characteristic of remote places in the West. He must be able to take care of himself and his horses in regions remote from settlement and supplies. He must be able to build trails, roads and cabins; he must be able to ride, pack, and drive and deal tactfully with all classes of people. He must know something about land surveying, estimating, and scaling timber; of logging, mining laws, and the live stock business. His duties include patrol to prevent fire and trespass; estimating, surveying, and marking timber; the supervision of cutting and similar work. He is authorized to issue permits, build cabins and trails, oversee grazing business, investigate mining and agricultural claims, report upon applications, and report upon and arrest for the violation of Forest laws and regulations. _The Forest Clerk._ The Forest Clerk performs the clerical work and the book-keeping in the Forest Supervisor's office. He sometimes has a Stenographer and Typewriter to assist him and to do the mechanical work of correspondence. Lumbermen are specialists who are thoroughly well versed in all that pertains to logging, milling, scaling, and cruising timber. They are assigned temporarily to Forests where need for their work arises. Scalers are men thoroughly familiar with the art of scaling or measuring logs, ties, poles, cord wood and other forest products. Planting Assistants are specialists in nursery and planting work. Their duties include the preparation of seed beds, seed sowing, transplanting and care of seedlings, and field planting. They are assigned to the Forest Service nurseries. [Illustration: THE WORK OF FOREST OFFICERS IN THE WINTER Figure 11. Forest officers and lumberjacks burning the slash resulting from a timber sale. The snow on the ground makes the burning less dangerous. Washakie National Forest, Wyoming. Photo by the author.]