The train had stopped at Omaha late the evening before and was now approaching Denver. By the time the other passengers were up and dressed they ran into the outskirts of the city, and here another dining car was hooked on to the train, the other having been left behind the evening before. The train stopped for twenty minutes at Denver, and the young lumbermen got off and stretched their legs by a walk along the station platform. "I'm sorry we can't stop and look this city over," remarked Owen. "Jack Giles, the lumberman, was out here once, and he liked it very much. Said the air was the finest he had ever breathed." "The air certainly is pure," said Dale, taking in a deep breath. Soon they were on the train again and rushing forward. The prairie levels became less frequent and the train had often to climb the steep grade of a mountain. The scenery became wilder and wilder, and the young lumbermen could scarcely take their eyes from it. They were offered books and newspapers to read, but declined both. "We can read any time," said Owen. "But a fellow sees this seldom, if ever. I'm going to take it in for all it's worth," and he did, hardly taking time to eat his meals. At Denver they were joined by an elderly man who told them, during the course of a conversation, that he was in the employ of the United States Government, being attached to the Bureau of Forestry. He became much interested in the young lumbermen when he found that they were from Maine, and asked numerous questions concerning the trees and timber in that State. "You are right," he said, in reply to a statement made by Dale. "The lumber industry of our country is rapidly centering around Washington, Oregon, and northern California. The output of Maine, Michigan, and other timber sections will, of course, be considerable for years to come, but that output is as nothing compared to what we can produce in the Far West. According to the reports of our department, Washington, Oregon, and California contain about one-third of all the timber still standing in our country. Oregon, alone, to which you are bound, contains more timber than all the New England States and New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania combined." "Have you ever estimated the total quantity of uncut timber--I mean, with any exactness?" asked Owen. "Of course you had to do it in the rough, to make comparisons." "We have got fairly close to it, and the figures would astonish you. For Washington, Oregon, and California, we calculate the uncut trees will yield six hundred billion feet of lumber." "Well! well!" cried Dale. "But it will take some cutting to get that down."