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FORESTS AND FORESTRY
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FORESTS AND FORESTRY . Although most See also:people know what a See also:forest (See also:Lat. foris, " out of doors ") is, a See also:definition of it which suits all cases is by no means easy to give. Manwood, in his See also:treatise of the See also:Lawes of the Forest (1598), defines a forest as "a certain territory of woody grounds, fruitful pastures, privileged for See also:wild beasts and fowls of forest, See also:chase and See also:warren, to See also:rest and abide in, in the safe See also:protection of the See also: Large portions of the earth are still covered with dense masses of tall trees, while others contain See also:low scrub or grass land, or are See also:desert. As a general See also:rule, natural forests consist of a number of different See also:species intermixed; but in some cases certain species, called gregarious, have succeeded in obtaining the upper See also:hand, thus forming more or less pure forests of one species only. The number of species differs very much. In many tropical forests hundreds of species may be found on a comparatively small area, in other cases the number is limited. See also:Burma has several thousand species of trees and shrubs, See also:Sind has only ten species of trees. Central See also:Europe has about See also:forty species, and the greater part of See also:northern See also:Russia, See also:Sweden and See also:Norway contains forests consisting of about See also:half a dozen species. See also:Elevation above the See also:sea acts similarly to rising See also:latitude, but the effect is much more rapidly produced. Generally speaking, it may be said that the Tropics and adjoining parts of the earth, wherever the climate is not modified by considerable elevation, contain broad-leaved species, palms, bamboos, &c. Here most of the best and hardest timbers are found, such as See also:teak, See also:mahogany and See also:ebony. The northern countries are See also:rich in conifers. Taking a See also:section from Central See also:Africa to See also:North Europe, it will be found that See also:south and north of the See also:equator there is a large See also:belt of dense hardwood forest; then comes the See also:Sahara, then the See also:coast of the Mediterranean with forests of See also:cork See also:oak; then See also:Italy with oak, See also:olive, See also:chestnut, gradually giving place to ash, sycamore, See also:beech, See also:birch and certain species of See also:pine; in See also:Switzerland and See also:Germany See also:silver See also:fir and spruce gain ground. Silver fir disappears in central Germany, and the countries around the Baltic contain forests consisting chiefly of Scotch pine, spruce and birch, to which, in See also:Siberia, See also:larch must be added, while the See also:lower parts of the ground are stocked with See also:hornbeam, See also:willow, See also:alder and See also:poplar. In North See also:America the distribution is as follows: Tropical vegetation is found in south See also:Florida, while in north Florida it changes into a subtropical vegetation consisting of See also:evergreen broad-leaved species with pines on sandy soils. On going north in the See also:Atlantic region, the forest becomes temperate, containing See also:deciduous broad-leaved trees and pines, until See also:Canada is reached, where larches, spruces and firs occupy the ground. Around the See also:great lakes on sandy soils the broad-leaved forest gives way to pines. On proceeding See also:west from the Atlantic region the forest changes into a shrubby vegetation, and this into the prairies. Farther west, towards the Pacific coast, extensive forests are found consisting, according to latitude and elevation above the sea, of pines, larches, fir, Thujas and Tsugas. In See also:Japan a tropical vegetation is found in the south, comprising palms, See also:figs, ebony, See also:mangrove and others. This is followed on proceeding north by subtropical forests containing evergreen oaks, Podocar pus, See also:tree-ferns, and, at higher elevations, See also:Cryptomeria and Chamaecyparis. Then follow deciduous broad-leaved forests, and finally firs, spruces and larches. In See also:India the character of the forests is governed chiefly by rainfall and elevation. Where the former is heavy evergreen forests of Guttiferae, Dipterocarpeae, See also:Leguminosae, Euphorbias, figs, palms, ferns, bamboos and india-See also:rubber trees are found. Under a less copious rainfall deciduous forests appear, containing teak and sal (Shored robusta) and a great variety of other valuable trees. Under a still .smaller rainfall the vegetation. becomes. sparse,containing acacias, Dalbergia sissoo and Tamarix. Where the rainfall is very See also:light or nil, desert appears. In the Himalayas, subtropical to See also:arctic conditions are found, the forests containing, according to elevation, pines, firs, deodars, oaks, chestnuts, magnolias, laurels, rhododendrons and bamboos. See also:Australia, again, has its own particular See also:flora of eucalypts, of which some two See also:hundred species have been distinguished, as well as wattles. Some of the eucalypts attain an enormous height. Utility of Forests.—In the See also:economy of man and of nature forests are of See also:direct and indirect value, the former chiefly through the produce which they yield, and the latter through the See also:influence which they exercise upon climate, the regulation of moisture, the stability of the soil, the healthiness and beauty of a See also:country and allied subjects. The indirect utility will be dealt with first. A piece of land See also:bare of vegetation is, throughout the See also:year, exposed to the full effect of See also:sun and See also:air currents, and the climatic conditions which are produced by these agencies. If, on the other hand, a piece of land is covered with a growth of plants, and especially with a dense See also:crop of forest vegetation; it enjoys the benefit of certain agencies which modify the effect of sun and See also:wind on the soil and the adjoining layers of air. These modifying agencies are as follows: (') The crowns of the trees intercept the rays of the sun and the falling See also:rain; they obstruct the See also:movement of air currents, and reduce See also:radiation at See also:night. (2) The leaves, See also:flowers and fruits, augmented by certain plants which grow in the shade of the trees, See also:form a layer of See also:mould, or humus, which protects the soil against rapid changes of temperature, and greatly influences the movement of See also:water in it. (3) The roots of the trees penetrate into the soil in all directions,' and bind it together. The effects of these agencies have been observed from See also:ancient times, and widely differing views have been taken of them. Of See also:late years, however, more careful observations have been made at so-called parallel stations, that is to say, one station in the See also:middle of a forest, and another outside at some distance from its edge, but otherwise exposed to the same general conditions. In this way, the following results have been obtained: (I) Forests reduce the temperature of the air and soil to a moderate extent, and render the climate more equable. (2) They increase the relative humidity of the air, and reduce evaporation. (3) They tend to increase the precipitation of moisture. As regards the actual rainfall, their effect in low lands is nil or very small; in hilly countries it is probably greater, but definite results have not yet been obtained owing to the difficulty of separating the effect of forests from that of other factors. (4) They help to regulate the water See also:supply, produce a more sustained feeding of springs, tend to reduce violent floods, and render the flow of water in See also:rivers more continuous. (5) They assist in preventing denudation, erosion, landslips; avalanches, the silting up of rivers and low lands and the formation of See also:sand See also:dunes. (6) They reduce the velocity of air-currents, protect adjoining See also:fields against See also:cold or dry winds, and afford shelter to See also:cattle, See also:game and useful birds. (q) They may, under certain conditions, improve the healthiness of a country, and help in its See also:defence. (8) They increase the beauty of a country, and produce a healthy aesthetic influence upon the people. The direct utility of forests is chiefly due to their produce, the See also:capital which they represent, and the See also:work which they See also:pro-vide. The See also:principal produce of forests consists of timber and firewood. Both are necessaries for the daily life of the people. Apart from a limited number of broad-leaved species, the conifers have become the most'important timber trees in the economy of man. They are found in greatest quantities in the countries around the Baltic and in North America. In modern times See also:iron and other materials have, to a considerable extent, replaced timber, while See also:coal, See also:lignite, and See also:peat compete with firewood; nevertheless See also:wood is still indispensable, and likely to remain so. This is See also:borne out by the See also:statistics of the most civilized nations. Whereas the See also:population of Great See also:Britain and See also:Ireland, during the See also:period 88o– See also:odd. increased by about 20%, the imports of timber, during the same period, increased by 45%; in other words; every See also:head of population in 'goo used more timber than
twenty years earlier. Germany produced in 188o about as much timber as she required; in 1899 she imported 4,600,000 tons, valued at £14,000,000, and her imports are rapidly increasing, although the yield capacity of her own forests is much higher now than it was formerly. Wood is now used for many purposes which formerly were not thought of. The manufacture of the wood pulp annually imported into Britain consumes at least 2,000,000 tons of timber. - A fabric closely resembling See also:silk is now made of spruce wood. The variety of other, or See also:minor, produce yielded by forests is very great, and much of it is essential for the well-being of the people and for various See also:industries. The yield of See also:fodder is of the utmost importance in countries subject to periodic droughts; in many places See also: As regards industries, See also:attention need only be drawn to such articles as commercial fibre, tanning materials, dye-stuffs, See also:lac, See also:turpentine, See also:resin, rubber, See also:gutta-percha, &c. Great Britain and Ireland alone import every year such materials to the value of £12,000,000, half of this being represented by rubber. The capital employed in forests consists chiefly of the value of the soil and growing stock of timber. The latter is, ordinarily, of much greater value than the former wherever a sustained See also:annual yield of timber is expected from a forest. In the See also:case of a Scotch pine forest, for instance, the value of the growing stock is, under the above-mentioned See also:condition, from three to five times that of the soil. The See also:rate of See also:interest yielded by capital invested in forests differs, of course, considerably according to circumstances, but on the whole it may, under proper management, be placed equal to that yielded by agricultural land; it is lower than the agricultural rate on the better classes of land, but higher on the inferior classes. Hence the latter are specially indicated for the forest See also:industry, and the former for the production of agricultural crops. Forests require labour in a great variety of ways, such as (1) general See also:administration, formation, tending and harvesting; (2) transport of produce; and (3) industries which depend on forests for their See also:prime material. The labour indicated under the first head differs considerably according to circumstances, but its amount is smaller than that required if the land is used for See also:agriculture. Hence forests provide additional labour only if they are established on surplus lands. Owing to the bulky nature of forest produce its transport forms a business of considerable magnitude, the amount of labour being perhaps equal to half that employed under the first head. The greatest amount of labour is, however, required in the working up of the raw material yielded by forests. In this respect attention may be drawn to the See also:chair industry in and around High See also:Wycombe in See also:Buckinghamshire, where more than 20,000 workmen are employed in converting the beech, grown on the adjoining See also:chalk hills, into chairs and tools of many patterns. See also:Complete statistics for Great Britain are not available under this head, but it may be mentioned that in Germany the people employed in the forests amount to 2.3 % of the See also:total population; those employed on transport of forest produce 1.1 %; labourers employed on the various wood industries, 8-6 %; or a total of 12 %. An important feature of the work connected with forests and their produce is that a great part of it can be made to See also:fit in with the requirements of agriculture; that is to say, it can be done at seasons when field crops do not require attention. Thus the rural labourers or small farmers can See also:earn some See also:money at times when they have nothing else to do, and when they would probably sit idle if no forest work were obtainable. Whether, or how far, the utility of forests is brought out in a particular country depends on its See also:special conditions, such as (r) the position of a country, its communications, and the See also:control which it exercises over other countries, such as colonies; (2) the quantity and quality of substitutes for forest produce available in the country; (3) the value of land and labour, and the returns which land yields if used for other purposes; (4) the See also:density of population; (5) the amount of capital available for investment; (6)"-the climate and configuration; especiallythe See also:geographical position, whether inland or on the border of the sea, &c. No general rule can be laid down, showing whether forests are required in a country, or, if so, to what extent; that question must be answered according to the special circumstances of each case. The subjoined table shows the forests of various See also:European states: Countries. Area of Per- Per- Forest Forests, in centage centage Area See also:pea of Total of Forest Head of Area of Area be- Acres. Country longing Popula- under to the tion, in Forest. See also:State. Acres. Sweden . . . . 49,000,000 48 33 9'5
Norway 17,000,000 21 28 7.6
Russia, including Fin- 518,000,000. 40 61 5.9
land . . .
Bosnia and. Herze- 6,400,000 50 78 4.o
govina .
See also:Bulgaria 7,600,000 30 30 2.3
See also:Turkey 11,200,000 20 .. 1.7
See also:Servia 3,900,000 32 37 1.5
See also:Rumania 6,400,000 18 40 1.3
See also:Spain 21,200,000 17 84 1.2
See also:Hungary 22,500,000 28 15 1.2
See also:Austria 24,000,000 32 7. '9
See also:Greece 2,000,000 13 8o •85
See also:Luxemburg 200,000 30 .. .82
Switzerland 2,100,000 20 5 •7
Germany 35,000,000 26 34 •6
See also:France 24,000,000 18 12 •6
Italy 10,400,000 15 4 '3
See also:Denmark 60o,000 6 24 .25
See also:Belgium 1,300,000 18 5 •2
See also:Portugal 770,000 3.5 8 .15
See also: Russia, Sweden and Norway may as yet have more forest than they require for their own population. On the other hand, Great Britain and Ireland, Germany, Denmark, Portugal, Holland, and even Belgium, France and Italy have not a sufficient forest area to meet their own requirements; at the same time, they are all sea-See also:bound countries, and importation is easy, while most of them are under the influence of moist sea winds, which reduces to a subordinate position the importance of forests for climatic reasons. Intimately connected with the area of forests in a country is the state of ownership—whether they belong to the state, corporations or to private persons. Where, apart from the See also:financial aspect and the supply of work, forests are not required for the See also:sake of their indirect effects, and where importation from other countries is easy and assured, the See also:government of the country need not, as a rule, trouble itself to maintain or acquire forests. Where the See also:reverse conditions exist, and especially where the cost of transport over See also:long distances becomes prohibitive, a See also:wise administration will take measures to assure the See also:maintenance of a suitable proportion of the country under forest. This can be done either by maintaining or constituting a suitable area of state forests, or by exercising a certain amount of control over See also:corporation and even private forests. Such measures are more called for in See also:continental countries than in those which are sea-bound, as is proved by the- above statistics. Supply of Timber — Imports and Exports.—The following table shows the See also:net imports and exports of European countries (See also:average data, calculated from the returns of See also:recent years). The only timber-exporting countries of Europe are Russia, Sweden, Norway, Austria-Hungary and Rumania; all the others either have only enough for their own See also:consumption, or import timber. Great Britain and Ireland import now upwards of 20,000,000 tons a year, -Germany about 4,600,000 tons, and Belgium about 1,300,000 tons. Holland, France, Portugal, Spain and Italy are all importing countries, as also are See also:Asia Minor, See also:Egypt and See also:Algeria. The west coast of Africa exports hardwoods, and imports coniferous timber. The Cape and See also:Natal import considerable quantities of pine and fir wood. See also:Australasia Net Imports and Exports of European Countries. Countries. Quantities in Tons. Value in See also:Sterling. Imports. Exports. Imports. Exports. See also:United See also:Kingdom . 10,004,000 .. 26,540,000 Germany . 4,600,000 .. 14,820,000 Belgium . . . I ,300,000 . . 5,040,000 France . . . . 1,230,000 . . 3050,000 Italy . . . . 620,000 .. 2,100,000 Spain . . . . 470,000 . 1,500,000 Denmark . . . 470,000 .. 1,250,000 Switzerland . . 204,000 .. 480,000 Holland 18o,000 720,000 Servia . . 110,000 .. 16o,000 Portugal . . . 6o,00o 200,000 Greece . 35,000 I 130,000 Rumania . . . . 400,000 .. 840,000 .. Norway 1,300,000 , .. 2,200,000 Austria - Hungary 3,996,000 .. 11,400,000 with Bosnia and Herzegovina Sweden .. 4,460,000 7,930,000 Russia with Fin- .. 6,89o,000 .. 10:440,000 land . . . 'Fatal 19,283,000 17,046,000 56,890,000 32,810,000 . . nee_ Net Imports 2,237,000 24,080,000 These net imports are received from non-European countries. They consist chiefly of valuable hardwoods, like teak, mahogany, eucalypts and others.
exports hardwoods and some Kauri pine from New See also:Zealand, but imports larger quantities of light pine and fir timber. See also:British India and See also:Siam export teak and small quantities of See also:fancy See also:woods. The West Indies and South America export hardwoods, and import pine and fir wood. The United States of America will not much longer be a genuine exporting country, since they import already almost as much timber from Canada as they export. Canada exports considerable quantities of timber. The Dominion has still a forest area of 1,250,000 sq, m., equal to 38 % ',of the total area, and giving 165 acres of forest for every inhabitant. Although only about one-third of the forest area can be called See also:regular timber land, Canada possesses an enormous forest See also:wealth, with which she might supply permanently nearly all other countries deficient in material, if the governing bodies in the several provinces would only determine to stop the See also:present fearful See also:waste caused by See also:axe and See also:fire, and to introduce a regular See also:system of management. As matters stand, the supplies of the most valuable timber of Canada, the See also: In some of these countries little or no See also:room exists for the See also:extension of woodland, but this statement does not apply to Great Britain and Ireland, whichcontain upwards-of 12;000,000 acres of waste land, and s a, 500,00o acres of See also:mountain and See also:heath land used for light grazing. One-See also:fourth of that area, if put under forest, would produce all the timber now imported which can be. grown in Britain, that is to say, about 95 % of the total. The subjoined table shows the movements of timber within the greater part of the•' British See also:empire: Net Imports and Exports into and from the British Empire. Annual Average Annual Average during the Years during the Years 1884–1888. 1900-1903. Countries. Net Net Net Net Imports. Exports. Imports. Exports. United Kingdom . 15,000,000 .. 26,540,000 Australasia . 1,284,000 .. 568,000 Africa . 72,000 737,000 West Indies, .. 207,000 .. 71,000 Honduran and See also:Guiana India, See also:Ceylon and .. 528,000 580,000 See also:Mauritius . Dominion of 4,025,000 4,789,000 Canada Total 16,356,000 4,760,000 27,845,000 5,440,000 Net Imports . 11,596,000 • . 22,405,000 Total increase in io,8o9,000 16 years Average annual 675,562 increase of net imports . Forest Management.—In See also:early times there was practically no forest management. As long as the forests occupied considerable areas, their produce was looked upon as the See also:free See also:gift of nature, like air and water; men took it, used it, and even destroyed it without let or hindrance. With the See also:gradual increase of population and the consequent reduction of the forest area, proprietary ideas See also:developed; people claimed the ownership of certain forests, and proceeded to protect them against outsiders. Subsequently the See also:law of the country was called in to help in protection, leading to the promulgation of special forest See also:laws. By degrees it was found that See also:mere protection was not sufficient, and that steps must be taken to enforce a more judicious treatment,as well as to limit the removal of timber to what the forests were capablenf producing permanently. ' The teaching of natural See also:science and of See also:political economy was brought 'to See also:bear upon the subject, so that now forestry has become a special science. This is recognized in many countries, amongst which Germany stands first, closely followed by France, Austria, Denmark and Belgium. Of non-European countries the See also:palm belongs to British India, and then follow Ceylon, the See also:Malay States, the Cape of See also:Good See also:Hope and Japan. The United States of America have also turned their attention to the subject. Most of the British colonies are, in this respect, as yet in a backward state, and the matter has still to be fought out in Great Britain and Ireland, though many writers have urged the importance of the question upon the public and the government. There can be no doubt that all civilized countries must, sooner or later, adopt a rational and systematic treatment of their forests. For details as to the See also:separate countries, see the articles under the country headings; in this See also:article only some of the more important countries are dealt with, in so far as the See also:history of their forestry is important. A few notes on Germany and France will be given, because in these countries forest management has been brought to highest perfection; Italy is mentioned, because she has allowed her forests to be destroyed; and a See also:short description of forestry in the United Kingdom and in India follows. A separate section is devoted to the United States. Germany is in general well-wooded. The winters being long and severe, an abundant supply of See also:fuel is almost as essential as a sufficient supply of See also:food. This See also:necessity has led, along with a See also:passion for the chase, to the preservation of forests, and to the establishment of an admirable system of forest cultivation, almost as carefully conducted as field tillage. The See also:Black Forest stretches the whole length of the See also:grand-duchy of See also:Baden and part of the kingdom of Wtirttemberg, from the See also:Neckar to See also:Basel and the Lakeof See also:Constance. The vegetation resembles that of the See also:Vosges; forests of spruce, silver fir, Scotch pine, and, mingled with birches, beech and oak, are the See also:chief woods met with. Until comparatively recent times large quantities of timber derived from these forests were floated down the See also:Rhine to Holland and also shipped to See also:England. Now the greater part of it is used locally for construction, or it is converted into See also:paper pulp. In the grand-duchy of See also:Hesse the See also:Odenwald range of mountains, stretching between the See also:Main and the Neckar, contains the chief supply of timber. In the See also:province of See also:Nassau there are the large wooded tracts of the See also:Taunus mountain range and the Westerwald. In Rhenish See also:Prussia valuable forests See also:lie partly in the See also:Eifel, on the See also:borders of Belgium, and on the mountains overhanging the Upper Moselle, but they do not furnish such stately trees as the Black Forest and the Odenwald. The See also:Spessart, near See also:Aschaffenburg in See also:Bavaria, is one of the most extensive forests of middle Germany, containing large masses of See also:fine oak and beech, with plantations of coniferous trees, such as spruce, Scotch pine and silver fir. Bavaria possesses other fine forest tracts, such as the Baierischewald on the Bohemian frontier, the Kranzberg near See also:Munich, and the See also:Frankenwald in the north of the kingdom. North Germany has extensive forests on the See also:Hare and Thuringian Mountains, while in See also:East Prussia large tracts of See also:flat ground are covered with Scotch pine, spruce, oak and beech. Every See also:German state has its forest organization. In Prussia the See also:department is presided over by the Oberland Forstmeister at See also:Berlin, while each province, or part of a province, has an Oberforstmeister, under whom a number of OberfSrsters administrate the state and communal forests. These, again, are assisted by a lower class of officials called Forsters. The Oberforsters throughout Germany are educated at special See also:schools of forestry, of which in r9o9 the following nine existed: In Prussia: at See also:Eberswalde and Miinden. In Bavaria: at Munich and Aschaffenburg. In See also:Saxony: at Tharand. In See also:Wurttemberg: at See also:Tubingen. In Baden: at Carlsruhe. In Hesse: at See also:Giessen. In the grand-duchy of Saxony: at See also:Eisenach. The schools at Munich, Tubingen and Giessen form part of the See also:universities at these places; that at Carlsruhe is attached to the technical high school; the others are See also:academies for the study of forestry only, but there is a tendency to See also:transfer them all to the universities. The subordinate staff are trained for their work in so-called silvicultural schools, of which a large number exist. In this way the German forests have been brought to a high degree of productiveness, but the material derived from them falls far short of the requirements, although the forests occupy 26 % of the total area of the couptry; hence the net imports of timber amount already to 4,600,000 tons a year, and they are Steadily rising. France.-The principal timber tree of France is the oak. The cork oak is grown extensively in the south and in See also:Corsica. The beech, ash, See also:elm, See also:maple, birch, See also:walnut, chestnut and poplar are all important trees, while the silver fir and spruce form magnificent forests in the Vosges and See also:Jura Mountains, and the See also:Aleppo and maritime pines are cultivated in the south and south-west. About one-seventh of the entire territory is still covered with wood. Forest legislation took its rise in France about the middle of the 16th See also:century, and the great See also:minister See also:Sully urged the enforcement of restrictive forest laws. In '669 a fixed treatment of state forests was enacted. See also:Duhamel in 1755 published his famous work on forest trees. Reckless destruction of the forests, however, was in progress, and the Revolution of 1789 gave a fresh stimulus to the work of devastation. The usual results have followed in the frequency agd destructiveness of floods, which have washed away the soil from the hillsides and valleys of many districts,especially in the south, and the frequent inundations of the last fifty years are no doubt caused by the deforesting of the See also:sources of the See also:Rhone and See also:Saone. Laws were passed in 186o and 1864, providing for the reforesting, " reboisement," of the slopes of mountains, and these laws take effect on private as well as state See also:property. Thousands of acres are annually planted in the departments of Hautes and Basses Alpes; and during the summer of 1875, when much injury was done by floods in the south of France, the See also:Durance, formerly the most dangerous in this respect of See also:French rivers, gave little cause for anxiety, as it is See also:round the head See also:waters of this See also:river that the chief plantations have been formed. While tracts formerly covered with wood have been replanted, plantations have been formed on the shifting sands or dunes along the coast of See also:Gascony. A forest of Pinus pinaster, 150 M. in length, now stretches from See also:Bayonne to the mouth of the See also:Gironde, raised by means of See also:sowing steadily continued since 1789; the cultivation of the pine, along with draining, has transformed low marshy grounds into productive soil extending over an area of about two million acres. The forests thus created provide annually some 600,000 tons of See also:pit timber for the Welsh coal mines. The state forest department is administered by the director-general, who has his headquarters at See also:Paris, assisted by a See also:board of administration, charged with the working of the forests, questions of rights and law, See also:finance and See also:plantation See also:works. The department is supplied with See also:officers from the forest school at See also:Nancy. This institution was founded in 1824, when M. Lorentz, who had studied forestry in Germany, was appointed its first director. Italy.—The kingdom of Italy comprises such different climates that within its limits we find the birch and pines of northern Europe, and the olive, fig, See also:manna-ash, and palm of more See also:southern latitudes. By the See also:republic of See also:Venice and the duchy of See also:Genoa forestal legislation was attempted at various periods from the 15th century downwards. These efforts were not successful, as the governments were lax in enforcing the laws. In 1789 See also:Pius VI. issued regulations prohibiting See also:felling without See also:licence; and later orders were published by his successors in the pontifical states. In See also:Lombardy the woods, which in 183o reached nearly down to See also:Milan, have almost disappeared. The province of See also:Como contains only a remnant of the primitive forests, and the same may also be said of the southern slopes of See also:Tirol. At See also:Ravenna there is still a large forest of See also: The proportion of forest is now very small, and yields but a fraction of the required annual supply of timber which is imported with facility from America, northern Europe and the numerous British colonies. Owing to the nature of the climate of the British Islands, with its abundance of atmospheric moisture and freedom from such extremes of See also:heat and cold as are prevalent in continental Europe, a great variety of trees are successfully cultivated. In England and Ireland oak and beech are on the whole the most plentiful trees in the low and fertile parts; in the south of See also:Scotland the beech and ash are perhaps most See also:common, while the Scotch fir and birch are characteristic of the arboreous vegetation in the See also:Highlands. Although few extensive forests now exist, woods of small area, belts of planting, chimps of trees, See also:coppice and hedgerows, are generally distributed over the country, constituting a See also:mass of wood of considerable importance, giving a clothed See also:appearance in many parts, and affording illustrations of skilled See also:arboriculture not to be found in any other country. The principal state forests in England are See also:Windsor See also:Park, 14,000 acres; the New Forest, &c., in See also:Hampshire, 70,000 acres; and the See also:Dean Forest in See also:Gloucestershire, 22,500 acres. The total extent of See also:crown forests is about 125,000 acres. A large pro-portion of the crown forests, having been formed with the See also:object of supplying timber for the See also:navy, consists of oak. The largest forests in Scotland are in See also:Perthshire, See also:Inverness-See also:shire and See also:Aberdeenshire. Of these the most notable are the See also:earl of See also:Mansfield's near See also:Scone (8000 acres), the See also:duke of See also:Atholl's larch plantations near See also:Dunkeld (1o,000 acres), and in Strathspey a large extent of Scotch pine, partly native, partly planted, be-longing to the earl of See also:Seafield. In the forests of See also:Mar and Invercauld, the native pine attains a great See also:size, and there are also large tracts of indigenous birch in various districts. Ireland was at one time richly clothed with wood; this is proved by the abundant remains of fallen trees in the bogs which occupy a large See also:surface of the See also:island. In addition to the causes above alluded to as tending to disforest England, the long unsettled state of the country also conduced to the diminishing of the woodlands. The forests of Great Britain and Ireland, in spite of the large imports of timber, have not been appreciably extended up to the present time because (z) the rate at which See also:foreign timber has been laid down in Britain is very low, thus keeping down the See also:price of See also:home-grown timber; (2) foreign timber is preferred to home-grown material, because it is in many cases of See also:superior quality, while the latter comes into the See also:market in an irregular and intermittent manner; (3) nearly the whole of the waste lands is private property. As regards prices, it can be shown ' that the lowest point was reached about the year 1888, in See also:con-sequence of the remarkable development of means of communication, that prices then remained fairly stationary for some years, and that about 1894 a slow but steady rise set in, showing during the years 1894-1904 an increase of about 20 % all round. This was due to the gradual approach of the coming crisis in the supply of coniferous timber to the world. It can be shown that even with present prices the growing of timber can be made to pay, provided it is carried on in a rational and economic manner. Improved silvicultural methods must be applied, so as to produce a better class of timber, and the forests must be managed according to well-arranged working plans, which provide for a regular and sustained out-turn of timber year by year, so as to develop a healthy and steady market for locally-grown material. Unfortunately the private proprietors of the waste lands are in many cases not in a financial position to plant. Starting forests demands a certain outlay in See also:cash, and the proprietor must forgo the income, however small, hitherto derived from the land until the plantations begin to yield a return. In these circumstances the state may well be expected to help in one or all of the following ways: (r) The equipment of forest schools, where economic forestry, as elaborated by See also:research, is taught; (2) the management of the crown forests on economic principles, so as to serve as patterns to private proprietors; (3) advances should be made to landed proprietors who See also:desire to plant land, but are short of funds, just as is done in the case of improvements of agricultural holdings; and (4) the state might acquire surplus lands in certain parts of the country, such as congested districts, and convert them into forests. See also:Action in these directions would soon See also:lead to substantial benefits. The income of landed proprietors would rise, a considerable sum of money now sent abroad would remain in the country, and forest industries would See also:spring up, thus helping to counteractthe ever-increasing flow of people from the country into the large towns, where only too many must join the See also:army of the unemployed. Even within a See also:radius of 50 M. of See also:London 700,000 acres of land are unaccounted for in the See also:official agricultural returns. In Ireland more than 3,000,000 acres are waiting to be utilized, and it is well See also:worth the See also:consideration of the Irish Land Commissioners whether the lands remaining on their hands, when buying and breaking up large estates, should not be converted into state forests. Such a measure might become. a useful See also:auxiliary in the peaceful' See also:settlement of the Irish land question. No doubt success depends upon the probable financial results. There are at present no British statistics to prove such success; hence, by way of See also:illustration, it may be stated what the results have been in the kingdom of Saxony, which, from an See also:industrial point of view, is comparable with England. That country has 432,085 acres of state forests, of which about one-eighth are stocked with broad-leaved species, and seven-eighths with conifers. Some of the forests are situated on low lands, but the bulk of the area is found in the hilly parts of the country up to an elevation of 3000 ft. above the sea. The average price realized of late years per cubic See also:foot of wood amounts to 5d., and yet to such perfection has the management been brought by a well-trained staff, that the mean annual net See also:revenue, after See also:meeting all expenses, comes to 21S. an See also:acre all round. , There can be no doubt that, under the more favourable climate of Great Britain, even better results can be obtained, especially if. it is remembered that foreign supplies of coniferous timber must fall off, or, at any rate, the price per cubic foot rise considerably. These things have been recognized, to some extent, and a movement has been set on foot to improve matters. The Commissioners of Woods and a number of private proprietors had rational working plans prepared for their forests, and instruction in forestry has been developed. There is now a well-equipped school of forestry connected with the university of See also:Oxford, while See also:Cambridge is following on similar lines; instruction in forestry is given at the university of See also:Edinburgh, the See also:Durham See also:College of Science, at See also:Bangor, See also:Cirencester and other places. The Commissioners of Woods have purchased an See also:estate of 12,500 acres in Scotland, which will be converted into a crown forest, so as to serve as an example. The experience thus gained will prove valuable should action ever be taken on the lines suggested by a Royal See also:Commission on Coast Erosion, Reclamation of Tidal Lands and Afforestation, which reported on the last subject in 1oo9. India.-The history of forest administration in India is exceedingly instructive to all who take an interest in the welfare of the British Empire, because it places before the reader an See also:account of the gradual destruction of the greater part of the natural forests, a See also:process through which most other British colonies are now passing, and then it shows how India emerged triumphantly from the self-inflicted calamity. As far as See also:information goes, India was, in the early times, for the most part covered with forest. Subsequently settlers opened out the country along fertile valleys and streams, while nomadic tribes, moving from pasture to pasture, fired alike hills and plains. This process went on for centuries. With the See also:advent of British rule forest destruction became more rapid than ever, owing to the increase of population, extension of cultivation, the multiplication of herds of cattle, and the universal firing of the forests to produce fresh crops of grass. Then See also:railways came, and with their ex-tension the forests suffered anew, partly on account of the increased demand for timber and firewood, and partly on account of the fresh impetus given to cultivation along their routes. Ultimately, when failure to meet the requirements of public works was brought to See also:notice, it was recognized that a grievous See also:mistake had been made in allowing the forests to be recklessly destroyed. Already in the early part of the 19th century sporadic efforts were made to protect the forests in various parts of the country, and these continued intermittently; but the first organized steps were taken about the year 1855, when See also:Lord See also:Dalhousie was See also:governor-general. At that time conservators of forests existed in Bombay, See also:Madras and Burma. Soon afterwards other appointments followed, and in 1864 an organized state department, presided over by the inspector-general of forests, was established. Since then the See also:Indian Forest Department has steadily grown, so that it has now become of considerable importance for the welfare of the people, as well as for the Indian See also:exchequer. The first See also:duty of the department was to ascertain the position and extent of the remaining forests, and more particularly of that portion which still belonged to the state. Then a special forest law was passed, which was superseded in 1878 by an improved See also:act, providing for the legal formation of permanent state forests; the determination, regulation, and, if necessary, See also:commutation of forest rights; the protection of the forests against unlawful acts and the See also:punishment of forest offences; the protection of forest produce in transit; the constitution of a staff of forest officers, See also:provision to invest them with suitable legal powers, and the determination of their duties and liabilities. The officers who administered the department in its See also:infancy were mostly botanists and military officers. Some of these became excellent foresters. In See also:order to provide a technically trained staff arrangements were made in 1866 by See also:Sir See also:Dietrich See also:Brandis, the first inspector-general of forests, for the training of See also:young Englishmen at the French Forest School at Nancy and at similar institutions in Germany. In 1876 the students were concentrated at Nancy, and in 1885 an English forest school for India was organized in connexion with the Royal Indian See also:Engineering College. at See also: The progress made since 1864 is really astonishing. According to the latest available returns, the areas taken under the management of the department are—reserved state forests, or permanent forest estates, 91,272 sq. m.; other state forests, 141,669 sq. m.; or a total of 232,941 sq. m., equal to 24 % of the area over which they are scattered. At present, therefore, the average See also:charge of each member of the controlling staff comprises 1266 sq. m.; that of each executive officer, 446 sq. m.; and that of each protective official, 21 sq. m. It is the intention to increase the executive and protective staff considerably, in the same degree as the management of the forests becomes more detailed. Of the above-mentioned area the Forest Survey See also:Branch, established in 1872, has up to date surveyed and mapped about 65,000 sq. m. From 1864 onwards efforts were made to introduce systematic management into the forests, based upon working plans, but, as the management had been provincialized, there was no central or continuous control. This was remedied in 1884, when a central Working Plans See also:Office, under the inspector-general of forests, was established. This officer has since then controlled the preparation and See also:execution of the plans, a See also:procedure which has led to most beneficial results. Plans referring to about 38,000 sq. m. are now (1909) in operation, and after a reasonable See also:lapse of time there should not be a single forest of importance which is not worked on a well-regulated See also:plan, and on the principle of a sustained yield. While the danger of overworking the forests is thus being gradually eliminated, their yield capacity is in-creased by suitable silvicultural treatment and by-fire protection. Formerly most of the important forests were annually or periodically devastated by See also:jungle fires, sometimes lighted accidentally, in other cases purposely. Now 38,000 sq. m. of forest are actually protected against fire by the efforts of the department, and it is the intention gradually to extend protection to all permanentstate forests. Grazing of cattle is of great importance in India; at the same time it is liable to interfere seriously with the See also:reproduction of the forests. To meet both requirements careful and See also:minute arrangements have been made, according to which at present 38,000 sq. m. are dosed to grazing; 19,000 sq. m. are closed only against the grazing of goats, See also:sheep and camels; while 176,000 sq. m. are open to the grazing of all kinds of cattle. The areas closed in See also:ordinary years form a reserve of fodder in years of drought and scarcity. During See also:famine years they are either opened to grazing, or grass is cut in them and transported to districts where the cattle are in danger of See also:starvation. The service rendered in this way by a wise forest administration should not be underrated, since one of the most serious calamities of a famine—the want of cattle to cultivate the land—is thus, if not avoided, at any rate considerably reduced. During 1907 the government of India established a Research See also:Institute, with six members engaged in See also:collecting data regarding silviculture, forest See also:botany, forest See also:zoology, forest See also:economics, working plans, and See also:chemistry in connexion with forest produce and production. The institute is likely to lead to further substantial progress in the management of the forests. The financial results of forest administration in India for the years 1865 to 1905 show the progress made: Period Mean Annual Percentage of . Net Revenue. Annual Increase during Period. Rupees. 1865-1870 . . . 1,372, 733 187o-1875 . . . 1,783,248 30 1875-188o . . 2,224,687 25 1880-1885 . . . 3,385,745 52 1885-1890 . . 5,066,671 50 1890-1895 . 7,370,572 44 1895-1900 • • 7,923,484 7 1900-1905 . 9,004,367 12 The highest percentage of increase occurred in the period 188o-1885. The revenue since 1886 has been considerably increased by the See also:annexation of Upper Burma. Apart from the net revenue, large quantities of produce are given free of charge, or at reduced rates, to the people of the country. Thus, in 1904-1905, the net revenue amounted to Rs. 11,062,094, while the produce given free or at reduced rates was valued at Rs. 3,500,661, making a total net benefit derived from the state forests during that year of Rs. 14,562,755, or in round figures one million pounds sterling. The out-turn during the same year amounted to 252 million cub. ft. of timber and fuel and 215 million bamboos. The receipts from the See also:sale of other forest produce came to 9 million rupees, out of a total See also:gross revenue of 24 million rupees. These results are highly creditable to the government of India, which has led the way towards the introduction of rational forest management into the British empire, thus setting an example which has been followed more or less by various colonies. Even the movement in the United Kingdom during late years is due to it. Apart from India, substantial progress has been made in Cape See also:Colony, Ceylon, the Straits Settlements and the Federated Malay States. Other British colonies are more backward in this respect. Energetic action is urgently wanted, especially in Canada and Australasia, where an enormous state property is threatened by destruction. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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