v?

:

a3

 
 

 

 

ALBERT R. MANN
LIBRARY

New York STATE COLLEGES
OF
AGRICULTURE AND HOME ECONOMICS

 

AT

CORNELL UNIVERSITY

 

 

 

 

 
Cornell Univers; it

SD 431.B86 188

Principles of forest organisation,

way
PRINCIPLES

FOREST ORGANISATION

CHARLES BROILLIARD

Professor of Forést Economy, Nancy, France,

TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH

BY
E.. BE. FERNANDEZ,

INDIAN FOREST DEPARTMENT,

.N:TBUCTOR OF FORESTRY, IMPERIAL FOREST SCHOOL, DEHRA DOON.

Printed «t the Eszle Pres:, Bombay, and at the Alexandra Press, Buckle & Co., Muss2orts.
1886.

-
PRINCIPLES

OF

FOREST ORGANISATION

BY

CHARLES BROILLIARD

Professor of Forest Economy, Nancy, France,

TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH
BY
E. E. FERNANDEZ,

INDIAN FOREST DEPARTMENT,

INSTRUCTOR OF FORESTRY, IMPERIAL FOREST SCHOOL, DEHRA DOON.

®rinted at the Eagle Press, Bombay, and at the Alexandra Press, Buckle & Co., Mussevris.
1886.
PREFATORY NOTE.

This translation was originally issued in fascicles, the
first. of which appeared so long ago as December 1880.
The entire Manuscript was then already complete and
nothing remained but to pass it through the press as
quickly as possible. In the meantime, however, circum-
stances occurred which have delayed up to this the pub-
lication of the final sheets. To narrate those circum-
stances here would take too long; suffice it to say that
for more than three years I received no proofs, and to
complete the work even now, although only four forms
remained to be printed, I have had to go to Bombay and
after infinite trouble to secure and bring to Dehra Dun
all the previously printed matter comprising pp. 1—304,
which were ready in November 1882! This explanation
I owe to those who so readily accorded me their generous
support when I first proposed to undertake the trans-
lation.

In then undertaking it I wrote as follows :—

**A work embodying in a compact form the first prin-
ciples of Forest Organisation and Working treated in a
simple manner and taking into account the peculiar ad-
ministrative, economic and physical conditions obtaining
in India, is what is chiefly and urgently required. Data
for such a work in an immediately available form do not
exist, nor can they be collected and marshalled together
for a considerable number of years yet. In the mean-
while, English Translations and Abridgments of French,
German and Italian books on the subject cannot fail to
be extremely useful.”
ti ;

** Guided by these considerations I have ventured,
with the full approval of the author, to attempt a trans-
lation of M. Ch. Broilliard’s recently published work en-
titled “ Cours d'Aménagement.” ‘'Ihis work is designed
to supply a textbook for the students attending the
course of Lectures on Forest Organisation and Working
at the Forest School at Nancy in France. It is not meant
to take the place of the lectures, but only to furnish a
convenient skeleton or summary, which the Lectures fill
up, expand and illustrate. The summary is, however, so
perspicuously written and so well connected together in
all its parts, that it is perfectly intelligible by itself and
gives a clear and sufficiently complete idea of Forest
‘Organisation as it is understood and practised in France.’,

I had intended to append to the translation a short
‘account of the state and progress of Forest Organisation
in India and an essay on the application of general prin-
ciples to the peculiar circumstances of this country. My
present post of Instructor of Forestry at the Imperial
Forest School, Dehra Dun, will necessitate my shortly
bringing out a special treatise on those subjects, and
-hence anything I could add thereon to this book would
be purely a work of supererogation.

‘T also then proposed, in the event of sufficient leisure,
to write a summary description of the principal methods
of Forest Organisation at present in vogue in Germany ;
but the appearance, during the interval that has elapsed,
of Mr. Laird-MacGregur’s work has rendered that
superfluous.

During this interval we have also had in the Indian
Forester, from the pen of Mr. Fisher, a translation of
M. Puton’s brochure on Forest Organisation, which is
conceived in a different spirit from M. Broilliard’s work
war

1:

and, therefore, possesses a utility distinct from that of the
latter book.

With regard to the technical terms employed in this
translation, such as are connected with sylviculture and
which are mostly the same as those used in Mr. Smythies’
and my translation of M. Bagneris’ Manual, have received
almost unqualified approval in England. The term
“Organisation” itself has already been adopted by Mr.
Laird-MacGregor and in official reports. But, without
attempting to justify every term, I shall feel that I have
fully attained my object, if I have succeeded in making
M. Broilliard’s work at once intelligible to English
readers.

Dera Dox,

E. E. FERNANDEZ.
15th March 1886.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.

 

Authovr’s Preface

Introduction
BOoOX I.
Regime and Exploitability.
Definitions Ban she
Cuar. I. Choice of Régime.
Secr. I. Cultural Requirements
Sect. II. Economic Requirements
§ 1. Utility of the Produce
§ 2. Income 4
§ 3. Profits
Cap, II. Choice of Exploitability.
Sect. I. Principal kinds of Exploitability.
§1 Quantitative Exploitability
§ 2 Qualitative Exploitability
§ 3 National Exploitability sie
§ 4 Commercial Exploitability sas
Sect. II. Exploitability for the Private Owner...
‘Sect. ITI. Exploitability for the State
Sect. IV. Exploitability suited for Municipalities
Sect. V. Application of the various kinds of Ex-
ploitability
BOoOke Ir

Pages.
1 to 8
9—24

25—30

31—34

34—37
37—38
38—40

44—45

45
45—47
47—49
49—50
51—54
54—57

57—59

Operations common to all Forest Organisations.

Cuar. I. Compartments.
§ 1 Boundary Map
§ 2 Division into Compartments

§ 3 Survey of the Compartments

Cuar. II. Detailed Description of Compart-

ments.
§ 1. Division and Sub-division

62—63
63—68
68—69

70—77
77
Vi
Cuap. III. General Statistical Report.
§ 1 Administrative Circumstances wee 79—80

§ 2 Physical Circumstances ; ae 80—84
Economic Circumstances re 84-— 86

53
CHap. v. Formation of Working Circles 87—Y91
Cuar. V. Determination of the Rotation or
Age of Exploitability.
Sect. I. Age at which Quantitative Exploita-

Pages.

bility is realized tee 92—97
Sect. II. Age of Quantitative Exploitability ... 97—99
Sect. III. Rotation corresponding to National Ex-

ploitability .. 99-102

Sect. IV. Determination of the Age of Comitiar-
cial Exploitability.

§ 1 Rotation applicable to a Wood com-

posed of Trees of Uniform Age ... 108—108
§ 2 Age of the Commercial Exploitability
of Coppice Standards . 108—110

§ 3 <Ageof Commercial Faploitability of
the Timber of a Forest worked by
Selection «» 110—I111

Cuar. VI. Order to observe in the eee
tations oes . 112—119.

BOOE Ii
The Working Scheme in the Organization of High Forests.

General Notions... wi .. 121—23
Cuap. I. A Sustained Yield... we 124—29
Cuar. II. The Volumetric Method of Orga-
nisation.
Sect. I. Description of the Method 130—31
Sect. II. Application of the Volumetric Method 131—33
Sect. III. Value of the Volumetric Method as 183—35
Cuar. ITI. Forest Organisation by Area,
Secr. I. Description of the Method ws =~: 186—3'7
Sect, II, Framing of the General Working
Scheme ee = 187—44

Sect. III. Special Scheme of Exploitations,
$1 Order of the Euplottations wee =. 14 — 408

§ 2 Estimation ofthe Annual Yield 1... 148-54
vil
Pages,
Cuar. LV. Complementary Dispositions re-
lative to the Working Scheme
for High Forests.

Sect. I. The Reserve Fund .. ~=155—58
Sect, II. Verification of the Annual Yield ..  158—60
Sect. IIT. Improvement Works 160-—66
Sect. IV. Periodic Revision of the Gradudien

Project ..  161—68

BOOE rv.
Organization of Irregular High Forests.

Cuar. I. The Selection System.

Sect. I. General Condition of our Forests under
working by Selection a». 170—74

Sect. II. Maintenance of the Selection Method... 174—80

Cuar. II. Organisation of Forests in which the
Selection Method is to be maintained.

Sect. JI. Protective Forests ..  181—82
Sect. II. Forests situated at High Elevations ... 182—88
Sect. ITI. High Forests of limited extent 188—89

Cuap. III. Organisation of Selection-worked For-
ests under transformation into Regular
High Forests 190—97

Cap. IV. Irregular High Forests of the Broad-
leaved Species.

Sect. I. Cultural Requirements .. 198—201
Sect. II. Organisation of Irregular High Forests
of the Broad-leaved Species ... 201—206
Sect. III. Necessary Results ... 206—208
BoOoE Vv.

Organisation of Copses.
Cuap. I. Our Copses as they are.
Sect. J. Simple Copses vee 211—214
Sect. II. Copses with Standards we = 214218

Cuap. II. Organisation of Simple Copses 219—224

Cuar. III. Organisation of Copses with Stan-
dards,
vill
Pages.
Sect. L Comp :rtments, Working Circles, Rota
tion, Exploitability of the Standards 225—228

Srcot. I]. The Selection of Standards in Com-
pound Copses.

§1 Forests managed by the State w.  229—2381
§ 2 Private Forests se we. 231-285
Sect. 1I[. The Working Scheme.
§ 1 Selection-Plan of Stundards .. 285-—237
§2 Division into Coupes and the tabular
Exploitation Scheme 237 — 239

Cuar. IV. Complementary Operations of “the
Organisation Project for Copses 244—252

Cuap. V. The Reseived Fourths.

Skcr. I Legal Bearings of the Subject .» 253—255
S-or. II. De-criptive Statement w. 255 —259
Sect. IIL. Treatment fies . = 260-—265

Book vi.
Conversion of Coppice into High Forest.

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS we §=267—274

Cuap. I. Organisation of Compound Copses
under Conversion.
Sect. I. Preliminary Operations.

§1 Formation of Compartments vee = DTA 277
§ 2 Working Circles alee we 277—278
§ 3 Rolution ww 278-—279
Seer. II. The General Working oe «  279—285

Serer. IIT. Special Scheme of Exploitations ...  285—292
Cuapv. II. Cultural Operations in Conversions

Secr. I. The Preparatory Cuttings we 293—294

Sect. II. The Regeneration Fellings we 294—298

Sect. I. The Compound Coppice Felling .... 298—299
Quap. III. A Sustained Yield in Conversion

Organisations. 300—305

CoNCLUSION ae ». 807—312
APPENDIX

Grazing in Forests mes we = 8138—315

Forest Fires »» 816—818

Specimen Analysis ‘of Coppice Coupe .. 819—323

Table for computing Present Value of ee une taal
Income we 824—828
PREFACE.

SS OE

_ Tats work is only the second edition of the CouRsE oF
AMENAGEMENT, pablished in 1860, by M. Nanquettz. It is the
continuation of the Course of Lectures founded at the Forest School
thirty years ago, and delivered ever since with the modifications.
which time and experience have made necessary in so young an art
as the Organisation of Forests. The main principles are what they
were in 1860; only owing to facts established since then, certain points
have acquired more prominence, while others have had to be aban-
doned altogether. Besides this, the study of a variety of forests.
situated all over France, which, thanks to the kind initiative of
M. Fard, at that time Director General of Forests, the Professors of
the Forest School have been able to pursue year after year since:
1869, has enabled them to defitie in a precise manner the more:
important ideas and to develope the Course by. the addition of new
ideas and illustrations.

The publication of this work is intended to enable our students.
to follow more easily the Course of Lectures on Forest Organisation
by putting into their hands a succinct exposé of abstract principles-
and theoretical studies of a kind quite new to them. It is prece-
ded by an Introduction meant to impart a fair idea of the constitution:
and distribution of the forests of France, and of the task our forest
officers are called upon to fulfil.

The First Book presents, in a summary manner before the student,
the essential facts connected with the various Régimes, and explains
the fundamental ideas on which the exploitation of forests is based,
and which are the laws themselves according to which forests are
to be worked. Jt was not an easy task to treat of the question of
choice of Régime after the masterly comparison of the various
Régimes made by Messrs. Lorentz and Parade in their “ Course of
Forest Culture.” But this subject necessarily stands at the very
threshold of our course, and there was thus no alternative but to
recall the principal points. This we have done in a simple manner,
in a form different to that adopted in the book in question, to which
Pee OF ae OED ’ profit to themselves,
4 -

The study of the principles of Exploitability, altogether peculiar
to forests, and so important and difficult besides, has seemed to us to
require some further development suggested to us by the condition of
our forests, which is growing every day more and more precarious ™m
the times in which we live. To speak truly, there are only two different
classes of circumstances under which forests are exploited; either
they are utilised when mature like all other fruits of the earth in
general, or they are cut prematurely as a speculation in view of
securing a high rate of interest on capital expended. In order to
render this idea clear, we have adopted the term Economic Exploita-
bility to express the state of a forest worked under the first class of
circumstances, because they are in strict conformity with the general
economy of the State or the public good. This Exploitability, as we
shall see, comprises, according to the results sought, or to the cir-
cumstances under which it is applied, (1) the “ Ewplottabilité
absolue” of the “ Course of Forest Culture,” (2) the Exploitability
relative to the most useful produce, which may be more simply
termed Qualitative Exploitability, because it furnishes the most use-
ful igneous products employed in the arts and manufactures, and (3)
National Exploitability, suitable for adoption in blocks of regular
high forest. In the same manner we have adopted the term “ Com-
mercial Exploitability,” to denote, as opposed to Economic Exploita-
bility, the circumstances under which a forest is worked with a view
to obtaining the highest possible rate of interest on capital invested.
In this respect, what is far more important than mere words, are
principles. In France these latter have always remained the same,
and it is interesting to note here that at the French Forest School
the fundamental principles on which the working of forests rests,
viz. NaTuRAL REGENERATION and the Most UseruL PRopucrion
have never been questioned.

The Second Book, which treats of the operations common to
all Forest Organisation, explains in the first place how to set about
in order to study a given forest, by dividing it into compartments
and then describing each of these compartments and drawing up the .
statistics of the forest. It givesin the second place the rules to
observe in forming Working Circles, which are’ perfectly independent
portions of one and the same forest. Next it describes the special
procedure to follow in order to determine, in the various cases that
may occur, the rotation or age at which the standing crops should
be cut. Lastly, this Book ends with an exposé of the circumstances
which regulate the order to be observed in the exploitations,
3

These general facts and studies, indispensable in the case of every
forest without exception, whether they are detailed or take a broad
general view of the forest, whether they head the report or are
implied and understood, lead one, so to Say, on to the very thresh-
old of the Organisation Project. Accurately observed and carefully
thought out, they guarantee the proper carrying out of the prescrip-
tions which are to regulate the treatment and the exploitation of
the forest. Incorrectly noted or carelessly worked out, they make
room for all kinds of errors, even of the most grave character, a
circumstance which cannot but render defective some portion of the
Organisation Project, or be an obstacle to its proper execution.

As regards our Course, this Book is perhaps the most important
part of it. Once the student has gone, methodically and with a
thorough understanding of the facts, through the practical work
which it describes, his mind will be able to take in at once the whole
subject of Forest Organisation, the various combinations, rules and
principles that enter into it becoming perfectly clear to him. We
will even go further and say that we do not fear to assert that it is
almost impossible to acquire a full and complete knowledge of any
forest without possessing both a theoretical and practical know-
ledge of the operations described in this the Second Book. And
this is the reason why we have therein entered into an exhaustive
and detailed account of those operations.

The Third Book treats of the general features of the Working
Plan for high forests. With reference to the subject of a sustained
yield in the State Forests, we have established the fact that it is
often expedient to subordinate it to the treatment applied and to the
requirements of the future, because every year it becomes more and
more clear that it ought tomake way for the savings that must be
effected in order to enable these forests to yield the most useful pro-
ducts, viz. large timber, the scarcity of which is already felt in France.
Moreover, the smethod of Forest Organisation by Area is described
here in the same spirit in which it has always been taught at the
Forest School ; but, thanks to a more intimate knowledge of facts
since acquired, we have been able to separate it from purely
theoretical considerations and to place it before the student in an
entirely practical light.

The study of the organisation of regular high forests, which is
more complete in itself and, all points considered, more natural than
of that of copses, is the best beginning to make in the theoretical and
practical study of Forest Organisation. One can scarcely understand
sufficiently the rearing of copses without having an intimate acquaint-
ance with that of high forests ; and similarly one cannot appreciate
thoroughly the complex facts and the difficulties to be met with in
organising copses without a knowledge of the organisation of high
forests. Far then from seeking in the organisation of copses the
key to the organisation of high forests, we consider that we must
begin by studying this latter, even although we may not actually
have to put it into practice, in order to master ina sure manner the
general rules which govern all forest organisation.

In the Fourth Book, devoted to the organisation of irregular high
forests, we have treated ina general manner the Selection System
and developed the theory of the organisation of forests treated in
accordance with that system. The necessity of this course seemed
to us to be proved by the more active working of our mountain
forests, following inevitably upon the opening up of lines of trans-
port and the rise in the prices of standing timber. Moreover, the
study of this subject throws no inconsiderable light on the organisa-
tion of forests under transformation from the Selection System to the
Natural Method with Thinnings, and may serve to modify it, as far
as regards the selection fellings that are temporarily continued in
such forests, after the work of transformation has been commenced.

With respect to irregular high forests of broadleaved species, we
have almost limited ourselves to giving an example of the various
operations they require. The practical application of the theory
acquires, in their case, so much more importance than the pure
theory itself, that outdoor work which forms an indispensable part
of our Course, is alone capable of enlightening the youthful minds of

our students as to the difficulties offered by the organisation of this
class of high forests and the means of resolving them.

The Fifth Book has for subject the organisation of copses, both
simple and compound. The Coppice Regime is applied more widely
than any other in France. However inferior the produce it yields
may often be, it deserves on that account to be profoundly studied,
But the organisation of copses cannot be properly effected, whatever
the general opinion to the contrary may be, without a knowledge of
the cultural facts connected with the constitution and growth of
copses, and without a clear appreciation of the results to be sought
in the annual selection of the standards. We have hence been led,
5

not to study, as a preliminary step, the rearing of copses with all the
developments it is capable of, but to lay down its main points in so
far as they are connected in an indissoluble manner with the orga-
nisation of such forests.

As regards simple copses, we have sought to demonstrate the
advantages, hitherto too much misunderstood, of adopting a long
rotation. The desirable harmony between a good division of a forest
into coupes and the naturai configuration of the ground, the esta-
blishment of surrounding belts of denser forest which protect at the
same time that they adorn, the necessity of an effective fence, all
these are so many facts often lost sight of nowadays, It was ex-
pedient to recall attention to them,

With respect to Coppice with Standards we have, by means of
the definition itself, clearly indicated the object to be sought in this
method of treatment. We have then described the means of attain-
ing this end, 1stly with the aid of a good selection of Standards, and,
2ndly, by the organisation itself of the forest. Thenumber of Standards,
more precious than the underwood and valuable in direct proportion
to their size, ought only to be limited by their ownrequirements as they
spread themselves out and not by any theory or fixed idea as ‘to
allotting a certain amount of space to the underwood. The price of
large timber brings into clear prominence the truth of this doctrine,
which is the true basis on which the treatment of copses with stan-
dards rests, and is besides in perfect conformity with the prescriptions
of the Royal Edict of 1827, as it was with those of the Edict of 1669.

We have given a specimen Working Plan of a Working Circle
of copse and an example ofa really practical Selection Plan for
Standards, which explain how the general theory of the organisation
of copses, both simple and compound, is applied in practice. With
respect to the control of the exploitations, a specimen form, i in which
a record of the exploitations ought to be kept, will be found in its
proper place. It may be used for coppice as well as high forest
exploitations.

With regard to the auxiliary operations to be carried out in copses,
such as thinnings and the pruning off of epicormic branches, we have,
entered into some details, which cannot well be omitted from our
Course, for the organisation of copses with standards, so simple as
it appears at the first glance, is of itself necessarily incomplete, at
6

least in so far as the standards are concerned. The result is that
the rules to be observed in the execution of certain auxiliary opera-
tions, as , for example, in the selection of standards, form a neces-
sary complement to the Organisation Project for a copse.

The reserved fourth of communal forests represent taken together
a considerable area, and are for the most part treated as
copse. Welkave brought together the statutory prescriptions con-
cerning them, showing how they do not require any Organisation
Project. And we have indicated the principal points to attend tc
in treating these portions of larger forests so valuable not only in
themselves, but also on account of the indirect service they render
in guaranteeing, under most contrary circumstances, the conservation
and preservation of the whole forest,

In the Sixth and last Book, treating of the methods of converting
copse into high forest, we have endeavoured to give a clear
idea of a good Organisation Project by laying down the principles
and the general rules that guide such operations. We have laid
particular stress on those conditions of production which render
conversions necessary and on the cultural operations which can
alone bring them to a successful issue. We believe that in so doing
we have placed before the student the question in its entirety. In
order to resolve it by drawing up an Organisation Project for a given
forest and by carrying out that Project during the whole period of
time. which such an undertaking requires, one must be thoroughily
conversant with the practical working of forests and the methods of
observation required by cultural phenomena, and practised in the
manipulation of Organisation Projects for the working of high
forests as well as of copses. We cannot therefore profess to teach
in a book how to draw up Organisation Projects for the conversion
of copses into high forests, much less indeed than any other kind of
Organisation Project.

After mere theoretical studies it would be foolish to think of
drawing up an Organisation Project, or even to execute any cultural
operation whatsoever. To do so would be as rash as to undertake
the construction of a large building the moment one has finished
attending a course of lectures on Arthitecture. The Course taught
at the Forest School must hence only be considered as an Introduc-
tion to the study of Forest Organisation. The outdoor work done by
the students duriug the summer is quite as necessary as the theoretical
e

studies. It is only while engaged in that work that the mind opens
itself out to a true knowledge of the forest under examination, and
is able to grasp the complex relations with one another of the dif-
ferent parts of an Organisation Project, as interdependent and in-
separable one from the other as Sylviculture and Forest Organisation
are themselves.

But one or two practical studies in drawing up Organisation
Projects does not suifice to complete the education of the Aména-
giste.t To be master of the theory as well as of the practice, one must,
to speak truly, have studied under various conditions both organised
and unorganised forests, have devoted to the work the important
element time, without which the mind is incapable of assimilating
tne knowledge it acquires of facts—in a word, have been ina position
to observe, compare, and judge for oneself.

Within the compass of a few lines serving as a conclusion to this
work, we have endeavoured to point out that every Organisation
Project is a work by itself, special to the forest it concerns and of
necessity different from every other Organisation Project. It is this
very circumstance that is a criterion of its merit and that makes
it so interesting, but it is also one which constitutes its difficulty.
And a correct appreciation of the difficulties presented by the prac-
tical exercise of an art is a quality that belongs only to those minds
thal have already mastered its secrets.

In an Appendix we have added two short notes, one on mountain
forests given over to grazing, the other on pine forests exposed to
fires. These notes are intended to furnish a few useful facts and
hints, and will in any case serve to show the reader how, so to say,
unlimited a field for study and practice the organisation of forests
presents in France, owing to the diversity of conditions found in
them. This very diversity makes us afraid to give examples of
Organisation Projects, which must either be imperfect or applicable
only to a few forests possessing the same characteristics. We have
therefore limited ourselves, onthe score of examples, to giving a
specimen form for keeping a record of the compartments of a
forest in, and an analysis of a compound coppice cutting.

4 A convenient term to denote the person commissioned to draw up on Organisation
Project.
8

This volume which M. Nanquette, whose humble disciple I am,
has asked me to publish in my own name, is his handiwork more
than mine. As for myself I have only re-written the Course, which
learnt at his feet. He has even been kind enough to revise my
manuscript and retouch with his own hand the more important por-
tions. It will hence not be affirming enough if I say that it is our
joint work. If the formis chiefly my own, the matter is princi-

pally his.
Cu, BROILLIARD.

Nancy, 1st May 1878.
COURSE OF FOREST ORGANISATION.

oe 5

 

 

INTRODUCTION,

It is the conservation- and development of the forest wealth of
France that forms the object of the’teaching. at the Forest School,.
Hence before commencing the-study of the course of Forest Organisa- ;
tion properly so called, it is ueeful to cast a coup d@ilover the dis-
tribution of the forests of Francs~and the wants~ that are to be: :
satistied by the produce furnished by them.

Alsace and the portion of Lorraine wrested from us’ contain:
1,250,000 acres of our best forests. What still remains, neverthe--
less, comprises nearly 22,500,000 acres, as follows :—-

Acres.

State Forests ... Sa Bis By ee ww» 2,417,895:

Forests belonging to commerce-and public foundation. 4,650,733.

Private Forests... side see cis! a ews 15,432,472.

Tn other words our forests together occupy more than a sixth of
the area of France. We-do not here include the ground covered by
solitary trees scattered here and’ there on land under agriculture or
pasturage, no more than the trees growing in hedges, along roads:
and canals, and in avenues and parks,

Nevertheless, the actual production of timber in France already falls
far short of present requirements, and the state of matters is growing
worse every year. We have to import even now more large timber
from abroad than we produce at home, and we pay the foreigner on
this account alone a tribute of £ 6,000,000. This sum represents the
value in our ports of wroughtwood, i. ¢. beams, scantlings, boards,
staves, &c., obtainable from 70,634,000 cubic feet of dealwood in the
baulk and 17,658,500 of oak.

These enormous quantities of imported wood show clearly that
our area does not suffice for the production of timber. It is true
that besides area there are other considerations which combine to
produce the same result one way or the other, the chief among
these being time and the actual state of the growing timber. But
these essential elements cannot be made to work on our side in
forests periodically brought under the axe, except with the aid of
good Organisation Projects.

o
10 INTRODUCTION.

Out of the 22,500,000 acres under wood in France just a little
over 7,000,000 are under State management, and, therefore, in a posi-
tion to be treated with a view to the production of large timber.
The remainder is in the hands of private individuals, and cannot be
relied upon to furnish for the national consumption any constant
considerable supply of timber. It therefore behoves us for the pros-
perity of the country to obtain as large a quantity as possible of
large timber from the State and Communal Forests. To estimate the
extent of this task we must ascertain in what condition these forests:
are, and in what proportion they are treated

i.) as High Forest, the principal object of which is the produc-
tion of timber,

(ii) as Simple Coppice, which aims chiefly at producing fire-
wood, and

Git.) as Compound Coppice, which combines the two preceding
methods of treatment.

This proportional distribution is indicated approzimately in the
following tabular statement:—

Acres.
_¢ Belonging to the State..........-.1,000,000 } A
High Forest Do. do. Communes and te 9 "500,000
L public foundations ...... 1,500,000 § ,
( Belongingto the State, (two- }
| thirds at present under i
Compound } Conversion into Hick
Goppice > _. Worestwenesancam- veal about 1,250,000 73750,000
| Belonging to Communes and |
L to Public Foundations...... 2,500,000 J
Simple Belonging to Communes and to Public
Coppice Foundations ........cccsecseccserscscoenecserees 750,000
Total......7,000,000

Private forests are fairly uniformly distributed throughout the
country. Each Department possesses an aggregate extent of such
forest varying from 100,000 to 300,000 acres. Still there are a few
notable exceptions, such as the Gascon Landes which are covered by
an immense forest of the Pinus Pinaster, and the Var, the Dordogne
and the Niévre each of which contains extensive tracts under simple
coppice and scrub.

As regards the forests under the control of the Forest Department,
they are very unequally distributed. We have attempted to give
some idea of their distribution in the following Table, in which we
have divided France into nine forest regions of nearly equal extent
11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION.
TABLE SHOWING THE DISTRIBUTION OF FORESTS
IN FRANCE.
Forests s a x, |_ Private
belonging 26 3 |Forests and
State | to Com- | Totalarea | + 34 | others, not!
Forests | munes under the | g~ & | under the
REGION. | DEPARTMENT. in and Public] control of | .2 2 “3 control of
1876 Founda- | the Forest| #% 3 e | the Forest
tion in |Department BS = {Department
1876. & in 1876.
Acres. | Acres. | Acres. Acres.
a CNOTd, ccs.ceseeece 47,462) 4,443 54,876
> Pas-de-Calais ...) 18,472) 1,638) ... 63,757
=, |jSomme ...-..... 10,423} 1,371 be 88,287
Ze 2 | \Seine-Inférieure} 83,948) 1,448)... 154,41
a el Eure esses 29,485, 346) ... 250,793
e2 = i \Calvados......... 8,436}... ts 86,036
4882 SANISIGS /socanedececd 65,487, 9,988; .. 169,626
ee | Ot C onsen 78,418] 3,733}... 16,960
Se | Seine scicecceces 850 9]. 1,972
e Seine-et-Oise ...| 72,828) 1,129)  .. 17,886
& « Seine-et-Marne.! 57,661} 2,310 oe 192,733
473,470, 26,438] 499,908 1,410,966
> {|Manche ......... 825 49}... 50,474
3 . | Ile-et-Vilaine...| 18,135] 136]... 106,806
3 5 | Cotes-du-Nord...| ... ade ae &9,980
aA, © | Finistére........) 8,463 3 aise 78,904
="" = | |Morbihan ...... ey ee ae 109,852
2 584 Loire-Inférieure| 11,078)... 100,359
ma a =
9-5 Sy |Mayenne.. ...... 353 ais 69,54
eo | Maine-et-Loire..| 4,465)... Ss 128,779
an Vendée wesssess 5,619] ... 61,345
~~ [Deux Savres...| 14,436 282) ses 91,50
67,521 467} 67,988 887,545
ww (Orme crasxsceree| SF,0T5) ons des 148,569
2 g | |Eure-et-Loir ...) 16,191 232| 130,585
8 © | |Sarthe........--+. 25,964 838] ... 190,508
%"~ & | \Indre-et-Loire..| 21,736]... ou ” 217,913
= 2 } [Loir-et-Cher ...| 29,935] 4,722| ... w. | 253,805
Be 8 [Vienne connees 15355, 749|  .. | ... | 192,033
522 | TnGre ccosssscond 2980 S204 ... | 187,659
22, | [Cher sssccncucees 30,567| 14,624)... ee 252,223)
ZS | [Loiret ......+0+] 94,752 S74) sss .-» | 200,868
|Allier ........2- 60,268} 3,464 .. x 160,320
379,168} 29,870) 409,038) 24 {1,934,503

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘12 INTRODUCTION:
Forests {S81 Private
belongiug ‘| 28-4 | Forests and
suis to Com- | Total area | So 3 he: ea
|| REGION. | DEPARTMENT, | Forests {and Public| soteolot | 2B | control of |
in 1876. | Founda- | the Forest | # 2 @ |the Forest
tions.in /Department| 5x, 3 |Department
1876. a _in 1876.
Acres, | Acres. | Aeres. Acres.
% (iArdennes ...... 58,748] 88,424)  ... i  ot8
ae S | (Marne... cacena: 32,893] 33,147)... .. | 264,781
12 Ss | IAUNE cecconsoones 36,291) 59,679) .. Bhs 178,727
12.42 4 |Haute-Marne...| 40,131} 217,805) .. ... | 211,909
Boo | (Meuse... 75,623, 241,060| .. “| 122,089
I, oo. | Meurtheret-Moselle 78,677 17 1,566 wee o- 81,4 13
Se | WV ORR CR aavvinscees 139,814] -281,402 35 : 87,198
462,178|1,092,48311,554,661, 15 [1,124,782
1 “S of (Beut-Rhin2....)  ... 32,005]. ~ 18,635
| 2 | [Haute-Saone ...| 16,885] 281,411)... a 106,588}
Te SG | (Doubs ccsevensecs 11,799] 240,305] .. = 81,803
AOC S | [Str Rescwnansse said 61,011] 206,772]... a 124,158
P > 4 |Céte-d’Or...,..... 98,997] .244,906 ae we 279,546
Be | |Wontenenecce 33,609, $1,302. ) | 299/344
|B 2%, | |Saéne-et-Loire...| 38,672, 68,447| « .-. | 280,727
HS | \AMH csabeseonssnan 7,660| 114,481]... 182,785
EL LINiavre.....c000005| 36,262) -58,060} ... . 412,177
29,989|1,327,689]1,357,678] 12 |1,785,761
s {|Haute-Savoie...) ... 109,437] .. oe 155,501
ae Savoie ......06 eve} 1,416] 190,494) 2. bo 121,27
BE | [lstre ....sss-+-) 26,764 136,605]... .. | 287,253
fa as Dréme.........06- 20,772) 75,475 sas seis 334,973
{i os S } |Hautes-Alpes ... 4,665) 199,195 . ea 65,400
Aer 4 Basses-Alpes ...) 1,426] 121,752} .. oe 193,252
< ae Vaucluse ......... 7,819| 70,214, . wag | IB PA
<q oo Bouches-du Rhone., aby 48,475 130,435
Sa [Var ...... ieeaniveoe 23,698] 104,960) ... a 510,559
ge {| pee una 1,287| 97,915 i 133,123
87,847] 115,452! 203,299 9 (2,050,511
3 {/Rhone .........-.. as 64). ay 84,057
Be 5 PULOIES a ocncananids shart 5,896)... te 165,242
2° $8||Haute-Loire . 1,680} 19,703 = 191,700
SSeS | Puy-de-Déme...| 2,039} 28344 . ee 200,886
Bia Se} OPCURE csi neabomsiie 1,327 2,677 bs ae 89,659]
B a &°} |Haute-Vienne...)  ... 820)... da: 162,111
Pt 1 Corrize cescconee vas 6,758) ans --» | 104,666
8 1 lCantal.........6. 3,457/ 28,687)  ... wa 146,672
a Aveyron wee 8,583! 16,766... 183,351

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION. 13
aan.
ae s £ Pb 5 Private 3
elongi | "576 |Forests

State i Got were yea Bo 8 ce ce

REGION. | DEPARTMENT, | Forests | munes | control of | @ wx | WRder the
. in |and Public] i460 Forest | ‘32 2 | Contre! of

1876. Founda- |nepartment 5 & @ |the Forest
tions in Se ® |Department

1876, . a in 1876.

Acres. | Acres. | Acres. Acres.
| Wego sacsecacen 1914) 26218: 22 vow \ (197,351
UArd&éche .......+¢ 8,656) 24,283 « 215,055
25,494] 160,211] 185,705) 24 {1,670,750}
@ (lGard s..veeesseny 3,496] 106,274... ; 208,338)
aa {Hérault ......00 aa 27,350 Le a 185,081
Go [LSE snvensenene: 16,702] 23,089}... wine | LPOBSS
R z S | |Tarn-et-Garonne ...| 3,308 316, Sew . 113,306
a 23. Gers......ssceeeee 412) 3,672) ... <i 127,283
BTS St |Li0t senene ansasene a bs : we | 229,540
42m | |Lot-et-Garonne| ... 3,506} -« | 179,238
4 cae Dordogne. ...... ahs er : es 465,688
3 | |Charente.........J 12,592 193)... vs 199,289
a Licharente Inférieure,| 4,895 1,208 : . 177,303)
41,405] 165,608} 207,013) 1% |2,055,631
3 { |Pyrénées-Orient.,.... 44,277} 52,192 Sa aie 83,649
a, ||Aude ............) 25,220) 28,514)  ... tes 109,388
with aE | NTE sorenaamans 189,271} 49,123} ... yo | DOV TS
gs-2 * ||/Haute-Garonne,) 36,103) 53,052) ., eee 149,405
& § 88 | |Haute-Pyréndes| 12,165) 117,518]... w+ | 85,095
Sas | |Basses Pyrénées. 736) 136,106)... sa 249,012
ea %| [Landes ......... 66,327| 20,169}  .. af 988,907
gf 7 Gironde ......... 68,269} 2,429) . a 789,548]
a L|Corse .-++ee.--46-| 110,923) 180,699) a 225,276
55,829) 639,802} 695,131] 72 |2,788,055)
Grand Total...) 1,622,396] 3,558,023' 5,180,419] .. 1,708,504

 

 
14 INTRODUCTION.

The northern coast country and that round Paris comprises the
richest and best cultivated provinces that feed Paris. The agricultural
produce of this region, which is remarkable for the industrial char-
acter of its cultivation, represents, area for area, double the average
value of all the regions taken together. This average is £4,360,000.
The forests here are relegated to the least fertile soils, and those under
state control occupy only 505,000 acres or about 3 per cent. of the
total area of the region. They yield the very best descriptions of
wood and timber, especially in the level country of the Department
of the North. The Lower Seine is distinguished for its fine beech
foresis.

The country round Paris, comprising the five last departments
of the region, isone of the best wooded districts of France. The
sandy composition of the soil has preserved from agriculture
1,000,000 acres of both state and private forests distributed in
large blocks. These comprise one-sixth of the area of the entire
region, being the average proportion for the whole of France. But
here the State still owns more than one-fourth of the aggregate
wooded area, including extremely rich forests, such as that of
Villers Cotterets, and others of great beauty like those of Compitgne
and Fontainebleau.

The Armorican Plateau, abounding in furze, possesses scarcely
any true forests, or, at least, is the poorest wooded region of all. In
the midst of the moors and heather rise up a few groves or small
woods belonging to private owners. The few exceptions of woods
still remaining state. property, lie scattered about here and there,
and only serve as evidence that at one time Brittany did possess
forests. Fortunately the hedgerow trees planted between estates,
the sea which brings cheap wood from the northern countries of
Europe tothe very doors of the population, and the cool ocean
breezes that are constantly blowing attenuate to a great extent the
effects, economical and climatic, of forest denudation. The three
departments of la Manche, of the Mayenne, and of the Cdtes-du-
Nord have really no forests or woods under state control, and
throughout the whole district such a thing as a communal forest js
unknowa.

The plain of the Loire, the region of high forests of oak, forms in
the centre of France a generally fertile district, yet, nevertheless,
intersected by large barren areas, On one of these stretches the
INTRODUCTION. 15

forest of Orleans, our most extensive plain forest, containing 85,000
acres all belonging to the State, worked as copsewood and im-
poverished long ago. On the other side of the Loire, tothe south,
lies the Sologne, a poor district, which was covered with fine forests
three hundred years ago, but has since been denuded and become
private property, the owners practising largely both Agriculture and
Sylviculture. Here we could find 500,000 acres fit for high forests
capable of producing all the oak timber that we now obtain from
abroad. The district of la Brenne, more feverish still than the
Sologne, could also contribute towards the same end on a magni-
ficent scale. Indeed it isin the mild climate of Central France that
we find our finest high forests of oak ; as instances we need mention
only the forests of Belléme, of Bersay, and of Trongais, too little
known, although so deserving to be known. But these forest masses
preserved here and there are as rare as they are valuable. In the entire
region the forests under State control do not comprise more than
412,500 acres, or 23 per cent. of the total area.

The North-East region, with the seven Departments which now
remain after the cession of Alsaceand part of Lorraine, is still the
richest of our forest districts, One-fourth of its area is occupied by
forests, and these good forests—copses with standards in the plains
and high forests of silver fir in the hills. In other words, the wooded
area aggregates 2,750,000 acres, of which 1,125,000 acres belong to
private individuals, the same acreage to Communes, and 500,000
acres to the State. These forests, so beneficial from a climatic
point of view inan entirely continental region, produce on the hills
and mountains very valuable and esteemed timber. In the spaces
intervening between them, agriculture is prosperous and obtains
from the soil produce, the value of which, £4,480,000 per Depart-
ment, exceeds the average in France and is daily increasing. It is
a fact to be noted that the forests improve as you go from the
plains of Champagne to the highest ridge of the Vosges, at the same
time that the proportion of them belonging to the State goes on
increasing. To see this, we may, for example, compare the hill near
Rheims with the valley of Gérardmer. The first, a large circular
round topped hill, situated between Rheims and Epernay, wears a
girdle ofall the finest vines of Champagne; the top is crowned
with a forest of about 68,000 acres (7,130 acres state, 5,180 com-
munal, and 55,150 private), which produces oak of excellent quality,
just what is wanted by the vinegrower. But the greater portion of
16 INTRODUCTION.

this forest is in the hands of private owners, and yields at this day
only small wood. On the contrary the steep’ slopes which surround
the lakes of the Gérardmer Valley, are clothed with 15,000 acres of
rich silver fir forests belonging tothe State ; and these bare: rocks,.
that would have been utterly barren if denuded, produce every year’
from 883,000 to P,060,000' cubic feet of timber.

Burgundy and the neighbouring provinces: of Franche-Comté and’
Nivernais, form together a rugged region, the principal and central
portion of which is the valley of the Seine. In the lowlying parts of
this valley, the chief cultivated crop, as in the level country’ of the
Garonne, is Indiaw Corn. The valley also produces fine oak. In
the east of this region, the range of the Jura bears silver fir forests,
which are the most celebrated’ we possess, if not for their extent, at
least for the size and excellence of their timber. In the west the
table land of the Céte-d’Or and the Morvan range of mountains are
covered with copses throughout more than’ half their area. The
region is thus well wooded, as it ought to be near the source of
large rivers. But the 3,500;000' acres of its forests, representing’ one-
fourth of its entire area, are distributed between the State, Com-
munes and private owners, the respective shares being’ the largest
for the last class of proprietors, and the least for the State, the exact
reverse of what the topography and general interests require. Thus,
although the productive capabilities of the soil are admirable, yet it
is the exception to find these forests in a satisfactory state:

The Alps and Provence, enriched by arborescent cultivation and
impoverished by migratory flocks of goats, comprise the six depart-
ments lying to the east of the Rhone. It contains the highest
mountains to be found in France, grouped together to form a huge
range. Originally, in the course of nature, forest growth clothed.
the mountain sides up to the limit of woody vegetation, viz., from
about 6,600 to 8,200 feet. Owing to absence of lines of export, the
forests possessed no market value. They were destroyed. Scat-
tered trees more than five centuries old, dead stools,¥almost’ inde-
structible in the climate of the Alps, these are” standing witnesses. of
the fact in many adenuded canton. The destruction of the forests

 

(1) Alsace-Lorraine, one-third of whose extent is wooded, contains 37.
State and 500,000 acres of communal forests, being 23 per cent. of A Or
It has besides 250,000 acres of private woods. These forests occupy all the moun-
tain country and are well distributed in the level portions of the double province
They supplied the wants of a population numbering 260 souls per square mile and
exported besides excellent timberto Paris. This portion of France was thus at one
and the same time one of the best wooded and most thickly peopled,
INTRODUCTION. 17

and the injury resulting from unrestricted grazing have given an
ever widening field to landslips and avalanches, to torrents and
inundations. At the present day scarcely one-eleventh of the ori-
ginal area, about 1,255,000 acres, of which a large proportion con-
sists of bare rock, remains under the conservation of the State. It
is nearly all communal woods given up to grazing. These woods
present themselves in broken, seedy looking patches or strips, the
remains of former primeval forest. In spite of this ruined state
they are still a priceless possession. They afford the inhabitants
both fuel and shelter, and considered as materials to use in restot-
ing the forest, they offer the most sure means of preserving and
rehabilitating those districts. For there indeed the forests, the
soil and the inhabitants must prosper or perish together. The popu-
lation of the Higher and Lower Alps has doubled itself within the
last century, and yet is only in the proportion of 50 souls toa
square mile. The restriction of grazing in the Alps,a measure of
the highest necessity, would entail on the inhabitants but very
small sacrifices, for the greater portion of the land there commands
arent of only about 8 pence an acre. The private forests borne
in the district cadastral lists as containing some hundreds of thou-
sands of acres scarcely deserve the name of forest, and are generally
worth extremely little. To such a point does this go that these
so-called forests have occasionally been given up by the owners,
more anxious to avoid the reality of paying a tax than to maintain
and keep up the delusive ideaof an imaginary income.

The mountains of Central France are still more denuded of wood
than the Alps ; but happily the soil there is not liable to erosion,
and the climate is moist. The remains of all the old forests and
some recent reboisements, concentrated for the most part in the
Puy-de-Dédme, do not occupy even the eighth part of the area of the
entire region. The forests under state management aggregate only
187,500 acres. In the last century Auvergne still sent its silver fir
to Paris ; at the preseni day not a vestige of this tree remains in the
province. And yet there are in this region hundreds of thousands of
acres of which no use whatsoever is made, and extensive tablelands
from which the most laborious people in France can ouly eke out a
miserable existence. The cultivation of the sweet chestnut, (a cul-
ture that yields but small profits, and a fruit that affords but little
stistenance,) is one of the universal characteristics of the region ; but
18 ~ INTRODUCTION.

it requires sheltered localities. The plateaux and mountains of this
region present, instead of forests, more than 2,500,000 acres of
moors, pastures and ling bushes, and the value of the annual agricul-
tural produce is on an average only £2,880,000 per department.

The ten departments included between the two seas in one direc-
tion and the Central Plateau and the Pyrenees in the other, forms a
zone which is not without some analogy with the region just de-
scribed. It is equally poor in forests. These, moreover, are confined
to a few isolated points, and abound in the sweet chestnut, which
delights in the silicious soils surrounding the mountains of Central
France. But below the zone of the sweet chestnut, the climate is
milder and suited to the cultivation of the vine. It is this shrub
which above every other thing makes the fortune of the region, for
this regiou produces nearly half the wine grown in France and unites
in itself all the great centres for the manufacture of brandy. The
two Departments of the Lot and of the Dordogne do not possess’a
single forest under the management of the State. The remainder
are still worse off, and the area they possess under wood is extremely
large compared to the value of the contained stock. They consume for
casks for holding their wines and spirits an enormous quantity of
wood. This they import from the level country of the Loire, the valley
of the Sadne, from the United States, from Italy, and, above all, from
Austria. They produce no portion of it themselves. The wood,
excluding fuel, yielded by the 2,000,000 acres of forests now remain-
ing, and belonging to private owners, consists chiefly of vine props
and hoops for casks.

The Pyrenees, the Landes of Gascony, and Corsica present the
ordinary aspects common to wild pastoral and forest regions. In
spite of this, they do not possess any extensive area under the con-
trol of the Forest Department ; all that remains to them of such
forests does not aggregate even 1,250,000 acres or one-half the per-
centage obtaining in the North-East region. As regards the pri-
vate forests, the acreage of which is more than double that of the
state forests they may be almost left out of account. As a rule they
are not meant to furnish wood, but pasturage and resin.

The six Pyrenean Departments were at one time well wooded.
The Valley of the Adour would have sufficed alone to supply the
wants of the State Navy both in respect of oak and pine and
firwood. But since the days of Henry IV. the forests of the
INTRODUCTION. 19

Pyrenees have gone on steadily falling off in extent as well as in
condition, Each century diminishes what it receives by half.
Moreover, during the last century the big trees were felled or des-
troyed in masses. Prescriptive rights of a most disastrous nature
and unlicensed grazing have completed the work of destruc-
tion, and at the present day one third of the area of the state
forests consists of blanks. ‘The forests belonging to Municipalities
are universally relegated to hill tops presenting the greatest
difficulty of access to cattle. Whereas in the Alps the grazing begins
in the highest forests and works on downwards, in the Pyrenees,
on the contrary, it begins by attacking those lowest down and works
its path of ruin upwards. The condition of the communal forests
just referred to is even sadder than that of the state forests. Never-
theless they still cover large areas, which due control exercised over
the graziug would suffice to restore in a short time.

The Landes of Gascony contain at the present day 1,750,000 acres

of pine forests belonging for the most part to private proprietors,
The pines are tapped for resin without the moderation necessary for
their proper development and longevity. But the State has an
opportunity of setting the right example in the wooded dunes it still
possesses, for it is possible to combine the production of resin with
that of timber.
_ In Corsica private forests are represented chiefly by the
makis. But 112,5C0 acres of valuable forest, now free from
grazing and all prescriptive rights, still remain to the State.
A little husbanding and thrift in the exploitations for half a
century, while waiting until the standing stock has acquired some
value, will be sufficient to transform in the most happy mauner
these forests, which, very soon perhaps, will be a last and supreme
resource for the island. Under the effects of grazing, the forests
made over in full proprietary right to Communes, in lieu of the pre-
scriptive rights formerly enjoyed by them but now bought off, are, it
is said, visibly disappearing.

The distribution of the state forests in France is quite different
from that of the communal woods. The former are grouped together
in large masses chiefly in the North-East, in Lorraine, in Burgundy
and in Champagne. The better amongst them have descended to
us from the domains of the ancient Dukes and Counts of those pro-
vinces. The neighbourhood of Paris, Normandy, and the banks of
the Loire still contain some very fine forests belonging to the State.
20 INTRODUCTION.

These forests originally formed a part of the royal domains. In the
south it is only in the county of the Foix (Department of the Ariége)
that we now find a large forest area belonging to the State ; this
was the patrimony of Henry IV. Unfortunately half of it consists
at the present day of pure blanks. The state forests in Corsica, no
less important than those just referred to, labour under unfavorable
economic conditions. The dunes of Gascony have now been fixed by
a young pine forest raised by the State, which still possesses the
greater portion of it. In the last place, as a result of the confiscation
of the property of religious houses effected under the decree of the
National Assembly of 19th December 1789, the State owns a few
forests in every Department, twelve excepted. But the mountains
of Auvergne and the elevated peaks and ridges of the Alps are
alinost without state forests.

The forests belonging to Communes, which compose two-thirds of
the whole area managed by the State Department, are found, so to
say, in one huge compact mass east of the meridian of Paris. This
line, passing through Dunkirk, Beauvais, Paris, Bourges and
Carcassonne, cuts France into two halves, one of which contains all
the communal forests, the other none at all. The communal forest
is an institution totally unknown in the west of France. The con-
stitution of communal property and even of the Commune itself
probably grew out of different circumstances in the east and in
the west.

There is, however, one grand exception'to the rule that there are
no communal forests west of the meridian of Paris, and that is in
the Pyrenees and in the sub-Pyrenean region comprising the Black
Mountain of Tarn and the Landes of Gascony. It is there that the
Visigoths settled in the fifth century of our era. We there find to
this day about 500,000 acres of wood owned by Communes. But north
of the Gironde, Western France has, if we except the state forests,
scarcely 37, 500 acres under the management of the Government
Department. These woods, belonging as well to Public Foundations
as to Communes, obviously owe their preservation to accidental cir-
cumstances. Scattered over so vast an extent of country, they offer
a strong contrast to the communal forests of Wastern France,
which, before the loss of Alsace-Lorraine, aggregated as much as
nearly 5,000,000 acres. The Departments containing the largest
extent of communal forests are those of the Meurthe and Moselle,
and of the Meuse, of the Vosges and of the Haute-Marne, of the
INTRODUCTION. 91

Haute-Saéne and of the Céte-d’ Or, of the Doubs and of the Jura,
Each of these possesses about 625,000 acres of such forests. The
majority of the old Communes hold some acres. More or less exten-
sive, more or less richly stocked, these latter, clearly demarcated and
enclosed by a ditch or a wall, are protected and well conserved.
They yield wood and timber for the inhabitants as well as form a
valuable source of income for the municipal treasury,

This simple sketch of the general distribution of our forests shows
that the poorest districts from a forest point of view are not, as one
might expect, our fertile plains. They are the bare rocks of Brit-
tany and the elevated plateaux of the centre of France. Ata date
far removed from the present, these districts lost nearly all the forest
wealth with which nature had originally endowed them. The pros-
perous regions possess excellent forests, and the majority of them
have even large extents of such forests. !

Besides the extreme variety which our forests offer in point of
geographical and hypsometrical distribution, they present a most
admirable variety in other respects also. To take species, aspect,
régime, and density of standing material, there is not one of these
elements of forest growth that does not vary from point to point.
From the larch to the Aleppo pine, from the holm oak to the aspen,

(1) Algeria, out of a total area of 75,000,000 acres, has scarcely 5 millions under forest,
aud more than half of this is situated in the province of Constantine, which containg
the greater proportion of the high forests of the colony, If we throw out of account
425,000 acres of forests of cork-oak made over in full proprietorship to private indi-
viduals, 187,500 acres given up to the tribes, and 2,500,000 acres devastated by
grazing and kept down thusin the condition of scrub, we see that the area for the
production of trees does not exceed 2,000,000 acres.

The most widely distributed species are the Aleppo pine, the holm and the cork
oaks, ‘Those most important as timber yielding trees are the Chéne Zéen (Quercus
Lusitanica) and the cedar, ‘The Aleppo pineis found chiefly on the interior plateaux
of the ‘Tell, and notably in the province of Algiers,

The holn oak grows, in company with other trees, at elevations not exceeding
3,300 feet. The habitat of the cork oak is well defined on the coast by the crystal-
line schists. It is said that 672,500 acres of forests of this tree still belong to the
State. The Zéan oak is met with throughout the Tell district. It grows up to
4,900 feet above the sea, Forests of it are those of Beni Salah (Bone), of Beni
Foural (Djidjelli), of Akfadour (Bougie), of Ouled-D’hia (‘Tunisian frontier), The
area of the high forestsof this species is estimated at 240,00u acres. The cedar
grows over an area of about 75,000 acres in the mountains which separate the inter-
mediate region from the high plateaux and the Saliara, at an elevation of about 5,000
feet. It forms the forests of the Aurés, the Belezma (province of Constantine) and of
Téniet-el-Had (Great Atlas) west of the proviuce of Algiers. This last forest is, it
appears, a marvel to behold,

But the forests of Algeria are devastated every year by fire. In 12 years, from 1861
to 1875, this pest swept over 625,000 acres. ‘The Arab seeks to destroy, in a country
that is escaping from his grasp, what remains of the forests, alth»agh these are
more necessary therefrom a hydrological point of view than as asource of fuel supply.
22 INTRODUCTION.

we possess a collection of indigenous arboreal species that are as pre-
cious for the qualities of the timber they produce as for their variety.
Thanks to the soil and the climate, no less diverse than the species,
we are able to obtain from the latter produce that is at the same time
abundant, choice and varied. The more we study our forests, the
more we marvel at théir productive capabilities. They possess vast
potential wealth. Ours the duty of assuring its preservation and
development.

The task before us is not of the easiest. In the north-west
are situated the principal high forests of broad-leaved species; in
the North-east the large mass of copses with standards as well as the
great forests of silver fir; then in the southern half of France
forests of all species, the treatment of which is subordinated to the
requirements of grazing. This last class of forests includes a con-
siderable area consisting only of glades or scattered trees, and in
many places they are of less value as regards the production of wood
than on account of the influence they exercise on the climate, the
soil, and the drainage and storage of water derived from the clouds,

If we leave out broad general characteristics, there are a number
of districts which possess forests of an entirely special character. In
the north of France and on the banks of the Adour, peduncled
oaks, raised in the midst of, and above, copse underwood or in open
high forests, are distinguished by their great size and the density of
their wood. In the French Ardennes copses of pure oak cover the
whole area occupied by primary geological formations or about
50,000 acres, and yield some agricultural crops under a special
system of cultivation following immediately each coppice cutting.)
In the Morvan, the oak and beech copses, instead of being exploited
so as to clean-fell each clump of stool shoots, are worked on the
system known as furetage, according to which the exploitations are
made on a rotation of 10 years and remove only the thickest shoots
of a clump.

In the west, in the neighbourhood of Alengon, side by side with
the finest regular high forests of beech and oak, like those of
Belléme, we find the most irregularly wooded masses, like that of
Perseigne, and others extremely impoverished by the Coppice

 

(i) Sartage—An improved systom of Dahya, Kumri or, Jhooming, See Manual
of Sylviculture, 5 a
- INTRODUCTION. 298

Régime, like the forest of Ecouves. In the centre of France, where
the oak greatly predominates over every other species, areas worked

on the system of tire et aire with long rotations, bear splendid forests,
while those portions worked as coppice wood are ina half ruined

state. The forest of Troncais itself presents both these aspects over

large areas. The high forests of the Vosges, originally worked by

Selection, grow on silicious soils in large masses containing an abun-
dant close growth of species possessing dense cover. The beech there
gets ahead of the silver fir by its exuberant growth. On the
limestone crests of the Jura the silver fir forms forests cut up into
long ribbon-like patches and becomes, on the higher, ridges the com-
panion of fine, numerous, well-grown spruce. It yields timber of
the very largest dimensions and of the finest quality. To find.
silver fir comparable with it for firm, close-grained tissne, we have

to go as far as the Aude in the district of Sault.

In traversing the Alps from north to south, one goon leaves silver
fir and spruce to enter into forests of coniferous species possessing
light cover, viz., pines and the larch. Here the great diversity of
species, climate and soil, beginning from the glaciers right down to
the sea, yields the most varied and the most curious types of forest.
From the frozen recesses, planted with Cembran pines at an elevation
of 8,000 feet to the bare scorched and dusty rocks which bear
Aleppo pines on the Mediterranean coast, the distance, from a
climatic point of view, is as great as from Siberia to Syria, the whole
breadth of Asia from north to south. The Pyrenees alone present
a perfect forest panorama. Nearly all our forest species are indi-
genous there and are located in some portion of the range. The
beech is the only species that traverses the whole length of the
chain. But everything is browsed down, devoured even toa greater
extent than in the Alps. Nothing can equal this destructive fury,
unless it be the marvellous recuperative power of these forests when
protected from cattle and the hand of man.

The economic circumstances in which our forests are placed are
as varied as the elements of production. But what is most impor-
tant of all, is the necessity of having sufficient material for continuous
regular working. If this does not exist, the only way to obtain it is by
hoarding up savings for generations. On the other hand, the wants
of the country in respect of timber are increasing with rapid strides :
they are no longer met except with the greatest difficulty, even
24 INTRODUCTION.

after increased imports. We have to go for our deals to all the
northern countries of Europe as well as to Switzerland, Germany
and Austria, and this in daily increasing proportion, the quantity
imported in 1869 being four times that imported in 1836, only a
third of a century ago. The deal timber obtained from exploita-
tions at home is probably equal to only half the quantity imported.
We purchase oak on the Baltic and the German Ocean, in Central
Europe and in North America. This oak is inferior to what we
produce, and France, relatively to her extent, is still the best endowed
oak country in the world. But large trees of this species have now
become scarce with us. At one time we sold such trees to England,
which now sells us teak. Insufficient existing resources and the
necessity of saving up for the future, such is, in a word, the econo-
mical condition of acertain number of our forests.

Some idea may thus be gained as to the difficulties of all kinds to
be encountered in the organisation of our forests. The art of regu-

lating the treatment and working of a forest is as difficult as it is
important. Leaving all to chance, ignorance, and routine can only

produce deplorable results. Happily the task is rendered easy by
the progress recently made in the theory as well as in practice.

The necessity of treating the forests of the broad-leaved species be-
longing to the State as high forest is now-a-days admitted on all sides,
and the conversion of agreat number of its copses with standards has
already been decreed. What remains is to effect them properly.
The reboisement of mountains, decided upon in theory in 1860, has
also since begun to be put into practice. These two parts of our
task, like the rest generally, require long years to accomplish ; but
one step made in advance makes the next easy and one progress leads
to another. Let each generation, let even each forester, perform
faithfully his duty of leaving his forests in a better state than that in
which he received it, and very soon in respect of forests as, it
could happen in so many other respects, France will have nothing to
envy the rest of the world.
BOOK FIRST
REGIME AND EXPLOITABILITY.

DEFINITIONS.

By the term ForREST ORGANISATION we will designate the art of re-
gulating the treatment and working of forests. For each forest this
art determines, in the first place, the RecrMg, the METHOD OF TREAT-
MENT and the EXPLOITABILITY to adopt in order to obtain from it
produce in the closest conformity possible with the interests of the
owner ; and, in the next place, it regulates the distribution and
extent of the ANNUAL CUTTINGS so as to ensurea SUSTAINED YIELD.

The word REGIME we will employ to express in a general man-
ner the system of culture applied to a forest ; it will be synonymous
with METHOD oF CULTURE, OF WORKING or OF ExptorraTioy. It is
in this sense that we may say, in speaking of a forest, that it is
subjected to the REGIME OF HiGH ForEsT or to that oF CopPicE.

The distinction between these two REGIMES is founded on the
manner in which reproduction is obtained. If reproduction is
effected by leaving the forest entirely to itself, or by the natural or
artificial sowing of the ground, the forest is, according to our nomen-
clature, said to be under the REaiwE oF HicoH Forest. On the
other hand, if restocking is the result chiefly of reproduction from the
stools of trees cut, the REGIME OF CoPPICE is said to prevail. In the
former case the new stock is composed of seedlings, while in the

latter it consists principally of shoots from the stool.

Forests under the first of the two Régimes are worked either by
SELECTION or according to the NaTURAL METHOD WITH THINNINGS
Formerly a third method was also in vogue, viz. that known under
the denomination of TrRE ET AIRE, in which the most unbroken
regularity was observed in making the exploitations.
26 DEFINITIONS.

The silver fir and the spruce are in France the only species to
which the Selection Method can at times be applied with advantage.
But it is often impossible to adopt any other method in the treat-
ment of the various coniferous species of our great mountain tracts.

Forests subjected to the Coppice Régime are worked as SIMPLE
CopPice or as Compounp Coppice, COPPICE WITH STANDARDS,
CopricE UNDER HicH Forest, or HicH ForEST OVER CopPice, the
four last denominations denoting one and the same METHOD OF
TREATMENT,

We thus see that forests subjected to one and the same REGIME
may be grown or worked according to various METHODs OF TREAT-
MENT, In our terminology a tree, a forest, timber or wood will be
said to be EXPLOITABLE or to have attained its EXPLOITABILITY,
when it has acquired its naximum usefulness. The age of its exploi-
tability may vary between very wide limits, according to the nature
of the produce it can furnish at different stages of its growth, and the
kind of utility which the owner desires to obtain from it.

The maximum utility which it is possible to obtain from a tree or
forest may be regarded from different points of view. For the State
and for imperishable proprietors in general, the maximum corres-
ponds with the production of those descriptions of wood and timber
which are most indemand and are the most capable of satisfying
the multifarious wants of society. For a private individual, the
maximum utility is attained when the forest is so constituted that it
yields him the largest possible income compared with the capital
value of the estate. In the first of these cases, it is the production
of the most useful articles of consumption that determines the kind
of Exploitability ; in the second case, it is the money returns or the
production of what is most of all comformable with the private
interests of the owner, without regard atall to the quantity or the
quality of the produce obtained.

These considerations, and others as well, which will be developed
in the succeeding chapters, lead to the distinction of EXPLOITABILITY
into two principal generic classes, viz., Gi) the Exprorrasiniry
depending on the public good, according to which the end in view
is to obtain from the forest all it can yield that is useful to the
country at large, without considering at all the amount of the
DEFINITIONS. 97

money returns or of the capital invested in the soil and standing
crop ; and (ii) the EXPLOITABILITY which aims exclusively at secur-
ing the highest possible percentage of profits on the capital invested.

The first kind of ExpLorrapitity we will term Economic. It
may be either QUANTITATIVE or QUALITATIVE or NATIONAL, accord-
ing to circumstances. We will call it QUANTITATIVE, when the
object in view is simply to obtain the maximum quantity of produce
in a given time ; QUALITATIVE or RELATIVE TO THE Most UssFUL
PRODUCTION, when the forest is required to furnish the most useful
‘descriptions of wood and timber in demand, independently of any
other consideration ; NATIONAL when it is proposed to combine,
within the measure of the possible, the maximum of usefulness with
the most considerable production of material. The second generic
kind of EXPLOITABILITY we will designate CoMMERCIAL EXPLoITa-
BILITY or EXPLOITABILITY RELATIVE TO THE LARGEST INCOME.

From what precedes it follows that the choice of the kind of
Exploitability to be adopted in any given case depends entirely on
the object sought by the owner in growing his forest.

By the term RorTaTIon we will denote the number of years fixed for
the successive exploitation and regeneration of all the crops in a forest.
The length of the rotation to be adopted in any case depends on the
Exploitability and Régime chosen. In fixing it, account has also to
be taken of the physical conditions of growth obtaining in the
forest under consideration, viz., soil, climate, and species. And as
in any forest these conditions are very different for its different com-
ponent masses, it becomes expedient, in order to make the most
of the forest as a whole, to consider each of these large masses
separately, and, when that is possible, to treat it as an integral for-
est in itself.

Each such mass, when treated as an independent forest, we will
designate a WorKING CIRCLE. A copsef in which one twenty-fifth

t The reader will observe that both the words “Copse” and “Coppice” occur
in this translation ; but’he will notice that they are not employed indifferently
one for the other. The distinction maintained between them throughout this
work is as follows:—

A copse (always a concrete noun)—a forest or collection of trees composed
chiefly of shoots from the stool,

To copse—to fell any forest or collection of trees in such a manner that the
new crop shall be composed chiefly of shoots from the stools of the stock felled.

Coppice (always an abstract n oun)—the system or Régime in which repro.
duction is obtained chiefly from stool regrowth (Trans.)

 
98 DEFINITIONS.

of the area is worked annually, forms only a single Working Circle, if
it is divided into twenty-five annual coupes; *but it may be split up
into two separate groups of twenty-five annual coupes each, in which
case it would comprise two Working Circles. Further on we shall
explain how to operate in order to form Working Circles.

The quantity of produce that can be extracted year after year
‘from any Working Circle or forest throughout a whole Rotation or
part of a Rotation, represents the ANNUAL YIELD, or simply
YIELD of that Working Circle or forest. It is usually expressed in
cubical contents or by an area ; thus we say that such and such a
Working Circle of high forest returns a yield of 16,000 cubic feet (of
wood and timber understood) or that in such and such a Working
Circle of copse the yield is 15 acres 3 roods, 17 poles, meaning that
the stock on that area is exploited every year.

In high forests worked according to the Natural Method the
Rotation is usually long and even very long. It generally ranges
from 150 to 200 years for the oak, and from 120 to 180 years for
the beech, Scots’ pine and the silver and spruce firs. Now as it is
impossible to order at once in advance, for the whole duration of
such long terms, the succession and nature of the exploitations to be
made in any given forest, it is an invariable rule in organising
high forests to divide the Rotation into a certain number of equal por-
tions, which we will term PeRrops. In connection with this division
of the Rotation, the area itself of the Working Circle is split up into
an equal number of portions, each of which is worked in succession
during the corresponding period of the rotation. These divisions
of the Working Circle we will call Periopic Buocks. This two-fold
division being effected, according to rules to be laid down in a future
chapter, the next thing to do is to prescribe, for the term of one
Period only, the nature, order and extent of the exploitations to be
carried out simultaneously in each of these Periodic Blocks,

It thus follows that the quantity of wood and timber to be felled
each year is obtained from exploitations differing from one another
in character, but which naturally fall into two well-defined
categories :—

 

* Coupe—area in which a cutting is made. (Translator.)
DEFINITIONS. 29

(a.) Regeneration Fellings.
(2.) Improvement Cuttings. 1

As a matter of principle, the yield of the Regeneration Fellings
in high forests is based on cubical contents, that is to say, it is the
figure represented hy the total estimated out-turn of these cuttings
for a whole Period, divided by the number of years in the Period.

The Improvement Cuttings in high forests generally consist of
Weedings and Thinnings, By reason of their very nature and of the
object sought in making them, the yield of weedings is too uncertain
as well as unimportant to be taken into account. Thinnings, on
the other hand, can not be usefully executed unless made ina re-
gular manner, and repeated periodically in the same crop at well
defined intervals of time determined beforehand. This can only be
done by basing the yield on area. Lastly, if, in the same Working
Circle, it becomes necessary to make other exploitations than
Regeneration and Improvement Cuttings properly so called—-e. g., the
removal of scattered trees, or topping off of overhanging crowns—these
may be included under Improvement Cuttings, only their yield
must be expressed in cubical contents, by an area or in number of
trees, according to the nature of the cuttings themselves and the
produce derived from them.

In all these cases, the object in view, so far as the distribution
of the produce is concerned, ought to be to let the yield or the
average annual out-turn vary as little as possible from Period to
Period. We now understand the meaning of the phrase ASSURING
A SUSTAINED YIELD.

In the foregoing paragraphs we have defined Forest Organisation
by noting the essential conditions which all Organisation Projects
should fulfil. We have followed this up by defining and explaining
in a summary manner the value and bearing of these conditions,
while bringing out the intimate connection that exists between

 

(J) Regeneration Fellings—the fellings or series of fellings made in an exploit.
able piece of forest such that the stock that is to take the place of the one theres
by exploited, shall come up as the direct result of the fellings themselves.

Improvement Cuttings—cuttings made solely with the object of improving
the growth of existing stock that has not yet become exploitable.

For full explanations of the meaning of these terms see FerNanpez and
Smytutss’ “TRANSLATION OF BaGneRis’s MaNvAL oF SYLVICULTURE” (‘Translator:)
30 DEFINITIONS.

them. These definitions and summary details form, so to speak,
the Programme of our Course of Forest Organisation. We will now
proceed to study and develop the fundamental principles on which
all Organisation Projects should rest; after which we will indicate
the various steps to follow in drawing up such Projects, and offer
practical suggestions for carrying out their prescriptions, so far as
they can be usefully given in a book.
CHAPTER I.

CHoIcE OF REGIME,

 

In choosing the Régime for a forest, we determine the method of
working it that suits best the special conditions of growth obtaining
therein and the interests of its owner. The principal points for con-
sideration in making this choice range themselves into two groups,
the one having reference to cultural, the other to economic require-
ments. The former takes cognisance of the influence of the Régime
on the forest, 4, ¢., enquires in what way and to what extent it affects
the species, the soil and the meteorology ; the latter class relates to
the produce itself, considered from the point of view of its utility,
the income derived therefrom and the ratio of that income to the
capital producing it.

SECTION I.

CULTURAL REQUIREMENTS.

The Régime of High Forest, essentially favorable to long-lived
species, is alone applicable to the conifers, which do not grow from
the stool. Itis also the only Régime that suits well the beech.
Nevertheless the oak, and even the beech, worked as coppice woods,
maintain themselves for an indefinite period of time under favora-
ble conditions of soil and climate. Under any circumstances, the
suitability of the one or the other Régime is clearly indicated by
facts that may be observed in the forest itself. The influence exer-
cised on the reproduction of the various species by the Régime that
may be in force is at once seen in the actual results obtained. The
study of such facts is of great assistance in choosing the Régime
to apply in any case, and they may almost always be taken as a cer-
tain guide, so far as the future well-being of the species is concerned.
32 REGIME.

The action of forests on the soil below is referable to two princi-
pal causes, cover and improved composition, Cover, the result itself
on the one hand of the foliage overhead and on the other of the
dead and fallen leaves, maintains the soil moist and loose. Im-
proved composition, due to the organic detritus mixed with the
original soil, modifies the condition of the latter in the most favoura-
ble manner for vegetation, while enriching it with the most useful
elements of plant food. In high forests, the cover is always com-
plete, and the improvement of the soil is at its maximum, In
copses, on the contrary, the cover disappears periodically at short
intervals and is a long time before it is completely reformed, some-
times for the entire half of the Rotation. The result is that improve-
ment of the soil, slight in any case, ceases partially and even wholly

after each coppice exploitation.

Again, the aerial organs of nutrition of plants-—branches, buds
and leaves—are, for aconsiderable number of years, only slightly
developed in a young copse, which cannot therefore ;form all the
wood that the soil is capable of producing. It is then easy to
understand why the sum of production is less in copses than
in high forests, at least wher the latter are managed according to the
rules of sylviculture. This is a well established fact, and if there are
exceptions to it, they are more apparent than real. Objectors may,
for instance, question whether in a rich and moist soil High Forest
would yield more than Coppice, which Régime has been known in
such soils to produce up to 120 and 140 cubic feet per acre per
annum. We may, however, reply that that quantity consists chiefly of
the soft woods, whereas in High Forest the hard woods would form by
far the largest proportion of the yield. In all such comparisons made
to demonstrate the superiority of the Coppice Régime over that of
High Forest, or at least its equality, similar stumbling blocks occur a

 

(1) In the Forest block of Saint Gobain-Coucy, the Coucy-le-Chateau portion is
in the condition of High Forest ; that of Saint Gobain in the state of Coppice.
In the former tract the crops, consisting of beech chiefly and oak, contain at the
age of 120 years, before being thinned, a standing stock of from $200 to 9300
cubic feet per acre, Adding to this the wood previously cut out, which
amounts to 2050 cubic feet at the least, we see that the average annual produc-
tion per acre is uearly 95 cubic feet. In the Saint Gobain tract, the soil being
as good if not better, the copse, containing scarcely any reserves at all and
consisting of horubeam, ash, birches and the softwoods in abundanee, yields on
an average per acre, at the age of 35 years, 3060 stacked cubic feet and 400
fagots representing 270 stacked cubic feet more. The mean annual production
is therefore only about 95 stacked cubic feet per acre, and this too composed
to a large extent of inferior species,
REGIME 33

We have of course for individual forests only incomplete observa-
tions ; neverthelez:, these are, as far as they go, in perfect
accord with our general conclusion. But this relation of particulars
to universals holds good in all branches of human knowledge, and
it is precisely because of the universal experience of Foresters in
all exploitations of Coppice and of High Forest, and as a consequence
of the comparison of the respective outturns yielded by scores and
hundreds of forests, that we are permitted to affirm the superiority
of the High Forest over the Coppice Régime in respect of yield of
material.

In moist and fertile soil the difference between the relative merits
of the two Régimes may be slight, but in dry and poor soil it is
practically unlimited, since the Coppice Régime, in certain kinds of
soils, suffices to cause the ruin cf the forest, by leaving the bare sand
to the mercy of ling bushes. Hence for each forest, it is the effects
left by the Régime heretofore in force that alone offer a sure guide
in estimating the influence of Régime on the soil and outturn of
produce: And here the main point to attend to is the condition of
the soil ; as regards the produce, it is more frequently its nature
and quality than its quantity which usually requires to be con-
sidered.

The influence of Régime on the meteorological conditions of a
forest is occasionally well marked. The effects of heat and cold, of
light, drought and winds, and of all the other determinant factors
of climate are different, and are not felt in the same degree in high
forests as in copses. Here again it is the various effects of the
Régime followed, such as frost-bite, faults and defects in the
timber, injury caused by winds, &c., which must be observed and
studied ; for it might be expedient to know what such effects
actually are in the forest such as the Régime hitherto in force has
left it, in order to be able to tel! what modifications would result on
the introduction of another Régime.

From a cultural point of view, the general effect of the Coppice
Régime is mostly the same every where, whether the Coppice is
Simple or Compound. This Régime ean never divest itself of its
essential defects, viz. uncovering the soil and favouring the inferior
at the expense of the more valuable species. These defects might

5
34 REGIME

be minimised by preserving a plentiful stock of standards, but in
revenge, such standards run the risk of serious injury each time
they are isolated by the periodical exploitation of the underwood.

To recapitulate, reasons derived from a consideration of cultural
requirements are at times of themselves strong enough to neces-
sitate the adoption of the High Forest Régime. This is first of
all the case in conifer forests, and next in those of broad-leaved
species in which the soil is unfertile and extremes of climate pre-
vail. Butmore often such reasons recommend the adoption of the
one or the other Régime indifferently, and can only be considered
in connection with the economic requirements to be satisfied ; and
in that case they should govern chiefly the method of treatment,
The choice of Régime is seldom left to us, but we are constantly
called upon to apply it, once it is made. Itis, therefore, very im-
portant to know the ‘advantages and disadvantages attaching to
each Régime in any given forest, so as to be able to turn the first
to account aud minimse the second when we step in to carry out
the prescriptions of the Organisation Project. A study of the Régimes
and their results is thus extremely useful, whether we have to draw
up an Organisation Project or only to carry it out as executive mem-
bers of the Forest Hierarchy.

SECTION II.

Economic REQUIREMENTS.

The subject of this section, like the one we have just quitted,
may possess more importance for one class of forests than for
another, but its absolute importance is always great and of the
first order. It is generally a consideration of these requirements that
finally determines, in any given case, the choice of the Régime and
the age for exploitation.

§ 1. Utility of the produce.

The utility of the produce obtained in each case varies with the
nature, condition, and properties of the wood composing it. So far
as their nature is concerned, ligneous products are not simply
either firewood or timber. In each of these two great classes, espe-
e

REGIME 35

cially the latter, there must necessarily be included sub-classes
founded on difference of size. Thus we have large timber fit for
all great works, split wood, boards and scantlings, large and small
rafters, wood for the wheelwright, and last of all simple poles.
Now in high forests of broad-leaved species the outturn of timber
forms two-thirds and never less than a half of the total yield, the
proportion of large timber alone being about one-third of that
total. Thus with High Forest worked on long Rotations it is possible
to obtain yearly and per acre, under only average conditions of
fertility, twenty-eight cubic feet of timber, all oak and beech, of
large dimensions,1_ The high forests of Blois and of Belléime yield
this figure under such conditions. Wesee here the chief and pecu-
liar merit of the High Forest Régime.

As Simple Coppice yields, at the very best, only small timber, no
better than firewood in respect of age and size, we may be allowed
to ignore:it completely in the present discussion. Coppice with
Standards is capable of furnishing timber of all sizes, small, medium
and large. The total quantity may be very different according to
the various forests ; but it is always smaller than that yielded by
High Forest, in which Régime the production of such timber is
sought from every square inch of the soil. If we consider only large
timber, the comparison is still more unfavorable for the Coppice
Régime, for a considerable number of the standards, with crowns
isolated above the underwood, are subject to premature decay. A
copse with standards, situated on soil of average quality, would cer-
tainly be considered as yielding extremely good results, if it produced
5 cubic feet of large timber per acre per annum.

Actually our copses are, at the present day, very poor in large
trees, and neither their great extent nor the active growth of isolat-
ed trees is sufficient to compensate for the extreme paucity of the
standards. Moreover, this evil is beyond all present remedy where
the material, out of which a plentiful reserve could be formed, is
wanting.

With, respect to its condition, wood, being an organised substance,
is either sound and well-shaped or decayed and mis-shapen. Of
little or no moment in the case of firewood, the condition of the

 

(1) By timber of large dimensions we mean only trees measuring at least 27”
in diameter,
36 REGIME

ligneous tissue acquires considerable importance when we come to
deal with timber. Now, quantity for quantity, the proportion of
sound and well-shaped timber is much larger in high forests than in
copses with standards. The standards, rising’above the underwood,
often have their boles irregularly twisted or affected with hollows in
the interior, and with holes and knots in which decomposition has
made more or less progress. ‘The crowns, struck continually by the
wind and weakened by the periodical development of epicorms?
below, lose some of their branches, which, in breaking off, allow
water to permeate into the trunk, thereby producing decom-
position. The butt-end of the trees will also be found tobe full of
defects arising from various causes. The result is that in our copses
with standards it is often necessary to examine a number of trees
before we can discover a single oak with a girth of 7} feet at the
base, that is sound and of regular form and which possesses a bole
at least 20 feet long.

Thus owing to the rarity of large trees and their defective and
unsound condition, it is exceptional in our forests to meet with oaks
fit for employment in large works.

The purposes for which wood of all kinds, and oak especially, is
used by the builder and the artificer are as various as _ the different
qualities of the timber itself. Oaks that grow isolated, with an
ample crown bathed on every side in light, form thick annual rings
of wood ; their timber is thus close-grained, tough and durable, and
peculiarly suitable for house-beams and for ship-building. Oaks
that grow in canopied forest, possess thereby a long bole and thin
annual rings; the wood is soft, is easy to work, contracts little and
does not warp ; it is thus specially adapted for planking and staves
of casks, It follows then that under the same conditions of soil and
climate, coppice standards and high forest trees will yield timber of
essentially different qualities. That of the former, extremely valua-
ble as it is for the purposes of the builder, must be looked upon
more as pieces de choix, which being employed for special purposes,
are not therefore required in any large quantity, while that of the
latter, being much sought after by the artificer, is to be preferred

 

(1) From ep?, upon, and £ormos, a.stem.

Epicormic branches develop themselves on the boles of trees, generally
those which have been isolated after having grown for some time in close leaf-
canopy. To avoid inconvenient repetition of the word “ branch” we will employ
the single term “epivorm.” (Translator.)
REGIME oF

for the ordinary industries, which consume enormous quantities of
timber. A consideration of the defects and good qualities of the
timber produced is, as a rule, insufficient to determine in any given
case the choice of the Régime to adopt, and only influences the man-
ner of its application ; for the end to be kept in view is to obtain by
means of each Régime wood possessing the good qualities peculiar to
it, while minimising the bad qualities by adopting a suitable method
of treatment.

§ 2. Income.

The next subject for examination, after the utility of the wood
produced, is its money value ; it is on this chiefly that the income
derived from a forest depends. We have seen that the yield of high
forests is larger than that of copses, and, more than this, that the
produce of the former, at least a great proportion of it, possesses a
distinctive character and commands a higher money value. Thus, for
instance, the firewood derived from a copse is worth about 25 shillings
per 100 cubic feet, while the timber of a high forest can fetch
75, 100, and up to 125 shillings and even more per 100 cubic feet.
Hence it follows that the income yielded by a high forest is, area for
area, larger than that obtained froma copse.!’ But what is required
in proposing the Régime to apply to any given forest, is to compare
the income derived from it under the Régime hitherto in force with
the income that may be expected underanother Régime. For this
comparison the facts available are of an extremely varied nature.

The income yielded by copses with standards, which of course
produce timber suited for the purposes of tha builder and the artificer
is, as a rule, intermediate between that of simple copses and that of
high forests. Itis very different according to the number and size
of the standards. But it is seldom that these forests return as much
as £32 per acre for the whole term of a Rotation of 30 years.

Whatever other circumstances may be, for the purpose of a fair
comparison we must always take gross income, irrespective of ex-

 

(1) A high forest must be in a bad state to yield less than 32 shillings per
acre per annum, whereas there are few copses that return as much as 16 shillings
under the same circumstances. (Author.)

The copses of the Central Provinces, consisting for the most part of open
scrub in which the inferior and at present unmarketable species predominate,
do not yield even 1 shilling per acre per annum under the most favorable
circumstances (Translator)
38 REGIME

penditure. For after all that is the revenue properly so called, in
other words, the money returns derived from the forest considered as
an instrument of production.

4

§ 3. Profits.

Profits, which are a measure of the net income or of the ratio of
income to the capital producing it, are quite distinct from gross
income. This last may be considerable, yet the percentage of profits
may be very small, a circumstance which always occurs when the
capitalised value of the standing material in a forest is very high.
We thus see why in high forests, where the stock is so large, the
percentage of profits is, as a rule, lower than in copses. Indeed
copses are often so managed as to yield a fixed percentage, 4 per
cent, for instance, whereas in high forests where the trees are not
exploited until they are quite mature, the profits may be as low as 2
per cent, and even less.

This is easily explained by means of an illustration. Suppose a
forest of 250 a cres worked on a rotation of 150 years, and composed of
a well graduated series of crops from 1 to 150 years old. It will yield
annually the mature timber standing on 12 acres, the value of which
may exceed £320. This, with the outturn of the thinnings made
over the rest of the forest, will furnish an income, say, of about
£400 per annum. But the various crops aged from 1 to 149 years
represent together a considerable sum of money, which, added to the
value of the land itself, may give a capital value of, say, £20,000,
so that the profits will only be 2 per cent. The climate, soil and
species being still identical, the same area, if constituted as a copse
with standards worked on a rotation of 25 years, may yield, from
10 acres exploited annually, an income of £160, while the capita-
lised value of the whole standing crop and the land may be only
£4000. The resulting profits would thus be 4 per cent.

This want of correspondence between income and _ profits is due to
the fact that the income and the capital value of the forest do not
increase in the same ratio. For them to do so would -be contrary to
the very nature of the things in question. In order that profits
may be maintained at a constant figure of 3 or 4 per cent during all
the time required to produce large timber, it would be necessary
for the selling rates of timber to increase with increase of size ina
REGIME 39

ratio exceeding all the bounds of possibility. It could only be realized
then, when the last large trees were on the point of disappearing
naturally. Thus it is not a continuous rise of prices in direct pro-
portion to girth that we ought to look to for the means of assuring
the production of large timber and the preservation of high forests.

On the contrary, the dearer large timber is, the higher is the
value of the growing stock, and this is the very thing that invites
speculation on the part of timber merchants, whose business, which
consists in purchasing, exploiting and reselling, enables them to
secure the ordinary profits of trade, viz.,12 to 15 per cent. Thus
we see that rise of prices only provokes speculation and the conse-
quent destruction of high forests, and it must be remembered that
the production of large timber is, as a rule, naturally a slow process.

A consideration of profits alone may, and often does, suffice to
determine the Régime to apply in any particular case. It does not
always lead to the adoption of Simple Coppice, but rather to that of
Coppice with Standards, the object being the production of builders’
and artificers’ timber of average dimensions. In every case without
exception, the right way to proceed in considering the subject of
profits is to compare income with expenditure. Too often people
adhere to the established custom of the country or district in treat-
ing their forests. Forgetting that prices have changed with the
times and that the rates for builders’ and artificers’ timber have
risen considerably, they unfortunately give no thought to the produc-
tion of such timber when choosing the Régime for their forests, or
rather in the way they apply that Régime.

To summarise what proceeds, economic considerations are of an
entirely generai character ; they are based directly on the interests
of the proprietor, which interests have no concern with those of the
forest itself. Thus every proprietor who aims at obtaining the most
useful produce, will, as a rule, work his forest according to the High
Forest Régime. All those whose essential object is the largest
money returns possible, have interests of another order which will
equally lead tham to maintain the High Forest Régime or imitate it
as closely as circumstances will allow. On the other hand, those
owners of forests, who desire principally to derive the highest profits
from their property, will adopt Simple Coppice whenever it is
practicable.
. 40 REGIME

We believe that the following practical rule contains the essence
of the general conclusions arrived at on the subject of choice of
Régime: “In any given forest, there is reason to change the
Régime, if cultural considerations requfe it, or if the system
heretofore pursued does not permit of the owner’s obtaining results
conformable with his interests.” If the forest grows day by day
thinner and blanks tend to grow larger as a result of the Régime in
force, the Régime must be changed. If the system pursued can
only yield firewood, whereas it is to the advantage of the proprietor
to the obtain builders’ and artificers’ timber, there is equally no
room for hesitation.

The Régime once settled, the Method of Treatment to apply is
determined in accordance with the same considerations. ’ On this
head, in the Coppice Régime, there is scarcely any choice except
between Simple Coppice and Coppice with Standards. Now an
accurate knowledge of cultural facts and, more than all, the ever
increasing value of builders’ and artificers’ timber, enforce the univer-
sal adoption of the latter method of treatment; besides this, the
inevitabe transformation of a simple copse is an easy matter. In the
High Forest Régime the choice rests chiefly between the Selection
System and the Natural Method. The former, as we shall see later
on, suits certain species and is required in certain situations. The
facts that render its adoption necessary, are to be observed on the
ground, and must be carefully noted by the Aménagiste. Besides
this, the substitution of the Natural for the Selection Method is above
all things only a question of time.
CHAPTER II.

CHOICE OF EXPLOITABILITY.

SECTION I.

PrincieaL KINDS oF EXPLUITABILITY.

From one and the same forest very different results are obtained
according to the age at which the timber is felled. This age, which
may vary between very wide limits, sometimes even between 20 and
200 years, determines the interval of time, at the end of which the
exploitations, after successively passing through the rest of the
forest, come back to the point whence they started. There is
nothing analogous to this either in agriculture or the manufactures.
Thus a question of an entirely special character presents itself to us
here : to resolve it, we must go back to the fundamental principles

of forest economy.

All owners of forest property find it to their advantage to exploit
their timber when it has attained its maximum utility. Whether
we speak of a single tree or a canopied collection of trees, the timber
is now said to be EXPLOITABLE, and the peculiar conditions it offers
constitute what we will call its EXPLOITABLLITY, This state of the
timber, which always corresponds to its maximum usefulness, de-
pends above all on the nature of the services required of it.

The utility properly so called, 7. e., the technical utility, of wood
varies with the species yielding it and with its properties, and
increases in direct proportion to ita size. A given quantity of
timber is, as a rule, all the more useful for being composed of trees
of large girth. The principal reason for this is that it can thereby
serve a greater variety of purposes, and can in consequence be

6
42 PRINCIPAL KINDS OF EXPLOITABILITY.-

employed in the manufactures, which need it most of all, and which
would therefore pay more for it than other timber using trades. we
thus see how, without being exactly proportional to their respective
degrees of utility, the prices of the various classes of woods, acoord-
ing to species, size and quality, indicate which of them are most in
demand, are most useful to the persons using them. On the other
hand, it is evident that the sum total of utility of the produce of a
forest is the combined result of the quantity yielded and the utility
of each separate category according to its nature. Hence if it is
desired to derive from a forest the highest sum total of utility of
which it is capable, we must endeavour to obtain from it. the most
valuable woods in the greatest quantity possible.

For those proprietors who do not themselves use the wood, but sell
it, the price of this wood is a measure of its utility for them. The
money value of the wood is of course the income obtained from the
forest, and is the product of the quantity and the selling rate of each
description of wood ; thus income is proportional to the quantity of
the various, kinds of produce and the price of unit of quantity,
Now since the most useful woods are also the dearest, it follows that
a forest that yields the highest sum total of utility, yields also the
largest income.

For those individuals who are in a position to speculate with the
funds at their disposal, and in so speculating, to sell or to purchase
forests, for them forests constitute simply an investment, like any
other business, for their money. For them a forest is the more pro-
fitable, the larger the income it yields relatively to its capitalised
value. This relative income is directly proportional to percentage
of profits ; and hence they regard forests chiefly from the stand-point
of profits.

‘Thus the owner of a forest may seek to obtain either the most
useful produce, or the largest income, or lastly the highest profits on
capital invested. But, as we have just seen, the first two objects are
compatible with one another ; they are both realized at the same age
and under the same cireumstances. Hence we have two generic
classes of Exploitability. The one corresponds to the maximum
usefulness of the timber produced, and has for its essential object the
aupply. of the country. at large; the other corresponds to the highest
PRINCIPAL KINDS OF EXPLOITABILITY. 43

rate of profits and its essential character is only to benefit the
producer. The first regards solely the public good, the second the
interest of the individual owner or owners. It is for this reason that
we will style the first Economic ExPLorrapiiry, the second
COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

As the standing crop grows on, the quantity and usefulness of the
wood produced increase, but each in a different ratio. It behoves us
then to study each separately. Sometimes we may desire to obtain
only either the maximum quantity of material or the maximum
degree of usefulness, as would happen if one of the two varied very
little or not at all. Hence, following the practice of writers on
forestry, we have Istly. QUANTITATIVE ExPLOITABILITY, which aims
solely at producing the largest quantity within a given time ; 2ndly.
QUALITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY or the Exploitability relative to the
degree of usefulness ofa given quantity of produce ; and 3rdly. the
Exploitability combining the characteristics of the two preceeding,
which we will term NaTioNaL EXPLorraBILity, and which has for
its object the production of the largest quantity of the most useful
produce. These are only three specific kinds of Economic Exploita-
bility. Under the other head there is only the single specific kind
which we have designated Commercial Exploitability, and which has
reference to the profits accruing on capital invested. Itis by the
aid of this Exploitability that the selling price of forests is estimated.

As an exceptional case forests are required to perform for man-
kind other offices than that of producing wood, as, for instance, the
preservation of the soil, protection against avalanches, shelter from
high or dry winds, &c. Under these circumstances, the maximum
benefit derivable from a forest is realized only when the trees have
attained their maximum growth, in other words, the limit itself of
their life, or, to say the least, the beginning of decay. The generie
name we will give to the kind of Exploitability which procures us
these indirect services will be PROTECTIVE EXPLOITABILITY.

It is easy to conceive that there can be other kinds of Exploita-
bility depending on the object with which a forest may be managed,
such as the production of resin, pastures, &c. But these are ques-
tions that present themselves only under exceptional circumstances
and their solution is as a rule obvious or at least easy.
Ad QUANTITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY -
§ 1. Quantitative Exploitability.

In a ccanopicd collection of trees the quantity of wood produced
each year does not vary in the same manner as it does in the indivi-
dual trees themselves, In the former case, the annual increment
represents one year’s production of the whole wooded surface. Since
the number of the trees diminishes as the crop grows older, the
average annual rate of growth at any given age is at once obtained
by dividing by the number of years in question the sum of the con-
tents of the standing timber and of the trees already removed. In
this manner it has been ascertained that the mean rate of growth,
or the ratio of the cubical contents to the age of the forest at any
time varies with the age itself of the forest according to a certain
fixed law. This mean annual growth reaches its maximum at an
advanced age, which is nevertheless considerably below that of
maturity, The moment that age is reached, the forest has attained:
its Quantitative Exploitability. This age varies according to soil

and climate, differs considerably for the various species of trees, and
is not the same in a high forest as in a copse, except that under
either Régime it is approximately midway between the birth and
decay of the forest. Ifthe age at which the maximum rate of
growth is reached is very different for the different species, the
pine and the silver fir for instance, the degree in wh'ch the rate of
growth itself varies, is also very different ; from being well marked
from year to year it may become scarcely appreciable. This fact can
often be noticed by attentively observing thestate of the forest and of
the soil, but to establish it thoroughly requires actual experiments.

In the case of an individual tree, the annual rate of growth goes
on increasing during a considerable portion of its life; it then
remains constant up to an extremely advanced age, and if it decreases
at all, it does so to an inappreciable degree just befure decay sets in.
The above fact is explained by the manner in which the organs of
growth are developed, for a long time increasing progressively, then
remaining more or less constant. The result is that the mean
annual rate of growth of the tree generally goes on increasing until
death supervenes, so that its maximum is reached only with the end
of life. Nevertheless no conclusions can be drawn from these facts
as to the sum of production of the soil, for the area occupied by the
tree goes on increasing like its rate of growth, and this not according
QUALITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY. 45

to any fixed law. Hence no rule can be laid down with regard to
the age at which single trees ought to be cut so as to obtain the
maximum produce from the soil in the least possible time. It is for
this reason that, in foresters’ parlance, we say that there is no Quanti-
tative Exploitability for single trees. .

§ 2. Qualitative Exploitability.

It is well known that the degree of usefulness of timber increases
as a rule with its size. It hence follows that the usefulness of a
tree, for every cubic foot of wood it contains, is highest when the
tree has acquired the largest dimensions it is capable of attaining
without beginning to decay, that is to say, only when it is thoroughly
mature, Thus the age at which the conditions of Qualitative Ex-
ploitability are realized is the same as that of complete maturity.

The trees forming any crop reach this stage one by one, never
simultaneously. Individual trees of the large forest species possess
remarkably different degrees of longevity. While one silver fir is
mature at 150 years, its immediate neighbour may not become so
until it is 250 years old. Of two oaks, growing side by side, one
decays perhaps at the age of 180 years, while the other is quite
sound at 300 years. Hence we could not exploit all the trees of a
crop according to their individual maturity, unless we were prepared
to fell them one by one at wide intervals of time. But to do so
would be to expose oneself to some capital disadvantages. It is
opposed tothe requirements of a great number of species, and the
question of the condition or the quantity of the produce becomes
thereby subordinated to that of constantly maintaining the
leaf-canopy.

It is thus apparent that Qualitative Exploitability is not one that
we could realize throughout the whole extent of a crop of trees of
the same age.

§ 3. National Exploitability.

To obtain the most useful yield of material from a perfectly
uniform crop, it would be sufficient to fell it only at complete maturity.

Before the trees begin to decay or the death of some among them
produces blanks, it is clear that the crop, as it stands, contains in
its large timber the highest sum of utility it can ever possess,
46 NATIONAL EXPLOITABILITY.

But on the other hand the bulk of the produce is necessarily
always composed of a large proportion of firewood, even if the only
source thereof is the toppings. Besides this, the age at which the
mean rate of growth is highest, has already passed away, often
years upon years ago. The question therefore presents itself, “Does
it thence follow that we lose in quantity more than what we gain
by the enhanced usefulness of the large timber after a certain
definite age has been reached 2”

To answer this question it will be enough to enquire in what
manner the quantity and the degree of usefulness of the produce
vary from the time that the individuals composing the crop in ques-
tion have become high forest trees, that is to say, have attained their
full length of bole. As long as the leaf-canopy is complete and the
trees are all vigorous and healthy, the annual sum of production
scarcely diminishes ; indeed we can expect no other result, and the
fact is easy of proof. As long as the trees gain in diameter while
still remaining sound, their usefulness is continually increasing.
This fact becomes obvious and striking if we compare the various
purposes for which large and moderate sized timber respectively are
employed. Indeed a comparison of receipts for equal periods of
time will show that the money returns go on steadily increasing
until the stage of maturity is reached, and thus proves that the
sum of utility has also greatly increased in the meantime.' It hence
follows that the conditions of National Exploitability are not realiz-
ed except at the age of maturity. By felling forest crops when
they have reached that age, we obtain, as far as that is possible,
the most useful and considerable yield of material as well as the
largest money returns.

Those forests of which the component species, the soil, or the
Régime in force do not permit of the production of any but firewood,
yield the highest sum of utility at the age which corresponds to that
of Quantitative Exploitability. But such cases are very rare or are
capable of being modified with advantage. On the other hand,
those forests which furnish us with the most valuable timber both.
as regards quality and size, also contain numbers of trees that have
still, at the maturity of the collective crop, a great many years to

 

(1) A-high forest, mature say at 200 years and possessing at that age a
convertible value of £ 670 per acre, is not worth £ 500 per acre at 150 years,.
and atill less £ 335 at 100 years. (Author.)
COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY. 47

grow on before they attain their highest degree of usefulness. It
often happens that these trees can be spared when the crop con-
taining them is exploited. In this manner we can follow up and
add to the results of National Exploitability, by keeping such trees
standing in an isolated state and not felling them except in accoru-
ance with the requirements of Qualitative Exploitability, that is to
say, only as each of these choice specimens of timber becomes indi-
vidually mature.

Thus the three specific kinds of Exploitability treated of hitherto
all agree in having the public good for a common object.

§ 4. Commercial Exploitability.

Commercial Exploitability is based on the ratio of income to the
expenditure producing it. This is by no means asimple ratio, In any
given portion of a forest, the successive exploitations made therein are
naturally not annual, but periodical ; the consequence is that from
the very first appearance of the standing crop, the values, or sums of
money sunk in it, go on increasing, like any other kind of capital,
at compound interest. If then periodic exploitation, at intervals
of n years, yields receipts — R, the rate of interest 2, which the origi-
nal value C of the land with its stools or seedlings must be supposed
to be put out at. is found from the equation

C { (lt) 4 fer

If we wish to find the rate of interest on capital invested, yielded
by a forest worked on a fixed rotation, we must employ this equa-
tion todetermine it. Thus the comparison of income with capital
expenditure is always a question of figures.

Actually a wood that is quite young has no convertible value.
Very soon it acquires such a value, at least as firewood, and this
value, towards the age of 20 or 30 years, reaches all of a sudden a
figure that is high compared to what it was only a few years pre-
viously. From this point onwards the value in question goes on
increasing, but this in strict accordance, Istly., with the natural laws
of tree growth, which always remain pretty uniform, and 2ndly., with
selling rates, which as a rule rise slowly with increasing age. The
consequence is that the value of the crop on the land, in other
48 COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

words, the periodic receipts, cease to keep pace with the rapid
accumulation of compound interest. Commercial Exploitability is
thus always reached at an early age; and the higher the rate of
interest required from the forest property is, the earlier will be
this age.

In the case of aolitary trees, as for instance coppice standards, the
zelation between capital and income is still more complex. For
here of course the area required by any such tree is an unknown
and variable quantity ; and not only does the spread of the crown
change as it develops, but the isolated condition itself of the tree is
the main effective cause of the resulting rapid increase in girth and
value. Thus, not having a sufficient number of terms to find this
unknown, we are perforce limited to comparing the receipts that
can be obtained at various ages. If the money value v of the stand-
ing crop rises to V in x years, the rate r at which ‘this increase has
taken place is found from the equation.

¢(4r)e V.

Used with judgment and due attention to error, this formula
will give correct results, The rate ris not of course the rate of
interest on capital, but that at which the receipts actually realisable
have increased during » years, From the moment the young shoot
is isolated by the exploitation of the surrounding copse, that rate
becomes of necessity higher than the ordinary rate of interest yielded
by forest property, for otherwise there would be no advantage in
reserving the shoot. Itis only when the former rate falls to the
same figure as the other, that the object sought in maintaining the
standard is fully attained and the standard becomes exploitable.

It is an ascertained fact that isolated trees increase more rapidly
in size than trees growing in leaf-canopy. The standards of a copse
are moreover selected from among the most promising individuals of
the copse and belong to the valuable species, the price of the
timber of which may rise considerably in proportion to diameter. As
a consequence of this twofold increase of size and price, the resulting
receipts are occasionally for a very long period in excess of the
increase calculated at compound interest. It thus happens, and
oftener than we imagine, that the Commercial Exploitability of
isolated trees is not attained until the age of 100 years, if the custom-
EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE PRIVATE OWNER. 49

ary rate of interest demanded from forest property is 3 per cent.
perannum. To obtain this rate of interest we need only be sure
that the value of the tree doubles itself every twenty years.?

SECTION II.

EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE PRIVATE OWNER,

Each class of proprietor has an Exploitability specially suited to
its own requirements. What is applicable to one class of proprietor
may be generically different from what is suited to another ; or even
if the respective Exploitabilities are generically the same, they may
still differ with respect to the extent and the importance of the
various results to be obtained in each individual case.

In the France of to-day there remain only three classes of pro-
prietors, differing essentially in their nature; they are the STATE,
the MUNICIPALITIES, and the PRivATE INDIVIDUAL.

The PRIVATE INDIVIDUAL possesses at most a transitory existence.
He isa stranger to the general good and isabove all a speculator.
A being of today, who survives but the tenth part of the life of the
large forest trees, he cannot hope to gain any advantage himself from
those he may preserve. Under the most favorable circumtances,
such trees, if the object with which they are preserved is to be attain-
ed, must be left standing for at least twenty five years. How often
does it not happen that present need or the legal division of inheri-
tances, so fatal to the maintenance of forest property as such, or
lastly the desire of immediate enjoyment, ofter an insurmountable
obstacle to the trees being spared for even so short a period? And
if the further development of trees that have already reached a cer-
tain size is exposed to so many risks from private ownership, what
shall we say of the growth of an oak or a silver fir from its first ap-
pearance as a seedling to the time when it is ripe for the axe? The
obvious conclusion is that the PRIVATE INDIVIDUAL and the FAMILY,
such as it is constituted by the law of. France, is altogether unsuited
for producing large timber.*

 

(1) A sum of money put out at compound interest at the rate of 3 per cent per
annuum doubles itself every 234 years. (Author.)

(2) These remarks apply with still greater force to India, where the law of
equal division of inheritances has been in existence from time immemorial, and
the blind improvidence natural to a low state of civilisation renders the private
individual still more unfitted as a producer of large timber. (Trans.)
50 EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE PRIVATE OWNER.

An infinitesimal, almost imperceptible fraction of society, the
private person is unable to regard the interests of the public at large
with the same importance as his own individual interests. If in the
various branches of human industry both classes of interests are
satisfied simultaneously and by the same line of action, the case is
entirely different in the production of timber. The public interest
requires wood at low prices, wood that is produced for nothing and
costs scarcely any thing to preserve standing ; the interest of the pri-
vate owner of forest property is on the contrary to have wood selling
high. It would not pay him to grow large trees unless the relative
prices of large timber were very high, a result that can only be at-
tained by keeping down production at as low a figure as possible. 'To
expect a sufficient supply of large timber from private forests is thus
@ pure contradiction in terms.

Endowed with industrial activity, and an aptitude for commerce,
and constantly spurred onwards by the stimulus of his own interests
the private individual is always by nature speculative. He goes to
those branches of production in which the returns on capital outlay
are high ; he considers carefully the safety of each investment and
the realization of large profits. Time is an element which is his to
dispose of to an extremely limited extent; in revenge, the vigilance
and care required in carrying out money transactions are bis in a
special manner. Industrious to a degree, he can give unflagging at-
tention to any work he has in hand, even if that be the production
of wood, but in return he requires quick, direct and large returus.
Forest property pays him only if it yields him a fairly high percentage
of profits. We thus see that rate of profits, which regulates the
distribution of the wealth of the world, whatever the amount of this
may be, is for the private individual the very basis on which he
works his forests.

Only one point is open to discussion on this subject, viz. as to
what extent it is justifiable for the various owners of private forests
to look for high profits; whether, in other words, they should grow
only small wood or timber of moderate size. And here indeed the
advantage lies on the side of this latter class of produce, thanks to
the high prices it commands, But as regards large timber, the pro-
duction of which necessarily yields low profits, the private individual
is for ever precluded from growing it. In France, at least, this point
is never contested.
EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE STATE. 51

SECTION III.

EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE STATE.

The Stare is the highest form of expression of human society.
A great State must be looked upon as imperishable like society itself
taken universally. Having only a moral existence, it has no aptitude
for speculation.

Imperishable or, to say the least, lasting for an indefinite period
of time, the State is in a position to rear high forests and look for-
ward with certainty to the enjoyment of the produce thereof. It
possesses or can possess that indispensable esprit de suite, which is the
sole guarantee for the attainment of results that can only be com-
pleted step by step in one or two centuries. For it is reserved the
enjoyment of the highest forms of advantage that can be derived
from the possession of forest property—a large income expanding of
itself with time and the increasing scarcity of builders’ and artificers’
timber ; easy treatment with assured results through the agency of
a great Department ; development of the general wealth of the coun-
try by means of raw products employed in every kind of industry;
turning to the best account unfertile wastes; protection of steep
slopes; favourable modification of climatic influences ; natural orna-
ment for the country. Howsoever we regard the forescs that are re-
quired to satisfy the wants of the country, we see in their possession
nothing but advantages accruing to the State.

Wanting in true industrial activity, the State cannot speculate
with its forests; any such enterprises undertaken by it can meet
with only a small measure of success. It is said that for the same
reason it is a bad producer. This is true if we take only the ordi-
nary forms of production, for which labour is a necessary condition.
But it is not so in the case of wood. What a forest wants above
everything else is protection and conservation. The amount of la-
bour required is almost limited to regulating the felling of the pro-
duce. Fora forest to be well administered the production and
development of the stock must be obtained and controlled according
to our wants as the direct result of the exploitations themselves.
Thus the State, for the very reason that it is unfit for commercial
undertakings, for agriculture and the manufactures, but is neverthe-
less all powerful and effective for protection, the State, we say, is
an excellent owner of forest property. For a standing proof of this
52 EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE STATE.

we have only to look at its forests, which are’ better conserved, pos-
sess a higher capital value, return larger receipts and yield finer and
more useful products than those of all other classes of proprietors,

As the representative of society, the State finds in this very
office its essential reason for possessing forests and the rule itself for
working them. In order to produce in sufficient quantity the large
timber which it requires, society has none but itself to depend upon.
We find by chance well wooded tracts in some wild, unpopulated
countries, but obviously no thought is given there to reproduction :
the forests are worked and disappear as soon as they are made acces-
sible, and if they offer valuable resources, these are at the best only
temporary, limited and uncertain. Now if no one inside it or
outside it is capable of producing the large timber required by
society, this function naturally devolves on the State. And it is
to this single function that the role of the State shonld be limited,
for it would be useless for it to possess forests that it may compete
with other proprietors in producing timber of moderate or small
dimensious as well as firewood ; of such produce it would always
obtain as much as could ever be wanted, if it aimed exclusively at
growing large trees. In the last place, it is clear that although the
duty of producing large timber appertains in a peculiar manner to
the State, yet it need discharge it only so far as it is able ; but the
measure of its ability in this respect is certainly not reached until
the state forests, in a country insufficiently provided with timber,
are treated so as to yield the highest sum of utility.

Tt has been objected that the interests of the Public Treasury
are not satisfied when the forests yield the highest sum of utility.
Yet it is in this very case, and in no other, that the National Ex-
chequer obtains the largest revenue from its forests, the highest price
for the produce of its cuttiugs, the sale of which, to speak truly, is
only the means employed by the State in order to distribute through-
out the country and the world, thé various classes of wood and tim-
ber yielded. Another objection raised is that the interest on outlay
is very low, and that, however little the State may be adapted for

 

(1) lf society can, strictly speaking, rely at all times upon the private pro-
prietor for its supply of firewood, it can only depend on itself to provide timber
for generations yet to come, and the duty of the Forest Department ought to
be to look after chiefly the production of timber. (Dz Bonaxp, in REPoRT oF
PaRLIAMENTARY CommiTrxE presented to the National Assembly 25th November
1872.) .(Author.)
EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE STATE. 53

speculative enterprise, it is certain that it could invest its money at
a higher rate. But the authors of this objection are guilty of over-
looking the indirect receipts accruing to the Exchequer, and these
are affected in no doubtful manner by the cheapness of large timber.
Let these be never so inconsiderable, yet whea they are combined
with the direct receipts derived from the sale of the large timber
of the State Forests (and here we are concerned only. with large tim-
ber) do not they suffice to double or treble this latter revenue and,
at the same time, the corresponding rate of interest ?

The necessity of the partial and limited intervention of the State
in the production of wood is a very remarkable economical fact. It
is a result of the mixed character of forest property, which is at once
an instrument of production and a natural product, altiivugh each of
these in a very different degree, according to the time necessary for
production.

 

(1) The importance of the function of the State in its position as an owner of
forests varies greatly according to the State in question. Let us consider in this
respect the special case of Frauce.

The home production of this country in respect of wood is not equal to the
demand. Timber of large dimensivns is obtained in such small qnantity that
already we import more than we produce. This means of supply is an ex-
pensive one and the consequence is that the price of timber is so immoderately
high that consumption is kept below what it might be with a large production
at home. -But, more than this, we have no guarantee that even the present
supply will not eventually fail. The demand for timber is increasing with rapid
strides not only in France but in allother industrial countries, which run us
very close in the markets of the world. The timber resources abroad, will they
last long? Nothing, we answer, is less probable.

Does France possess the necessary elements to assure for herself a perma-
neut supply in the future? No country is for this purpose better endowed by
nature than she is, She has cultivable lands in ample sufficiency ; other lands
distributed throughout her whole extent which are unfitted for agriculture but
peculiarly suited for forest growth. She has forests in the full sense of the
term covering several millions of acres; numerous woods of smaller extent
growing on, which have not yet been destroyed, the precious remains of forests
belouging formerly to Religious Houses, now in the possession of Communes.
Lastly she has 2,500,000, acres more of woodland, her supreme resource, spared
hitherto to the State ; and with all these advantages, the most admirable variety
of climate, soil and species.

But it would be vain to hide from ourselves the fact that our forest re-
sources have been rapidly declining since the last century. This decline is to
be traced not so much to the superficial extent of the forests as almost solely to
the factors of production as regards large timber. Holdings in mortmain, the
nature of which was so favorable from a forest point of view, have disappeared
with the exception of those portions which passed over into the possession of
the Commuuves. The State woodlands have lost their most valuable portions,
thanks to repeated alienations carried out in spite of the provisions of the
Constituent Assembly and the law of 23rd August 1790, which declared these
forests to be inalienable. Lastly woods and trees in full growth have been
ruthlessly destroyed to meet modera wants, such as the construction of rail-
ways, &c, Thus the duty of the State to hold forests acquires now in France a
character of extreme urgency,
‘54 EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE MUNICIPALITY.

In France the réle of the State is clearly defined in the Edict
promulgated for the carrying out of the Forest Code. Section 68 of
that Edict in fact lays down that “ Orgainsation Projects shall have
for their main object a LARGE YIELD OF MATERIAL and the rearing
of Hicu Forest Tres.” It is impossible to prescribe more clearly
and forcibly Economic Exploitability with its two component ele-
ments.

Besides, what does it matter, so far as the present subject is con-
cerned, in what manner the receipts are obtained, as long as the
country is well supplied with wood and with every other source of
wealth 2? The rate of interest on outlay yielded by high forests, the
amount of the revenue they furnish, the rent of the land which
bears them, all these are facts that cannot be avoided but are only
of second rate importance. They vary with existing requirements
and only reach too high a figure for the State when the wood supply
ceases to keep up with the demand. Here then it is, in the satis-
faction of the wants of the country, that we find the true gauge by
which to measure the revenue, rate of interest and rent yielded by
the high forests of the State. But in this matter our concern is
entirely with a distant future, which conceals from near-sighted per-
sons the importance of growing high forests. In preserving such
forests, we work for the benefit of a future generation, while by
destroying 1t we serve the interests of the present generation. Yet
successive generations of men are bound together by the ties of
a necessary solidarity, which gives them a continuous existence ; and
we cannot ruin posterity without impoverishing ourselves. How-
ever it be, the conservation of forests devolves on the State much
more as a duty than as a source of profit.

SECTION IV.
EXPLOITABILITY SUITED FOR MUNICIPALITIES.

The Commune or Municipality possesses the same character of
imperishability as the State, perhaps so even in ahigher degree. It
is incapable of mercantile industry and of sustained activity. Lastly
it forms an organic component of the State, of which it is an in-
tegral part both in respect of its land and its population.

In past times the Communes consumed themselves the entire
produce of their forests. The number of those which do s0 still is
dimishing every day, and, thanks to the progressive opening out of
EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE MUNICIPALITY. 55

means of communication, it will ultimately retain only those Com-
munes which occupy the great mountain tracts, and which can scar-
cely sell and never purchase wood outside their own limits. Like
the State, and for the same reasons, such Communes must in their
own interests, try to obtain the largest quantity of produce, and that
too of the most useful descriptions according to the peculiar wants of
each. Cases of this kind are now, however, quite exceptional.

The majority of Communes now sell their wood, at least the
timber portion of it, or make it over to the inhabitants by levying
a tax on them approximating to the value of the wood delivered. The
expenditure and wants of the Communes have increased since the
last century; hence income has already become, or tends to become
the chief object in the management of their forests. Thus the inter-
est of the Commune is to obtain the largest revenue possible.

The only kind of Exploitability that can secure the object desir-
ed is that which seeks the good of the country at large; for it is in
the forest itself, and not outside it by means of purchase or invest-
ments of money, that it is possible to increase the income of a Com-
mune. A Commune possesses only by accident any woodland
situated beyond its own limits, and besides this the purchase of a
forest by a Commune isa most rare phenomenon. Moveable property
belonging to Communes disappears rapidly; thus forest property
constitutes for them an excellent investment, aud as a rule the very
best of all. In the first-place, it is perfectly secure, an indispensable
condition where the owner is imperishable ; in the second place, it
continually increases in value; in the third place, it requires, so to
say, no care at all; and fourthly and lastly, it can yield compound
interest accumulated during an indefinite period. What better
Saving’s Bank could be conceived than this? The apparent rate of
interest of course becomes low after 100 or 150 years; but most. cer-
tainly no banker could guarantee as much for so long aperiod. A
high forest iu fact furnishes every 15 or 20 years the produce of
thinnings, while returning ultimatcly the original capital increased
fortyfold.

Thus far only as appearances go; the reality goes much beyond
this. The value of money must continue to fall owing to the
abundance of the precious metals. A certain individual, for ex-
56 EXPLOITABILITY FOR THE MUNICIPALITY.

ample, has been in receipt of a fixed income for the last forty years,
but ke now obtains only two thirds of the articles which he was for-
merly able to procure for the same sum of money. — In the case of a
forest, on the contrary, the money value of the large trees is continu-
ally rising, since they are day by day becoming scarcer while the
demand for them is increasing in proportion. Certain Communes
possessing high forests have seen the revenues derived from them
double itself within the Jast 30 years. Thus the effective rate of in-
terest they have obtained on the capital sunk in their forests is not
two but four per cent.) —

Indeed forest property is for Communes an unrivalled source of
income when the right conditions of Exploitability are realised. For
what Communes, if we exclude revenue derived from municipal taxa-
tion, are the richest, if not those which possess real forests, like the
greater number of the Communes of the North-Eastern portion of
France? He who runs may read this fact in the Vosges and on
the plateau of the Jura; the condition of the roads, of the fountains,
of the schools and of the churches discloses it at every step. The
Communes ofthe plain country could be just as well off, if their for-
ests, instead of consisting of simple copse or containing but few
large trees, were so constituted as to yield the most useful produce ;
but as a rule these forests are far removed from so desirable a state,
for Communes are needy bodies. Indeed this last characterestic is
at the present day so general among the Communes, that it appears to
be one of their necessary attributes. And so it happens that although
it is their interest to obtain the most useful produce in the largest
quantity possible, still their neediness only allows them to labour
towards this end without ever attaining to it.

The guardianship exercised by the State in taking up the
management of communal forests, has no other object than the pro-
tection and the interests of the Commune itself. There is nothing in
our laws which affords ground for any other supposition. Section
68 of the Forest Edict is textually excluded from the Sections which
apply to communal woods. But its own proper interests are alone
sufficient to impose upon the Commune the duty of preserving its

 

(1) In the communal forest of the town of Remiremont, consisting of silver fir.
the annual yield of which, 15,600 cubic feet in all, is sold stauding, the revenue
in 1833 was £ 800 and in 1869 £2000. Since the latter year the receipts have
still further increased. (Author.)
APPLICATION OF THE EXPLOITABILITIES. 57

forests in the state in which they actually are; those interests also
prove, now more than ever, that the management of these forests
ought to seek as far as possible to realize the conditions of Economic
Exploitability.

The rules which define the manner in, and the extent to, which
the Communes may utilise their own forests are laid down in Sections
69, 70, 72, 137 and 140 of the Forest Edict. Section 65 of the
Forest Code, applicable by virtue of Section 112 to Communes as well
as to individuals possessing rignts of user, rules that the quantity of
produce that may be removed can always be regulated in accordance
with the condition and yield of the forest, and that in case of any
contention being raised, reference is to be made to the Prefectoral
Council,

The other sections relate to facts of a special nature. But ta-
king them as a whole, we find that the right of appropriating the
produce of their own forests is a usufruct of a special kind, regulated
as far as possible by custom, and subject to reservations and restric-
tions, and which usufruct it is desirable to limit to the trees that are
exploitable, whether so by reason of their maturity or because they
have attained the most useful marketablesize. This last restriction
is made compulsory in respect of coppice standards.

SECTION V.

APPLICATION OF THE VARIOUS KINDS OF EXPLOITABILITY.

We have thus seen that the Exploitability suited to any given
forest, grove or tree depends entirely on the character of the pro-
prietor. In forests that are required to yield chiefly ligneous pro-
ducts, the private individual will find it to his advantage to work in
accordance with the rules of Commercial Exploitability, the State
according to those of Economic Exploitability, and the Commune as
much as possible in this latter direction. It is only in the matter of
details in applying any kind of Exploitability that account has to be
taken of the special character of each forest, block of trees of the
same age, wood worked on the Selection System, simple copse or
copse with standards.

8
58 APPLICATION OF THE EXPLOITABILITIES.

To realize the object of Commercial Exploitability, we must
exploit forest and individual tree at the age at which the rate of
interest on the capital value is at its maximum. In the case of in-
dividual trees it is obvious that they must be as numerous as possi-
ble, since the resulting income is ofcourse directly proportional to
their number.

The conditions of Compound Exploitability are never fully satis-
fied except in high-forest crops consisting of trees of the same age,
But this being so, it is sufficient to fell the standing erops at com-
plete maturity in order to obtain from them the highest sum of
utility.

In a forest worked on the Selection System the larger trees are
found only here and there in the midst of younger ones. Each of
the former, felled at maturity, yields the most useful produce the
forest can ever furnish. But owing to the rate of growth being an
indeterminate quantity, it is impossible to estimate the loss of pro-
duction resulting from the maintenance of the tree above the young-
er individuals of the same species, the free development of which it
impedes. In the case then of forests worked by Selection we must
be satisfied with Qualitative Exploitability, which is all that we need
require, as quantity of produce must give way to utility.

From a forest in the state of simple copse it would be vain to
expect the largest quantity and the most useful kinds of produce that
the soil can yield; but we may endeavour to obtain as much of such
produce as this class of forest can furnish. Now the mean rate of
production of the soil in a copse goes on increasing up to an age be-
yond that at which we could maintain the standing crop, if we are
to regenerate it by meaus of regrowth from the stool. Hence we
must exploit such copes as late as possible, consistent with security
of regeneration, in order to obtain the laigest quantity of material
possible under the circumstances of the case.

In a forest under treatment as a copse with standards, the under-
wood must be exploited under the same conditions as a simple copse
and this for the reasons already explained in the foregoing paragraph.
With respect to the standards, which are intended to yield timber,
they must be felled only one by one as they becaine mature, in order
that they may fnrnish the most useful classes of timber. No atten-
APPLICATION OF THE EXPLOITABILITIES. 59

tion at all is to be paid to the loss of growth which the underwood
sutfers from the cover of the crowns overhead, as it sinks’ into insigni-
ficance before the enhanced utility of the produce of the standards,
which are, by their very uature, infinitely more valuable. Thus the
copse below is cut as late as possible, and the standards that are
preserved for the production of timber, one by one at the age of the
Qualitative Exploitability of each. But we cannot evidently work

in the direction of National Exploitability except by increasing the
number of the standards.

In our opiuion it would be useless to call attention here to ex-
ceptional aad special cases ; in every such case, the question of the
Exploitability to adopt can be determined with certainty by the aid
of the general principles we have laid down, Thus it is easy to
understand that every proprietor may have, under certain circum-
stances, to maintain a protective fringe or even large block of trees.
It is obvious that in a forest of the Cluster Pine (Pinus Pinaster), in
which the process of tapping for resin is in full operation, the crop
must be so thinned that each tree may be quite separate from its
neighbours, without standing too far apart from them, and that it is
only by a careful balancing of profit and loss that we can determine
the age at which the stock should be renewed.

It is now easy to see that the ideas of Régime and Exploitabi-
lity are too intimately connected together to be fully considered
apart. The application af the one or the other ought to secure the
same end, viz. the production, by treating any given forestin the right
way, of what suits best the interests of its proprietor. Hence in or-
ganising a forest the Régime, the Method of Treatment and the
kind of Exploitability to apply to it or, as it sometimes happens,
to its various parts separately, must be considered and determined
conjointly.
SECOND BOOK
OPERATIONS COMMON TO ALL FOREST

ORGANISATION,

The various kinds of work required in the organisation of every
forest fall under two broad classes, viz.—(I) OUTDOOR OPERATIONS
and (11) the ORGANISATION REPORT AND PROJECT.

The former class always of necessity begins with the examina-
tion of the forest, while the latter, in like manner, opens with the
_ report of this examination. Now a forest of any extent offers at
first sight a confused collection of trees; it is impossible to take in
the whole of it in one view. To become thoroughly acquainted with
it, we must separate it into its various component parts, divide and
analyse it, then group together the data thus obtained and digest
and form them into one whole by the opposite process of synthesis.
This work consists in the division of the forest into COMPARTMENTS,
followed by a detailed examination and description of them, and in
the drawing up of the GENERAL Descriptive Report of the forest.

That being done, next comes the formation of the Working
Circles, then the determination of the Rotation or age at which the
forest is to be exploited.

Such are the preliminary steps in the organisation of every
forest.
CHAPTER I.

COMPARTMENTS.

—-0), of 00

The division of a forest into COMPARTMENTS is the very founda-
tion stone on which is built up the inventory of the forest, and must
precede every other operation. That inventory must take in every
one of the component parts of the forest, and describe its condition
and special character. The produce one may expect from the forest
may be extremely varied, according to the species, and the quantity,
qualities, and dimensions of the wood when exploited, and to the
time for exploitation, which may be near or remote. Thus in order
to ascertain what preduce we can obtain from a forest which, by
reason of its very nature, must cover a wide extent of country, it is
indispensable first of all to draw up an inventory of it.

$1. Boundary Map.

In order to be able to divide a forest into compartments, it is
necessary to have in the hand a‘ plan, or at least an approximately
accurate sketch of the forest: there is no other way of obtaining a
thorough knowledge of the ground. The first thing to do is thus to
procure such a plan, which we will call the Bounpary Pian, It
ought to give not only the boundary of the whole forest, but also that
of the principal large masses composing it, or, better still, of its
various cantons or beats known under popular local names. The
Plan ought thus to have figured on it all great internal natural
lines, such as watercourses, valleys, crests, or ridges, as well as the
chief artificial lines, like roads, lanes and important paths.

It is expedient that this Plan should be drawn on a medium
scale, so as to give sufficient details, while still allowing the whole of
one or several cantons to be easily taken in ata glance. The scale
Formation oF COMPARTMENTS. 63

of 4 inches to 1 mile;in which } inch on the map is equal to one fur-
long on the ground, is very convenient.! With the aid of the
Boundary Plan the relative positions of different points, the lengths
of the natural and artificial lines and the approximate area of any
portion can be ascertained at once. The Plan is extremely useful
at every instant, and one may say, at every step made in the forest,
It is the true guide of the Aménagiste—not, however, because it ser-
ves chiefly to enable him to find his way about, but really because
it directs his work and gives, in his mind, a locality to every fact
that he observes on the ground. But it is after all only aguide. It
is therefore enough if it is only approximately correct, there is no
necessity for it to be rigorously accurate.

The Boundary Plan may be obtained on application to the Central
Forest Office, if it possesses a map of the forest in question, that can
be copied, enlarged or reduced. In the absence of such a map, one
may be compiled from the village plans, if they are sufficiently ac-
curate, which is seldom the case, As a last resource, a rapid survey
of the boundaries and principal lines may be made. This last is often
the best course to follow when the forest taken in hand is of limited
extent, in which case this preliminary survey would be sufficient for
the construction of the map that has to accompany the Organisation
Project.

§ 2. Division into Compartments,

Having the Boundary Plan the Aménagiste may now proceed
at once to examine the forest and form the Compartments.

A COMPARTMENT is a portion of forest that is homogeneous
throughout its extent in respect of the great factors of production,
viz. CLIMATE, SorL and StanDING Srock. The climate of a given for-
est may be different in its different parts according to elevation, as-
pect, shelter or exposure and, in a word, according to all the various
elements which together constitute the situation of a place. Soils
differ from one another by their composition itself, which may be

 

(1) The scale suggested by the Author is a

the map represents 200 metres on the ground ‘The scale adopted in the Trans-
lation is sei ond is thus rather larger than the former, but is perhaps more
convenient for our purpose. (‘T'rauslator.)

 

,in which 1 centimetre on
64 Formation of CoMPARTMENTS.

clayey, silicious, marly, rich or poor, or by their looseness or com-
pactness, their depth, moisture, covering of dead leaves and vege-
table mould, &c. Climate and soil constitute the constant factors of
production, for naturally they cannot be modified except to a limited

extent,

The chief elements of difference in the standing stock of a forest
are species, age and density. But the promise held out by the stock
and the state of its growth also constitute points of difference. Again
although, speaking generally, the causes of difference are those
enunciated above, yet existing differences may also be directly due to
anterior circumstances special to the compartment in question. The
standing crop is thus an essentially variable factor of production, for
its condition is necessarily ever changing with its age, and that too
without any limit whatsoever, since one day at last the stock itself is
to be worked out and to disappear and be replaced by a new one.

The essential reason for the division of a forest into compart-
ments, from each of the three points of view of climate, soil and
standing stock, is that the dissimilar portions of one and the same
forest require different cultural treatments or different rotations, and
it is precisely these very two points—culturul treatment and rota-
tion—-that the Aménagiste is required to determine. It would be
impossible for him to fix and prescribe clearly the treatment of, and
time for, exploiting each of these cissimilar portions of the forest,
unless he studied them separately. By bearing this rule well in
mind, we are enabled to judge what amount of difference justifies
the separation of one. piece of forest from another and their forma-
tion into separate compartments. Mere shades of difference do not
afford sufficient grounds for making a separate compartment of any
particular portion: we must have marked and notable differences,
But in that case the cause or the effects of the differences observed
are at once apparent eitker in the configuration and condition of the
soil, in the nature and relative proportions of the species, or in the
shape and size of the trees. The task of appreciating these differ-
ences is thus reduced to the question of ascertaining whether a cer-
tain given difference requires a aifferent kind of treatment or a
different time for felling the standing material. This question only
expeiience and a true sense of the Améuagiste’s art can resolve.
Formation oF CoMPARTMENTS. 65

The division of a forest into compartments serves various ends.
In the first place it enables the Aménagiste to make himself
throughly acquainted with the forest. Secondly, it is useful to bim
in drawing up an inventory of the forest. Thanks to this division,
he can calculate or estimate the resources it offers as regards the
various qualities and descriptions of wood. Lastly and chiefly, with-
out it he could not determine the treatment adapted to, and the time
suited for, working out each of these portions of the forest, that is to
say, he could not draw up the Organisation Project itself.

The way to set about dividing a forest into compartments is
not without some importance. It is necessary first of all to make a
general reconnaissance of the forest. You walk about through it
and round it; you examine the boundaries and the boundary marks ;
you study the relief of the ground, the hydrography and the charac-
ter of the surrounding country. This reconnaissance gives a general
idea of the forest itself and its surroundings ; it affords some general
notions regarding the prevailing climate, soil and species, the condi-
tion and distribution of the standing material, and the situation of
the forest with respect to the neighbouring estates, to export lines,
centres of population and the district considered asa whole. More-
over it is by means of this reconnaissance: that we obtain general
starting points or Jand marks, which furnish the necessary terms of
comparison in the subsequent detailed examination of the forest.

These general notions once obtained, we proceed to the forma-
tion of the compartments. To that end we station ourselves at some
‘» known point, on the boundary, for instance, or at an angle or at the
point where a road enters the forest. Then guiding ourselves with
the aid of the Boundary Plan, we move along some fixed line (the
boundary or the road, in the instances we have selected), while
observing the standing crop and the ground, until some marked
change in one or both strikes the eye. At this point we turn to
the right or left as the case may be, following the line along which
the observed difference between the two contiguous portions of the
forest (one to the right, the other to the left) is continued. Care
must be taken to keep our eyes chiefly on the portion which we
started with by examining, viz., the one the boundaries of which we
are trying to fix. Going on thus, winding along this line, which is
indicated to us by the age, density, component species and condition

9
66 FORMATION OF COMPARTMENTS.

of the standing crop, and by the relief of the ground, and always
keeping that portion constantly to the right or to the left of us, as
the case may be, we arrive at last, after having made a complete
circuit, at the point from which we started. If, white making this
circuit, we have taken the precaution to blaze the trees or fix flags
or signals at short intervals, the compartment is marked out on the
ground. There is nothing more left to do than to clear a narrow

provisional line along this perimeter, which may also be at once laid
down on the boundary map.

Next we must traverse the interior of the compartment in
order to be sure that it is homogeneous throughout, or, in the con-
trary case, to note the dissimilar portions of which it is composed,
and which it may be necessary to form into separate compartments
if they differ to a sufficient extent for that purpose. In the latter
case, when the sight is unimpeded for any distance, it is generally
sufficient to cut the compartment in two by a transverse line or path.

In hilly and mountainous country it would often be extremely
fatiguing and, it may be, useless to make a circuit round each com-
partment. In that case, on steep slopes it is enough to make hori-
zontal traverses one above the other, closing the quadrilateral with
lines of steepest descent, with gullies or other good boundary lines.

Frequently we come across gradual transitions which may be
very embarrassing. Thus a slope with a northern aspect may
gradually end by looking south-east; or the density of the stand-
ing crop may decrease by very slow gradations until from completely
canopied forest we get amongst afew scattered trees; or again the
age of the stock may decrease continuously, so that we may by
imperceptible degrees pass from full grown high forest to a crop of
poles. Undersuch circumstances where are we to draw the line between
two contiguous compartments? Is it to be exactly midway between
the two ends of this embarrassing piece of forest? Certainly not.
This lme must pass through that point at which the crop has chang-
ed sufficiently to require a different treatment ana a different date
for its exploitation from that first examined. This is an infallible
rule to follow ; but its application, whenever the necessity for it
arises, requires the exercise of no little judgment. In any case, the
essential point to keep in view in forming the compartments is to
be sure that they mainly follow the natural lines of the ground.
FORMATION OF COMPARTMENTS. 67

However it be, it is not a matter of indifference how large or
how small the compartments are. It is clear that if each of the di-
visions is to be homogeneous throughout and bounded by natural
lines, they cannot all have the same area. Still it is necessary to
remain within certain limits. If the compartments are tco small,
they become too numerous, and the result of this may be confusion
in the prescriptions of the Organisation Project; at the best diffi.
culties in carrying out these prescriptions can never fail to occur.
It is desirable to have a whole annual cutting within the limits of a
single compartment, and experience shows that the area of a com-
partment ought never to be under 13 acres at the least, even at
the sacrifice of homogeneity. Hence if we have at first marked
gut any compartment that is too small, it is easy to judge after-
wards with which one of those surrounding it, it ought to be incor-
porated, considering it as a mere dot or patch on a uniform ground.
Those officers who have afterwards to execute the Organisation Pro-
ject, being necessarily foresters by profession, will be easily able to
modify their cultural operations as required, whenever they meet
with such patches.

If the compartments are too large, it is impossible to determine
the treatment of the various standing crops and to prescribe the
order of the exploitations in a sure and precise manner. The
series of successive operations in one and the same compartment
soon becomes complicated, a circumstance which is a fruitful source
of disorder. Hence the necessity ofso arranging, that no compart-
ment may be subjected !to a single class of operations for more
than a few years at atime. Without this, the homogeneity of a
large compartment would probably soon be destroyed. On this
point, experience has shown that no compartment should exceed
125 acres. If a larger area of homogeneous forest is found, it is
always easy to split it up into two or more compartments.

The division of a forest into compartments requires chiefly a
good deal of walking about round it and through it. The Aména-
giste should avoid tiring himseif, so as always to have his eyes open
and his head clear, in order that no fact may escape his observation,
The work does not call for any involved process of reasoning, for the
characteristic features which separate one compartment from an-
other are facts that immediately strike the sense of sight. But to re-
68 SURVEY OF COMPARTMENTS.

connoitre them thoroughly, he has often to move about a great deal,
On level ground he must satisfy himself with respect to their situa-

tion and relative positions. In hilly or mountainous country he

may have to station himself on some high distant points and even

on the slope across the valley below him, if he wishes to form an

accurate idea of the configuration of the ground. This work, apart

from the object necessitating it, is full of instruction for him and‘
gives breadth to his views.

§ 3. Survey of the Compartments.

The compartments once formed, it remains to ascertain their
area, situation and form by means of a regular survey. This sur-
vey must be accurate; not that wifhout a thoroughly accurate sur-
vey we could not determine the right treatment to apply or the
yield of the forest, whether that be based on cubical contents or
area; but with only an approximately correct survey, it would be
impossible to estimate all the resources of the forest and draw up a
true and complete inventory of it.

A general series of levels may be taken with advantage, as they
may prove useful in perfecting the organisation of the forest, especi-
ally if the surface of the country is even. With the configuration of
the ground delineated on the map, it is easy to choose lines for roads,
Such a map may be turned to account even in laying out the
various paths to be cleared, which also can serve as export lines."

The above are the only survey operations that may be required
in organising a forest. When the area of the forest is considerable,

 

(1) The laying out or straightening ofroads forming a complete
connecting all the various portions of a forest with the anneigal fahds ie
a work quite distinct from the organisation itself of the forest. It is expedient
when that is possible, to allow both these works to go on hand in hand and in
direct ccnnection with one another. Well-designed and well-constructed roads
adorn as well as enrich a forest. If they are laid out‘simultaneously with the
organisation of the forest, they simplify the formation of the compartments and
serve as a sort of frame-work for the latter, so that a complete harmony is at
asc between the network of export lines and the series of compart-
ments,

But although it is desirable to devise a system of expor dl i

door work of the organisation is going on, it ee seldom tie a ee
even design the complete network at once, except at the risk of fakin sone
useless ones, and others that do not accord with the Organisation Projet it
is, therefore, enough if only those roads are laid out while the Grannivation is go-
ing on, the necessity of which is clear and undeniable. Whatever be done whine
ever amount of foresight exercised, the future will always necessitate modifica.
tions in the network of roads as in the prescriptions of the organisation itself,
SURVEY OF COMPARTMENTS. 69

the only way to construct an exact map of the forest in one piece is
to make a triangulation, but such a map is not absolutely indispen-
sable. Again, although the demarcation of a forest in accordance
with existing law may be of the greatest utility when the boundaries
are liable to be encroached upon, still for the purpose of the Aména-
giste it is enough if they are known and clear to the eye.

2
CHAPTER II.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE
COMPARTMENTS.

 

SS (SS

After the formation of the compartments comes their exami-
nation, and Simultaneously withthisthedetailed description of each,
which is noted down at oncein abook. The object of this operation is
to ascertain the condition of each compartment, and, as far as that is
possible, the causes that have produced this condition, so that from
the data thus obtained, the Aménagiste may be able to form a cor-
rect judgment regarding the future promise held out by the standing
crop and the treatment that suits it best. Hence the expediency of
describing separately the climate, soil and standing stock.

In connection with the present subject we are concerned with
only the local climatic conditions of any particular compartment. To.
describe it fully, it is sufficient to note the situation, and, where the
necessity exists, the aspect.

As regards elevation we are here seldom concerned with the
idea of height in its absolute sense, but always and to a very great
extent, with relative height as compared with the surrounding
ground. Thus the upper portion of a slope possesses a very differ-
ent situation from that of the lower portion of the same slope. Again
the elevation being the same, the situations may nevertheless be
entirely different, if one place is on the top of a ridge and the other
forms the bottom of a valley.

In noting aspect, the slope or gradient, which is the measure
of its influence and a cause of variation in its effects, should also be
given. In most cases it is easy to describe the slope byjmeans of a
single word. In order to do this clearly and so as to expressfdegrees
of comparison, the following conventional gradations may be
adopted.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF COMPARTMENTS. 71

i entle slopes, those whose gradients are comprised between
i) Gentle slopes, th hose gradi prised bet
Y, and 1/6, say between 0 and 16 in 100,

(ij Rethor stetpr 2.1/6 0 U/Saccses cxsvenes 16 aac So.cieeees

Cit) Steep cacssccas LP 2c Wises sede orwen 88) sie CB. assess

Gx) Very steep wvann2/S! sac Lflecsswsessvcess OF soe LOC sccennen

‘(v) Scarps, whose gradients exceed 100 in 100 or 45,’ and
which men cannot climb except on all fours.

The dendrometer, which every Forest Officer in France carries
in his sac, is a very convenient instrument for observing the gradi-
ents of slopes in hilly country..

Sheltering rising ground in the vicinity is always desirable and
is frequently of very great importance. If in describing the situa-
tion of a compartment, the existence of such rising ground cannot
be expressed or implied, then it ought to be specially mentioned.
The height of the rising ground should be stated, as well as the
point of the compass towards which it lies and the effects of its
influence on the compartment in question. No hard and fast rule
can be laid down as to the method of noting the existence of such
sheltering ground and of describing it. Ability to recognise it
when it exists, and to appreciate its influence, requires no small
amount of general, as well as local, experience. There are occa-
sions when it is necessary to note the absence itself of such shelter
and the effects of this absence. The presence of streams and tanks
and large sheets of water may also affect the climate of a compart-
ment either favorably by rendering it moist, or unfavorably by
aggravating the effects of frost.

In order to gain a knowledge of the soil, we must examine
the state of its surface, its composition and its principal physical
properties. With regard to its surface, the soil may be quite bare
or covered with a layer of leaves, carpeted over with moss or grass,
or overgrown with bushes; it may be loose or caked, rocky or con-
sisting of earthy particles, &c. By the term composition of the
soil we refer to the proportion of the principal elements which form
it. It is expedient to determine it absolutely, at least in a few
compartments taken as types, by means of acids and the methods
ef levigation and quantitave analysis. ‘The presence in large quan-
tities of humus and vegetable mould affects very considerably the na-
72 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF COMPARTMENTS.

ture and condition of the soil. Their proportion is‘roughly estimated
with the eye. In the last place, the nature of the subsoil exercises
a very marked influence on the forest growth, and may vary from com-
partment to compartment. The.rock below may also manifest its
influence on the topsoil above it by modifying its physical charac-
ters, according as its stratification is horizontal or inclined, or ac-
cording as it is compact or permeable, entire in sheet masses or
broken up. The physical characters of the topsoil, the chief of
which are stiffness or looseness, hygroscopicity and depth, always
exert a proponderating action on the forest growth.

The state of division (looseness) of the soil, which is a product
of the nature and size of the particles composing it, goes on in-
creasing from stiff plastic clay that is impermeable both to air and
water, to loose sand and stones and agglomerations of rocks and
boulders. As regards hygroscopicity we have soils that are boggy,
wet, moist or dry- These classes of soils can often be recognised
by the characteristic species which grow on them; but the humi-
dity of the climate and of the soil are to a certain extent comple-
mentary one of the other.

Of all the characters of the soil, depth is generally that which
varies most from compartment to compartment, and is also the most
important. Thanks to it, the other characters perform their réle
more effectively, the roots of the trees spread out and take a strong
hold of the ground, the moisture of the soil is better preserved and
an excessive rainfall is more easily carried away into the depths of
the earth. Depth of soil is at once manifested by the form of the
trees ; in shallow soil the boles are short and the crowns low, with the
branches stunted and crooked, while in deep soil the boles are tall
and the branches of the crown straight and long. A soil possessing
a depth of 20in may be termed deep. Depth and the other charact-
ers of the soil may be observed in ditches, trenches, quarries and
cuttings, which open to the view a section of the topsoil traversed
by the roots of the trees.

For any compartment in particular the soil is described in a few
words, and mostly by the use of comparative terms. The underly-
ing geological formation is not mentioned, unless it is different from
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF COMPARTMENTS. 73

that of the preceding compartments. But it is expedient to estimate
the fertility of the soil by employing the terms very good, good,
mediocre, bad, very bad.

For indeed the fertility of a soi] is not in any sense an absolute
quality ; it depends on the species of tree with reference to which it
may happen to be considered. ’ Thus a soil that is mediocre for the
beech may be good for the Scots’ Pine and bad for other species;
again a dry and shallow soil would be good, say, for the beech but
mediocre for the oak. Thus the fertility of a soil must be judged
chiefly by reference to the manner of growth of the species concern-
ed, which betrays it at once. Itmustreceive afurther qualification,
since it varies not only with the nature and the condition itself of
the soil, but also with its surroundings, viz. the atmosphere, geologi-
cal formation, adjoining soils, and standing crops. This qualification,
so to say, sums up the estimate formed after full consideration, of
of the two constant factors of production, or, more accurately, of the
productive forces of the locality itself.

It is the description of the standing crop which requires to be
most complete of all, And here there may be a great many points
to attend to, viz.

Descriptive technical name.

Density.

Component species.

Age or ages (if different.)

Origin.

History.

State of growth.

Approximate estimate of promise held out.
The most suitable treatment.

The descriptive technical name of the crop expresses in a char-
acteristic manner what it is, whether a thicket, saplings, &c., or
whether it is in the condition of a copse with standards, or a high
forest worked by Selection or simply an irregular mass of forest.
This name should give in a single word a general idea of the whole
stock considered in the mass; and it is only when blanks dotted with
scattered trees occur, in which there is no trace of any regular order
or uniformity, existing or recently destroyed, that this fact has to be
specially mentioned.
74 DNTAILED DESCRIPTION OF COMPARTMENTS.

The density of a crop, viewed as a canopiéd collection of trees,
is described by stating whether the leaf canopy is complete or not,
close or open, discontinuous or only with an opening here and there,
and this to what extent and in what manner. It may, for instance,

be of greatly varying density and even interspersed with complete
blanks.

With respect to the species of trees, only the principal and aux-
iliary 1 ones need be mentioned, and, if necessary, their relative pro-
portions should be given, but this always in the most brief and sim-
ple manner possible. Nay it is often sufficient simply to state that
an associated species is abundant or rare. Numerical ratios usually
afford but inadequate information ; this is always the case for in-
stance when any species is represented by lanky, unhealthy or irregu-
larly distributed individuals, or when the presence of the species is
useful only in varying proportions according to the soil and aspect.
As regards secondary or accessory species, only those should be men-
tioned which are characteristic of any special fact observed; the
birch and aspen, for instance, if confined to certain compartments
alone; or again the species comprised under the collective name of
brushwood or the soft woods, if they are abundant only exceptional-
ly here and there. If there is more than one stage of growth, as in
a copse with standards, each should be described separately.

 

(1.) The various species of trees in a forest naturally group themselves
into 3 well defined classes according to their relative importance in the organi-
sation of that forest; we will denote them severally by the specific terms
Principal, AUXILIARY and CoMPLEMENTARY.

Among the species present there is one (or it may be more), which from
the superior value of the produce it yields aud the general suitability of pre-
vailing conditions for its favorable growth, necessarily stands out as the central
pivot round which the whole Organisation Project turns. The Régime and the
Rotation adopted are determined entirely by the requirements of that one
species, which thus constitutes the Prixcipa. species of the forest in question.
As parenthetically observed higher up, there may be in the same forest several
principal species, the Kégime and chiefly the Rotation being judiciously mani-
pulated to suit them all more or less equally.

Of the remaining species, well distributed throughout the forest or capable
of being generally introduced there, one or more form the natural associates of
the principal species, the growth of which they promote and improve, while,
thanks to different requirements, they usefully occupy space both in the soil
and in the leaf canopy, which the former could not but leave unutilised. These
we have designated the AUXILIARY species.

All the other species, which are neither principal nor auxiliary, we have
included in one comprehensive class under the name of ComrLeMENtTARyY species.
These are either too slightly distributed, or do not attain a sufficiently large size
in the forest in question, or yield produce of too little value, to influence in any
way the choice of the Régime or the Rotation to adopt. (Translator.)
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF COMPARTMENTS. 75

With respect to age, if the crop is composed of two or more dis-
tinct stages of growth, the respective ages of these various stages
should be given, otherwise only the single figure expressing the
general age of the crop. Ina copse with standards, it is often suffi-
cient, as regards the standards, simply to state that a certain class
of reserves is predominant. If the age of the crop varies from tree
to tree, as would happen in a high forest worked by Selection, the
main point to determine is at what age it would be expedient to fell
the crop considered as a whole. This we will call the dominant age.
Tt does not always depend on the age of the majority of the trees,
but here again on rapidity of growth and the relative situation of
the trees,

At times it is necessary to note the origin of the crop. It may
be traceable to seedlings or to stool shoots, or even to a mixture in
certain proportions of both. It may be the result of the system of
tire et atre, or of natural restocking or of artificial reboisement, &c.
The history of each crop would be full of the most valuable instruc-
tion. As a rule it can seldom be traced any distance back. But it
is expedient in a great many cases to mention what operations were
last carried out in the compartment described. Occasionally also
traces or evidence still remembered may be found of offences and
serious damage committed, for instance, of removal of scattered and
valuable trees, of loppings that have ruined a growing stock, of offen-
ces by graziers or by others repeatedly stripping trees of their leaves.

The state of growth of the standing stock may be described in
one or two words : the growth is either active or slow, sustained or

languid, &c.

The future promise held out by the stock, i.e. the probable
period of time during which it will continue in good condition, re-
quires a special reference, when its age and state of growth do not
afford sufficient information on this head. In the last place, it is ad-
visable to indicate in the Field-Book the operations that may be use-
fully executed in any given compartment before many years are over.
This note, made with regard solely and absolutely to the treatment
of the compartment in question, apart from all considerations con-
nected with the adjoining crops, refreshes the nemory when the in-
door work of the Organisation Project begins, and enables the Amé-
nagiste to prescribe with confidence the combined treatment of all
76 DRATAILED DESCRIPTION OF COMPARTMENTS.

the compartments of the forest taken as a whole. Its utility ends
_there and it must be omitted altogether from the Organisation
Report.

Such are the points to be examined and noted. But, asa rule,
there is peculiar to each crop some special characteristic, some im-
portant fact, that is more or less obvious, which must be observed
and noted. Now itis one thing, then another. Experience, and the
acquired sense of the forester’s art, which has sometimes been term-
ed his second sight, can alone enable him to recognise it. If it has
been passed unnoticed, if it is not clearly brought out, if it is not
faithfully interpreted in describing the compartments, that descrip-
tion may be lengthy, drawn up with care, specious, but for all that.
inadequate and deceptive.

To examine a compartment thoroughly after having obtained a
knowledge of its boundaries and taken his bearings, the Aménagiste
may proceed as follows :—(i) Place on the boundary of the compart-
ment a guard who is to move along this line, while he himself moves
paralled to him inside the compartment at a distance of 30, 40 or 50
yards off ; so that while the guard completes a circuit outside, he
himself also completes a circuit inside. As the Aménagiste has to stop
frequently to observe, the guard must obviously stop too until the
former moves on again. The Aménagiste must be inno hurry, but
walk on slowly, taking in a general view rather than observing de-
tails, and he must avoid stopping to jot down notes, which act only
distracts the attention and falsifies the appreciation of facts ; (ii) the
circuit finished, he must formulate and clothe in words the ideas
taken in; (iti) then walk through the middle of the compartment
from end to end, say through its greatest length, in order to assure
himself that the compartment is homogeneous throughout, and above
all to test or correct his first judgment.! (iv) That done, he must
sit down and write straight off the description required, and then,
(v) rest for a while before beginning to examine another necessarily
different compartment. This description fatigues the mind as it de-
mands sustained attention. It has no analogy whatsoever with the
formation of the compartments, in which work the only thing to do

 

(1.) By marching along parallel lines, the Aménagiste does not gain
so complete a knowledge of the ground and the stock, and indeed is likely to
lose his way in the middle of the compartment.
DIVISIONS AND SUBDIVISIONS. 77

is to look out for differences sufficient to separate one compartment
from another ; on the contrary, its aim is the very opposite, viz, to
bring together the principal features observed and portray the ge-
neral characteristics of each compartment.

§ 1. Divisions and Sub-divisions.

The crops of compartments adjoining one another occasionally
present only transitory differences, as regards, for instance, age,
density or species. These differences may sometimes be such as to
justify keeping the compartments separate with a view to their
immediate treatment, but without being opposed to their simul-
taneous exploitation. Once that is effected and the new generation
has occupied the ground, these compartments will have become
similar to one another, and may then be lumped up into a single
compartment, granting always that the aggregate area is not too
large for that purpose. While waiting for this to take place, the
compartments may be maintained on the footing of SUB-DIVISIONS
in order to facilitate the work of the Aménagiste in prescribing the
treatment, and that of the Executive Officer in carrying out the
prescriptions of the former. The single group of sub-divisions we
will term Division, which may therefore be defined as a portion of
forest comprising one or several different crops, destined to be re-
generated simultaneously and capable after that of forming a homo-
geneous whole.

The system of sub-divisions has once been much employed. At the
present day it has been all but discarded ; Forest Organisation seems
now a more simple affair. But because that system is cumbrous, it
would be a mistake to give it up altogether, for cases occur, in
which the establishment of sub-divisions has its use, and without it
the Organisation Project would be imperfect and incomplete.
However it be, the fundamental condition that every division, seeing
that it is to be permanent, ought to satisfy is homogeneity of the
constant factors of production, viz., climate and soil. So also every
Organisation Project to be perfect must be based on natural divi-
sions of the forest.
CHAPTER III.

GENERAL STATISTICAL REPORT.
— AEE

The simple inventory of the forest is not enough to enable one
to draw up the complete Organisation Project. It of course shows
what descriptions of produce can be furnished by the forest ; it gives
the quantity and the qualities of the different kinds of wood and
timber it is capable of producing ; it even affords data for finding out
when its various portions could be exploited. But for our purpose
it is indispensable to know besides:—(i) the wants and special
interests of the proprietor, the extent to which he can seek to satisfy
them and the means he has at his disposal in order to obtain that
result ; and (ii) the economic conditions in which the forest is placed,
and the state and form in which its produce is employed and brought
into consumption.

An examination of the whole body of facts connected with pro-
duction forms the necessary point of departure for all forest organi-
sation. This examination we have termed the GENERAL StaristtI-
cau Repvort of the forest. Its object is to ascertain what descrip-
tions of produce and what results the Organisation Project should
seek to obtain. This Report necessarily deals with facts relating to
three orders of perfectly distinct ideas :—(i) Administrative Circum-
stances, that is to say the facts on which are founded the rights of
proprietorship and the circumstances under which these rights are
exercised ; (ii) Physical Circumstances, i. e., the existing factors
themselves of production, a knowledge of which furnishes a general
picture of the forest; and (iii) Economic Circumstances or, if you
will, the relation between the wants of the surrounding country in
wood and timber and the interests of the proprietor,
ADMINISTRATIVE CIRCUMSTANCES. 79
§ 1. Administrative Cireumstances.

The chief points of information to give under this head are as
follow :—

The name of the forest and its geographical, political and
administrative situation.

The name of the proprietor and the nature of the rights of
proprietorship. This right may be absolute or limited. Occasion-,

ally the right of property in forests is subjected to the most7singular
legal or conventional restrictions.

Area of the estate and the state of its boundaries. The facts
relating to its demarcation, to the erection of boundary marks, to
disputed portions, to its settlement map should be stated, and even
discussed here, if necessary.

Origin of the property and its history, as far as that can be
traced back. This historical record includes two most important
classes of facts, viz., prescriptive rights and former treatment.

Actual condition of the estate, whether wooded or not through-
out its whole area. Adjoining estates which surround it, whether
fields or forests, towns or villages.

Other kinds of produce besides wood often possess considerable
importance, for instance, grazing, game, and minor produce. This
is the place to describe the circumstances under which they are
obtained and the relation they bear to the ligneous produce.
Besides the preceding, there may be a great variety of special facts
to record. Moreoverinformation must always be given respecting the
administration of the estate and the means employed for protecting
it, two points of very great interest. Thus it should be stated what
officers are charged to administer it, and the character of the task
entrusted to them may be dwelt upon. Details should be given
concerning the nature and extent of the offences committed or the
dangers to be feared, such as fires, damage caused by game, &c.
The strength of the protective establishment entertained should be
given, followed by a statement as to what degree of efficiency we
ought to expect therefrom and the modifications that may be called
for.
80 PHYSICAL CIRCUMSTANCES.

The taxes and contributions levied on the forest and other
expenses incurred on account thereof also require a short reference,
followed by estimates or proposals of various kinds.

Frequently the administrative circumstances of a forest are
exceedingly simple and may be summed up in a few words on the
constitution of the property, its history and management. The
facts to record in that case are obvious and well-known ones. But
sometimes, on the contrary, the questions to be considered are of
quite a special character, such as undivided property, heavy pre-
scriptive rights, civil suits, public servitudes, want of an outlet, and
other facts of the first importance, which cannot be mastered with-
out laborious study, and which at times even require an immediate
solution before the work of organising the forest can be taken in

hand.

The simple suggestions which precede suffice to indicate the
lines to follow in describing the administrative circumstances of any

given forest.

*

§ 2. Physical Circumstances.

The general study of the climate, the soil and the component
crops of a forest is by no means simply a résumé of the detailed
description of the compartments. It is rather the synthesis of that
analysis, so formed as to give a clear idea, unencumbered with
diffuse details, of the forest considered as a whole. Thus this
study gives a picture of the forest sketched out in broad lines go as
to bring out in bold relief its general condition.

In describing the climate, the first thing to note is the situation
of the forest, ¢.¢, whether it lies on level, undulating or hilly ground,
whether it forms a portion of one or several river basins, at what
height above the sea, or above and below the surrounding country
it is. The names of plains, hills, mountains, rivers, &c., should be
expressed, whenever possible. After this the climate is qualified,
from the point of view of temperature, by one of the five terms of
the scale adopted for France. It is hot, mild, temperate, cold or very
cold according to the species found indigenous in the locality and
FORMATION OF WORKING CIRCLES. 89

Thus, for instance, it seldom happens that when those differences
are at all pronounced, different rotations are not necessary. The
work of separation being now complete, each portion thus arrived
at forms a separate Working Circle.

All the various crops composing a Working Circle ought to
require ‘one and the same Rotation. The length of the rotation
depends on the climate, soil and species. These vary more or less
from compartment to compartment, so that, strictly speaking, the
rotation would be different for each compartment. But it is clear
that unless these differences are marked, it would be absurd to
consider them to be opposed to the inclusion of the compartments
in question in the same Working Circle. No one can fix within ten
years the exact exploitable age of high forests of our large species or
within one or two years that of our copses. Hence it is only when
differences of 30, 40 or 50 years in the case of high forests, and of
from 5 to 10 years in the case of copses present ‘themselves between
two several compartments, that it is necessary to place these in
different Working Circles. Such differences cannot be discovered
uutil after the Working Circles have been formed; but facts that
help to discover them must be noted, as for instance, the girth of
the trees at known ages.

A proper Gradation of Ages ina Working Circle is necessary
in order that the series of annual exploitations may go on continu-
ously without any hitch and that all the standing timber may be
felled at the right time. This gradation can never be dispensed
with, but in order to be able to extract more or less equal quanti-
ties of exploitable wood every year it is enough if we have certain
principal broadly defined age-classes represented in sufficient
proportions. Thus we must have in each Working Circle old high
forest, high forest, high poles, low poles and thickets, or, in more
general terms, at least these three great classes, viz., old, middle aged
and young crops. After what we have just said, it is obvious that
if the old crops, instead of covering one-third of the whole area,
occupies only one-sixth, they are in insufficient quantity.

It is often very difficult to satisfy this condition of the grada-
tion of ages. Thus it may happen that a certain age-class is
insufficiently represented in the forest or is too irregularly distri-
duted to be included in each of the natural Working Circles.

12
Missing Page
Missing Page
Missing Page
Missing Page
Missing Page
Missing Page
Missing Page
Missing Page
“90 “FORMATION OF WORKING CIRCLES.

“There is no way ef getting out of this difficulty but by’ maintaining,
-as far as possible, as Working Circles the old cantons or working
‘units of the forest,-and, stil! further, by running the boundary lines
“of the Working Circle right ‘through the ‘large age-groups, so as to
distribute them equally between the several Working Circles. The
effect of this may be to give the Working Circles very unequal
areas, In this respect, the shorter the rotations are, the easier is
‘the work of forming convenient Working Circles, for then the dif-
-ference between the youngest and oldest age-groups must naturally
be slight, It is desirable to have the age-groups in a Working
Circle succeed each other in more or less regular order, to admit
-of the observance of the Rules for laying cut coupes. For this
‘purpose the Working Circle ought-to be in one piece or, at the least,
-its different portions ought not to be mixed up with those of another
Working Circle. In the second place, it is expedient that the crops
~composing any-one age-class should be situated all together or, at
‘the outside, form not more than two separate groups.

The boundaries to choose-for Working Circles should be natural
‘Jines such as ridges in hilly country and, to say the least, roads:on
‘level ground; ‘for it is evident that a Working Circle should form a
‘homogeneous whole and a real working-centre. All arbitrary lines
-cut- through the forest would be entirely out of place.

All foresters agree in admitting that a Working Circle ought to
‘be neither very large nor very small. If small, the number of the
‘Circles in a single forest becomes very large and, as a consequence,
the various exploitations become numerous and scattered. The
‘result is complication and disorder, comparatively high general
working charges, more extensive injury to the crops adjoining the
‘coupes, and occasionally extreme risks from the breaking up of the
leaf canopy. A forest of silver fir may be ruined by being split
up into too many Working Circles. If the Working Circle is large, it
must contain a great many compartments. The result of this is that
its organisation becomes more difficult ; cost of carriage and working
reaches a high figure owing to the great distance of the dwellings
of a large proportion of the labourers employed and of the wood-
working factories, and to the over-crowding of some of the export
roads; the produce of the exploitations is liable to be left long en-
cumbering the coupe; and lastly the, coupes being large, rege-
FORMATION OF WORKING CIRCLES. 91

neration becomes-difficult: Some hundreds of. acres devoid of any
shelter or some thousands of tons.of wood worked out all in one
locality cannot but:be accompanied with-great-risk. So much said,
nothiag is more variable than. the area. to give to Working Circles
and noe limit can be suggested in this respect. Nevertheless Work-
ing Circles-of high forest:containing from 1250 to 2500 acres and
those of copse covering from 375.to 750 acres are -free from the
defects-noted above. The difference between the relative extent of
a Working Circle of high .forest:and one of copse is due to the fact
that, acre for acre, the annual .cutting goes over more ground ina
copse than in.a high forest. Moreover the produce of the former,
less important,as it-is;not only on account of its lower value but
also of. its nature and. quality, does not command such large and
ready sale as high forest produce. .

Th forming his Working Circlés,the Aménagiste must be guided
by his Boundary Plan and the data he has collected together in
forming and describing hiscompartments. He must begin by noting
the great natural divisions formed by ridges, rivers, main roads, or
cultivation. Such divisions are ordinarily few in number. Then con-
sidering each of these great divisions separately, he can easily judge
what portions require a special.method of treatment or a particular
rotation. Next: he must take up each of these smaller portions one
by one, and observe: how the crops of the principal age-classes
are grouped: together or distributed. He will thus end.. by:
defening one or more of his Working Circles. Butif he is. obliged
to make some special. arrangement in order to obtain a convenient
distribution of the age-classes in. each of these Working Circles, he
has besides to form a correct estimate-of the promise held out by the
different crops, to consider. in.what various ways. he can make the
most of them.and to combine all the resources at. his disposal in such.
a manner as to minimise the disadvantages of. a defective gradation
or distribution of. the age-classes. On this subject no rules can be.
laid. down: it is-entirely a question of professional savuir faire..
CHAPTER  V.

DETERMINATION OF THE ROTATION OR AGE OF
EX PLOITABILITY.

 

 

os

The first thing to determine in organising a forest is the age
of exploitability or the rotation to adopt. On this depends not only
the size and sum total of the timber produced but also the quantity
to be removed in the annual exploitations.

A Rotation properly so called is applicable only to a canopied
collection of trees, As regards solitary trees or the individuals of a
canopied collection of trees considered singly, the age at which they
become exploitable, varies from tree to tree according to the special
growth and surroundings of each; for them, therefore, what we
would have to determine is not the age at which they would become
severally exploitable, but simply the condition or the size of the
exploitable individual taken generally.

SECTION I.

AGE AT WHICH QUANTITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY IS REALIZED.

The end of Quantitative Exploitability is of course the produc-
tion ot the largest amount of material. Here we are concerned not
with the total quantity of produce accumulated at any time ina
forest but with the quantity obtainable within a given time, in
other words, the average sum of production of the soil. This, we
have already shown, does not exist for individual trees but only for
a canopicd collection of trees considered as an organic whole.
Hence if it were possible to watch the progressive development of
such a collection of trees from the very moment that it came into
existeace, the question of finding out the mean annual production
would be simple enough. For in that case, to ascertain the mean
annual production at any time we would have only to measure the
NOTATION FOR QUANTITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY. 93

cubical contents of the standing wood, add thereto the contents of
the trees that have disappeared whether from natural causes or by
the hand of man, and divide the total'thus obtained by the number
of years expressing the given age. The quotient is the mean annual
production of the soil at that age. The age at which this mean
is highest would be that of the Quantitative Exploitability of the
forest. But to carry out a complete series of experiments of this
nature would require perhaps a hundred years, and the Aménagiste
could not obviously afford to wait so long. It is of course a good
thing to undertake them whenever the history of the forests or
portions of forests concerned is accurately known! But it is not
every forest that offers such convenient data, and the general solu-
tion of the problem has still to be provided for. The Aménagiste
must ascertain somehow or other the mean annual production of
the forest he has to organise. We, therefore, give another method
for obtaining this mean,

Instead of watching the progressive development from year to
year of the same crop, we look out for crops growing under identical
conditions but of different ages, Such crops can of course always
be found and they enable us to obtain at once all the data we
require. We have thus only to ascertain for each crop its age, the
contents of the standing material and the quantity of produce to
be thinned out before it reaches the age-class next above its own.
We thus obtain for any given crop the total cubical contents per
unit of area, say per acre ; and this divided by the number of years
which expresses the age, gives us the mean annual production at
that age, and, as before, the age which corresponds to the highest
mean is that of Quantitative Exploitability. For example, the mean
annual production is, say, 10) cubic feet at 20, 175 cubic feet at 40,
210 cubic feet at 60, 220 cubic feet at 80, and 215 cubic feet at
100 years ; then the rotation which corresponds to the Quantitative
Exploitability of the forest in question would be about 80 years,

In selecting the trial crops referred to in the preceding para-
graph, we must be careful that they are as complete as possible,
since they are supposed to represent the maximum production of
the soil at the respective ages. Besides this, in point of fertility,
they should represent the average conditions obtaining in the

 

(1) This is prescribed in Forest Department Circular No, 145,
94 ROTATION. FOR: QUANTITATIVE: EXPLOITABILITY.

Working Circle that has to: be organised, for we- have to considér:
not this or that: particular portion of the Working Circle- but the:
whole of it as. an. organic unit. The age of the youngest of the:
trial crops-need’ not be less than that-at which-the stoek. becomes.
marketablé, and it matters little how great the difference is between:
the respective ages- of:any two of these crops;-but one condition:
they must all fulfil, they should be dense: enough to-require being:
thinned. In-the fitst place, unless they be so, they cannot be con-.
sidered to be as complete: as-possible;-and'in the next’ place, once:
the cubical contents of the standing wood in each has been estimated,
we can-at once-proceed.to-thin and measure up the quantity thin-
ned'out. The produce yielded by a crop in thinnings is a quantity
that must be. known. in. order. to enable one todeal with: the older
trial crops.

After: the: thinning in any given crop has. been made, the
number of the trees remaining should be counted. The next older
crop: should contain, before being thinned, the same number of trees
more or less, for it is evident that it is only by comparing the
number of trees standing at different ages that. we cam be sure that
the crops have been suitably selected and that each crop: is an exact
counterpart of the immediately younger one modified by time. The
degree of fertility of the soil in the several crops has-to be the same,
and there is nothing to indicate this except equality of the number
of the trees in any two consecutive crops, the younger one taken
after, the older before, being thinned, it being granted that each
of these crops is as full as it can be. The reason of this is clear,
for it is obvious that the number of trees standing in any full crop
is inversely proportional to the fertility of the soil.

A complete series of such experiments can rarely be made in
the same Working Circle, since for this purpose it would have to
contain in itself every one of the trial crops required, all of them as
full as possible and representing the different stages of the same-
ideal crop. Now there are even species (like the silver fir, for
instance, which was formerly everywhere treated on the Selection.
System) that form only in exceptional cases crops composed of trees
of the same age. Another difficulty is that it is only recently that
regular thinning operations have been adopted as an integral and
necessary part of the treatment of forests, the consequence being
that in existing crops of any age they have been made only since
ROTATION FOR QUANTITATIVE ‘EXPLOLTABILITY. 95

the last 20 or 30 years. Hence such creps are not in the condition
in which they might have been, had ‘they been thinned -regularly
from an earlier age as soon as thinnings became necessary. More-
over the-degree of severity of a thinniag is not without-its influence
on the ‘total production of the soil, the extent of this influence beiug
still but-little known.

But if a complete series of experiments can rarely be made,
partial experiments of this kind are frequently .possible and furnish
general data of great importance. Thns nothing is easier than to
find out the cubical contents of a uniform crop together with its
age. And as the quantity of the produce yielded by the thinuings
already made is on record, a small arithmetical calculation gives
approximately the mean annual production since the appearance of
the:erop. By this means we -have been able to ascertain that the
Quantitative Exploitability of high forests of our large species
generally is reached towards ‘the end of the first century and is the
longer delayed, the slower these forests thin themselves under the
action of natural forces alone. Again we bave copses exploited at
‘all ages between 20 and 40 years, and there are even many in dif-
ferent localities which have been left standing with a view to con-
version into high forest and which are now from 40 to 80 years old.
These copses show that the mean annual production of a simple
‘copse goes on increasing beyond the age at which it ought to be
exploited to obtain an abundant regrowth from the stool ; and, more
than this, that the Quantitative Exploitability of copses is attained
‘only towards their fiftieth year, a little earlier or a little later,
according to the component species and the prevailing classes of soil,

It is even possible to tell by certain peculiarities or physical
signs whether a given crop has become quantitatively exploitable.
At this period it has passed the stage during which growth in height
is rapid, and it has acquired nearly all its natural length of bole ;
it has become completely fertile, and, growth in height being practi-
cally at a-stand still, the forest has begun to thin itself naturally.

Thinnings made by the hand of man precipitate this result ; but
the point on which their importance chiefly rests is that they obtain
from the forest and render available for consumption a larger
quantity of produce, and this too at an earlier age, than if the forest
were allowed to thin itself by the natural struggle for existence
36 ROTATION FOR QUANTITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY.

‘petween the trees composing it, as they expand their crowns,
Moreover the produce of thinning operations is more considerable
during the first half of the life of the crop operated upon than during
the other half. The consequence is that they affect our calculations
as soon as the middle.age of the crop has been reached, and they
do this, if not as a constant quantity divided by an increasing
number corresponding to the advancing age of the crop, at least as
a quantity increasing less rapidly than the age, Taken into account,
this produce has the effect of diminishing the mean annual rate of
growth during the years that succeed the most productive thinnings,
as compared with the mean annual rate of growth during the ini-
mediately preceding years, and it thus hastens or even suffices of
itself to bring about the maximum mean annual production sought.

The explanation of this is simple. It is an established fact
that differences in the annual sum of production in any complete
crop, from being well-marked during the first years, become slight
later on; and it is equally well known that thinnings scarcely, if at

 

(1) We will illustrate by figures the meaning of this paragraph.

Suppose a full-cropped acre aged 90 years to have just been thinned, the
stock left standing measuring 5040 c, ft. and the total outturn of all thinnings
made hitherto being 2520 c. ft.; then the average annual production per acre

5040-2520
—— = 840c. ft.
90

 

at 90 years =

Similarly suppose the crop at 120 years just before being thinned to contain
6720 c. ft.; then,
67204-2520
— #770 c. ft.
20

 

Average annual production per acre at 120 years =

Thus although we have assumed the annual production to be constant
the produce of the thinnings of itself suffices to reduce the average annual
production in the space of only 25 years from 840 to 770 cubic feet. If we
continued the series, the average annual production, supposing T to be a con-
stant, would be represented by the general expression

; T
P+ —
n
where P= annual production, T= total produce of thinnings, and n= age of crop,
But actually T is naturally not a constant and hence the thinnings cannot
affect our calculations “as aconstant divided by an increasing number cor-
responding to the advancing age of the crop.” It is easy toshow that they
must affect our calculations “asa quantity increasing less rapidly than the
age”; for if this quantity increased at least as rapidly as the age, then
T
—-oe Dn
n
or To n?

i.e. T would have to increase in an absurdly impossible ratio (Translatot.)

+
ROTATION FOR QUALITATIVR EXPLOITABILITY. 97

all, affect the annual sum of production, for the judiciously thinned
crop, thanks to the full room for unimpeded development thus af-
forded to the conserved trees, makes as much growth as the un-
thinned crop would have done. Hence the yield of the thinnings is
so much over and above what could be obtained from the same crop,
if no thinnings at all were made.

To resume in general terms what precedes, we may say that
experiments relating to the mean annual production of forests show
that the extreme limits between which this mean attains its maxi-
mum are, on the one hand, the young high-forest stage or the age
of complete fertility and, on the other, the natural opening out of
the leaf-canopy when the trees have reached complete maturity and
the soil begins to deteriorate by the reason of incomplete cover
overhead.

SECTION II,
AGE OF QUALITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY.

A tree presents its highest sum of utility for unit of volume
when it has reached the largest dimensions it can acquire while
still remaining sound. For whatever it is, whether oak, silver fir
or any other species, its timber is then adapted for the most varied
purposes and is, as a rule, bouud to be used in such a manner as to
satisfy the most important wants. Now it is impossible to foretell
what precise use will be made of timber that is to be felled many
years hence, or what other wants may not by that time arise, that
will require the same wood. Hence the only sure way to produce
the most useful descriptions of timber is to grow trees of the largest
dimensions possible and that chiefly because they will thus be suited
for the greatest number of purposes possible.

The wastage in working up timber being less in the case of
large logs, it follows that, volume for volume, large timber in the
log contains more utilisable material than pieces of smaller size.
This remark applies with less or greater force according to the
species concerned ; for instance, it is much more important that oak
and pine, which contain comparatively a considerable proportion of
sap-wood, should be obtained of larger size than silver fir or beech
in the employment of which no difference is made between the

13
‘98 ROTATION FOR QUALITATIVE EXPLOITABILITY.

cheart and sapwoods. Again large Jogs can be cut up into more
~useful scantlings ; thus they may be first cut up into quarters before
undergoing further conversion, or ‘they may be sawn up into broad
scantlings whieh are in great demand -for certain purposes. This
advantage becomes most striking in the case of species valuable for
certain special characters, notably so in that of the oak, the ash &e.
To resume in a few words what precedes, we may say that the largest
logs are destined to supply the most important wants and this more
fully both as respects quantity and quality than smaller pieces,

The-heartwood of trees: does not improve with age; on the con-
trary it deteriorates by gradually losing some portion of its com-
ponent clements, and even begins to decompose, as is proved by the
various alterations of colour which old wood undergoes. If it isa
desirable thing to obtain large trees, it wculd be no less undesirable
to let them deteriorate standing. Now experience shows that the
deterioration of standing timber does not begin except with the
‘decay of the tree, so that instead of waiting until that stage super-
venes, we must fell all trees as soon as they are mature.

This latter stage, which precedes the beginning of decay, can
be recognised by a visible loss of vigour; the annual shoots remain
very short, the foliage becomes spare and of a dull green. The stage
of decay on the other hand, shows itself by the loss of important
organs ; some of the principal branches in the top of the crown die,
and in consequence the foliage ofthe tree is entirely wanting in
places. For each species the mature tree and the tree in full decay
are recognised by special physical signs. The mature oak possesses
only a few scattered leaves which turn yellow early ia autumn and
begin to fall from the top downwards; entering the stage of decay,
it becomes stagheaded. The mature silver fir possesses a tabular
crown completely flattened at the top, and the lower branches are
but scantily furnished with leaves; when decay sets in, the crown
loses its shape and, from having been circular, its outline becomes
irregular. Sometimes premature decay occurs. It is either acci-
dental and special to the tree affected, or general throughout a forest,
When accidental, it may be due to a broken branch, for instance, or
to any other extraneous cause. To recognise it, it is neceasary to
examine the crown, the bole and the butt-end, including the visible
spread of the principal roots, If the decay affects trees in a general
ROTATION FOR NATIONAL EXPLOITABILITY. 99

manner throughout the forest, it may be traced to the character of
the soil, which may, for example, be deficient in lime or rest upon
an impermeable sub-soil. Such decay consists in the decomposition.
of the heart of the tree at an early age. Actual experience.
obtained in working a forest can alone show whether the trees in ‘it,
are affected. or not in this. manner.

The conditions of Qualitative Exploitability can: be practically
realized only in. the case of trees that are felled one by one, like thie
standards of a compound copse and the trees in a forest worked by
Selection, whenever the object in view is to obtain-the highest sum
of utility from each individual tree. In this case, the total produc-
tion of the soil is not taken into account, either because it is of no
consequence, or because it cannot be estimated. Indeed the loss
of material that may result from the maintenance of trees that over-
top others is slight, when such trees stand far apart; for they too
produce wood and this wood is more useful by reason either of its
superior size or because it often belongs to more valuable species
than the overtopped trees.

The age of maturity is. very variable according to the species
concerned. It is rather late for the oak, the silver fir and the larch,
and early for the heech, the spruce fir and the Scots’ pine. In any
case, without an examination of each individual tree and the posses-
sion of professional experience, it is impossible for any one to say
whether a given tree is-in full growth, or is mature, or has begun.
to decay.

SECTION III.

RoTAaTION CORRESPONDING TO NATIONAL. EXPEOITABILITY-

The only way to obtaia frim the soil the full amount of pro-
duction of which it is capable, and above all to employ every square
inch of it in the production of timber of large dimensions, is to rear
canopied forest. Hence in order to realize the highest sum of utility
possible, we must grow our trees in leaf-canopy and better still in
canopied forest composed of trees of the same age, as far as that is
allowed by the nature and habit of the various associated species,
Now such a forest does not furnish the most useful produce it can,
yield until it is quite mature, whereas it returns the highest sum
100 ROTATION FOR NATIONAL EXPLOITABILITY.

total of production of which it is capable at a much earlier age. In
order to obtain the highest average yield possible of produce, that
is at the same time the most useful the forest can produce, are we to
exploit it at an age intermediate between the two ?” Certainly not,
It is at the age of maturity itself that we must exploit it, just as we
do wheat, fruits and other produce of the soil in general.

We know that the average sum of production of the soil of a
canopied forest decreases but little so long as the forest is full and
composed of vigorous and healthy trees. Let us now enquire in
what way the usefulness of this production increases with the age
of the forest. The variety of purposes to which any piece of timber
is applied, depends principally on its size. Timber dealers hence
divide the various descriptions of wood in the market into size-
classes, depending chiefly on diameter. The highest ¢lass of course
commands the highest prices, for no piece of wood is placed in that
class, unless it is suited for employment in the most important
industries. Itis impossible to estimate directly the value which
wood commands in any single one of these industries, since that
depends not only on the use made of the wood in that particular
industry, but also on the relative quantities of such wood consumed
by them severally, so that this value is subject to great fluctuations
according to time and place. Hence the most logical classification
of woods must be founded on the price of unity of volume. As long
as the selling rate of any class of wood has a general and steady
tendency to rise, we may be sure that it is required by certain in-
dustries, which are willing to outbid all others in order to obtain
it. That industry will pay moce for it, which is most in want of it.
From what precedes, it is thus clear that the utility of wood goes on
increasing continuously with its size until it reaches the first class
of commerce.

The same result is obtained if we compare the receipts realized
at different ages. The value of the standing timber on agiven area,
from its first appearance to the time the trees attain the first class
size of commerce, does not increase in exact proportion to its age,
but more rapidly. For instance, if the total value of the crop at the
latter age, say in this case 160 years, is £2000, and at the age of
120 years £ 1500, then at the age of 80 years, it would be very far
from fetching £1000. Thus an increase of marketable value is a
ROTATION FOR NATIONAL EXPLOITABILITY. TOR

test that its utility has also increased. It follows then that whether
we wish to obtain the highest sum of utility or the largest:
receipts, we have never any reason to exploit a forest before its:
timber has attained the first class-size of commerce. The age
at which this occurs is the lowest limit for a rotation that realises.
the conditions of Natitional Exploitability.

We must except from these remarks those forests, of which the-
soil is not good enough to enable the trees to attain the required
size. It is obvious that in no case ought the rotation to exceed the
age of maturity, but since the thicker a log is, the more useful it is,
it follows that the first-class size of commerce is necessarily as nearly
as possible that, which that species generally attains before begin-
ning to decay. It thus happens that, as arule, the maturity of a
canopied forest is reached soon after the age at which first-class
marketable size is attained, and just before that at which it begins
to decay. The interval between these two ages is more or less long,
depending on the species and forests concerned. In any case, the
moment when decay begins is the superior limit for the rotation
corresponding to National Exploitability.

It is thus easy to determine this rotation with perfect certainty
within a very few years of the real figure. By keeping as near as
possible to the age of the maturity of the crops concerned, there is
no danger of making a mistake.

The maturity of a canopied-forest, like that of a solitary tree,
is also manifested by a marked loss of vigour of growth. The leaf-
canopy becomes lighter than during the period of sustained vigour ;
seedlings of the principal species now make their appearance, if they
did not exist before ; or, if they did exist before, they now begin to
push forward. But these signs, although generally similcr for all
forests, present certain characteristic differences according to the
species of trees composing any particular forest.

The two limits of age between which the National Exploitability
of a forest is comprised, véz., that at which the standing timber
acquires first-class dimensions from a commercial point of view, and
that at which decay sets in, always offer two definite starting points
by means of which to determine the rotation. If we work from the
lower limit, we must ascertain by careful ring-countings on felled
102 ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

trees the age at which the minimum diameter required/is attained.
When there is choice: in the matter, the trees selected for these
experimental ring-countings should be such as have grown in cano-
pied high forest under the average conditions of fertility special to
theW orking-Circle concerned ; those that present any exceptional
characters should be rejected: The highest figure obtained from the
ring-countings should be fixed for the rotation, since it is better to
be above the minimum diameter required than to run the risk of
having to exploit the trees before they have acquired that diameter
But in practice, as a rule, the best trees found for these experimental
ring-countings do not quite satisfy all the points required of them;
for example, old crops, if they are present, may not be growing under
the average conditions of fertility, or may not have yet acquired the
desired dimensions ; or they may be entirely wanting in the Work-
ing Circle. If we were obliged to work with trees of larger girth
than the minimum required, it would be easy to determine, on a
section of the trunk, the age at which they reached this minimum.
But if such trees have grown in an isolated state, as they often do,
what are we to conclude as to the dimensions that would be acquired
ata given age? And if large trees are absolutely wanting, a cir-
cumstaace of not unfrequent occurence, what is there to do but to
fix the rotation by analogy ?

However it be, it is obvious that individual judgment must
always, and to a considerable extent, come into play in the deter-
mination of the rotation to adopt. The greatest risk we run is, no
doubt, that of arriving at too lowa figure for the rotation. The
effect of this would of course be that we would cut too fast the trees
that have already attained the exploitable girth, and thus in a short
time have no exploitable trees left to cut,

SECTION IV.

DETERMINATION OF THE AGE OF COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

The object aimed at in subjecting a forest to the conditions of
Commercial Exploitability is to obtain the largest income from the
total sam in cash represented by the value of the forest. This sum
is treated exactly like moveable capital, and is expected to yield
the highest rate of interest possible. But the income derived from
wooded land is necessarily periodic; any particular portion of it
‘RATAFION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY. 163

‘yields no money return except once after a more or less long series of
years. The income derived from and the capital sunk in the forest
do not increase in the same ratio as the years goon, The question to
resolve is, therefore, the determination of the age at which the forest
should be exploited in order to obtain from it the largest income
eompared with the capital invested.

This problem is capable of a single general solution, and also
presents some very important special cases. The general solution
is.applicable to woods composed of trees of the same age, such as
simple copses and. all perfectly uniform canopied masses of trees,
‘The most important particular cases are those presented by the
standards of a compound copse and forests worked by Selection.

§ 1. Rotation applicable to a Wood composed of Trees of
Uniform Age.

Fr Given a compartment of average fertility—if not a compart-
ment, say a coupe or even an acre of forest; the problem before us
is simply to determine the age at which the crop standing on this
area ought to be cut. This will also be the age for exploiting the
other coupes or portions of the Working Circle, that are placed in
the same conditions of production. Thus this age is itself the rota-
tion sought. The procedure to follow depends on the following
proposition :—

The revenue derived from the exploitation of a uniform cano-
pied forest is necessarily periodic, and increases for every year that
the forest is aliowed to stand. The revenue for each year represents
the g-mount of interest on a certuin definite capital, calculated at the
customary rate of interest expected frum investments in forest pro-
perty. The capital corresponding to each year’s revenue, therefore,
increases from year to year like the revenue; and hence the most
profitable revenue, 1. €. the age of Commercial Exploitability, corres-
ponds to the largest resulting capital.

In order to find the age at which a given forest composed of
trees of the same age becomes commercially exploitable, we must
first of all determine the various figures of the respective receipts
obtainable at regular periods for a series of years; then by a simple
104 ROTATION FOR ‘COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

‘sum of arithmetic capitalise these figures. The highest capitalised
value gives us the reqnired solution. Suppose, for instance, that
the periodic receipts determined experimentally are as follow :—

At 20 Vears...sercerseeeee £16
gp 2D yy eaelalieeece ete £ 24
500. | gar eRe a eeindnes £ 37

Se «a aaa eon ae
ADP iene onan
The ‘capital corresponding to each of these figures can be
obtained from tthe formula,

R

C=—_--——
(1+2)*—1
Where C= the capitalised value sought.
R=the revenue to be capitalised.
and n=the no. of years at the end of which
the revenue is periodically obtained.
i= the interest on £1.
Take in the present instance 4 per cent as the rate of interest ;
Then 1=0.04
and C, i. e, the capital capable of yielding every twenty years
an income of £ 16
16

(1+0.04)791
In the same manner, C at 25 years= ,, 14-8— 2

= £ 13-8—11

Sinise Seiaeaeie Seems s see sie esiere seins 30... =,, 16-9—10
a bideig Maelo S aide Dabs Raw RS ON wins 35... =,, 16-5—10
sinisled siuealaye sloa'e aide dle salenais 40 ... =,, 15-5— 2

The highest capitalised value here, viz., £ 16-10-0, is obtained
at the end of the 30th year, which is tantamount to saying that the
age of Commercial Exploitability for the forest in question is 30 years,

If the customary rate of interest for forest investments was
3 per cent we would have the following figures for the capitalised
values -—
At 20 years............ £19—15—0
iO ep, erhaiier yee
ZED) ce seuxumen BSD
he ee », 26— 9-32
ce "| ern cites Ga

Here then the maximum capital would be realized at the age
of 35 years,
ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY. 105

Even a priori it appears obvious, that to the highest capitalised
value capable of yielding a periodic income in perpetuity corresponds
the largest income derivable from the capital actually sunk in the
forest, and the highest rate of profits. We may nevertheless proceed
to prove this proposition, a task by no means difficult. The value
of any property whatsoever depends on the income it yields and the
customary rate of interest required on their money by persons in-
vesting in such property. The value of a field that can be let for
£160 per annum, free of all charges, is £160 x ” ="£4000, if
the customary rate of interest in the locality in connection with land
under cultivation is 4 percent. On the other hand, if the customary
rate of interest is only 2 per cent, the value of the field is £ 8000.
Similarly the value C of a wooded estate, which yields every »
years a periodic net income R, is given by the formula as shown
above: viz:—

Now each of the respective periodic receipts derived by exploit-
ing the forest at different ages is represented by a certain capitalised
value. Of the various capitalised values thus obtained, one must be
higher than all the rest. That value is the true value itself of the
estate after the wood has been exploited, that is to say, of the land
with its stools and seedlings; for the land as such would yield to
any one the same proportion of income compared to capital invested,
since he has only to exploit at the right age. And indeed the estate
is bought or sold at that very price, calculated, as it is, by capitali-
sing at the customary rate of interest the income which any one
could derive from it; this customary rate is itself a proof of the
fact.

But this value is always the market value of the estate at
whatever age, judiciously or injudiciously chosen, the owner ex-
ploits the standing crop. If any other figure than that corresponding
to the highest capitalised value is obtained as income from that
forest, it follows that the capital represented by the value of the
forest is made to work at a lower rate of interest than that customary
in the locality, in other words, at a loss.

We thus see that if we wish to obtain from a forest the
largest possible income as compared with the sum sunk therein, we

14
106 ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

must exploit it at the age at which the capitalised value of the
receipts is highest. It is the only way to make the investment pay
the utmost it can, in other words, yield the local customary rate of
profits expected by owners of forests. That rate is really the
highest at which money invested in forest property can be made
to work. If we exploited before the age in question, the capital
value of the land would be excessive compared with the resulting
receipts; if we delayed beyond that age, then there would be so
much time lost without any compensating financial result.

It is important to know that the lower the rate of profits is, the
later will the forest concerned become commercially exploitable.
The example given above shows this clearly. Conversely, the more
rapidly the periodic receipts increase, the further must the exploita-
tion of the forest be postponed jin order to secure agiven rate of
profits. The reason is that as the amount of compound interest
increases in steady progression, the receipts from the forest must also
increase in like manner to keep pace with the former. Now the
receipts froma forest, from being at first ntl, increases afterwards
with large strides, and this often during a considerable time; but
the manner in which it increases is entirely difterent from that in
which compound interest accumulates, steadily and without any
limit. Thus itis always a little after the receipts from a forest
cease to increase as rapidly as before, that it becomes commercially
exploitable.

The procedure to follow in determining the rotation of a forest
subject to the conditions of Commercial Exploitabitily is sure and easy.
Tables have been constructed giving the valueof the expression
aqprcrfor different values of iand n. Such a Table is that marked
Til in M, Nanquette’s Cours d Exploitation! The only thing left to
do is thus to multiply the number taken in any given case from that
Table by 3, 4 or 5 several figures, representing the periodic receipts
of as many years, and noting the largest product thus obtained. This
procedure is much more important than people imagine.. As arule,
forests are cut too early, without their owner being at all aware
of the fact. Such proprietors, by recognising their error and exploit-
ing at the right age, would never fail to increase their forest income,
sometimes even by as muchas 25 or 33 percent. In actual practice,
the determination of the rotation corresponding to Commercial

 

(1) This Table is reproduced in au Appendix, which see. (7'ranslator.)
ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY- 107

Exploitability presents certain difficulties, which ought to be known
in order to be overcome or avoided, As regards the periodic
income realisable at any given age, say, for instance, at 25 years,
that sum is none other than the value of the standing crop at that
age. To determine it by actual experiment, the crop chosen for
the purpose should be complete, and placed under average condi-
tions of fertility; without the first condition, the results obtained
could not represent the whole sum of production possible, and
without the second they could not be applicable to the whole
Working Circle generally. All this is a question of appreciation
and judgment, which is by no means very difficult to resolve. But
often and, we may say, in the majority of cases, crops above the
age fixed by the Rotation heretofore adopted, are entirely wanting,
and yet we must have them to obtain all the necessary terms of
comparison. Under such circumstances there is no alternative but
to seek out analogous types amongst the surrounding crops, for it is
impossible to picture to oneself, with any degree of accuracy, the
future state of a crop, by simply noting its present condition, and
arguing from it what the state of the crop will be so many years
hence.

We have seen above that the age of Commercial Exploitability
varies with the customary rate of profits demanded from invest-
ments in forest property. But forests constitute, by their very
nature, great properties, which do not go into the everyday market
like smaller things. They have, therefore, no well established
market value. Hence the determination of the customary rate of
profits from forest property is as difficult as it is important. The
best way to obtain it is generally to take as a starting point the
customary rate of profits demanded from investments in cultivated
land-—farms, for instance, a class of property which has a great
analogy to forests. That rate is well known. The next step is to
enquire whether investments in forests in the particular locality in
question are expected to pay a little more or a little less than
cultivation; this fixes approximately the rate songht, which is the
corner stone of all subsequent calculations. Although, with suck
precautions, we may not be able to determine exactly the age of
Commercial Exploitability, yet this much we can certainly do, viz.,
find out whether it would be expedient to lengthen or shorten the
present rotation.
108 ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

§ 2. Age of the Commereial Exploitability of
Coppice Standards.

The question to resolve here is to ascertain, for each species im
the forest, at what age it would be most profitable to exploit the
standards. In the first place, it is obvious that this age must be
some multiple of the Rotation adopted for the underwood; and, in
the second place, it is no less obvious that the age determined for
asingle tree will also apply to all other trees of the same species

placed under similar conditions of growth.

In order to aseertain after what age the value of a standard
ceases to increase at the customary rate of profits obtaimed from
investments in forest property, it is sufficient to compare the a-
mount realisable at each age, on the one hand by felling the tree,
and on the other hand by preserving it. By exploiting the tree,
its price could be placed out at compound interest at the customary
rate, and with the same degree of security as if the tree were stand-
ing, while, in addition, a new growth would be coming up on the
site of the exploited tree. On the other hand, by preserving it, the
tree would acquire an additional value with increased size, which
additional value could be ealeulated, thanks to its older neigh-
bours. As long as that value exceeds the loss of compound interest
and new growth gained in the other ease, it is profitable to preseve
the tree

(1) Take, for example, the case of an oak standard of average growth, the
rotation being 25 years and the customary rate of returns on investments.in
forest property 3 per cent. Suppose its value at different ages to be as

follows —
Asastandard of 25 years........ Is.

 

” 7 7 50 7
” ” 75 5,
” » » 100 ,,
x” 3° 7 125 ”
Ww 7 PD 150 »”

Suppose the standard of 25 years to be preserved for one rotation ; the
increased value would be 4 shillings. On the other hand, suppose it to be cut ¢
to draw a comparison, we must balance against the 4 shillings iu the first case the
total compound interest on 1s. at 3 per cent for 25 years, viz: Is. 1jd. +the value
of the shoots from the stool of the felled standard, say 2s, total=3s. 14d. Thus
there would be a net gain of 103d. by preserving the standard of 25 years until
it was 50 years old.

In the same manner, as regards the standard of 50 years, we would have
on the two sides respeetively 1ds., and 5s. 53d. (compound interest) + say 4s.
(value of the regrowth) — 93, 5$d. Thus there would also be a gain in preser-
ving the standard of 50 years till its 75th year amounting to 5s, 6}d.

Similarly by preserving the standard of 75 years for another 25 years, the
net gain would be 4Us, — (21s. 10}d. + say 68.)=12s. Hd.

But by preserving the standard for 25 years more, that is to say until its
125th year, there would be a net loss equal to (65s. 73d. + 8s.)—60s. =
338s. 73d.

Thus the oak standards in the forest in question must be cut at the end of
the 4th generation 7, ¢. at the age of a hundred years, supposing always that
present prices continue unchanged.
ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY. 109

In practice certain real difficulties are encountered. The first
consists in the determination of the progressive value of an average
or type tree. This progressive value is the basis of all subsequent
calculations. The selecting of the type-tree requires a great deal
of savoir faire, since there are no two trees that grow alike, espe-
cially in an isolated state, and no rule can be laid down to enable one
to know that a certain tree 75 years old is the exact counterpart
of what a tree, now 50 years old, will become 25 years later.

In the next place, when marking the trees to fall, it is necessary
not only to. know the age of the various trees from which a selection
ean be made, but also and chiefly their state of growth. If the
veteran of 4 gemerations or rotations is making poor growth, it cannot
acquire that additional value which would constitute a reason for
preserving it for another rotation; it must therefore fall. But
inversely, if the veteran of 5 generations has a full and ample
crown, it is certain to acquire, in the course of another rotation, a
value superior to the mean value of veterans of 5 generations, and
it may therefore be found profitable to preserve it. It is no inconsi-
derable advantage to have in a compound coppice coupe a few large
trees ; they at once raise the value of the whole coupe. Such trees
attract eager purchasers, who would otherwise not have come forward,
and thus help in disposing of the small wood.?

The loss resulting from the cover of the standards need not
cause any great concern, when they belong to valuable species pos-
sessing a light cover, like the oak, the ash, the service tree, and even
the aspen. Near the foot of an isolated oak standard it is a
common thing to find some young growth coming np, But such is
not the case under a beech or hornbeam tree. The injurious effects
of cover diminish as its height increases. In any case the loss sus~
tained by the underwood can be estimated with the eye, by taking
out the difference between the quantity that has actually grown
under cover in any given case, and what might have grown up had
the cover been absent,

The impossibility of foreseeing how the prices of wood and
timber will fluctuate in the future is of little consequence here,

 

(1) To understand the force of this assertion, ‘the reader must remember
that in France the produce of an entire coupe is sold standing wholesale. .
Henee the purshaser mnst buy the whole quantity or none at all, (Translator.y
110 ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY.

and tke continued rise in the market value of builders’ and artifi-
cers’ wood which is likely to take place, is a sufficient reason for
entirely leaving out of account the effects of cover. We may even
limit ourselves, in the majority of cases, to comparing the value at
different ages of the trunk only, of formed trees, paying no atten-
tion whatever to the contents of the small crowns. The calculation
thus simplified would still give sufficiently correct results.

§ 3. Age of Commercial Exploitability of the Timber of
a Forest worked by Selection,

The growth of the trees in a forest worked by Selection is
irregular and unequal and often differs to an extreme degree from one
tree to another. While one individual has a diameter 8’ at the base
at the age of 50 years, another, although measuring no more, may be
100 years old; in other words, there is no definite proportion of
any kind between size andage. But as the very first condition of
all is to keep the leaf-canopy continuous, the exploitations ought not,
speaking in a general sense, to touch any trees but what are already
fertile, nor, in a particular sense, any trees but those surmounting
a young growth capable of taking their place. This gives us the
lowest limit of age at which the forest becomes commercially
exploitable. To remain below it would be simply the ruin of the
forest and if proprietors, goaded on by a speculative fury, are often
led to destroy their forests, it is not with the idea of treating the
latter as forest property but as an entirely different class of
investment.

Now the trees of a high forest worked by Selection, when they
have reached the age of fertility, stand, as a rule, well apart, thanks
to the removal of their original immediate neighbours, From this
time, therefore, their annual increments can be measured. These
increments all tend towards a common mean, if not throughout the
whole Working Circle, at least for entire compartments taken
in groups. Suppose, for example, that silver fir trees gain a radial
increment of 1/10 inch per annnm. Granted so much, we can tell
how many years it would take for a certain tree to attain a given
size or acquire a given market value,
ROTATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITABILITY. 111

A tree now 16” in diameter and worth say £1 would, in 20 years,
measure 20” in diameter and be worth £2-8-0. In 20 years more
the diameter would be 24” and the price nearly £5, or double that
20 years previously.

Such data as the above enable us to institute the same kind of
comparison between values at different ages, as was pointed out
higher up in the case of coppice standards. But we must be very
careful that much more is left here to individual judgment than in
the latter case, both as regards the determination of the basis of
calculation and the application of the method to trees greatly
differing in the manner of their growth.
CHAPTER VI.

ORDER TO OBSERVE IN THE EXPLOITATIONS.

— 0b atoo—

Once the exploitable age of a Working Circle has been deter-
mined, we know at once what descriptions of produce we may
expect to obtain from it. We are then in a position to direct the
exploitations in such a manner, as never to cut anything that is
not exploitable, a condition that is in reality the very first that:
every Organisation Project ought to satisfy. But the order in
which the various crops should be successively removed is a matter
of no little importance. The order in which the compartments
ought severally to be taken up, is first of all indicated by the age
and promise of the standiug stock. But, on the other hand,
the location of the coupes is subject to certain special rules, the
observance of which is always useful and sometimes obligatory. It
thus happens that in order to conform to these rules, itis often
found necessary to modify the successive order of the cuttings,
which a consideration of the age alone of the crops would require.

The Rules for locating coupes belong to the province of
Sylviculture, in works on which art they will be found enunciated
and discussed. They have been drawn up in as simple aud general
a form as possible. The objects to be secured by observing them
and the results consequent on their being neglected are clearly
defined in such works. These Rules are not, however, entirely
cultural in their scope, and belong equally to the subject of Forest
Organisation, in which art they occupy an important place. We
have already had occasion to refer to them in treating of the
formation of compartments and the constitution of Working Circles.
And we shall be confronted by them at every new step we make
in the theoretical study of Forest Organisation, as well as in the
“ ALLOCATION OF FELLINGS. 113

daily practical work of the Aménagiste. We have seen that the limits
of age, between which a forest may be profitably exploited, some-
times include within them an interval of a great many years.
We can, in a certain measure, exploit early or late, without ceasing
to obtain from it the same class of produce as, although it may be
of slightly inferior quality to, what we might have obtained by
removing the standing material precisely at the right time. A high
forest which is required to furnish the highest sum of utility it can
yield, may be exploited at any moment between the time when its
irees have just attained the first class dimensions of commerce and
the age at which they begin to decay, A simple copse worked as a
commercial investment may be exploited a few years early or late,
according to the fluctuations of the market, or in consequence of
accidental circumstances, or even on account of the necessity of
having to observe the Rules for locating coupes. We may
therefore, always satisfy all the conditions of the Exploitability
adopted and at the same time conform sufficiently closely to the Rules
for locating coupes. Besides, each of these Rules may have in
certain cases its own special influence in regulating the order
of the exploitations.

The First Rule relates primarily tothe successive order of the
cuttings to be made, and only secondarily to their form. It directs
that all coupes shall be laid out on the ground in the successive order
in which they are exploited, and be given the most regular form
possible. Nownothing could be more simple and natural than to
have the cuttings following each other on the ground in unbroken
succession, in the order of their respective dates. Such regularity
not only secures most important cultural advantages, but without
it the other Rules for locating coupes could not be observed. It
ensures the exercise of effective control and supervision over the
felling operations, which are then concentrated over a manageable
area, at the same time that its effect is, by necessarily keeping the
woodcutter at a distance, to protect the growing crops. It is the
best guarantee we can have that every crop is given the full time
it requires for its complete development, since the exploitations
cannot return to or near any point until they have successively
passed through the whole of the rest of the Working Circle. The
necessity of this Rule becomes glaringly obvious in those forests
where it has becn neglected. The worst disadvantages inherent in

15
114 ALLOCATION OF FELLINGS.

the Selection System follow from its unavoidable neglect of this
Rule. The origin of the confusion prevailing in our plain forests
and of the bad condition in which they are found, is to be traced
to the same cause. In those forests, in former times, the old crops
went on decaying in certain secluded corners, lost in the midst of
the most varied crops. Even at the present day, ill-stocked areas,
incapable of any improvement whatsoever, and scattered here and
there in the midst of other compartments, are sometimes allowed to
stand on, while, owing to the absence of exploitable timber, young
and valuable crops are destroyed. In copses the necessity of the
First Rule for locating cuttings is so obvieus that it is enforced
without question before every other Rule, the only exception being
when its observance would lead to the felling of timber still far

removed from its exploitability.

If, as if often the case, the distribution of the various
age-groups does not permit of the observance of the First Rule
from one end of the forest to the other, we can still do without such
extreme regularity. We need be able to exploit successively in
this manner only a whole natural block or a large group of crops,
in order to secure all the advantages resulting from an observance
of the First Rule. If after this, the felling operations have to go
with a bound to some more or less distant point, we sacrifice none
of these advantages, provided there again we meet with a similar
block or group of compartments admitting of uniformly successive
exploitation. Indeed it is rarely that we have to pass from one
block to an adjoining one without a break in the succession of the
cuttings, and, as a rule, it is much more important in arranging the
succession of the cuttings from one block to another, to be guided
by the condition of the crops than by theiraye. It is thus, by
taking collective groups of crops or compartments, or, as a rule,
cantons, separately one by one, that the First Rule for locating
coupes should be applied; in other words, the regularity in the
succession of the annual coupes on the ground need not be absolute,
but may vary within certain limits according to the forests con-
cerned. On the other hand, when in any block the ages of the
various crops are so different, that the First Rule for locating
coupes cannot be observed except by neglecting all considerations
of Exploitability, that Rule must yield the place to such consider-
ations, The only exception is when the very existence and
ALLOCATION OF FELLINCS. 115

maintenance of the forest depends on its observance. In the
generality of cases, it is enough if we endeavour to secure as much
regularity as possible, while attending strictly to the requisite
conditions of Exploitability. At the next exploitation either the
desired regularity can be fully secured, or a further step made
towards its attainment. However it be, we cam never hope to
obtain an absolute regularity, for during the long lives of forest
crops many unforeseen circumstances may always arise to disturb
the prescribed regularity. It would therefore be the height of folly
to strive to realize an impossibility and sacrifice for uncertain
results the growth of valuable products.

The deductions we have drawn with respect to the First Rule
for locating coupes, the most important one of all, apply also
more or less to the rest. The Second Rule directs that the
exploitations shall be distributed in such a manner, that the
produce obtained may not have to be carried through coupes
recently exploited. The removal of wocd, and especially the
transport of large logs, requires considerable room in the very
midst of the forest. That operation is a fruitful source of injury,
often irreparable, amongst coppice regrowth, and, generally speaking,
in all young standing timber. The Second Rule for locating coupes
thus prescribes the means for avoiding such mischief. In organi-
sing a forest, it should be applied compartment by compartment, so.
that the compartments farthest from roads may be exploited first, as
also all elevated portions of steep slopes, the timber from which has
to be slipped down, or dragged through the crops lower down. As
regards the manner of applying this Rule, each canton or zone of.forest
situated along a singleslope should be considered separately, since
it is naturally independent of every other. To speak more general-
ly, this Rule need be applied only by separate groups of, compart-
menis, each group being served by the same road.ar export line,

In copses there is never any crop old enough to allow of carts
or timber passing through it without injury. Each coupe of
copse must, therefore, possess at least one. export road that does not
pass through any other coupe. ence tlie necessity of extending
such coupes right down to a road, so that each road may serve a
number of coupes, situated on either side of it; hence also the
expediency of cutting bridle paths which also answer the purpose-
of export lines.
116 ALLOCATION OF FELLINGS.

The Third Rule for locating coupes requires that they should
succeed each other in the direction contrary to that of dangerous
winds. Thus while the First Rule compels the Aménagiste to
make his cuttings succeed each other on the ground in the order of
their age, the Third Rule prescribes the direction in which they
should so follow each other. The winds here referred to are such
as are dangerous, either by their violence, or by the steady manner
in which they blow, or by the moisture which they bring. The
chief object, which this Rule is designed to secure, is to afford the
necessary shelter to reserved trees left standing far apart in
High Forest Regeneration Coupes. by the exploitation of those
surrounding them. But even the, so to say, ramparts- formed by lofty
canopied high forest, are not, once they are breached by the
exploitations, proof against injury from winds, unless the latter
have no access to them. If, therefore, dangerous winds blow from
the South-West, this rampart must be opened by the exploitations.
only on the North-East side. If such winds come rushing down a.
valley, the coupes should follow each other from below upwards.

The Third Rule may thus compel the Aménagiste to moJify
the succession of the cuttings that he may have adopted in any
group of compartments before considering it, and the modification:
may go so far as to completely reverse the order of the successive
exploitations first determined upon. Indeed it is easy to conceive:
that the circumstances of the case may be such that without so
reversing the order originally chosen, it would be impossible to
satisfy, at one and the same time, the requirements of both the
First and Third Rules, while still satisfying the conditions.of the
Exploitability adopted.

The Third Rule for locating coupes is of universal appli-
cation both in hill and mountain, and in plain forests. It is not
only useful for the preservation of standing forest, but it also.
favours reproduction and growth in many ways. Shelter, often a
necessity, almost always of great utility, exercises its action a
considerable distance off. In level country this action is felt ever a
belt of ground, the width of which is 20 times the height of the:
sheltering object. Thus a mass of canopied forest 80 feet high.
protects from the wind the adjoining land over a breadth of 1,600:
feet. ‘The beneficial effects of shelter are as great as the injury
ALLOCATION OF FELLING, 117

caused by cover over a narrow strip of a few yards is slight; as @
rule, while the former are always clearly perceptible, the latter is
not noticed atall. This was not the place to insist on that fact, were
it not for the necessity of proving beyond dispute the general
utility of shelter in Forest Conservation. This utility is more or
less great in simple copses according to their situation; it is very
great as regards the standards of compound copses. In high forests
the presence of shelter is a necessity for the Regeneration Coupes ;
in conifer forests it is the first condition for successful reproduction
both because it prevents the reserved trees from being blown down
and because it favours the sowing of the ground and the protection
of the soil. At high elevations the necessity of shelter is so great
that it renders the consideration of all other requisite conditions
entirely secondary ; there the presence of constant shelter becomes
necessary to the very existence of the forest, and this circumstance
may necssitate the adoption of the Selection System, when
the configuration of the ground alone does not afford the required
shelter.

Thus the observance of the Third Rule for locating coupes
is obligatory under the most various circumstances. In applying it,
each independent, naturally sheltered portion of the Working Circle
should be considered separately. Itis rarely necessary to take up
the whole of the Working Circle en dloc, in such a manner as _ to be
unable to stop the exploitations at some one spot in order to resume
them at another. But it must be observed that the continued
neglect of this Rule can only be repaired with the utmost difficulty.
Indeed it might happen that the only way to effect it would be
to take up the coupes in thereverse order at the mext series of
exploitations, a circumstance which the succession of the age
elasses on the ground would nearly always render impossible.

The Fourth and Fifth Rules for locating coupes refer solely
to hill forests. The former directs that all exploitations on sloping
ground shall begin at the bottom and work successively upwards.
The reason of this is, that in hilly country the effects of the wind
on forests become more dangerous as the elevation increases on the
same slope. By cutting from the bottom upwards, the portions of
the forest under regeneration are protected by the standing canopied
mass above it, while they at the same time receive the seed shed by
118 ALLOCATICN OF FELLINGS.

the latter. According to this Rule a group of compartments forming
a continuous belt on the same slope must be worked from the
bottom upwards. The Rule in question is excellent, provided the
gradient of the slope is not too steep: On slopesso steep that wood
cut on the upper portion could not be removed except by having it
dragged or slipped through the portions below, the young growth in
these latter must inevitably be destroyed, or at least suffer consid-
erable injury. This happens on all slopes which we have qualified
as steep 7. e. which exceed 1in 3. In that case the Fourth Rule
has to give way to the Second and the exploitations must begin at
the top with certain precautionary restrictions to be now described.

When the slope runs up to a considerable hetght, it is seldom
that itis not divided off into terraces, each terrace containing a
road or path running more or less horizontally, or offering capabili-
ties for the construction of such road or path. Each such terrace thus
forms an independent, compact mass of forest as regards the removal
of the standiag timber. The Organisation Project should, therefore,
fix the exploitation of the successive terraces according to their
relative position, beginning with the lowest in accordance with the
Fourth Rule; but for each taken separately, the observance of the
Second Rule may require the exploitations to work from the top
downwards.

In any case, an excellent plan, when the slope is wooded right
up to the top, is to maintain intact a belt of forest at the highest
point, broad enough to resist the force of the strongest winds, while
the lower portions are being exploited. In elevated situations, such
protective belts can only be worked by Selection. When the
climate is not very rigorous, they may be completely cleared
last of all.

The Fifth Rule for locating coupes requires them to be long
and narrow, and to present their least dimension for the-wind to
impinge upon. It is only an extension of the Third Rule. It may
be usefully observed in copses, but its chief raison d’étre is in hilly
or mountainous country, But it is connected more with the laying
out of the annual cuttings, which is an operation tobe left to the
discretion of the executive officer, than with the general prescrip-
tions of the Organisation Project. However useful the object of
ALLOCATION OF FELLINGS. 119

this Rule may be, it is necessary, in spite of it, to avoid giving the
compartments or cuttings on a slope too great a length in the
direction of the slope, especially when that is very steep. Other-
wise all work would become very costly and even the Organisation
Project might be detrimentally affected thereby. It is better, under
such circumstances, to divide the slope: off by one or two lines
running transversely to the direction of the slope and forming,
whenever possible, practicable export roads.

We thus see in how various and complex a manner the Rules
for locating coupes enter into the organisation of a forest. Often
the conditions they impose are satisfied without any intention or
consciousness on the part of the Aménagiste, but not unfrequently
they are, in like manner, altogether neglected. A special study of
the various parts of an Organisation [Project, moreover, shows how
intimately those conditions enter into the economy of a forest.
BOOK IIT.

THE WORKING SCHEME IN THE ORGANI-
SATION OF HIGH FORESTS,

GENERAL NOTIONS.

 

Havine decided what Régime, Method of Treatment, and
Rotation or Age of Exploitability to adopt for an entire forest, or
for each of the several large masses which compose it, the next
step is to prescribe the series of exploitations that must be made in
each compartment, to fix their serial succession for the whole of
each Working Circle, and to ascertain the annual yield. This work
constitutes what we will call the WorkiInG SCHEME; itis the very
pith of the Organisation Project, and is the law which is to govern
the foresters charged with the execution of that Project.

The Working Scheme is generally drawn up in tabular form
embodying in one or two statements the prescriptions relative to
the exploitations, so that any one may take inthe whole series at
a glance. The particular form differs according to the method
of treatment to which the Working Circle is subjected, since the
nature and succession of the cuttings, as also the manner of
determining and expressing the yield, necessarily vary with the
method of treatment.

High forests worked by the Natural Method yield extremely
variable products according to the age and dimensions of the wood
cut. The timber removed in the Regeneration Fellings comprises,
what we will term, the PrincipaL PRoDUCE of the Working Circle.
The Improvement Cuttings, which are made while the forest is

1
2 GENERAL NOTIONS.

growing up, yield produce of minor importance, which we will desig-
nate the Accessory! Propuce of the Working Circle.

In foresters’ parlance, we thus include under the name of
PRINCIPAL PRODUCE the timber obtained from the series of Repro-
duction or Regeneration Fellings, and usually also windfalls and
dead standing trees; while the ACCESSORY PRODUCE comprises all
the wood cut in the thinnings and weedings, or, speaking in general
terms, in the Improvement Cuttings.

In high forests worked by the Natural Method, the yield of
principal produce is expressed in cubic measurement. With equal
areas exploited annually, the quantity of material obtained would
often differ very considerably from year to year, while it would.
besides be impossible to predict, within several years, the date of
the appearance and establishment of the new generation of seed-
lings, for the favourable development of which the number of the
reserved trees acting as nurses must vary from point to point,
according to the quantity of light required. Every attempt
hitherto made to fix the yield of high forests by area has ended in
unsatisfactory and, often, even disastrous results. On the other
hand, it is expedient to base the yield of the accessory produce of a
Working Circle on area, and not on cubical contents. The advan-
tages attaching to this procedure are many; it is more simple, it is
the surest means of securing the return everywhere of the thinning
operations at the right time; it is the only way of preserving for
these operations their essential character of Improvement Cuttings,
since it leaves to the executive officer complete liberty of action as
to the quantity to exploit, his on'y pre-occupation being how best to
improve the growth of the forest.

The Working Scheme must satisfy several essential conditions.
In the first place, it must, as far as is practicable, be so drawn up
that each compartment may reach its turn for regeneration more or
less near the age fixed for the exploitability of the forest. It must,

 

1.) This class of produce, accessory both from the Sylviculturist’s and Amé-
nagiste’s points of view, must not be confounded with the class of produce
termed also accessoire in official language. This latter word is used for produce
whether ligneous or otherwise, derived from communal forests, and which are
not liable to the Government charge of 5 per cent. for cost of adminis-
tration. In the state forests such produce is termed minor produce,
GENERAL NOTIONS. 3

moreover, distribute the annual exploitations of principal produce
according to the requirements of the Rules for locating coupes.

Again, it is very important that the annual outturn should be
sufficiently equal during the whole rotation. This condition of a
sustained yield may be realized in high forests worked by the
Natural Method, by exploiting during equal periods either equal
quantities of produce or simply equivalent areas ,i.e, areas of equal
productive power. Here we observe the point of departure for the
two different methods employed in the drawing up the Working
Scheme for such forests, which constitute as many different methods
of Forest Organisation. One of these, comprising several modes of
procedure, we will call the VoLtumETRIc Merton, the other we
will term the METHOD oF EQUIVALENT AREAS, We shall examine
each method separately; but before proceeding to do so, it is
necessary to define clearly the practical value of the fundamental

idea that essentially underlies them both, namely, the realisation of
a sustained yield.
CHAPTER 1.

A SUSTAINED YIELD.

 

IN high forests, the yield of which is based on volume, it would
seem possible to realise the condition of a sustained yield by
dividing the total quantity of the timber to be felled during the course
of an entire rotation by the number of years in the rotation. But
this quantity would include not only the actual contents of the
standing timber, but also the total annual increment of each crop
up to the time of its exploitation. Now it is impossible to estimate
with any degree of exactness the future increment of crops, that are
still to grow on for a long series of years, up to the time they reach
their turn for exploitation. It is for this reason that it is a point
of doctrine in forest organisation to divide the rotation for high
forests into a certain number of periods, and to estimate successively
beforehand the yield of the given forest during the currency of
each of them. To this end, the exploitations to be made during
the course of the rotation are arranged in their order of succession
and grouped together according to the periods into which they fall,
in such a manner as to obtain as nearly as possible equal quantities
of produce in equal periods of time. This distribution of the
annual exploitations may be effected either according to volume or
to area, and itis in this that lies the distinctive character of the
two methods of forest organisation. The next step is to determine
the annual quota of the produce to be exploited during the first
period. The same process is repeated at the commencement of
each of the following periods of the current rotation, and, if on
passing from one period to the next, the calculated yield of the
forest is found to be appreciably the same asit was for the First
Period, it is clear that the yield is a sustained one; conversely, if the
conditions necessary for assuring a sustained yield have been
correctly determined and established, the annual yield of the forest
cannot vary, or, at the worst, it will differ but little from period
to period,
A SUSTAINED YIELD. 5

To assure a sustained yield and to estimate at the beginning of
each period the annual yield during that period are thus two perfect-
ly distinct operations in the organisation of a high forest. The first,
which is the more important of the two, consists, we have said, in
the proper distribution of the exploitations between the periods of
the rotation. Now in whatever way the distribution is made, it
stands to reason @ priori that it is impossible to succeed at once in
perfectly equalizing the total quota of produce for each period.
The problem of assuring a sustained yield is thus not only a
difficult one, but also one, of which we can ubtain only an approxi-
‘mate solution. It even often happens that it is impossbile to
fassure a sustained yield without having to exploit a certain number

f the crops either too late or too early. It thus becomes a
‘question of importance to ascertain, from the very beginning, how
' far it is the interest of the proprietor of a given forest to secure a

sustained yield and thus have the annual or periodic quota of
"produce equal.

The limits between which the yield of a forest may vary, while
still remaining sufficiently uniform to be considered sustained,
depend on the condition and situation of the forest, and, above all,
on the character of the proprietor.

If the proprietor is a private individual, his main object will
be to obtain the largest pecuniary profits from his property. As a
rule, he will not pay any attention to the equalization of the annual
or periodic quota of produce, and will admit no other principle but
that of the satisfaction of his own personal wants and the increase
of his wealth, He will exploit and sell on a large scale when the
demand is high, and will diminish or entirely suspend his exploita-
tions when the market is dull and prices low.

Nevertheless, if he possessed a real forest, which would ordi-
narily form no small part of his wealth, he could not afford to
neglect all considerations of a sustained yield by suspending his
exploitations, unless he was in a position to obtain from some
source other than his forest the annual income which he required.
Such a happy combination of circumstances is, however, the excep-
tion and not the rule, and the necessity of having a sustained yield
6 A SUSTAINED YIELD.

is only too often felt by him in its fullest force, the result being
premature exploitations at the sacrifice of capital and income in
the future.

If the owner is a Public Foundation or a Commune or Muin-
cipality, it is necessary to determine the capacity of its forest, and
assure the yield being sustained as accurately as possible. It is
obvious that the Commune is an imperishable collection of indivi-
duals, every generation of which has an equal right to enjoy the
income derived from the communal property, either by receiving
its own share of the produce, or by selling it in order to cover the
annual budget expenditure. The same is the case with Public
Foundations, But Communes and Public Foundations both par-
take of the same character as the State as regards their constitu-
tion, while they resemble the private individual in that they are
subject to constantly pressing needs, since their resources are, as
a rule, limited, and are often represented wholly by the produce
of their forests. Every year their budget expenditure is based upon
the quantity and value of this produce. It thus becomes important
to correctly determine in advance the annual quota of such produce,
which must on that account vary as little as possible from year to
year. Besides this, it is indispensable to preserve and to save up
resources in ordinary years in order to provide against future” un-
expected contingencies. The law itself has provided for this by
ruling that one quarter of the forest of every such proprietor shall
be reserved in view of extraordinary wants. Very often the condi-
tion of assuring a sustained yield, which places an effective check
on immoderate cuttings, becomes an essential guarantee for the
preservation of a communal forest. It is for this reason that the
Royal Edict putting into force the Forest Code, while refraining
from laying Communes under the obligation of organising their
woods with a view to increased production and the rearing of high
forests, has at least fenced round the exploitation of their
forests with wise restrictions. To respect these restrictions is of
the highest importance.

Lastly, in the case of forests belonging to the State, the question
of assuring a sustained yield may be subordinated to the treat-
ment which the crops stand in need of. There can be no dispute
that the duty of the State is to bring into existence the largest
A SUSTAINED YIELD. y

quantity possible of produce required for the daily wants of the
population, as well as to guarantee an adequate supply of timber for
large civil and naval public works. The state forests ought, therefore,
to be subjected to that Régime and Exploitability, which, taking into
account the constituent species and the special conditions of vegetation,
shall guarantee the production of the most useful material. It is
moreover evident that as the wants of the State and of Society, which
is co-extensive with it, are ever changing, the state forests ought to be
able to satisfy for all time, within the limits of the possible, the
multifarious wants of the nation. It thus follows, firstly, that these
forests ought to be so worked that the exploitations are annual and
the quantity of produce the same from year to year ; and secondly,
that in treating and working those amongst them which are com-
posed of the more valuable species, there ought always to be a cer-
tain number of reserved trees fit for exploitation at any moment.
The object of maintaining this ReserveD Funp of standing timber
is to provide against unexpected demands, like those of the navy
and the army in time of war.

Such are the principles on which must be based the determina-
tion of the quota of the annual cuttings in state forests, principles
the application of which would be easy, if all these forests were
regular and composed of the better species, and if each one was
subjected to the Régime, Method of Treatment, and Rotation that
suited the most valuable of those species. But many of them are
irregular and composed chiefly of inferior species, or are exploited
at an age and according toa method of treatment which do not
obtain from them the highest sum of usefulness that they could
yield. Hence, it is necessary first ofall to improve the actual
constitution of these forests, and to bring them little by little into
a better condition.

To effect the transformation or improvement of a forest, there
is often no alternative but toneglect for some time the condition
ofa sustained yield,in order to carry out in a successful manner
the cultural operations. Still this neglect of one of the funda-
mental principles of forest economy may prove in the end to be
more apparent than real ;}for, if, instead of considering the parti-
cular forest by itself, we take into account the production of all
those situated round the same centre of consumption, we shall
8 A SUSTAINED YIELD.

often find an equilibrium established on the whole by compensations
between restricted cuttings on the one side and abnormally large
cuttings on the other. Often also, in organising any given forest,
it is possible to combine the exploitations in its various component
Working Circles in such a manner, as to have the general yield of
the whole forest appreciably the same from period to period. Let
us in the last place add that the continuous improvement of our
export lines and roads allows of amore equal distribution of forest
produce throughout the country, and of its easy export from one
district to another, so that the supply at once responds to the
demand.

To summarise what precedes, we see that it is necessary, in
organising high forests, to endeavour to combine the exploitations in
such a manner, as to obtain sufficiently equal quantities of produce
in equal periods of the rotation. Nevertheless, ifin any given forest
there is no exploitable timber at all to be found, it is certainly better
to wait till the older portions of the standing stock are completely
mature, than to fell them when they are, as it were, on the eve of
acquiring all their finest qualities. If, on the contrary, old timber
is abundant, while the age-class next below itis insufficiently re-
presented, it is expedient to distribute the exploitation of this old
material, already exploitable though it be, over the first two
periods of the rotation, in orcer to reserve for the next generation
the supply of large timber which it will require, and to allow the
younger crops sufficient time to reach maturity.

The reason is obvious, for the production of large timber is
the chief raison d’étre of state forests, since all other descriptions
of ligneous produce can be obtained from communal and private
woodlands as well. The main duty of the Forest Department
is thus to economize as much as possible what timber is still left
in the state forests, and to be careful not to abandon to the axe
vigorous well-formed and flourishing trees before they have
attained exploitable dimensions. This recommendation of ours
refers chiefly to our two principal species, the oak and the silver
fir, which in our climate yield timber of a quality far above the
average. Our state forests, such as they have come duwn to us,
can furnish only a small proportion of the large timber required by
the country, and we are reduced to go the foreigner for a considerable
A SUSTAINED YIELD. 9

portion of our supply of timber suited for the eabinet-maker
and the cooper. The wants of the former are supplied from the
countries round the Baltic, those of the latter from the countries
on the Adriatic. Now we know on unimpeachable authority that
the forests in the neighbourhood of those two seas are becoming
impoverished and exhausted, and at no distant date, perhaps in
less than a half a century, this source of supply will completely
cease to exist. It is necessary, therefore, now more than ever,
to apply ourselves with all the means at our disposal to the
production of large timber, even if to attain that result we had for
the present to forego a portion of our forest revenue and to neglect
for a time, comparatively short after all, the condition of a sustained
yield in our high forests.

 

(4) The forest of Fontainebleau offers to the observer at the very gates of
Paris a sight full of instruction. Out of a total area of 42,500 acres about 2,500
acres are under full-grown high forest, 5,000 acres under pole crops from 50 to 90
years old, and 32,500 acres under copse and young pine plantations, while more
than 2,560 acres consist of the bare rock. Thus out of a total productive area
of 40,000 acres, only 2,500 acres contain old timber. These chiefly cover the
fine cantons that are reserved in the interests of the artist. But had there
been no special reason for couserving these high forest crops, it would have been
not less expedient, in the interests of the forester, not to touch them except
with the most sparing hand. It would be advisable to spread their exploitation
over as long a period as would suffice to allow the next lower age-class over
some consideralle area to reacha large size. For what would happen if, to secure
a sustained yield, a quantity equal to the ineau annual production of the forest
were taken out every year? Ju less than 10 years every vestige of the full-
grown high forest wonld have disappeared. In another ten years the pole crops
would have suffered the same fate, and by the end of the present century the
memory itself of the large timber now s:auding would have passed away with
the generation that had seen it all felled. 1n those days perhaps people would
refuse to believe that the sandy soil there coulil produce tall high forest, and
for time without end this forest would be devoted toutter ruin. The most rigid
economy is now the one indispensible guarantee fur the future prosperity of
this fine forest, and the question of a sustained vield must be subordinated to
that of the proper exploitability and the requisite rest.

But it must not be thence inferred that there are cases, in which the
condition of a sustained yield may be entirely disregarded, and to such extent
as to suspend the exploitations for a time. or even ouly to reduce them to the
lowest figure possible. To understand this,a moment’s reflection is enough.
Suppose, for example, that at Fontainebleau the income, reduced to £4,000, is
barely sufficient to cover cost of supervision and maintenance, and yields no
immediate profit to the State Treasury, or that the produce extracted is too
inconsiderable to supply the town inside the forest with wood for the most
ordinary purposes, such as cooking, &e. Such a state of things could not
continue for any length of time. Very soon ther2 would be a reaction, and a too
parsimonious organisation would be partially or wholly set aside. Besides this
such excessive rigour is quite useless. There is no forest, however poor it may
be, but contains seme crops that hold out little promise, and which can
be cut, without det:imont to the forest. so as to yield a sufficient supply of
secondary produce. Thus the condition of a sustained yield is always to a
certain extent imposed on the Aménagiste, aud some means always offer
themselves by which it may be satisfied. Only to judge the right extent and to
recognise the true means require on the part of the Aménagiste an unfailing
power of appreciation and a thorough knowledge of facts.

)
CHAPTER I.

THE VOLUMETRIC METHOD OF ORGANISATION.

 

SECTION f.
WESCRIPTION OF THE METHOD.
——r 0900

THE various volumetric methods of forest organisauou are
based on the division of the rotation and the quantity of produce
into equal and corresponding portions. Among these methods we
will describe that of Hartig, from which all the rest have been
derived and which gives a good general idea of them all. To
estimate the total quantity of produce that the forest can furnish,
it is indispensable to know beforehand when each of the crops
composing a Working Circle will be fit tocut. The Aménagiste is
thus obliged to make a forecast of the vatious ages at which the
different crops should be exploited. The rotation having been
determined and the order of the successive annual exploitatious
fixed provisionally, this forecast naturally follows as the next step.
Dividing the rotation into a certain number of equal periods, the
Aménagiste must make a trial distribution of the various compart-
ments amongst these periods taking care to follow, the order mdicated
by the age of the crops and the Rules for locating coupes. This dis- .
tribution takes the form of a tabular statement, divided into as many
compartments as there are periods in the rotation, and which we
will call the ,TRraL Worxine Scueme. He must then estimate
the quantity of produce which each compartment of the forest is
likely to yield during the course of the different periods. A separate
estimate must be made for the principal and the accessory pro-
duce, for the first by supposing that each compartment will be
regenerated towards the middle of the period to which its exploi
11 THE VOLUMETRIC METHOD.

tation is assigned, for the second by adding together the. quantity
of material that is likely to fall in each compartment in the
thinning and other improvement operations during the several,
Periods of the Rotation,

This done, the Aménagiste must next sum up the total
quantity of produce that would be obtained in each. of the various
Periods. But as these sum totals can never, save by a very
exceptional chance, be equal to one another, he must set about
equalizing the quantities to fal in each Period by transfers from
one compartment of the. Trial Working Scheme to another, taking
care that he does not thereby anticipate or put off till too late the
exploitation of the crops so transferred. The first distribution of
the compartments amongst the various. Periods of the Rotation
being thus altered, the result is a second Tabular Statement which
we will term the FINAL WorKING SCHEME, or simply The. Working
Scheme. .

Then by dividing the total quantity of produce to be
exploited during the First Period by the number of years in that
Period, he obtains the annual yield, i, e. the number of cubic feet
to be removed each year from the whole Working Circle both in
the Regeneration Fellings and the Improvement Cuttings.

SECTION IL
APPLICATION OF THE. VOLUMETRIC Meraop,

The preceding analysis of the Volumetric Method shows, that
it requires two principal operations:—(i), the quantitative valuation,
of all the timber to be exploited in each compartment, both, in the
Regeneration Fellings and Improvement Cuttings during each of
the Periods of the Rotation; (ii), the equal distribution of this
produce amongst the various Periods.

We have stated above that before beginning any of these
operations the compartments must be provisionally grouped
together according to the Periods during which they would be
severally regenerated, if nothing more. but their age and the Rules
for locating coupes were taken into account. Now as the stand-
ing timber has to be felled in equa! quantities every year, we may,
for purposes of calculation, suppose each compartment to he
THE VOLUMETRIC METHOD. 12

regenerated towards the middle of the corresponding Period. This
enables us to determine, first, the probable quantity of the prin-
cipal produce which each compartment will yield during the Period
in which it will be regenerated, and, second, the respective years
in which the various compartments will be subjected to improve-
ment operations and the probable quantity of produce which each
such cutting will furnish.

Let us first note that these fizures cannot be arrived at without
complicated ealculations as to the quantity of the standing material
and its future increment. It is necessary to estimate not only the
quantity of produce which each crop will furnish at its regeneration,
but also what each compartment would yield in the thinning and
other operations during the various Periods of the Rotation, before
as wellas after the time fixed for its regeneration. In whatever
way these quantities may be obtained, they must be totalled up by
Periods, But the original distribution of the compartments having
been effected solely with regard to their age and the order of their
successive exploitation or regeneration, without any consideration
as to the extent or density of the crops grouped together under
each Period, it follows that in the Provisional Working Scheme, the
periodic quantities are necessarily very unequal. Hence, the
necessity for equalising then by judicious transfers of certain crops
from one Period to the next above or below it.

To effect this equalization, the quantities of both principal
and accessory produce for all the Periods of the Rotation, as shown
in the Provisional Scheme, are totalled up. This grand total is
then divided by the number of the Periods, and the quotient thus
obtained gives the quota of produce to exploit during each Period.
For instance, if the total quantity for the whole ofa Rotation,
divided into four Periods, is 5,000 000 cubic feet, then the quota
for each Period would be 1,250,000 cubic feet. If (to continue our
illustration), according to the Provisional Working Scheme, the
quantity of produce that may be cut in the First Period is 1,500,000:
cubic feet instead of 1,250,000, the former fizure must be reduced to.
the extent of 250,000 cubic feet by transferring the compartments
to be regenerated last to the next following Period. If,on the
other hand, the total produce for the First Period according to the
Provisional Scheme was only 1,000,000 cubio feet, then 250,000
13 THE VOLUMETRIC METHOD,

cubic feet would have to be added to it, by transferring to the First
Period a sufficient number of the compartments to be regenerated
according to the Provisional Scheme, at the commencement of the
Second Period. The same process is continued for the other
Periods until an equal distiibution bas been made. But easy as
the process seems, the final result is arrived at only after a great
deal of careful manipulation, of trial transfers and calcula-
tions; for each transfer means that the time for regenerating
the compartments concerned is changed, the yield both of the
Prinicipal Fellings and the Improvement Cuttings being thereby
altered. The effect of this is to obtain each time a new figure for the
total produce to be felled during the whole Rotation. Going back
to the case we have taken for illustration, the total quantity of
produce after the transfers in question have been effected may
be reduced to 4,800,000, and the periodic quota thus become
1,200,000. In any case, it is only in determining the quota for
the last Period, when the yield of all the remaining compartments
is added up, that the effect of the changes can be fully appreciated
and it be decided, according to the extent of the resulting
difference, whether these changes may be considered final and be
accepted for the Final Working Scheme, or a fresh series of
transfers be undertaken in order to arrive at a more approximate
equalization. In the latter case, the Periodic Distribution State-
ment last obtained must be considered as a fresh Provisional.
Working Scheme, and the process described above repeated.

SECTION III.
VALUE OF THE VOLUMETRIC METHOD.

The operations of a forest organisation based on the Volumetri¢
Method are necessarily very complicated. They imply the quanti-
tative valuation of all the standing material in the entire Working
Circle ; the estimation of the future increment of every crop up
to the moment of its exploitation; and, lastly, the determination of
the quantity of accessory produce that will be furnished during
the current Rotation by the crops, which will have taken the place of
those regenerated early enough in the Rotation, that is to say, crops
that have no present existence whatsoever. Indeed, it is the
yery essence and spirit of the Volumetric Method to determine
THE VOLUMETRIC METHOD. 14

the annual yield by taking into account every kind of produce
realizable.

In practice this method inevitably yields uncertain results,
for how is it possible to estimate the future increment, for an
interval of time as long as 50 or 100 years, of crops now much
below the age of maturity? Whatever procedure is adopted, it
can offer no adequate guarantee of accuracy.

This uncertainty of the results obtainable could not, of course,
escape the originators of the method; and, in order to avoid
an undue accumulation of errors necessafily arising from a
too low or too high figure fixed for the annual yield, they
laid down the rule that the Working Scheme was to be frequently
verified, every 10 years for instance. These frequent verifications
are a necessary concomitant of every system of forest organisation
based on volume. They amount to the drawing up each time of
an entirély new Working Scheme, since it naturally follows that all
the original crops must have undergone radical and characteristic
changes since the date of the previous Working Scheme. The
consequence is the inevitable instability of the prescriptions
relative to the treatment of the forest, and indeed of the whole of
the Organisation Project itself. The time for exploiting any parti-
cular crop, as it depends on the figure of the annual yield, of course
varies with it; and it may thus happen that all the operations now
prescribed for any compartment may have to be changed at the
next verification. Thesé disadvantages, which are inherent in the
method itself, would of themselves suffice to justify its condemna-
tion, especially in France where the desire for order, simplicity,
and stability in forest organisation had led to the universal adoption
of the system of Tire et Aire. But all volumetric methods
must be rejected on account of the very principle they imply,
Basing, as they do, the distribution of the exploitations entirely on
the element of volume, they have for essential object the exact
determination of the annual yield. Asa matter of principle, they
seek to obtain a sustained yield independently of all considerations
relative to the improvement of the forest. Whether the quantity
of old timber is excessively large or totally insufficient, a certain
fixed quota of it must be worked out every year. In the former case
the last old trees will be found in full decay by the time their
turn for exn's*‘rtion comes; in the second case, after a few years all
10 THE VOLUMETRIC MEInob.

the old tamer w.ss have disappeared and the felling operations will
then perforce include trees still far removed from their maturity.
Thus all the various systems founded on the Volumetric Method
subordinate the production of the most useful timber to the
condition of assuring a sustained yield.

Tie same is the case as regards the treatment of the forest,
since these systems lead to the regeneration of some of the crops
either too early or too late (both unfavourable conditions), and to
the execution in them of Improvement Operations either in
complete uncertainty as to the time for their regeneration, or, in the
contrary case, in view of Regeneration Fellings to be made at some
time other than that of their maturity. Now, in our high forests
of the more valuable species, the treatment, and the cultural
operations which this treatment requires, are often of far greater
importance than the mere equalization of the yield. It is thus in
our oak forests, in our numerous irregular high forests, in our silver
fir forests which were formerly worked by Selection, and especially
so in our copses under conversion into high forests, In principle,
therefore, the Volumetric Method is radically defective.

The Volumetric Method has never been adopted in France.
It had its raison d’étre in Germany at the end of the last century.
The forests there were in those days very irregular, and frequently
contained no well marked gradation of age-classes, A great
number of these were high forests abounding chiefly in beech,
and belonging to petty principalities. They furnished a very
considerable proportion of the receipts of the prince’s exchequer.
It was impossible to subject them to the Natural Method with the
annual expluitations based on area, without compromising very con-
siderably the equality of the annual returns. Besides the advantage
of securing this equality, so necessary in such forests, Hartig’s method
of forest organisation possessed another great merit: it was the first
step towards the regular organisation of high forests. Its inherent
defecta were soon discovered; its application, and criticism of the re-
sults obtained, showed at one and the same time these defects and
the manner of correcting them. The Method of Forest Organisation
by Area followed as a necessary consequence. This method has been
formulated and developed in France according to the special
necessities of our forests, and has been taught at our Forest School
for many and many a year,
CHAPTER IIt.

FOREST ORGANISATION BY AREA.

eee

SECTION L
DESCRIPTION OF THE METHOD.

_—_o—_—_——_——

The Method of Forest Organisation by Area is based on the
twofold division of the Rotation and of the Working Circle into
equivalent or corresponding portions. It begins, by first dividing the
Rotation into a certain number of, usually, equal Periods, and then
the Working Circle into as many portions, each to be regenerated,
in regular succession, during the respectively corresponding Period.
These portions of the Working Circle we will term PrRiopic
Buocks. They are intended to be explcited in equal periods of
time, and ought therefore to be so formed that they may, as far
as possible, furnish severally the same yield.

The correlative division of the Rotation into Periods and the
Working Circle into Periodic Blocks must be made according to
certain rules, which we will examine further on.

It is generally exhibited in the form of a table, in which the
various compartments belonging to the several Periodic Blocks are
grouped together according to their respective Periods, the charac-
teristic letter and area of each compartment being duly entered.
This table is thus a general skeleton plan of the exploitations,
and constitutes what we shall call the General Working Scheme.
Being drawn up once for all for the duration of a whole Rotation,
it should contain nothing more than what concerns the simple
composition of the Blocks, ze, give the compartments of which
they are composed and the order in which they are to be
regenerated.
THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME. 187

But these meagre indications would not be enough to serve ag
guidance for the Executive Forest Officer. It is therefore necessary
to complete them by prescribing the nature, succession, and extent
of the exploitations to be made throughout the whole Working
Circle. The portion of the Organisation Project which gives these
details, we will designate the SpeciaL Scueme or EXPLorratrons.
It consists of one or more tabular statements, in which are con-

signed prescriptions relative to exploitations to be made during
asingle Period only.

Thus, whereas the General Working Scheme applies to the
whole duration of the Rotation, the succession of the cultural
operations, and the annual yield are fixed for one Period only. It
follows, therefore, that at the beginning of each Period it is
necessary to draw up a fresh Special Scheme of Explojtations,
that is to say, to arrange in advance the succession of the cuttings
and similarly as before the annual yield for that Period. ‘This last
operation, in its entirety, may be termed the PERiopic REVIS|ON
OF THE ORGANISATION PROJECT.

Lastly, in order to provide against errors in the valuation
surveys and against the effects of unforeseen disasters, it is the
rule to verify the quota of the annual yield once or oftener, at
fixed intervals, during the currency of each Period.

Having thus far described summarily the Method by Area,
we will now proceed to show how to apply it to high forests that
are to be treated according to the Natural Method,

SECTION II.
FRAMING OF THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME,

The framing of the General Working Scheme for a high
forest organised by area consists wholly in the division of the

Rotation into Periods and the Working Circle into corresponding
Blocks.

As regards the Periods, it is, for the sake of simplicity, taken
for granted that they shall be equal. Now being cqual, what
ought their duration to be? We proceed to answer this question,

It has been.a subject of much vehement discussion, and yet

‘the answer to it seems to us very simple. It is the rule that all
3
138 THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME.

the crops brought under regeneration during any Period
must have their regeneration completed during that Period. Now
in the majority of our forests it is impossible to effect, in a
satisfactory, complete, and sure manner, the regeneration of a mass
of bigh forest treated according to the Natural Method, without
exercising great caution and judgment in locating the Primary,
Secondary, and Final Fellings. Hence the necessity of making the
Periods long enough to give the Executive Forest Officer sufficient
time to complete the Secondary and Final Fellings with the care, pre-
cautions, and deliberate slowness, which can alone assure the success
of such operations. On the other hand, the duration of the Periods
ought not to exceed the number of years beyond which oue could not
forecast, with a sufficient degree of certainty, the cultural operations
that the condition of the forest would require. These extreme
limits for the length of Periods seem now to have been fixed by
experience at thirty and forty years respectively, and it can only be by
exception that there would be advantage in going above or below
those figures. If we hada silver fir forest, the exploitable age of
which was fixed at 150 years, we could divide the Rotation into five
equal Periods of 30 years each, this duration of time being necessary
and sufficient for a complete series of regeneration operations,

Hand in hand with this the Periodic Blocks have to be formed.
To this end, the compartments, the regeneration of which is urgent
(that is to say, those, as a rule, which contain the oldest stock), are,
first of all, placed in the Block of the First Period, the next oldest
compartments in the following Block, and soon up to the last Period,
in which must be grouped together the youngest crops. The aim
of the organisation must hence be to bring each compartment under
regeneration as near as possible the term of its exploitability.
But in distributing the various compartments thus, the fact must
not be lost sight of that the Regeneration Exploitations should
follow the Rules for locating coupes. And as the essential points
enforced by these Rules cannot be satisfied except by laying out the
coupes in the order in which they are to be exploited, it follows, as
a matter of principle, that each Block should be formed of
contiguous compartments, or of compartments forming together
one continuous mass of forest.

Conversely, the large continuous masses of more or less uni-
form forest as regards age, into which the compartments naturally
THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME. 139

group themselves (one group consisting of old timber, another
of middle-aged timber, a third of young timber, and so on,)
determine the number and position of the Blocks, and, as a
consequence, the number and length of the Periods. If, for example,
the silver fir forest taken for illustration higher up contained four
almost equivalent groups of crops, well defined on the ground
and presenting four principal age-groups, we would naturally
divide the Working Circle into 4 Blocks and the Rotation into 4
and not 5 Periods. And as the figure there adopted for the Rotation
is not an exact multiple of 4, it would be necessary, if it was found
expedient to have equal Periods, to reduce or increase that figure
so as to make it an exact multiple, a contingency of little
consequence as respects a fir forest, which becomes exploitable
towards the age of 150 years, more or less.

In the case which we have been considering, we have supposed
that the four Periodic Blocks naturally marked out on the ground
are of equal extent or of equivalent productive power, and capable
of yielding the same quantity of produce when exploited each in
its respective turn for regeneration, A sustained yield is thus
assured, as far as that is possible, for the whole term of the Rotation,
and the Working Scheme drawn up on this basis fulfils the three
principal conditions it must satisfy.

It is seldom that the formation of the Periodic Blocks can be
effected under such simple circumstances. For the most part the
crops belonging to the principal age-groups are not distributed in a
sufficiently convenient manner for this purpose in each Block.
Sometimes certain age-groups are even entirely wanting, so that,
in order to be able to secure a continuous series of exploitations,
there is no alternative but to collocate in the Period of the Rotation
corresponding to these age-groups, crops that are either too old or too
young for the purpose. In the presence of such difficulties and of
a great many others which it is impossible to enumerate, but which
are met with in nearly every attempt at forest organisation, the
Aménagiste may find himself no little embarrassed. The conse-
quence is that itis difficult to arrange in advance for more than
one Period the succession of the Principal Fellings to be made in any
Working Circle, and still more so, to forecast the yield of each Period
of the Rotation. Nevertheless without seeking to effect a perfect
140 TIE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME.

équalization between the yields of the various Periods, it is at leas$
necessary to form the Blocks in sucha manner as to avoid too
great a fluctuation from Period to Period. ‘This object is usually
attained by assigning them eqtial areas or, in some special cases,
areas in inverse proportion to their fertility.

Thus by employing the simple procedure we have” described
for drawing up the Working Scheme, it is not always possible to
ensure a very steady yield for the whole duration of the first.
Rotation; but if each Block is regenerated in its entirety and in
its right turn during the Period assigned for it, the whole Working
Circle will be found at the end of that Rotation to be composed of
a complete series of graduated age-classes. Such a result is
undoubtedly one to be desired. Nevertheless it is mot to be
sought by exploiting any valuable crops that may exist, loug
before they become exploitable. The reason is evident, for the
essential object to be kept in view in organising any forest is, above
all, by fixing the successive order of the exploitations, to make the
most of existing crops and not to create at any price a perfect series
of crops of well graduated ages—in other words, bring’ about the
Normal Stute itself.

That state, which the organisation of every forest ought to
endeavour to make it approach as closely as possible, is in reality a
pure fiction. No forest, during the course ofa whole Rotation of
any length, can avoid escaping damage from various causes that
suffice to compromise the existence of certain crops, break up the
serial gradation of ages, and upset some of the provisions of the
Organisation Project, When, therefore, in drawing up the Generai
Working Scheme it is found necessary to include in the same
Block erops of widely differing ages, it does not necessarily follow
that all these crops need be exploited during the course of the
Period corresponding to that Block.

To establish our position it is enough to cite a few illustra-
live cases.

(1.) Certain compartihents containing young growth (seedlings,
thickets, saplings or young poles) exist side by side with the great
mass of exploitable compartments. Both sets of tompartments may
be included inthe First Block; butthe old crops alone should be
FARE CENERAL WORKING ACHEME#. al?

kecenerated during the First Period, while the young compartments
should, during the same time, be subjected to Improvement Cuttings,
viz., Cleanings and Thinnings. Similarly we may eollocate in the
last Block, with quite young crops, exploitable trees, whether these
grow apart from one another or form continuous leaf-canopy.
Under such circumstances, these latter would be exploited during
the First Period in order to effect the desirable uniformity.

(2.) Supposing that in the pine forest which we considered
higher upa fine crop of poles is, under unavoidable necessity,
placed in the First Block, because it is enclosed on every side by
the great mass of exploitable compartments. Is it necessary to
regenerate it during the First Period im order to effect the
regularization of the age-classes in the shortest possible time? We
answer, No; because to do so would be to incur a great sacrifice
for an entirely secondary object; and besides this, there is nothing
to prevent the same difficulty recurring through some unforeseen
cause. Under these circumstances the Organisation Project should
confine itself simply to prescribing Thinnings, and leave to those, who
will revise it at the end of that Period, the task of proposing the
treatment that will then be found to be necessary.

(3.) We will now suppose that we have a compartment
Containing mature and decaying timber, and that this compartment
stands in the very heart of the Third Blook; Here the procedure
would be the same as in a crop that is still young but overtaken by
premature decay.

(4 We will suppose that in order to give the most convenient
form possible to the first two Blocks of a Working Circle exploited
on a rotation of 160 years, it is considered necessary to collocate in
the First Rigck 2 compartment aged 100 years, and in the Second
a nearly equivalent compartment composed, however, of timber
150 vears old. It would certainly be advantageous, as far as the
produce alone is concerned, to exploit the compartment placed in
the Second Block during the First Period, and that placed in the
First Block during the Secor. i Period. However it be, before this
change of order could be proposed, it would be nevessary to ass1re
oneself that there would be no danger to fear from the action of the
wind in consequence of this infraction of the Rules for locating
coupes,
12" THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME.

The special circumstances just described are not the only one¢
that are to be encountered in organising high forests. Every
Working Circle, however perfectly it may be constituted, cannot
but contain compartments of different degrees of fertility due to
differences of soil and situation. When these differences do not
affect their productiveness in any marked manner, or when it is
possible to distribute more or less equally, amongst the various
Blocks, compartments possessing the same degree of fertility, the
division is effected by equal areas. This isthe most simple and the
most general case. When, on the contrary, one age-class, taken in
its entirety, occupies good rich soil, while another is similarly si-
tuated on poor soil, it is necessary to include in the corresponding
Blocks a larger area of the one than of the other. ,

However it be, the distribution of the principal exploitations and
of the estimated total yield among the various Periods of the Rota-
tion must always continue to be based on area. The result of this is
that the Working Scheme acquires thereby a degree of preeision
and stability, which enables its main lines to be laid out on the
ground in a permanent manner. On paper it may be represented
in a very simple tabular form, thus :-—
THE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

0@ 0 SFL “TBO I, 9€ § TA0 **"[8}0.L, 0 @ FSI *Te}OT, 0 0 et “**78j07,
eae on oa 0 0 a ‘od
oe 0 6 “8 IK ne a 0 0 08 a ‘od
0 O OF d od 0 & SI (7 ‘od 0 0 OO |H ‘og 0 8 & 0 ‘od
0 2 248 oO ‘od 9€ Tt 900 | ‘od 00 0 | "od 08 Le a ‘og
06 & FT N @990% -O110N VT oO @ &L 1/9} eTteL BT 0 & 9 LT} ‘199097 VT 0 0 OS | ¥ | Mgtssnoyy vy
‘d ‘a ‘Vv ‘d Uv ‘ad ‘U ‘V ‘d ‘U ‘WV
o o 9 o
& E E E
“eoly z *sucquty ‘eoly a ‘su0}UeO ealy fi *s0zUBD) ao1W e ‘euoyUBy)
o @ 2 o
E e z i
"8Z0G 9F G86L WOLT ‘S86 91 6PET WOAT "SPELT 97 GOGT Wor "S06T 99 698T Wor
agolrwaig HLw0107 aolaaig AuvIny, qolatg ANeowg qorag LSU

 

 

 

 

 

GHL ONIYAC AaLIOidxd Ta OL MOOTG AO NOILISCAdWoy)

 

‘SUVAX O9T JO NOILVLOY V NO GasINVOYO
STIOg 9 ‘SAOOY Z ‘STMOV FO9 VALV “AUAISSNOH VWI UID ONINIOM 40
QNGHOS ONIQUOM IVUANAD

 
QL THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME,

he General Working Scheme once drawn up, it is advisable
to detail the reasons justifying it and to decribe the spirit in
which it has been conceived with reference to the Organisation
Project. It is useful to discuss all its essential points, to show why
it has been preferted to every other, to explain the main idea on
which its lines have been fixed.

The chapter in which these points are discussed should be
worded in plain, sober language, free from all preconceived bias.
It ought to bring out into clear prominence all facts special to the
Working Circle and show what improvements are necessary or
feasible. It should explain to what extent the Working Scheme has
taken account of the conditions of exploitability, the Rules for
locating coupes, and the necessity of a sustained yield, pointing out
where one or more of these limiting conditions acquire greater
importance than all the rest. It should state the reason for, and
the object of, the various cultural operations that have to be
successively executed throughout the whole Working ‘Circle with
a view to its improvement, as well as the agency and means by
which these operations should be carried out,

SECTION 3.
SPECIAL SCHEME OF EXPLOITATIONS,

At the beginning of the First Period, as well as of every subse-
quent Period, the exploitations of all kinds to be made in the
Working Circle during that Period are determined upon beforehand
and exhibited in what we shall call the SreciaL ScHEME or Ex-
PLOITATIONS for that particular Period; This Scheme should show
the work to be done compartment by compartment, and should
remain within the broad lines sketched out by the General Work-
ing Scheme. Thus, to take an instance, in a regular Working
Circle the exploitations made during'the First Period would be,
for the First Block Regeneration Fellings with yield based on
volume, for the intermediate Blocks Periodical Thinnings based on
area, and for the last Block, containing all the youngest crops,
Cleanings and the First Thinning.

The Special Scheme of Exploitations should prescribe first of
all the nature of the fellings to be made in each compartment,
THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME. 145

next the successive order in which the respective compart ments
shall be operated upon, and lastly the annual extent, volumetric
or superficial as the case may be, of the various exploitations.

Usually the succession of these exploitations is exhibited in
tabular form, showing at a glance the general plan of all the
operations to be executed during the Period in question. Often
the annual yield is similarly exhibited in one or more tables, which
also contain the data from which it has been estimated.
exploitations may, to give an

—Order of the Eaploitations.

§ 1
The tabular statement of the

example, be drawn up thus

146

NATURE AND ORDER OF THE EXPLOITATIONS TO BE MADE DURING THE FIRST PERIOD FROM 1869 TO 1908.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

COMPARTMENTS. NATURE OF CUTTING,
7 RELATIVE
A
Eg me ' at end aoe
Blocks Cantona, = 3 Area. Summary description of standing crop. of Regeneration. | Improvement. | EXPLOITATIONS,
38 1868. a
A. RB. P. es Years.
A |5000 igh forest of beech and oak, somewhat open. 150 Regenera- wee + |The re; :
( B | 37 2 0 |High forest of beech, oak, and hornbeam; leaf tion Fellings. } ; these Seeeuate
canopy complete. ....sessssserenereseneesetteeee| 160 Do. . ee © poled alt
a : : sigs nearly as possible ir'
CO | 12 2 0 |Saplings of beech mixed with oak here and there} 15 Cleanings and j .
. se aeaee { First Thinnings + the following order:--
p | 300 0 |State of Secondary Felling, surmounting seed- § Secondary or } |
lings and thickets of oak and beech. .+..ssereees 5-15 | ( Final Fellings. Do. C,D,A,B,E.
BE | 25 0 O |High forest on stovls, oak and hornbeam ........| 120 { Hegencraton } { Last Thin.
ellings. \ ping.
F | 6420 High forest of beech and oak in complete leaf canopy) 125 Do, oe
G |2000 Young high forest of oak and hornbeam irregular- 90 Do. pene
II. La Féchére. Ly WAXes. sce eee ce eee eee ete eee e ee et eee en en es a
FH {100 0 0 jttigh forest of oxk, beech, and hornbeam, ...,.--.| 110 Do. Do
I 12 2 © |Young high forest of pure oak, old plantation, ...-| 70 Do, Do.
A . The order of thi
e K |106 1 36)Poles of beech, oak, and hornbeam. . 85 Do, Do ( Thinnin 1
III, | La Taillette. } L | 15 2 0 [Low poles of oak and hornbeam, «...-.eeeseeree| 45 Do. Do year by Sear” fa eh
37 2 0 lYoung high forest of b : “Ol ‘ table of the cutti
mM | 37 g high forest of beech with oak reserves, ....|70-21¢ Do. Do. besedon area,
; N | 15 2 20(Open pole crop of oak, beech and ABH vexonmncs| 40 Do Do, |
Iv. La Noire-Roche. O | 87 2 © JSuplings of nak hornbeam, and beech,....es.. ees 25 Do, aoa asa
P 40 0 0 |eedlings of beech and o-k, and high forest in thi s a a oades ey
state of a SECONdArY COUPE. secesssccteneseseeres 3and4 { eo crnal ‘
to 140{( Fellings. Clete’

 

 

 

 
THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME. 147

The essential object of the preceding table is to give a list of
all the compartments, the natnre of the cuttings to be made in each,
and the order in which they should be successively taken up.

The compartments are entered ina single column and are
designated by characteristic letters or numbers. For greater
completeness the name of the canton and the number of the Block
are usually given to indicate the situation of the compartment in
question. Similarly, there is a special column for the areas of
the compartments, and two more for the age and a very brief
description of the standing crop, information that helps to explain
the treatment prescribed.

The treatment, which is nothing more than the ensemble of the
cuttings to be made, must be noted separately for each compartment.
These cuttings are expressed by their characteristic names; they may
be the whole series of Regeneration Fellings here, Secondary and Final
Fellings there, or simply the Final Felling in a third place, and so on
to the Last Thinning, Periodical Thinnings, Cleanings and the First
Thinnings, Selection Fellings, Compound Coppice or Simple Coppice
Cuttings, &c., as the casemay be. The main point is to charac-
terise the cuttings by means of specific names, so that each name
may represent a clear and definite idea.

The order of succession of the cuttings must be fixed ina
general manner only, but to the full extent which each class of
exploitations admits of. Thus the order of the Secondary and
Final Fellings, which depend on the state of the crop (an uncertain
element), naturally cannot be fixed. It is impossible to foretell the
year in which the new seed-crop will make its appearance, or that
in which it will be sufficiently complete and hardy to require a
Secondary Felling, as also to forecast the quantity of produce
that will have to be removed in each of the Regeneration Fellings
from a given area. It would thus be folly to prescribe the order
in which the compartments should be regenerated, except in so far
as concerns only the succession of the Primary Fellings.

With respect to Improvement Cuttings, it is usually expedient
to fix their order in the most precise manner for every year from the
very beginning of the Period. This is done in the Table of the
Annual Yield, in which the area to be operated upon is also given,
143 THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME.

As regards the manner of making the cuttings, the Special
Scheme of Exploitations must be entirely silent. The character of
the Primary Felling (that is to say, whether it should be close or
open), the more or less rapid succession of the different Regenera-
tion Fellings, the special precautions they require, the manner of
making the Improvement Cuttings, &c., all these are questions that
perforce vary with the locality operated upon and with a host of
natural or accidental causes. Any attempt to lay down rigid
directions must run the risk of. prescribing incomplete or untimely
operations. Besides, there is always the liability of falling into
grievous error in trying to predict the course of natural phenomena.
The prescriptions of the Special Scheme of Exploitations are
obligatory, once they are sanctioned by supreme authority, and it
stands to reason that the Executive Forest Officer must be held
responsible for the cuttings made by bim. He must therefore be
given full discretion in executing them in whatever way he considers
best.

If it is necessary to avoid laying down in the Organisation
Project the manner of making the cuttings prescribed, that is no
reason for omitting to discuss and record facts that have been
observed, But the place for: this is not the Special Scheme of
Exploitations. It should be done in the general portion of the Report,
as being information that may be of the highest utility, especially
to Officers appointed to a new charge. Thus, for instance, it might
form a special Chapter coming after the General Statistical Report
and immediately following that on choice of Régime, and styled
“ APPLICATION OF THE METHOD oF TREATMENT.”

§ 2. Estimation of the Annual Vield.

Like the order of the exploitations, the annual yield must be
determined for only one Period at a time.

In high forests worked by the Natural Method, the Regeneration
Fellings are based on volume, and the Improvement Cuttings on
area. Hence two different classes of yield, viz :—

(I) That of the Regeneration Cuttings, that is, of Principal
Produce,
THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME. 149

(II) That of the Improvement Cuttings, that is, of Accessory
Produce,

In a regular Working Circle of high forest, the principal
produce would be furnished exclusively by the trees felled in the
Block assigned to the current Period; but, as arule, the other
Blocks also contain here and there mature trees either solitary or
forming leaf-canopy , which it would be expedient or necessary to
exploit as an exceptional measure during that Period. Usually in
estimating the annual yield of principal produce, such trees are
classed, without any qualification, amongst those of the Block of
the current Period; only in the Organisation Project their relative
number and importance should be clearly indicated and the
compartments that contain them mentioned,

The determination of the quantity of principal produce ‘offers
no difficulty. It is obtained by enumerating the standing trees
grouped into classes according to species and diameter, and multi-
plying the number of the trees in each class by the previously
ascertained contents of atype tree, selected from amongst the
standing material as presenting the average of that class.

But the total quantity of produce ultimately removed during
the Period necessary includes, besides the actual contents of the
standing trees, also their future increment up to the time they are
felled. To determine the amount of this increment it may be
observed that the quantity brought under the axe is the same evéry

 

e

(1) Itis unnecessary to obtain actual contents with rigid accuracy, but
it is indispensable, in taking the measurements, to adopt a uniform practical
system. It is the only way of arriving at results that admit of beiug compared
one with another—an essential condition for the location of the coupes, and
useful afterwards for the verification of the yield. If, for instauce, in the
valuation it was assumed after expériment that trees measuring 16” in girth
at the height of aman contain on an average 46 cubic feet each, thén in
locating the fellings also it would be necessary to assign thesame volume to
trees of 16% girth. Whether the average contents assumed be exact or simply
approximate, the quantity exploited would always be an invariable proportional
oF the quantity obtained by valuation. Thus 1000 cubic feet of felled produce
would actually represent 1000 cubic feet of the estimated yield. It would be
otherwise if any other procedure were adopted, that was not based on the
measurement of exactly measurable elements. Hence it is necessary in
calculating the yield by volume to avoid estimating the quantity of standing
material with the eye, or by means of type areas, or with the aid of any other
such system. And forthe same reason the basis of all valuations must be
solely and invariably the measurement of diameter, since that of height always
involves some amount of individual appreciation,
150 THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME,

year. For the purpose of calculation, therefore, it may be assumed
that all the trees will be felled simultaneously at the middle of the
Period. Again we may be allowed to take for granted that the
future annual increment of trees near their term of exploitability
is the sane as their actual average annual increment up to date.
Thus to obtain the total future increment we have simply to
multiply this average annual increment by half the number of
years in the Period. It is obvious that the determination of the
future increment must be made separately for each compartment.

The yield of the annual cuttings is, therefore, found by dividing
by the number of years forming a Period the sum of the two
following quantities :—

(i) The standing material or actual contents.

(ii) The probable additional growth of the standing material,
or future increment.

Ii is always easy to determine actual contents with a sufficient
degree of approximation, whereas the future increment can never
be estimated with any approach to accuracy. For this reason, unless
special circumstances demand the contrary, no account at all should
be taken of the future increment, since it is always better to be
under the mark than to run the risk of erring on the fatal side of
excess. Besides, the yield of windfalls, dead timber, and other trees,
the exploitation of which cannot be foreseen, proves to be, in the
long run, a complete set off against the neglected future increment.
Lastly, this increment does utimately enter into our calculations
when the standing trees are again measured at the verification of
the annual yield during the course of the same Period, and must then
permanently raise the figure of the yield for the remaining years of
that Period. The natural consequence is that the outturn of produce
goes on increasing by small and moderate additions at regular

intervals, a result greatly to ‘be desired in the organisation of
every forest.

Simultaneously with the volumetric cuttings, which furnish the
yield of principal produce, other operations, termed by us Improvement
Cuttings, such as Thiunings, for example, must be made in various
portions of the Working Circle, and can only furnish accessory
THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME. 151

produce. These latter cuttings must have their yield based on
area. By this we do not mean to say that Thinnings ought
necessarily to go over equal areas every year, or that such cuttings
ought to yield the same outturn year after year. Although ‘the
outturn of thinning operations is not entirely to be neglected, still
it cannot be taken into account in determining the annual yield,
since it is subject to too wide a fluctuation not only as regards
quantity but also the class and quality of the produce obtained.
Besides this, the principal and, so to say, sole object of Thinnings is
to favour the growth of the promising trees forming an organic
part of a canopied mass of forest, by giving those trees growing
room in proportion as they require it, by the gradual removal
of their less promising neighbours which prevent their crowns
from spreading out. These operations demand great skill
and caution, and in order that they may be well executed, the
Executive Officer must be free from all preoccupation as to the
quantity. to cut out; and more than this, he must be in a position
to judge, at the time that he marks the trees to be thinned
out, when the next Thinning will have to be made over the same
area. This reason suffices of itself to justify the expediency of
making such cuttings within fixed limits marked out on the ground,
of subjecting them toa regular rotation, and of basing their yield
entirely om area.

When these exploitations can be so arranged as to annually
pass over nearly equal areas during the term of a whole Period,
no more desirable result could be imagined. Butat the very com-
mencement of working a forest according to some organised system,
itis not always possible to secure such great regularity. Thus, for
example, it may happen that a Thinning is urgently required in cer-
tain crops aggregating a large area; under such circumstances, it
would be only at the second or third time of thinning those crops that
it would be possible to establish a regular rotation for the operation,
i. e. limit it to nearly equal annual areas by assigning to each year
either one or more entire compartments or an aliquot portion of a large
compartment, as the case may be. However it be, the main point to
adhere to is to arrange the Thinnings in the simplest manner pos-
sible, paying due attention to the condition of the crops and to the
superficies they occupy.
TOE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME.

bot
on
bo

The Last Thinning made in a high forest may also have for object
the early and gradual production of seedlings on the ground
under the standing crop, such as might happen in a forest of silver
fir,a seedling crop of which species makes its appearance very
gradually but resists well the action of cover overhead. This Last
Thinning, which may indeed be termed a Preparatory Primary
Regeneration Felling, differs from all preceding Thinnings in that
it clears the soil of bushes, removes overtopped trees, and occasionally
raises the cover by a judicious lopping oft of low branches. It is
therefore expedient to characterize it by a special name. To call
it a Preparatory Primary Felling would create an ambiguity,
since this designation has been applied to another perfectly distinct
operation. The term Final Thinning would perhaps be the best to

adopt.

The following two tables are convenient for collecting together
the data and information which it is expedient to adduce in support
ofthe estimated annual yield. The first gives the yield of principal
produce, the other, the area to be thinned every year, the compart-
ments to be operated upon, and the order in which they should be
taken up.
153

THE GENERAL WORKING SCHEME,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

G09°6ET'T
Teceae ar a eee 698‘90I ¢18 rereereere stg ogy ;
6OFTFI 1 see OFS'FE OFZ reeseeretreessteneg ! OF d
| |
= c0L'801 902°F /
ISl‘'EST is Sirol 6 &% a
yeep Oia oy 820°98 608
B9e'T2 eq snqy [Ia sailed | |
Tedrourrg oy} Jo para [unu ves fot at staseceveceoes
-ue oy} ‘pung sdsosoy O43] 1Z ‘90 { a oy Oo jee > 28: 1
U1of 07 ainSy eaogr ey} Jo 18802 &P 180
¥ avok Arsaa Suyonped | |
. ‘, SEZ'OE 619 : \ rv
ae fop—__ OF | 6TO'SFE aS L89°C81 660° g a
Hee OGG C0966 UT U 7G cElolt 18ST'T
8qQ S1OJaIOY} [[TM | zi |
pyaté penuue ayy ‘steak OF : { see +99‘OTS z aC aS yoood t
jo Buysisuco poteg eqy, 686 888 at C1e'TL eZg tteteeeteres 9UG) 0g Vv
“yeoz o1qng =| -ya0f o1qng *yoo% O1qQttD *$o10V
meg | MEMS emg
‘SHUVNAY : ‘dHINNOD SIGUT, 40 UAAWAN | ‘SLNINLAVINOD
‘SLNALNOO

 

‘doi1dad LSULd AHL YO ATUIA IVONNV GAL JO NOLLVNINYALIG

‘SONITIDG ‘IVdIONIUG AHL dO ATAIL

 
154 THE GENERAL WORKING SOHEMY.

DETERMINATION OF THE ANNUAL YIELD
FOR THE FIRST PERIOD.

YIELD or THE IMPROVEMENT CUTTINGS—THINNING{

 

 

 

wear 2G [Area Plroar| Eg |AIM} Remake,
ay Oo
A. R.P. A.R. P.

1869| ELL | 53-0-00 11889] I,L,C.| 40-2-00] The areas to bef
1870' K. | 35-2-00}1890| K. | 58-0-38 [thinned each year will}
1871} K. | 35-2-00]1891| K. | 53-0-38|be taken up in accor-
1972| K. | 35-1-36]1992| F. | 64-2-00|dance with the pre-
11873) FF. | 32-1-00]1893| H. | 50-0-00|sent Table, so as tof
1874 F. | 32-1-00]1894| H. | 50-0-00|thin each Compart-
1875| H. | 50-0-00}1895 O. | 43-3-00|ment at the most ap-
1876| H. | 50-0-00 1896 O. | 43-3-00] propriate time, and, a
1877| M. | 37-2-00)1897| M. | 37-2-00/far as that is possible,
1878! G,N. | 35-2-20}1898| G,N. | 35-2-20jtake up entire Com-|
1879) I, L. | 28-0-00/1899] I,L.C: | 40-2-00 partments. or aliquot}

'1880| K. | 58-0-38]1900| K. | 53-0-38|portions of Compart-
1881} K. | 53-0-381901} K. | 53-0-38 |ments at a time.
F 32-1-00}1902| F. 64-2-00
F 32-1-00 i903! P. D. | 70-0-00
H 50 -0-00 |1904 50-0-00 }
1885} H. | 50-0-00}1905 50-0-00
Oo
M

37-2-00 11907 43-3-00

 

H

H
87-2-00]1906} O. | 43-3-00

0.

G

1888} G,N | 35-2-20]1908|M.G.N.| 73-0-20

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
CHAPTER IV.

COMPLEMENTARY DISPOSITIONS RELATIVE TO THE

WORKING SCHEME FOR HIGH FORESTS

 

The Special Scheme of Exploitations completes the Working
Sciieme, and with this the Organisation Project itself may be strictly
regarded as completed, since it may now be executed without the
help of any further prescriptions or data. Nevertheless there are
besides this some further measures tobe prescribed, which are of
great use in providing against contingencies likely to interfere
with the Project, and in guaranteeing its faithful execution. Thus
it is expedient to establish what may be called the Reserve Fund,
to arrange for the verification of the yield, to suggest necessary
works of improvement, and to provide for the revision of the
Organisation Project before the commencement of each sub-
sequent Period.

SECTION I.
Tue Reserve Funp.

The establishment of a RESERVE FUND in the organisation of
high forests is nothing more than the setting aside and preservation
of a certain quantity of standing timber from among the crops
brought under exploitation to serve as a sort of disposable savings.
A Reserve Fund is as necessary in the management of forests as
in every other large financial enterprise spreading over a long series
of years. Without any such Reserve to fall back upon in the case
of emergencies, an Organisation Project cannot, but rest on an un-
stable basis; at some time or other Immature timber would have
to be cut or a deficit must occur,
156 COMPLEMENTARY PRESCRIPTIONS OF THE WORKING SCHEME,

In the organisation of high forests, the essential object of a
Reserve Fund is to provide against extraordinary and unforeseen
demands extraneous to the forest itself, or to prevent a falling off
in the yield in passing from one Period to the next. On the other
hand, this Reserve may, according to circumstances, also have for
object the production of isolated trees of large size, or serve as a
set off against accidental injuries to the forest. To take an instance:
A Municipality requires an extraordinary felling, or the State is in
immediate want of wood for the defence of the country; the forest
must be able to satisfy either demand to a sufficient extent without
its healthy regular growth being compromised thereby. Or, to take
another case, it becomes apparent towards the end of the First
Period that the Second Block is insufficiently timbered; some
means must be found to make good this deficiency without up-
setting the orginal Oriyanisation Project. Again in a given high
forest of oak there are several choice specimens in full growth and
far removed from their maturity when the time for exploiting the
surrounding forest arrives. 1t would be a pity to fell them 80 soon.
To take one more case, there isa fir forest in which numerous
windfalls have occurred in the Block belonging to the next following
Period ; these windfalls must evidently be cut up and disposed of
at once; and the only way to compensate for this unexpected loss
is to reserve a certain number of trees in the Block under regenera-
tion. Thus a sufficient Reserve Fund of trees provides against all
such sudden contingencies.

The formation of the Reserve Fund may be effected in several
ways. “Formerly” writes M. de Salomon, “it was customary to re-
serve a certain definite portion of the forest in one pieee by it-
self. But this method was soon abandoned as being inadequate
and failing to secure the end proposed. For except when trees of
extraordinary size had to be grown, it was impossible to Judge,
with any degree of certainty, what crops were by their age best
fitted to form this Reserve Fund. The reason is evident, for if
mature or almost mature trees were reserved, it might be found
necessary to exploit them at an inconvenient time on account of
decay, and thus the very object for which they were reserved
would be defeated ; and if, on the contrary, the reserved trees were
young and an extraordinary felling was urgently required under some
COMPLEMENTARY PRESCRIPTIONS OF THE WORKING SCHEME. 157
sudden emergency, there would be no alternative but either to cut
nothing at all or to exploit small and immature timber.”

The remarks just quoted apply to high forests worked by the
Natural Methiod, in which of class forests the principal exploitations
come back to the same point only after avery long interval of
years. A Reserve Fund composed of trees all in one piece of forest
would ill fulfil the condition of always offering immediately available
resources, unless indeed it covered a very large area. But it is
easy to obtain the most desirable results by forming the Reserve
Fund of trees scattered over all the coupes and based on their ag-
gregate contents, a method of procedure in perfect keeping with
hizh forest exploitations.

In the organisation of high forests by area, the quantity of
standing material to be set aside for the Reserve Fund may be deter-
mined by one of two methods or by both together. The on®
consists in leaving out of account the future increment when cal-
culating the annual yield; the other in reducing by a certain
quantity the quota of the annual cuttings. Take, for instance,
a mass of forest 150 years old; the mean annual growth is
evidently the 1/150th, part of the contents of the standing timber.
Given the Block and Period to which this mass belongs, the quan-
tity of the stock to be reserved can be approximately deduced
from the annual rate of growth thus determined. On the other
hand, if the quota of the annual cuttings is 21,000 c. ft., 3,500 c. ft.
may be preserved each year from the quantity that can be cut to
form the Reserve Fund. In the latter case, the amount of the
annual savings set aside is a determinate figure, while in the other
case the future increment can never bz known with certainty.

However it be, the Reserve Fund when based on volume always
represents so much exploitable timber over and above the quota
of the annual cuttings, and sometimes also comprises trees with a
long future before them. At the moment of need, every cubic
foot saved up, may be utilized except this last class of trees. To
find out at any time the present quantity of the Reserve Fund,
we have only to know according to which of the two methods
above described it has heen formed and the number of years it haz
been in existence. To utilize it, there is nothing more to be done
than to cut everything in the Block under regeneration.
158 VERIFICATION OF THE ANNUAL YIELD.

The quantity to set aside as a Reserve Fund is a matter of
individual appreciation pure and simple. The law prescribes
nothing with reference to it, except so far as communal forests of
broad-leaved species are concerned, in which case the quantity to
be reserved is one-fourth of the whole standing stock. Our own
opinion is that this same proportion should, as far as possible, be
maintained also in high forests, and that for this purpose the quan-
tity to be annually set aside should include both the annual rate
of growth and the 4th. part of the stock of the principal coupes,
regular as well as irregular.’ This latter quantity, definite and
exactly known as it is, is naturally meant to be exploited first in
case of need, The annual rate of growth, on the contrary, being
an uncertain quantity from the beginning, the part of the Reserve
Fund due to it would chiefly include growing trees or the acciden-
tal produce of the younger Blocks, the quantity of which is equal-
ly uncertain, Moreover the portion of the Reserve Fund result-
ing from the saving up of the annual increment does not necessari-
ly go on increasing by the accumulation of this increment, for a
portion of it naturally gets included in the valuation survey
of the standing stock each time the annual yield is verified.

SECTION II.
VERIFICATION OF THE ANNUAL YIELD.

The yield of principal produce, after deducting the quantity to
be placed in the Reserve Fund, serves as the basis for the principal
fellings of the current Period. But it may happen that errors have
crept into the estimate of this figure or that certain discrepancies
are found to exist by actual experience of the cuttings; and the
annual increment is, after all, always an uncertain quantity, and
various accidents occur during the course of a Period of any length,
that upset all previous calculations, It would thus be rash to go
on working out the same quantity year after year as that fixed at

 

1. I must observe that in calculating the quantity to be reserved, no
allowance at all is made for accessory or accidental produce. The result of
this is that in setting aside a fourth of the total yield of principal produce
a smaller quantity is reserved than if one-fourth of the whole area were so
set aside, And, after all, a large Reserve Fund entails no sacrifice: it is itself
productive, and the only difficulty in connection with itis when at the out-
set it has to be established. Thereafter it yields uo inconsiderable amount of
irregular produce, variable in quantity from Period to Period.
VERIFICATION OF THE ANNUAL YIELD. 159

the beginning of the Period, without checking its figure in the
meanwhile. This check is what we have called the VERIFICATION
OFr THE ANNUAL YIELD.

The check in question consists in ascertaining, at some time
during the currency of the Period, the quantity of standing material
still unexploited, and then dividing that quantity by the number
of years in the unexpired portion of the Period, exactly in the same
manner as was done at its beginning. It is obviously necessary to
employ the same procedure and the same tables as before, otherwise
the results obtained on each separate occasion could not be com-
pared together. Before dividing the quantity given by the valua-
tion survey, it is necessary to deduct from it the still available
portion of the Reserve Fund that may have been deduced from the
annual yield in the first instance. This procedure is indispensable
in the interests of the future. The whole of the unexploited stock,
reserved in order to provide against extraordinary requirements,
ought to continue to be available up to the very end of the Period,
and this for the very same reasons which originally justified the
establishment of the Reserve Fund. As regards the actual increment
by which the standing stock may have increased since the hegin-
ning of the Period, it necessarily forms an integral part of the
contents found by the valuation survey. But in revenge the valu-
ation survey has nothing to do with the trees left standing after the
Final Fellings; so that those trees in no way affect the calculation
ot the annual yield in the second instance.

If, owing to unforeseen circumstances, any considerable exploita-
tions have had to be made in the immediately following Block, it
might be expedient to effect a compensation by increasing the
stock to be reserved during the rest of the Period. Under any
circumstances, the Verification of the Annual Yield must alter the
figure originally estimated, but it cannot modify the General
Working Scheme, since the calculation of the annual yield is
entirely independent of the formation of the Blocks. It is necessary
to verify the annual yield of principal produce at least once during
the course of each Period, so as to avoid all risk of having an ac-
cumulation of errors crowded into the last few years of the Period.

When the fellings that are regulated by area, notably so the
Thinnings, have been arranged at the beginning of the Period for
160 IMPROVEMENT WORKS.

its whole duration, it is useful to verity also the succession of those
cuttings, and to rectify it if necessary. Naturally both verifications
should be made at one and the same time, at the end of the tenth,
fifteenth or twentieth year, according to the forest concerned. The
time for making these verifications must be prescribed by the
Organisation Project,

SECTION III.
IMPROVEMENT WORKS.

The Table of Exploitations prescribes the nature of the cut-
tings to be made in the Working Circle coucerned throughout a
whole Period. But it lays down no injunctions as to the manner
of making them. Now there are cases in which the success of
forest operations depends on the execution of certain works of
improvement. Thus it may be necessary to effect some artifi-
cial restocking or to make roads for the export. of wood. If the
Organisation Projeet did not consider such works and omitted
to point out the means available for executing them successfully,
it would run the risk of being an impracticable project and of
defeating the object of the very operations it prescribed.

The most urgent works of improvement required by each
Working Circle ought, therefore, to be a subject of special attention
for the forester who has to organise it. The manner of executing
these works, the appreciation of the relative urgency and timeliness
of each, estimates of their cost, all these points should be discussed
together in a single chapter of the Organisation Project. Thus the
works that are indispensable for the carrying out of the Organisa-
tion Project form an essential part of the studies and proposals
which compose it. Works that are simply useful also require to be
mentioned, but more often it is best toleave tothe Executive
Officer the duty of proposing them when they are actually called
for.

Among the works that are necessary must be included
the establishment of a regular system for noting and recording
facts and phenomena connected with the growth of the forest pari
passu with their occurrence. The Organisation Project must
therefore provide and prescribe the means and method of working
IMPROVEMENT WorKs. 161

these observations. Whatcver the form in which this record is
kept, it must describe, firstly, every kind of exploitation made,
together with all concomitant circumstances of an economic nature ;
and, secondly, the improvement works properly so called and all
phenomena connected with the growth of the forest. From both
these points of view, the keeping of a complete record is secured in
avery simple manner by allotting to each compartment separate
space in the record. What could be more simple than to assign to
each compartment two opposite pages of a Register, one to contain
facts connected with the produce obtained from the compartment,
the other the phenomena relating to the growth of the living stock ?
Each year it would be enough to enter all facts, that may have occur-
red, on the proper page of the Register. Ina short time this Re-
gister would furnish a complete and connected history of the forest.
A specimen form for the Register is given below :—
163

REGISTER

oF

FACTS and PHENOMENA

CONNECTED WITH

the Working and Growth

OF

the Worxine Creczte of LE FAYS

(The following two Forms should be bound so as to face
each other, as shown here; each double page will then
contain a record for a single compartment extending over
an entire Period.)
164

AREA 34 A. 2 R. 20 P.

EXPLOITATIONS.

COMPARTMENT £4,

 

*s HUVRGY

‘orp “OM 9]}300 ‘HoIsUT Jo HU; epaidap ‘se1g “Om BINUQIEEq Jo ‘AULIOD’ Jo oDUEPUNGE ‘4s017 “WYsnOID
‘gu11048) yoo18 843 Jo UoT}eIeuedeI pues qiA029 9q} UC eomengur Aue oavy uvd 4¥q} Pulm AaAa JO YUDMIOUOYY
"sa9ux Furjoe oarpoodaer troy) tI/24 ‘pauywqo eonpoad jo sessypa puv SHOYdLIOSap SNOLIVA 24} OF Farzw[Ot 679",

 

TREES reserved in

Compound Coppice
Fellings and in Final
Regeneration Cuttings

“saved 191130
‘duno, yoo:
“AO

 

 

 

“pode “sapeds 19140

 

 

-O1PPH ao

 

 

 

 

“gatoeds
13G}O pues Yoo
‘ “GIS UL ¢
PIO fo4,.9,¢ wosy 780
*spivadupas
yy ul ‘¢ yw

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tora | EXPLor-
TATION
harges.
R. a. P

gross
Receipts. c
R. a. P

 

 

contents,

‘woroeds
*1oquUILE, 2910
"480

 

 

110],

 

Dewsity off AcruaL
crop,

“BYU ;U0D poywUysy

"90014 JO JoquInN

 

 

 

“BOLT

 

 

uoresio[d xq
JO HUOLYN

UVAL

 

 
CUBICAL CONTENTS IN 1880, 246,738 C. Ft.

IMPROVEMENT Works.

 

YEAR,

Nartore and Extent of
the Works executed.

Cost.

INFoRMATION regarding
the cirenmstances un-
der which the Works

were carried out,
and the Results
obtained.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
167
SECTION. IY.

Periopic REVISION OF THE ORGANISATION PROJECT.

The complementary measures, the employment of which we
have just enjoined, are quite sufficient to provide against all contin-
gencies and to guarantee the success of the operations prescribed by
the Special Scheme of Exploitations. But this Scheme is drawn up
for the duration of one Period only, and consequently a fresh Scheme
must be prepared for the next following Period also. Like the first,
this latter will determine the succession of the exploitations for the
whole duration of the new Period, and fix the yield of the annual
fellings as well as the quota of the Reserve Fund.

The operation here sketched, which we have termed the PERIo-
DIC REVISION OF THE ORGANISATION PROJECT, necessitates a new
and complete study of the forest at the end of each Period. That
study, while it brings out into prominence the results heretofore
achieved, shows in a clear manner the modifications that it would
be useful or necessary to make in the general management of the
forest. Among these modifications there would be some that would
in no way affect the ground-work of the Organisation Project; such
would be, tor instance, any proposed change in the special treat-
ment of certain compartments. Other modifications may have for
result the alteration of the boundaries of the Block; but so
radical a measure should be avoided except in cases of well proved
necessity. More generally it would be a change of Rotation that
would seem desirable, in which case it would be enough to prolong
or curtail the duration of each Period in the same proportion as the
Rotation, without in any way changing the General Working

Scheme.

In a well treated forest, it generally happens that a portion of
the Reserve Fund is available for exploitation at the end of each
Period in the Block, of which the regeneration has just been
completed. The manner of turning this portion of the Reserve
Fund to account is obvious enough : it must form for the next fol-
lowing Period a resource to fall back upon in case of emergency,
and the produce furnished by it must not be considered as part of
the regular yield of the forest. In the event of urgent wants ari-
sing before a new Reserve Fund can be formed, it would be perfect-
168 PERIODIC REVISION OF ORGANISATION PROJECT.

ly logical to exploit the standing one, since it represents an actual
surplus. On the other hand, had sch wants arisen when the forest
was just organised, they could have been met only by utilising a
paper surplus existing only in the estimates. Thus in the new
Special Scheme of Exploitations the utilization of the available
Reserve Fund ought to present no difficulty.

The exploitation of irregular produce, i.e. over and above the
fixed yield, does no harm as long as itis only a fraction of the
regular yield (say for instance, a fraction not exceeding }), and as
long as it consists only of trees that must soon fall, like the nurses
in Regeneration Coupes that are already sufficiently sown with the
new crop. The reason of this is obvious, for under such circum-
stances the exploitation of the stock in question cannot interfere,
either immediately or at any future time, with the maintenance
ofa sustained yield or with the Exploitability chosen. The case
would be quite different if, instead of being limited to a moderate
figure, the proportion of the irregular produce exceeded all bounds,
say, for instance, that it was equal to the regular yield of a well-
stocked Block. An exploitation thus exaggerated might even
prove fatal to the execution of an Organisation Project based
on area.

0S
BOOK IV.

ORGANISATION OF IRREGULAR HIGH
FORESTS.
SR

Unper the term Irregular High Forests we include (i) all
those high forests which contain crops that are of defective growth,
are incomplete, or are composed of inferior species; (ii) those high
forests in which an unequal gradation of age-classes would, if a
regular treatment were adopted, lead to the felling of timber before
it was exploitable or after full decay had set in; and (iii) also those
forests in which the age-classes, instead cf being differentiated into
separate well-defined groups, are all intermixed so as entirely to
prohibit any kind of successive order in the exploitations. Such
forests are numerous, and. present the most diverse forms and every
degree of irregularity offering an. infinitude of different types and
characters.

We propose in the immediately following pages to study the
organisation of forests worked: by Selection and to explain how the
General Working Scheme of an irregular forest of broad-leaved
species should be framed. This will not only be sufficient to show
how thoroughly the Area Method adapts itself to: the organisation
of every description of high forest, but will also. prove how that
Method never fails to offer the means of realising, within the
measure of the possible and to any desirable extent, each and all of
the principal objects of forest organisation, to wit,

(i) The most useful production,

(ii) A sustained yield,
(iii) A definite order in the exploitations, and
(iv) Continued improvement of the forest.
CHAPTER I.

THE SELECTION SYSTEM.

SECTION I.

GENERAL CONDITION OF OUR FORESTS UNDER WORKING
BY SELECTION.

—— 0

THE Selection Method of Working is simply the exploitations
of primitive humanity generalised into a system. There where
wood was abundant and the forest open to all comers, each one
helped himself to whatever he wanted. Broken branches, windfalls,
dead standing trees, dying poles, and loppings and toppings of every
kind furnished the people with firewood. Timber for building and
other purposes was removed from the nearest and most accessible
spot, a tree here, another there, and so on. Only what was actually
wanted was taken away, the branches, toppings, and useless odds
and ends, and trees that were found to be unsuitable after being
felled, were, as a rule, simply left on the ground.

As long as exploitations of this nature are sufficiently restricted
in quantity, exploitable trees fit to satisfy all wants can never fail,
and no forest is the worse for them, Nevertheless the removal of
individuals here and there from the midst of a canopied mass
cannot but be very detrimental to the regular growth of trees of
broad-leaved specics; and hence this method of working has been,
as a rule, confined to our conifer forests.

There it yiclds results that ditfer according to the prevailing
species and the quantity of wood removed every year. In well-
wooded regions, where for the very reason that they are well-woeded
the forests are placed under favorable circumstanees for growth, a
forest worked merely by Selection without any fixed plan maintains
CONDITION OF OUR SEHLECTION-WORKED FORESTS. 171

itself in fairly good condition, whatever its component. species, as
long as only a moderate quantity is exploited every year. Thus is
explained the continuance of that method of working in most of our
mountain forests, whether of pine or silver fir, which have hitherto
remained inaccessible to the timber-dealer. But although the
method of working has been the same everywhere in those forests»
their condition is nevertheless very different according to the species
composing them.

In forests of pine, where the trees require bright and abundant
light, the Selection System always does more or less harm. Uuder
its operation the leaf-canopy is very far from being uniform, is often
open or breached with small gaps, and consists in places of sickly
saplings and poles that can never come to anything. Hence that
Method of Treatment has in nearly every case been abandoned with
the development of an export trade. In forests of silver fir, on the
other hand, the young plant of which species bears even heavy cover
for a long time, and shoots up rapidly as soon as it is uncovered
overhead, crops worked by Selection remain dense and well-stocked
with trees of all ages, provided the annual exploitations are
moderate. It is this peculiarity of the tree that has rendered possible
the maintenance of the Selection Method in our silver fir forests on
mountains of medium height, even though they may be situated in
the vicinity of roads and drawn upon by the surrounding country.
Nevertheless people were not long in recognising the necessity of
subjecting the original Selection System to certain rules having for
their principal object the limitation of the quantity exploited to a
fixed figure. And so the Selection Fellings thus regularised now
constitute a recognised Method of Treatment.

The Method in question consists in the removai here and there
of the oldest trees, of those dying, decaying or dead, and of others
still in full growth, but which are required to satisfy the wants of the
proprietor. It has been applied in this manner, and often with
good results, to forests of silver fir and spruce, pure or mixed with
beech. The quantity to be exploited, in other words, the annual
yield, was usually expressed by the number of trees to be felled.
When this number included only real trees and not mere poles, the
average was 04, 0°6 or 08 trees per acre, For instance in the
forests of Levier it was fixed for certain Working Circles at 0-4
172 CONDITION OF OUR SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS.

trees, for others at 0°6 per acre. Thus supposing acertain Working
Circle measured 750 acres, the number of trees felled in it annually
would have been 300 or 450 according as the number per acre
was fixed at 0-4 or 0°6. Elsewhere, as in the communal forest of
la Cluse the yield was fixed at about half a tree per acre. Care was
taken to remove only a very few trees from any one spot, one or
two only for example, so as to avoid making too large a gap any
where in the leaf-canopy, since such gaps must cause considerable
injury tothe forest. With this method of procedure it was necessary
to spread the annual operations over a large area, and indeed, as
far as the pure principle went, over the whole Working Circle.
Actually however the area operated upon every year was restricted
in most cases to cnly a single canton.

When this method of treatment has been continuously applied
for any length of time, trees of all ages from the seedling to the
exploitable individual are found mixed up pell-mell together. A
crop of this character, even though it be a complete one, cannot but
consist of crowns rising one above another. Those of the large trees,
standing out as they generally do singly, begin close to the ground,
while those of middle-sized trees are often weak and spare, and all
the younger growth is overtopped and hence, as a rule, lanky and
sickly. Exceptionally, as the result of some special cause (the wind,
for example, which may have blown down all the larger trees),
some fine crops assume an almost regular appearance. But as
reproduction is left to chance, glades and even blanks form, which,
from being more or less numerous all through the forest, aggregate
together at times a considerable area.

The outturn of produce of a forest worked by Selection is, acre
for acre, admittedly less than that of a regular high forest. This
inferiority is due principally to the languid growth of some of the
_ trees and the sickly condition of a much larger number, and is very
marked or insignificant according tothe state of the forest con-
cerned. The quality of the produce yielded is also inferior, some-
times even absolutely bad. The chicf causes of this inferiority are
(i) the rapid growth of the bigger trees, which in the case of
conifers produces soft-grained-timber ; (ii) the formation of large
knots, which are serious defects when they occur in the silver and
spruce firs; and (iii) the production of various kinds of unsoundness
CONDITION OF OUR SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS 173

which induce rapid decay in the wood of the species just named.
These defects, like the general unsatisfactory condition of the crops,
result from the exploitations being spread over too large an area.
The consequence is that the damage caused by the felling and
export operations is not confined to one locality (in which case it
might be easy to repair or mitigate), the commission of all kinds of
offeaces is rendered easy, and the trees that stand out isolated above
their neighbours, having their crowns exposed to the full force of
the wind, are thereby broken, uprooted or shaken. Nevertheless,
the worst that can be said of silver fir forests worked judiciously by
Selection is that they are not regular.

The Selection System is attended also by another great danger
viz., the exaggeration of the fellings, the end of which may be
nothing less than the general ruin of the forest. If the quantity
exploited is in excess of actual production, the forest becomes
thereby rapidly poorer and poorer. As the fellings remove only
the larger trees, it follows that the exploitable material on the
ground goes on diminishing, until eventually there is nothing left
in the forest but young saplings and poles. Then the growth becomes
sparser and sparser, and the whole forest at length forms one huge
glade. Should the component species be silver fir, the result is
countless windfalls and the utter ruin of the forest. Herein lies the
inherent and prohibitive defect of the Selection System. That
system is, therefore, entirely out of place in our conifer forests
situated at moderate elevations, where the prevailing conditions are
sufficiently favorable for regular treatment and prompt and easy
regeneration. The Natural Method indeed enables us to utilize the
produce of such forests in the most happy manner possible, while
avoiding the defects and risks that constitute a necessary element
in the Selection System.

The transformation of a selection-worked forest of silver fir into
a regular high forest is effected by completing and freeing the
young crops overtopped by older growth. It requires three simul-
taneous Regeneration Fellings, all within one and the same area
and calling for great skill and care on the part of the operator,
These Regeneration Fellings we will term TRANSFORMATION CurT-
tings. The end to be secured by their means is to obtain young
crops, which, if they are not at once regular, are at least capable of
174 MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD,

becoming so in course of time. The fellings here referred to
demand much skill and experience, and will be found described and
treated of in any work on Sylviculture. We would advise the
student to read up that part of Sylviculture once more, if he wishes
to study with profit the organisation of a selection-worked forest

under transformation.

While the transformation operations are going on in one portion
of the Working Circle, the mature trees found over the rest of it
must also be felled. Hence it is necessary to continue for a time
true Selection Fellings. These must be so regulated as to avoid
the risks inherent in the Selection System itself, and to minimize
its shortcomings by gradually improving and increasing the growing
stock, Our finest silver fir forests, those of Levier in the Jura, and
of the Sault plain in the Aude, have been so worked, with mode-
ration and judgment, for very nearly half a century in those
compartments which have not yet reached their turn for transfor-
mation. These now;contain, splendid crops, abounding in vigorous,
promising growth, and yielding every year excellent produce.

SECTION II.
MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD.

The Selection System, if worked with judgment, preserves a
forest in a canopied state, irregular it is true,but presenting every-
where trees of large dimensions. These, thanks to their size, consti-
tute the principal portion of the stock and the most important class
of the standing timber. Thanks to them, certain forests worked by
Selection present the true aspect of a regular high forest: the
poles, by reason of their small diameter and their contracted
crowns, do not strike the eye, while the young growth, evertopped,
of no height, and incomplete as it is, makes littleshow. It is chiefly
in spruce forests that this well-marked type is to be met with; but
the Selection System admits of the maintenance of a tall canopied
crop of any species whatsoever.

Moreover, under this system, reproduction is constantly going
on throughout the forest. The extraction of single trees here and
there from the midst of the canopied mass lets in sufficient light
where they stood,” and a sort of twilight under the crowns of their

nikal
MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD. 175

neighbours, conditions eminently favorable to the production of
seedlings. Morcover the soil as well as the seedlings thus produced
are constantly protected, another point in favour of the system.
Thus it is not simply a single special Period, ora certain definite
number of years that is allotted for the production of seedlings, but
ages without limit; in other words every portion of a forest worked
by Selection is, so to say, perpetually under regeneration.

It is now easy to understand how essentially conservative a
method of treatment the Selection Method is, on the sole condition
that it is worked in a spirit of moderation and that it removes none
but really mature trees. The trees of such forests receive indivi-
dual attention, and reproduction is assured as much as it can ever

be. Itis for this reason that Working by Selection has to be
maintained in so many cases.

The first of these cases is that of forests conserved with a view
to affording protection and shelter. Such forests are scarcely met
with any where but in the wildest localities, in mountainous regions,
in such places, for instance, as where landslips are threatened, aval-
auches are to be dreaded, the formation of mountain torrents to be
prevented, and dangerous winds to be tempered or kept out alto-
gether. Thus it is immediately above a village overhung by an
abrupt slope or a canton exposed to avalanches, or it is at the point
at which all the waters of a mountain-side collect to precipitate
themselves into the valley below, or ina high gorge where the wind
rushes violently through, that the Selection Method of working
must be constantly maintained. Such localities are always well
defined ; they are rather single cantons than large extensive tracts.
The preservation of the forest there is all the more necessary, in-
asmuch as itis often very difficult to restore it when once it has
disappeared. :

The second case injwhich it is expedient to continue the Selec-
tion System is that of%those forests, in which reproduction is un-
certain or so slow that it caunot be depended upon to recrop or
regenerate any portion of such forests within a given time. The
cause of this unsatisfactory condition is to be traced to the soil and
to the climate. Thus ina climate where extremes of heat or cold
prevail, or where sheltcragainst the severity of dangerous winds is
176 MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD,

wanting, it takes a very long time for seedlings to make their ap-
pearance; and when once they do germinate, the new crop grows
very slowly, and takesa very long time to join their crowns and
close over the ground. The time required for so desirable a con-
summation to take place is often quite unlimited; it left to itself
the forest must of course eventually reproduce itself, but this per-
haps not until after a whole century has elapsed. Such is the case
towards the superior limit of arborescent vegetation, and also on
elevated plateaux, on mountain ridges, although of no great height,
and on the edges of a forest continually struck by the wind.
Similarly, on soil that is barrem either on account of its rocky
nature or owing to its being scarped, it would sometimes be vain
to expect a complete sowing of the ground; if the trees are re-
moved before a young growth is ready under them to take their
place, the forest is exposed to certain denudation. Instances of
this are those masses of sheet-rock, which, without the cover of
the forest overnead, would not, as at present, be carpeted over
with their thick covering of moss; agglomerations of boulders re-
tained in their place by the roots of the large trees growing be-
tween them; and those scarps and very steep slopes, on which any
steady walking is out of the question, and from which every seed
that falls must roll or slip down and be washed away by raim
All these various conditions of climate and soil are often found
so combined that their joint effects cannot be attributed any more
to one of them than to another. But however it be, their presence
is betrayed by facts, which area certain indication that the Selection
Method is required there. In such. places the leaf-canopy is seldom
unbroken and continuous, and is usually breached with blanks or
persistent glades; if the forest growth has been removed, the
naked rock crops out, or if there is a covering of turf over it, this.
is wanting in places.

Lastly, and as an exceptional case, the Selection Method is the
most convenient one to apply to high forests of slight extent, the
proprietor of which requires every year a small quantity of large
timber. Although the conditions of growth in any given high
forest may be perfectly satisfactory, yet it may be of too limited
an extent to contain a complete series of graduated age-classes
consisting of regular crops. In such a mere grove of high forest
MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD. Liz

trees, the Selection Method is the only method of treatment which
would allow a small quantity of large timber to be cut out every
year. This method of exploitation is, therefore, still applicable to
a certain, by no means insignificant, number of small forests, and,
notably so, to communal woods, which constitute a most valuable
resource for the village or hamlet owning them. Such is the case
when the area of the given forest is too small for the formation
of Periodic Blocks of at least 38 or 50 acres each. The minimum
area of a regular Working Circle must of course vary with the
constituent species, according as they reproduce themselves freely or
slowly, and with the situation of the forest, but above all with the
close neighbourhood or contiguity or remoteness of other forests.
In any case, it is scarcely possible to execute, during a whole
Period of 30 or 40 years, an entire series of Kegeneration Fellings
over an area fof only 25 acres with all the necessary order, and

without the occurrence thereby of damage of all kinds amounting
to devastation pure and simple,

Awong the forests under the control of the State Department,
the aggregate area of those which fall under one of the three cases
just described is very considerable. Such are the forests in certain
corners of the Vosges, also on the last series of plateaux of the
Jura Range, and in the rocky mountains of Central France. The
six Pyrenean departments contain together a considerable propor-
tion of such forests. Butit is chiefly in the region of the Alps
that the great mass of them is situated. Of the 1,125,000 acres
of communal woodlands that still exist in that region, probably one-
half can be subjected to no other treatment but the Selection
Method. They are blocks or débris of forests of silver fir, of
spruce, and of beech, situated at certain points in the northern
portion of the region, and of larch, of Scots’ pine, and of the
mountain pine (Pinus montana, Mill.) in the southern portion.
The same species, excepting the larch and the spruce, compose the
forests of the elevated portion of the Pyrenees. In Corsica, the
Austrian piue is found in addition to these other species. Thus
it is in hundreds of thousands of acres that we may express the
total area of our forests which must continue to remain subject-
ed to the Selection Method ; and more than this, the prevailing

species in those forests are all our most valuable conifers.
8
178 MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD.

The larger the area of the forest to be worked by Selection
is, the more necessary becomes the judicious application of that
method. But the manner of its application is different for the
different species. The difference is greatest between that adapted
for forests of delicate species, like the silver and spruce firs, and
that suited for forests of hardy species, like the Scots’ pine and
the larch. Inthe former only a very few trees may be removed
from any one point ;in a silver fir forest, for instance, only one.
The young silver fir requires for its maintenance only a small
quantity of light, and a full canopy is one of the first conditions ne-
cessary for the favourable growth of that tree. Where it is the
dominant species, we must be careful not to remove, under the
pretence of making a thinning, any over-topped poles, unless these
are ina dying state; for they possess the faculty of regaining
vigour and of shooting up as soon as they are uncovered, and, as
a general rule, they fill up at once the place left vacant by the
overtopped trees, when these have fallen, either under the axe of
the woodcutter or the violence of the wind. An analogous pro-
cedure, although slightly different, must be followed in the case of
the spruce, which species is slightly more hardy, bas a taller habit,
and forms less regular leaf-canopy than the silver fir.

For pines and the larch the treatment is quite different.
Worked by the Natural Method, they require an open Regeneration
Felling. When subjected to the Selection Method, the Scots’ pine
similarly requires the removal of several trees from the same point,
so as entirely to uncover a small plot (from 8 to 14 poles, for ins-
tance), with this precaution, however, that these little gaps are made
at sufficiently wide intervals. The young seedling of the Scots’ pine
requires plenty of light to maintain itself and develop, and the trees
of these species are averse to growing up side by side unless they
are all more or less of the same height. When the large trees have
been felled, it is perfectly useless preserving the poles that were
growing under or close against them ; such poles are always more
or less sickly and can never come to any good, and their preser-
vation would only occupy the ground to the detriment of younger
and more promising growth. Thinnings are useful and sometimes
even necessary in uniform crops of Scots’ pine poles. The require-
ments of the larch resemble those of the Scots’ pine, but the stronger
MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD. 179

hold ‘which it takes of the ground gives it an advantage over
the latter species, in that individuals of it, reserved far apart when
the older growth has been removed, are safe against injury from
winds.

Moreover the detailed treatment of the various species referred
to in the preceding paragraph is different for each of them. Thus
in order to obtain a crop of seedlings of the silver fir, the spruce
and the beech, itis an excellent precaution to prune off the lower
branches of the trees afew years before they are felled; for the
pines and the larch, the same end is served by a slight or partial
working up of the ground, which, by loosening the soil where it is
exposed to the light, furnishes the best means for sowing the
ground. Such are the principal cultural operations, extremely simple
as they are, that are required in a forest worked by Selection.

The risk attending the Selection Method, when it is badly
carried out, or removes too many trees from a given area,
is not less great in pine forests than in those of silver fir, in
larch forests than in those of the spruce. It is most
to be dreaded at high elevations, precisely there where the
application of that Method is always necessary and demands great
skill At such elevations, where extreme cold prevails, the years
of seed are few and far between; the summer, which brusquely
succeeds the winter, often injures germinating seeds and young
seedlings ; and, lastly, the forests suffer severely from atmospheric
influences, chief among which is the wind.

Under these peculiar conditions two opposite series of pheno-
mena may be met with. Where the land is partially covered with
young forest growth, such as scattered seedlings, patches of thickets,
and bouquets of saplings, the cover thus formed becomes more and
more effective every year as the forest developes, and the moisture
of the soil is better and better preserved during the summer.
Vegetation is active, the sparse crop meets and closes overhead,
and soon the forest completely covers and takes possession of the
ground. On the other hand when the forest growth, composed of
old or middle aged trees with lofty crowns, begins to thin itself
naturally and let in light everywhere over a certain area, the trees
are deprived of the mutual support which they gave each other,
180 MAINTENANCE OF THE SELECTION METHOD.

and the soil is exposed alternately to be washed away and to be
caked. Vegetative vigour diminishes, the larger trees die off one by
one, seedlings are produced in decreasing numbers; and the ground
at last becomes entirely denuded of its forest growth: These two
sets of phenomena may be noticed in many and many a locality.
They are especially frequent and well marked in the South. The
former of them furnishes a valuable lesson to those engaged in
hill reboisements, while the second shows us the danger of im-
moderate Selection Fellings:

 
CHAPTER II.
ORGANISATION OF FORESTS IN WHICH THE
SELECTION METHOD IS TO BE MAINTAINED.

The organisation of forests worked by Selection is as elementa-
ry in its character as the corresponding method of treatment itself,
The first care which it requires, is moderation in the exploitations,
this being the only means of systematising them (as far as that
can be done in this Method of Treatment), and of ensuring the carry-
ing out of all necessary works of improvement and development. We
will now proceed to examine separately the method of organising
forests under all the three classes of circumstances which, we have
seen above, necessitate {the maintenance of the Selection Method;
that is to say, we will show to what it practically reduces itself in
forests kept up for protection, what measures it requires in the
case of forests situated at high elevations, and in what particular
respect it may have to be modified for high forests of altogether
limited extent.

SECTION I.

Forests OF PROTECTION:

Forests maintained for the purpose of protection perform their
réle more effectively, the taller and, hence, the older they are.
The exploitability to be adopted here is, therefore, that termed by
us Physical, and is determined by the natural death or complete
decay of each separate tree. The consequence is that the date of
the exploitations, as well as the quota of produce to be extracted
at each exploitation, are always unknown quantities; and, indeed,
182 ORGANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORES''S.

the figure or quality of the yield can possess only a secondary and
often insignificant interest in the case under consideration. Thus
the Organisation Project must make no attempt at laying down
any prescriptions with regard tothe exploitations; these should
be left entirely to the discretion of the Executive Forest Officer,
who would from time to time submit specific proposals connected
therewith as the occasion required.

The organisation of such forests is, therefore, limited simply to
their complete closing against grazing after being clearly demar-
cated. To this end, it may be necessary to prescribe the execu-
tion of certain protective works, such as ditches, walls, and fences ;
and also certain works of conservation and improvement, such as
the partial sowing up of blanks, and the weeding out of bushy
vegetation to clear the ground for the natural sowing of forest
species. In the majority of cases, it isin the closing cf the forest
against grazing that the real means of safety lies.

SECTION II.

ForEsts sITvaTED AT HiGH ELEVATIONS,

Under the above heading we include all those forests in which
teproduction is too uncertain or too slow to be obtained within a
given time, as well as those which are exposed in a special
manner to injury from high winds. The majority of such forests
are actually situated at high elevations, where agriculture, proper-
ty so called, is impracticable, and which in France, as a rule, begin
at about 3,300 feet above the sea. And indeed, speaking generally,
wherever similar rigours of climate prevail as at those elevations,
it is the Selection Method that is the treatment most generally
applicable.

The first point to determine in organising such forests relates
to the exploitability of the trees, which, asa rule, ought never to
be felled except singly, soas to avoid producing gaps through
which the wind could enter. On this subject Section 72 of the
Royal Edict putting into force the Forest Code lays down that
“in forests worked by Selection the Organisation Project shall pre-
ORGANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS. 183

scribe the age or the diameter which the trees ought to attain before
being felled.” The foregoing rule is an excellent one. It pre-
scribes, in a word, that the exploitations shall remove only those
trees which are capable of satisfying in the happiest manner pos-
sible the interests of the owner. In forests under the control of
the State Department, it enforces the adoption of Qualitative
Exploitability based on the diameter which the trees ought to attain
in order to furnish the most useful produce, they can. As regards
the reference made to the age of these trees, the word “age”
could only have been used in the sense of the stage of growth
attained, since in a forest worked by Selection it is impossible
to tell the age of any tree, until it has been felled, The Aména-
giste must therefore ascertain what diameter would enable the
trees to serve the most important purposes or to furnish the best
possible descriptions of produce. The result of this inquiry, the
corner stone itself of the whole Organisation Project, may be differ-
ent for different parts of the country. In the silver fir forests of the
Vosges, where the great majority of the trees are destined to be
worked up with the saw, it has been remarked that the maximum
of utility for unity of volume is attained with a diameter of very
nearly 2 feet at 44 feet from the ground: trees of less diameter
do not work up into planks so well, while the timber merchant
does not care to pay a higher rate for trees of larger diameter. As
a rule then, the silver fir in a Selection-worked forest of the Vos-
ges becomes exploitable as soon as it has attained a diameter of
2 feet measured at 44 feet fromthe ground, It is unnecessary to
observe that it is not every forest, especially if it is situated at a
high altitude, that can produce trees of that size ; but, at the worst,
we can always endeavour to keep as near it as the special capabi-
lities of the given forest allow. In the Jura, a portion of the sil-
ver and spruce firs produced is cut up into planks for the cabinet-
maker; but the finest and thickest and longest logs are exported:
to considerable distances after being simply rough-squared, and are
used as beams by the builder. These entire logs are in great de-
mand and fetch higher prices than the same wood worked up into
planks; but they must measure from 28 to 30 inches in diameter
atthe base. In those forests, therefore, the soil and climate of
which allow the trees to attain that size, the diameter of the ex-
ploitable silver fir should be fixed accordingly.
184 ORUANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS,

In determining the yield of Selection Fellnigs, i, e. the
number of trees to be exploited each year, the Aménagiste may
either allow himself to be guided by the figures of the previous
exploitations or by the number of exploitable trees actually stand-
ing on the ground. For example, if anterior to the organisation of
the forest the number of trees felled annually is 4 for every 5
acres, he must either maintain this figure or raise or diminish it
according as he finds the forest well-stocked, overstocked or under-
stocked as regards large trees, This he could not know, with the
certainty necessary for the work in hand, except by studying close-
ly the various erops, noting the annual increment of the trees that
are near the exploitable dimensions, and, lastly, reviewing the
results of the valuation survey of all the formed trees of the
forest arranged into size-elasses, If the yield of the previous
Selection Fellings cannot be ascertained, the production of the soil
per acre must serveasa guide, The amount of this production
ean generally be estimated with sufficient approximation by men
well up in the forester’s craft; those who have had much to do
with the exploitation of forests easily acquire this faculty. Moreover
it may be obtained in various other ways, by an actual valuation
survey, for instance, of the standing material in judiciously select-
ed canopied masses of trees of the same age. |

*

 

(1.)_ The study of the growth of trees also enables us to estimate the produc.
tion of the soil in exploitable timber. Suppose, for instance, we have a forest
in which healthy trees may be expected for certain to attain a diameter of
24 inches. Suppose also that the average annual radial increment has been
found, by means of measurements made on felled timber, to be one-tenth of
anineh, Hence it would take 60 years for a tree of 12 inches diameter to
attain a diameter of 24 inches. The time required for a tree to reach a diame-
ter of 12 inches, rarely the same for any two trees even of the same crop
might be on the whole much longer than 60 years. If we suppose it to be half
as long again, i. e. 90 years, then the time required to obtain trees of 24 inches
diameter would be 150 years. In the next place those portions of the forest.
in which several trees of this size are found grouped together, show how many
of them could stand on an acre completely stocked with them, Say that this
number has been found to be 75. From the preceding data may now be
calculated the total aunual sum of production per acre in mature timber
Thus it might be halfa tree per acre per annum, measuring from 60 to 70
cubic feet according to the height attained by the trees,

The known yield of adjoining forests growing under similar conditi
under systematic treatment would also fiviih's safe guide, cere

_ These various methods can be used to check one another, but their applica.
tion requires no little experieuce on the part of the Améuagiste.
ORGANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS. 185

The annual outturn of silver fir forests usually varies from 28
to 56 cubic feet per acre at high elevations, and from 28 to 98
cubic feet where the climate is less rigorous. By comparing the
average annual production calculated for the whole forest with
the contents of the exploitable tree, the Aménagiste can test the
correctness of his conclusions relative to the yield of the former
exploitations, and in any case guard himself against the risk of
being much above or below the true figure. Suppose, for instance,
that the annual sum of production per acre is about 70 cubic feet,
and that the exploitable tree (take it to be a silver fir) measures 2
feet in diameter and contains 140 cubic feet on an average; the yield
would thus be half a tree per acre, or, in other words, if the area
ef the forest was 500 acres, 250 trees per annum.

The order and succession of the Selection Fellings are regulated
in a very simple manner. Instead of spreading the annual cutting
over every crop in the forest, the practice has always been, and with
good reason, to allow an interval of rest between two consecutive
exploitations in any one place. Hence in order that these exploita-
tions may be reduced to a regular system, it is expedient to fix a
periodicity for the Selection Fellings. Thus, for instance, if it is con-
sidered advisable to return once in ten years to the same compart-
ment, it willbe necessary to work through the entire forest in 10
years, a procedure which necessitates the division of the forest into
10 portions or coupes. With natural lines, as far as possible, for
boundaries, these coupes need not be equal in area. Nevertheless
any great difference of area is to be deprecated, at the same time
that the relative extent of the several coupes should be so fixed
that their productive capabilities may be appreciably the same.
The partition of the forest into such coupes and the determination
of the order in which they should be respectively taken up con-
stitutes the Working Plan or permanent framework of the Organisa-
tion Project.

Continuing the illustration of the last but one preceding
paragraph, suppose the forest to be divided into 10 equal coupes;
each coupe would thus contain 50 acres and the annual fellings
would remove from it 5 trees per acre every tenth year. If that
number was found to be too considezable, if, in other words,

9
186 ORGANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORES‘S.

it was considered dangerous toremove so many trees all at once from
a single acre, the thing to do would be to reduce the number of the
coupes. Suppose that number reduced to 6, then the Selection
Fellings would return to the same spot once every 6 years and
remove therefrom only 3 trees per acre. It is thus apparent that
the first point of all to determine is the number of trees that may
be extracted ina single operation from one acre without endan-
gering the safety of the forest. It is only then that the periodicity
of the fellings and the number and boundaries of the coupes can
be fixed. The Working Plan is thus indissolubly connected with
the yield of the forest. In high forests worked by Selection, more
so even than in those subjected to the Natural Method, the combi-
nations of the Organisation Project should be subordinated to
cultural requirements, that is to say, to the rules of exploitation
necessary for the preservation of the forest.

It is evident that by felling every year the same number of
trees without any regard to their size, the annual yield cannot be the
same either in respect of quantity or money-value; but in proceed-
ing thus, the constant maintenance of the forest in a well-stocked
state, or its continued improvement until it reaches that state, is
guaranteed. In the first place, it is easy to see that the same
number of trees may be exploited year after year in a Selection-
worked forest for an indefinite period of time. If the contents of
the exploitable tree be 140 cubic feet, and the sum of production of
the forest 70 cubic feet per acre per annum, it is quite possible
that the forest may be sufficiently well stocked with trees of all ages
to bear half a tree or 70 cubic feet being removed per acre without
either becoming richer or poorer. But if, on the other hand, the
forest actually contained but little large timber, the same number
of trees would be still cut, but these would be mostly of smaller
size than the type tree of 140 cubic feet ; and so the stock of the
forest would go on increasing every year. On the contrary, if the
trees exploited contained more than 140 cubic feet, the quantity
extracted annually would exceed 70 cubic feet per acre, and the
stock would go on diminishing.

Again if the total production of the soil was not 70 but only
60 cubic feet per acre, the effect of exploiting half a tree per acre
would, even without any consciousness on the part of the operating
ORGANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS... is?

forester, be that the volume of the type tree would go on diminish-.
ing until it reached 120 cubic feet. Thus under any circumstances, |
the system of felling by Selection.so many trees per acre invariably.
results in eventually bringing the forest into a certain stationary-
condition, the stock in-that state being larger, the smaller. the. num--
ber of trees exploited per acre is,.

And more than this, the same-result follows for each separate -
coupe, and it is this very peculiarity that enables Selection. Fellings..
based. on number-of trees tobe carried out in a. systematic: manner. .
The object of reducing them. to a system is- to concentrate each
annual exploitation intoa definite portion of the Working Circle, a.
condition that is a necessary guarantee for the judicious marking of
the trees to be felled and a most. fruitful source of economy in
making the fellings. Moreover another systematized result of. this .
manner of working is that the area of each. coupe is then suffi--
ciently large to admit of a. sbort. periodicity, and.thus.render it
possible always to exploit at the right time all mature or dying trees .
and to avoid the simultaneous felling of any considerable number of -
trees within. a given limited area. The periodicity of the Selection:
Fellings. depends. entirely on the- forest concerned and its compo--
nent species. As a rule, it is.5,8, 10,12, or 15 years. It ought-
to be short-.for the spruce, long for the larch, shorter in fertile soils -
than in barren soils, longer in rigorous climates. The periodicity of :
the Selection Fellings having been. determined, the order in which.
the compartments should. be exploited may be fixed at once for. the -
whole Rotation, At the beginning the- well stocked: compartments .
will yield large timber, those poorly. stocked small. timber ; but a.
certain equilibrium will soon be established, provided: the annual .
fellings go over areas of nearly equal productive power.. The only -
disadvantage in fixing the yield at-so many trees-per unit of area is :
the inequality of the outturn.from-year to year.. But this inequality
is more apparent than real, and it can be easily remedied by divi--
ding the forest into Working Circles, which-need. not.be large in.
forests Worked by Selection.

Such is the procedure which we recommend in organising -
forests in which the Selection System has to be maintained. It now
reniains for us to say what we consider necessary as. regards the.
actual execution of the Organisation Project. .
188 ORGANISATION OF SHLECTION-WORKED FORESTS.

The yield for the whole forest being fixed, as also the number
of trees to be extracted each year, the Executive Officer must mark
for the axe all trees that are dead, dying or unsound, as well as
some others that are still growing and ina healthy condition, the
latter naturally being the largest of all the trees in the coupe and
limited to such as are absolutely required to make up the full
number of trees fixed for the annual yield. Dead and decaying
’ trees under 12 inches in diameter must also be felled, but ought.
not to be included in the yield, since they are no better than mere
poles. But formed frees of that girth and upwards, which are felled
because unhealthy or unsound, can on no account be omitted from
the yield of the year. The unavoidable premature exploitation of
formed trees under the fixed exploitable girth is compensated for
by the healthy growth of the larger trees that are preserved, an in-
dispensable set off in cases of this kind.

Besides this, it is certain that in actual practice the determina-
tion of the number of trees to fell per acre is not difficult. For it
is evident that by cutting on an average two-fifths of a tree per
aere per annum in Selection-worked forests managed by the State,
the owner obtains from them allthey can yield that is most in
conformity with his wants. The result must be that 70 cubic feet
will be extracted where the actual annual increment is only 70
cubic feet per annum, 140 cubic feet where it is 140 cubic feet,
and soon. {fs not this in truth a desirable state of things to have ?

In forests worked by Selection it is advisable to establish a
Reserve Fund based on area, one of one-fourth of the whole area
for instance, as in communal copses to be described further on.

SECTION 3.
Hicu Forests or Limitep EXTENT,

In a grove or forest of very limited extent worked by Selection,
although the conditions of growth may be all that can be desired,
yet the interests of the owner (it may be a Commune) may require
Annual Exploitations and a Sustained Yield. In that case the quan-
tity to cut yearly must be deduced empirically from the average
contents of the trees to be felled, due account being taken
both of the number of trees that would correspond to the annual
ORGANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS. 189

sum of production and of the available material on the ground. That
quantity should be fixed only for a limited period, and will be
Jarge or small according as the forest is well or poorly stocked with
old trees. The annual yield would vary only once after a fair-
ly long interval, to be sustained again for another interval of more
or less equal duration. As to the march of the exploitations, there
is no reason‘here for limiting them to fixed areas ; for it would be a
matter greatly to be deplored if poorly stocked compartments were
overworked and well-stocked compartments worked under their
full capacity. The Aménagiste can therefore only give the order in
which the compartments should be severally taken up and state
whether the periodicity should be long or short.

It is necessary to revise frequently the annual yield of forests
worked by Selection, when it has been fixed according to cubical
contents and not to number of trees to be felled. Such revisions
constitute the entire provision against the evil results that may arise
out of the necessarily complete uncertainty regarding the annual
sum of production. The present condition of the forest compared
compartment by compartment with what it was at the beginning of
the Period, as described in the Organisation Project, and the volume
of the formed trees it now contains as compared with the volume
of the trees that have been exploited, will furnish data of the
highest necessity for the redetermination of the yield.
CHAPTER III.

ORGANISATION OF SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS
UNDER TRANSFORMATION INTO REGULAR
HIGH FORESTS.!

—_»———_——-

A silver fir forest subjected for a long time to judicious treat-
ment by Selection offers a very simple case of an irregular high
forest. Trees of every age from the youngest to the oldest being all
mixed up together everywhere, the irregularity is of a uniform
character throughout the forest, and the climate and soil then serve
chiefly or solely as a guide in the formation of the compartments,
The state of the crop, since its composition and density and the
utter confusion of ages are generally the same everywhere, can
influence the operation only in a secondary or even exceptional
manner. As forests worked by Selection are usually situated in
hilly or mountainous country, the configuration of the ground becomes
a matter of great importance and it seldom happens that it does not
indicate in a clear and definite manner a natural series of compart-
ments. As the division into compartments is thus founded on the

constant factors of production, it follows that it possesses a character
of permanence,

The formation of the Working Circles is independent of what
is usually the most difficult condition to satisfy in that operation
viz: a proper distribution of the age groups, for all the different
ages are necessarily mixed up together everywhere. But it may be
found expedient, before everything else, to separate from the mass of
the forest those portions in which the Selection System must be
maintained, By reason, say, of its elevated situation or of the
absence of shelter, a forest may sometimes contain certain portions

(1.) This Chapter refers in a special manner to our silver fir forests that.
were formerly worked by Selection. The transformation of pine forests is am
event of rarer occurrence, and is besides a less difficult matter.
SLECTION-WORKED FORESTS UNDER TRANS#oRMATION. 191

in which reproduction and even simple growth may be possible only
under great difficulties. The constant preservation of the leaf-
canopy is here a more important condition than the transformation
or regularisation of the forest. Such portions constitute the natural
protection for those situated below them, and the maintenance
therein of the Selection System is necessary for their owa existence.
They may ordinarily be recognised from the portions capable of
transformation by certain distinctive characters; for instance, the
beech or the spruce may there be more numerous than elsewhere
or the trees there may be dwarfed and misshapen, or the leaf-canopy
may be incomplete in places or vary in density from point to point ;
or, lastly, special and diverse phenomena observable may point out
the particular portion or belt which must be continued to be worked
on the Selection System.

The requisite separation just described being effected, the rest
of the forest should then be divided off into Working Circles accord-
ing to the general rules regulating that operation. And, as in forests
treated by Selection, trees of all ages are found mixed up together
without any order whatsoever, the main point to bear always in
mind is the grouping into one and the same Working Circle of oaly
such portions of the forest as require all the same Rotation.

The length of the Rotation to adopt must, of course, depend on
the diameter the trees must attain in order to yield what is in
greatest demand in the market and is the most useful to the country
at large. In our finest silver fir forests of the Aude and the Jura,
it is only when the trees have acquired a diameter of 28 inches at
the height of a man from the ground, that they are classed as large
timber and possess for every cubic foot of their volume the highest
money-value and the largest sum of utility they can ever attain.
In such forests the problem to solve is at what age the silver fir
grown in Regular High Forest will attain this diameter. The trees
of a forest worked by Selection reach this size at very ditferent ages,
according as they have been overtopped for a longer or shorter time,
have maintained themselves in a more or less vigorous condition,
and possess more or less healthy and well-furnished crowns. But
amongst these trees there must always be some that have grown up
as if they had been reared ina regular high forest; they may be
192 SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS UNDER TRANSFORMATION,

easily recognised by the form of their boles which are clean up to a
great height; and by the thickness and aspect of their annual rings.
It is the age of such trees, which have grown in a regular manner
and under average conditions of fertility, and which have besides
attained the dimensions correspondiug to the maximum of utility,
that ought to be adopted as the figure for the Rotation.

The General Working Scheme gives the order in which the
various portions of the forest shall be taken up for transformation
during each successive Period of the Rotation. The Periods should,
asa rule, be long on account of the component species, which ia
with us generally the silver fir, and on account of the climatic con-
ditions peculiar to high mountainous regions, The reason is evident,
for in silver fir forests regeneration progresses very slowly, and in
order to obtain it in a completely successful manner, great caution
is necessary in the cultural operations. We do not estimate at less
than 25 years the period of time that must elapse between the
Primary and Final Fellings, and within this period at least one
Secondary Felling has to be made.

The Periodic Blocks should all be of equal extent whenever the
ground permits of it, or, better still, of equal productive power.
Each of them should, as far as possible, form a compact mass bounded
by natural limits. The observance of this rule serves in the majority
of cases to indicate the proper number of Blocks to adopt, that
figure being no longer, as in regular forests, determined by the
number of the component age-groups, but by that of the natural
topographical divisions of the ground. In forests hitherto worked
by Selection, it may be a matter of great importance to have the
successive Blocks of the same Working Circle following one another.
on the ground in the order in which they shold be taken up and
in the direction opposite to that of dangerous winds. Indeed such
a disposition of the Blocks is seldom impracticable in the forests
under consideration. The Working Scheme is thus usually a very
obvious one, and is, in any case, always well-defined.

The Special Scheme of Exploitations does not present the
slightest difficulty as regards the nature of the cuttings to be pre-
scribed—Transformation Fellings in the Block under transformation,
Selection Fellings in all Blocks, the transformation of which has
SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS UNDER TRANSFORMATION. 193

not yet been commenced. The duty of proposing the Improvement
Cuttings to be made in the portions already transformed and, therefore,
already regularized, may be left entirely to the Executive Officer,
no reference thereto being made in the Organisation Project.
The Cleanings, even when their utility is greatest, as, for example,
in a forest of mixed silver fir and beech, could not possibly be pre-
scribed ; while Thinnings, less useful in silver fir forests than almost
anywhere else, never assume an urgent character, and are, moreover,
it badly executed, extremely dangerous, In the majority of cases,
therefore, it is safer to leave them to those who are to execute the
Organisation Project: they can judge better than any one else where
and when such cuttings should be made, and will undertake them
only when their utility is unquestionable. To tie the Executive
Establishment down to carrying out a multitude of various opera-
tions, especially where mountain forests are concerned, would be
the greatest mistake the Aménagiste could commit,

It remains now to show how the yield of principal produce for
the duration of the current Period is calculated. This yield is
naturally derived from two sources, (i) the produce of the Trans-
formation Fellings, (ii) that of the Selection Fellings.

The Transformation Fellings, which are before everything else
true Regeneration Fellings, ought to be based on volume. Asa
rule, they remove all the formed trees, in other words, trees other
than mere poles ; to remove anything else would be defeating their
very object, which is to leave; after the cuttings have passed through,
young canopied crops capable of forming a harmonious whole and of
soon constituting a high forest little removed from the regular state.
The Aménagiste is thus obliged to inelude in his estimate of the
yield trees having a diameter of only 16 inches, and even of 14
inches in the majority of cases. It is clear that if such trees exist
in any numbers, the transformation of the forest entails a heavy
sacrifice. However it be, the enumeration and measurement of
trees above a certain diameter affords the means of readily ascer-
taining the actual contents of the standing timber. The future
increment of these trees up to the time of their exploitation cannot
be determined in the same manner as that of canopied crops com-

posed of trees of the same age, If it is desired to take this future
10
194 SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS UNDER TRANSFORMATION.

increment into account, the Aménagiste must, in order to estimate
it, go back to the figures yielded by the former Selection Fellings,
or find out the sum of production of the soil. But it is better
to neglect the future increment altogether, in which case care

should be taken to prescribe several revisions of the annual yield
during the course of the current Period.

The yield of the Selection Fellings to be made in the Blocks
that have not yet come under transformation presents no difficulty.
This is obvious, for in order to obtain the most desirable results
possible, it is expedient to remove only such trees as could not
maintain themselves in a sound state until the crops containing
them reached their turn for transformation. The effect of this
rule is, if we wish to work with some certainty as to results, that
only mature trees are removed in the successive Selection Fellings.
Treated thus, the crops still worked‘ by Selection end by becoming
gradually more and more complete. Each successive Period finds
the small and healthy trees of the preceding Period grown up
into a higher age-class, and in this manner the general appearance of
the crops, as they approach their turn for transformation, resembles
more and more that of old high forest, a most favourable circumstance
whether we regard it from the point of view of improved produce or
the regeneration of those crops or the maintenance of a sustained
yield during the various Periods occupied by the transformation.
All these results may be obtained with certainty simply by restrict-
ing the Selection Fellings to a limited number of trees, at the rate,
say, of two-fifths of a tree per acre at the outside, or even at the
rate of only one-fifth of a tree if the forest contains only a small
stock of large timber.

This point being settled, our own opinionis that the march of
the Selection Fellings in the Blocks not yet brought under transform-
ation should be arranged in a very simple manner. Given, for
instance, a silver fir forest of 1000 acres that is worked on a Rota-
tion of 144 years, divided into 4 periods of 36 years each. We will
suppose that it is considered advisable that the three Blocks which
are still to be treated by Selection should be completely worked
over every six years. Then their total area should be partitioned
off into 6 coupes, the successive order in which these 6 coupes
should be taken in hand and the number of trees that should be
SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS UNDER TRANSFORMATION. 195

removed annually being fixed at the same time. If it was decidedi
to cut on an average one-third of a tree per acre, then the total
number of trees to be felled by Selection: during the First Period.
in these three Blocks.would be 250:per.annum..

If there was-reason: to fear that too short a periodicity for the
Selection Fellings would have the effect of. exhausting the crops
operated upon,:then it could.be raised to 9 years; in other words.
the area would be divided into-9 coupes of. equivalent productive-
power and the successive order and yield: of these- coupes deter--
mined as just described.. At the end of the Period, or even at.
each revision of the yield, the results obtained by these restricted:
Selection Fellings should be- noted, and in this manner it would.
be easy to judge whether it would be- expedient to maintain, raise, ,
er reduce the number of trees-fixed. at starting..

With the Selection Fellings restricted’ to- really mature trees, -
no- matter what their size, it is possible to maintain a selection-.
worked forest unchanged, as regards the density of the component.
erops, for an indefinite period.of time.. Our finest. silver fir forests -
prove this, The Blocks to be: transformed last must, as a conse--
quence of such treatment, assume more and: more the appearance -
ef regular Old. High Forest until regenerated each in its proper -
turn, provided always that. overtopped ‘poles are on no condition. re- -
moved.

Besides this, it is easy to see- that: with the produce deérived:
from Transformation Féllingsin one part of the forest and from.
Selection Fellings everywhere else, the yield of the First Period can.
scarcely ever fail to reach a sufficiently high figure. Tlie extraction,
ef material over and above the outturn of these cuttings, if it must
be effected in some portions of the Working Circle in order to fill up-
any deficit, should hence be restricted toa few really exceptional
localities, and the exploitation of such. produce should’ be spread
ever a number of years. so as.-to remove only moderate quantities.
at a time and avoid all risk of converting its. extraction into a series .
of operations disastrous from a cultural point of view and dangerous ;
in every other-respect. We would deprecate any attempt to fix the.
Rotation for transformation below the figure that would have been
required for the same forest had.it. been already regularised, There.
196 SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS UNDER TRANSFORMATION.

is no advantage to be gained by trying to hurry on ; on the contrary
two disadvantages inevitably follow. In the first place, too much
would thereby be cut during the First Period,a result that must,
imperil to a considerable extent the success of the transformation
operations. We know of certain silver fir forests that have been
thus overworked for only 30 years, and already they have reached
such a stage that they can now stand nothing severer than the
most circumspect Selection Fellings. In the seeond place, it is im-
possible to form a regular high forest presenting a complete series of
graduated age-classes with a curtailed Rotation.

In the case of Selection-worked forests that are poorly stocked,
it may even be found expedient to put them through a period of
special preparation in order to render them capable of being trans-
formed. For this purpose, it would be enough to let the stock of
a single canton mature on by restricting the Selection Fellings
therein to as lowa figure as possible, or even by not touching it at
all and confining such fellings to the remainder of the Working
Circle. After this Preparatory Period the conserved canton may be.
regenerated under the most favourable conditions and without
necessitating the extraction of any considerable quantity of imma-
ture timber.

In most forests worked by Selection there are always some
portions, and these very generally young, which have grown up ina
regular manner either as the result of accidental circumstances or
of Final Regeneration Fellings. To turn such crops to the best
account, it is enough if they are placed in the right Block, say, the
last, for instance. But in an ill-stocked Working Circle it is often
useful to include these young crops in the First Block, so that they
might together constitute a notable proportion of its area, and there-
by render possible the preservation of growing timber on an equal
area for one Period more than in the contrary case, often assuring by
that means alone the success of the transformation.

As regards blanks and glades, they ought to be restocked as
soon as possible, whatever their position in respect of time in the
General Working Scheme. In silver fir forests this restocking is
usually a very slow operation. Shelter of every kind, whether it be
afforded naturally by existing trees, scrub, and bushes, or by pines
SELECTION-WORKED FORESTS UNDER TRANSFORMATION. 197

or spruce firs planted out as nurses, is indispensable in the majority
of cases. The consequence is that the restoration, like the creation,
of a silver fir forest is the work of two generations of men,
and its difficulty can therefore be easily appreciated. And, indeed,
the important nature of the task before us cannot but strike any
one, if he only bears in mind that we have barely 500,000 acres of
silver fir and spruce forests under the control of the Forest Depart-
ment, that all the remaining areas containing these species are
comparatively of very little value, and that we depend on foreign
countries for an immense proportion of our annual supply of deal
timber when our own mountain forests could produce it all. But
silver fir forests are as quick to disappear as they are slow to reform,
Thus it isa matter of no little importance how we regulate the
working of such of these forests as are managed by the State, by
means of judicious Organisation Projects, and above all by practising
throughout the utmost economy and moderation.

DOO
CHAPTER IV.

IRREGULAR HIGH FORESTS OF THE BROAD-LEAVED
SPECIES.

SECTION I.
CULTURAL REQUIREMENTS,

The method of treatment known as that a tire et aire consisted
in the clean-felling of equal areas in unbroken consecutive order.
The Royal Edict of 1669 made its observance compulsory in high
forests as well as in copses. That Edict prescribed the reservation
of ten trees per French acre (1.275 English acres ).

Moreover, when once a clean-felling had been made in any
place,the method in question admitted no further cuttings of any kind
until the next clean-felling took place on the expiration of a whole
Rotation, the only exception to the rule being the Extraordinary
Fellings executed under the special orders of the King’s Council.
Thus from one end of the Rotation to the other, the growth of the
new crop was left to chance and Improvement Cuttings were not
even so much as thought of.

This method of treatment was especially employed in the plains
forests, which were stocked with broad-leaved species, and the pro-
duce of which could be exported for general consumption. Its
essential object was the production of the large timber required by
the country at large and the Royal Navy. The rigid consecutive
order which the Edict prescribed for the fellings was intended
before everything else to assure the complete and unqualified pre-
servation of every crop during an entire Kotation of from 160
to 200 years, that is to say, until it had attained complete maturity,
FORERTS WORKED A TIRE ET AIRE. 199

By the time a forest reached this advanced age, the cover of
the trees must everywhere have become lofty, all low undergrowth
must long since have disappeared, and the soil must have been
already covered with a more or less abundant crop of seedlings, The
trees‘that had to be spared at the exploitations, were reserved sim-
ply with a view to the production of timber of, exceptional size and
quality. Indeed, at the age fixed for the clean-fellings, the oak trees,
if there were any, could neither have possessed great diameter, nor
have contained very close-grained wood, owing to the overcrowded
state in which they necessarily grew up. And it was precisely in
forests of oak and hornbeam, or of oak and beech, that this method
of treatment was in full force.

The limited area under State control that now remains to us of
our old high forests of the broad-leaved species (about 500,000 acres)
was formerly subjected to the tire e¢ aire method. These forests,
such as they were 50 years ago, are faithfully described in the
“« Cours de Culture des Bois” of Messrs. Lorentz and Parade, and
although their aspect and condition have been singularly modified
by the exploitations that have been made in them since those days,
yet we must still go back to the description of those forests as given
by our Masters, in order to draw therefrom the necessary inspiration
to enable us rightly to understand how to organise and treat them
so as to regularise them.

Nearly all these forests are situated in the plains, or in undula-
ting country where the climate is mild, Of_the principal species, all
well adapted to the soil and climate, they contain the oaks, beech
and hornbeam, besides, in an exceptional manner, the Scots’ pine,
which is artificially introduced in order to repair damage caused
either by accidents or faulty operations. The oak is too often found
in them in a pure state, the result of a systematic attempt to exter-
minate the beech and hornbeam. The sessile flowered oak adapts
itself better to this state than the peduncled species, the result being
that we have now completely canopied masses of pure sessile-flower-
ed oak aged from 150 to 200 years, perfectly healthy, but making
exceedingly slow growth and thus yielding spongy and nerveless
timber. We could cite several cases in which the trunks measure
scarcely 20 inches in diameter, whereas if they had grown in associa-
tion with the beech in dry soils and with the hornbeam in moist
localities, they would have attained twice that thickness, The
200 F¥ORERTS WORKED A TIRE ET AIRE.

peduncled oak requires richer, deeper, and moister soil thanjthe other
species; it is the oak of low and wet situations, where it produces
tough close-grained wood and attains the largest dimensions, but,
like its congener, only on the condition that it is associated with
other species. The hornbeam is its most useful companion and
auxiliary.

The majority of the class of high forests just described offer
more or less numerous instances of irregularity. Here and there
we still find in them superannuated trees of oak or other species,
crops holding out no promise whatsoever or containing but a small
proportion of the principal species, portions that have undergone de-
terioration or have been completely ruined, &c. Again, even the con-
secutive order of the cuttings which essentially constituted the method,
has seldom been observed ; exploitable trees have been taken out
wherever they were found, and especially from such places as offered
peculiar facilities for export and sale. The result of all this has been
the frequent and entire absence of any consecutive order in the ex-
ploitations and an utter confusion of age-classes. Then again, the
area of the annual coupes varied from year to year, according as
more or less produce was required in particular years, or in conse-
quence of marked changes made in the length of the Rotation. The
inevitable result was a defective gradation of the various age-classes,
Moreover, circumstances of a special nature aggravated the evils
already enumerated ; thus, for instance, ina great many forests, to-
wards the end of the last century, an unlimited number of trees in
crops aged from 20 to 30 years were systematically cut back, with
the result that whole age-classes were thereby completely wiped out,
Repeated again and again, these irregular fellings have given rise to
veritable copses, both simple and compound, in certain parts of the
forests we are describing. Elsewhere artificial restocking has pro-
duced whole crops of briet longevity of an entirely special type.
Lastly, offences and injury of all kinds, such as the cutting down or
topping off of trees, the lopping off of branches, the repeated removal
of the layer of dead leaves on the ground, grazing, the browsing of
cattle, the depredations of game, &c., all these causes have, singly

 

(1) In a pole crop from 40 to 50 years old and containing from 2000 to 2500
stems, oue or two of oak to every nine or eight of beech and hornbeam would be
a sufficient proportion to have,
FORESTS WORKED A TIRE ET AIRE. 201

br combined, compromised whole crops in various ways and degrees

After what we have just said, it is easy to understand how cer-
tain forests of our plains have been brought into a state of the
utmost irregularity. The effects produced continue to manifest
themselves even now, long after the causes, whieh gave rise to them
and which we have just enumerated, have ceased to exist, and al-
though thie Method of tire et aire has long since been abandoned.
The organisation of the forests treated by that method is thus a
singularly complicated and difficult task and is for that very reason
all the more an urgent one:

SECTION It.

ORGANISATION OF IrREGULAR HicH Forests

OF THE BROAD-LEAVED SPECIES.

When, after having formed thie Compartments and the Wotk-
ing Circles and determined the length of the Rotation, the Aména-
giste sets himself to draw up the General Working Scheme, he
nearly always finds liimself confronted with difficulties of no trifling
nature. These difficulties are, as a rule, due to the defective con-
stitution of certain crops, the irregular distribution of the various
age-classes, and the unequal repartition of the crops corresponding
to the principal age-classes. The formation of the Blocks thus be-
comes a very delicate operation. In the same manner as in regular
high forests, every endeavour should be made to form them in
accordance with the genéral pfinciples already laid dowa, that is to
say, they should be equal in extent or be of equivalent productive
power, and be all im one piece as far as that is possible. Besides
fhis, each Block should comprise a convenient group of compart-
ments, im other other words, the whole or at least the greater por-
tion of it should be composed of crops that will become exploitable
during the Period assigned for its regeneration.

With respect to single compartments surrounded on all sides by
others of entirely dissimilar character, and which their age, state of
growth, composition or density prevent from being regenerated at
the same time as the general mass of the Block in which they are
situated, they must be considered apart from the rest of that
Block. The Special Scheme of Exploitations should prescribe, at

1]
202 FORESTS WORKED A TIRE ET AIRE.

the beginning of each Period, the separate treatment required by
each such compartment so as to turn it to good account. The Special
Scheme should also endeavour to bring about the necessary har-
mony between the various compartments composing the Block, but
without rendering necessary any great sacrifices in order to attain it.

It is impossible to foresee all the various special circumstances
that one may have to deal with im organising these irrégular forests.
The student will gather from the annexed example, which we have
expressly drawn up, some idea of the principal difficulties to be en
countered in this work, and of the combinations by which it is
often possible to satisfy the requirements of an effective treatment,
as wellas at the same time to realize, within the measure of the
possible, the principal benefits to be derived from a good Organisa-
tion Project.

Given a Working Circle stocked with oak, beech, hornbeam,
and other broad-leaved species ; area 5000 acres. Suppose that the
Rotation suited for the forest, when it has. been regularised, is 180
years, and that this figure is adopted as the basis of the General
Working Scheme during the regularisation. Granted also that it
has been ascertained that no crop of this forest ought to be exploit-
ed before it is 160 years old, at which age the oak acquires, under
existing conditions, a diameter of 26 inches, or after it has reached.
the age of 200 years, when the trees begin to decay. We will
further suppose that the configuration of the ground and the dis-
tribution of the crops have led to the formation of five Blocks as
shown in the subjoined Tabular Statement,
FORESTS WORKED A TIRE ET AIRE.

203

 

 

 

4 #oa| 28
8 “32) 53
Periodic gq 3 Nature and condition of 2 ag eS 2
Blocks, q 4 standing stock. ‘3 88 3 2
a | pp} a a
8 48° | as
} we
acres. years.
( A | 45 |Thickets and Saplings of| 18 to 20
mixed species,
| B | 100 |Old High Forest of oak andj) 190 1
beech,
|
I {4 Cc 37 |Pole crop of alder, dotted 75 1
with old oaks,
D 45 |High Forest of beech. 140 1
E 62 |High Forest of oak sprip-| 140 2
L kled with hornbeam.
( FEF | 105 |Pole cfop of hornbeam and 50 2
scattered oak.
G 70 |High Forest of beech,| 120 2
interspersed with blanks
II and glades.
1 oH 105 |Half-grown High Forest of 90 3
oak and beech,
30 |Pole crop on stools; horn- 35 2
beam, oak, and the soft
L woods,
( K 55 |Young pole crop of pure 32 4
oak, an old plantation.
L 70 \High Forest of oak and} 120 3
hornbeam with reserves
of oak.
III |<
M | 175 |High Forest of oak, beech, 100 3
and hornbeam.
60 [Pole crop of the soft woods, 40 | 1 and 3
N with scattered oak and
mixed with hornbeam.
35 |Alder copse. 10 ; and 31
O

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
204 FORESTS WORKED A TIRE ET AIRE. \

 

 

| BS aa
& | Sa 3 28
=] a) oS
q ; hh Sas ge
Periodic # s Nature and gondition of a 3 z oo
“Bloeks. é eS standiug stock. Gea 3
v8 a5 202 3 oo
8 o 2g po Dan
8 ww EO 2x
oO Go ae
9
f P 92 |Young High Forest of oak 80 4
and beech.
32 |Pole crop of oak and beech. 45 4

with an upper stage of
very numerous reserves
of the same species,
{ R 45 [Sapling crop of oak and 25 3
Iv {4 horubeam, over-topped
with soft woods,

20 |High Forest of beech mix- 100 | 2 and 4
ed with oak.
Copse with standards, the) 5 to 16/1,2and 4
hard woods badly re-
presented.

4
an
Oe

LU 57 ‘Pole crop of oak, beech. 60 4
and hornbeam.
( V_ | 185 Pole erep of oak, hornbeam
and the soft woods. 35 5
X 17 'Open High Forest of pure) 180 {1 and 5
oak.
Y 80 Seedling crop ef beech and/5 to10
V 4 oak oe ee states 170 Land 5
of a Secondary Coupe.
Z 40 |Pole crop of birch forming 65 : land 5

the dominant species,

with beech and oak.

| AB, 65 [Crop of High Poles of beech/70,140 | 4.4 5
and oak, in good condi-|& 200 yj ~

tion, sprinkled with re-

serves of two different!

ages.

 

 

1492

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The figures in the last column, deduced from the actual state
of the crops, may be entirely conjectural, but they cannot be dis-
pensed with, as they afford the necessary basis for the General
Working Scheme, which could not otherwise be framed. From
them we conclude that the following expluitations should be made
during the First Period :—

’
FORESTS WORKED A TIRE ET AIRE. 265

Irregular High Forest Fellings in compartments X. Y. and Z.
Avea 87 acres.

Regular High Forest Fellings in compartments B, C, and D,
area 182 acres.

Irregnlar Coppice Fellings in compartmenis N, O, and T, area
165 acres.

Compartment X, with a limited area, is necessarily placed in
the last Block, in the very middle of which it is situated. Compart-
ment Y, which is in course of regeneration, requires only the last
Secondary Fellings and the Final Felling over the new seedling
erop, which will become exploitable in the last Period of the cur-
rent Rotation. Compartment Z, which contains, considered as a whole,
a. crop of no promise and of little value, must be regenerated during
the current Period, but all oak poles should be spared; these poles
will form a valuable pertion of the new crop. Asa necessary and
sufficient set off against these irregular exploitations, compartments
A and E ought not to be exploited during the First Period. Com-
partment N must be worked aga eopse with Standards, the object
in view being to preserve all the useful hardwood portion of the
crop ; that, with the new regrowth, will together form an old copse
of 72 years at the commencement ofthe Third Period, when the
compartment in question will reach its turn for regeneration by
seed. Compartments O and T will be exploited as copse when
abont 86 years old, the proportion of the hardwoods in them being
in the meanwhile increased by means of thinnings followed by arti-
ficial planting under the cover overhead. At the beginning of the
Second Period it will have to be seen whether it will be necessary
to repeat once more the Coppice Fellings in these two last mention-
ed compartments.

Such are, in a few words, the principal exploitations that should
be made during the First Period. They are restricted to an area
equal to the extent of one Block, and their object is to renew several
crops that have no preseat promise whatsoever. In making these
exploitations every thing must be done that will facilitate matters
for the next exploitation, during the proper Period, of the regenerat-
ed aud reformed crop. These preliminary operations will thus be
the first step towards order and permanent improvement.
906 NEGASSARY RESULTS OF THE AREA MSTHOD.

Ifa similar Tabular Statement with regard to the crops to be
exploited during the Second Period is drawn up, it will be seen that
their exploitation will have been greatly facilitated by the work
done during the First Period. It will be found possible, in the next
Special Scheme of Exploitations, to arrange for exploiting with a
sparing hand those crops and individual trees, respecting the good
growth and promise of which there can then be no doubt. It is
quite possible that compartments A and B, with their mature
standards only gradually cut out, could be maintained standing until
the Fourth Period, and that compartment S could be transformed
in as happy a manner by means of judicious Thinnings, so as not toe
require, contrary to present expectation, any partial regeneration
in view of the beech during the Second Period.

The student will now understand that it is easy to obtain some
previous idea of the extent to which a sustained yield can be
assured for each of the Periods of a Rotation, and especially for the
first two or three. He will be able to note how the various crops
of a Working Circle are regenerated by seed one by one, each in its
turn, either during the Period to which it is assigned in the Gene-
ral Working Scheme or during the immediately preceding or
immediately following Period. He will observe how, when the
position of each compartment in the General Working Scheme is
known, the object of every operation to be carried out becomes
clear and well defined. Lastly, he will perceive how the General
Working Scheme, although sketchy, yet absolutely necessary at the
commencement of the every Organisation Project, becomes better
and better defined as Period after Period passes, until it entirely
loses its artificial character, and forms with the actual state of the
forest a harmonious and natural whole.

SECTION III.

Necessary REsutts.

The Method of Organisation by Area is as simple as any that
can be applied to high forests. In it the Organisation Project
consists of two essential parts; (I) the General Working Scheme,
which has a permanent character on the ground itself and may
be indefinitely maintained unchanged ; (II) the Special Scheme
of Exploitations, which arranges and prescribes the operation to
FORESTS WoRKED A TIRE EY AIRE. 907

be made during a necessarily limited time. The whole scheme
of work can thereby be taken in at a glance and its control and
execution become thereby easy.

If the necessity of organising high forests is incontestible, it is
equally obvious that the Method based on Area supplies the neces~
sary starting point for the regularisation and improvement of a
forest. If it be asked what we understand by these two words, which
express one and the same idea? The reply is easy. They mean,
in the first place, the bringing into a favourable condition or the
restoration of the component crops of the forest, chiefly with the
aid of time, but also by means of well-conducted operations, such
as Cleanings and Thinnings, In the second place, they imply the
beneficial results following from certain cultural works, such as the
re-stocking of blanks, the re-introduction of the principal species
which have disappeared, the augmentation of the proportion of the
auxiliary species now too rare, &c. Lastly, they signify the replace-
ment, by means of natural reproduction, of defective by well-constitu-
ted crops. All these various cultural operations merge into one
common object, viz, the regularisation of the component crops of
the forest—the very highest possible order of improvement we can
effect, acting gradually and with moderation, in each of them.

Another class of improvement operations, the organisation
works properly so called, comprises the arrangement of the exploita-
tions according to some fixed order of succession, the creation of a
convenient gradation of age-classes, and the collocation of the crops
to be regularised in the strictest comformity with the Rules for
locating coupes. The exploitations made in a Working Circle
require to follow a very simple order ; the Method of Organisation
by Area permits of the establishment of this order to the farthest
extent that the actual state of the forest can admit of. By
means of a proper gradation of ages a sustained yield is assured
and a stock of exploitable timber can never at any time fail, both
ends being secured by the General Working Scheme. A judicious
collocation of the crops favours their growth and permits of their
being exploited in successive order: the formation of Blocks, each
generally in one piece, guarantees the early attainment of this two-
fold object once for all.
908 NECESSARY RESULTS OF THE AREA METHOD.

Cultural improvements, by which the crops are brought
into a favourable condition for growth, are evidently of the
highest importance; and such of this class of improvements
as can result directly from the Organisation itself are assured to a
sufficient extent by the judicious enrployment of the Area Method.
It is in this indispensable exercise of the judgment and of provident
moderation that lie the difficulties of that Method. Just as the great-
est of all improvements that can be effected in a forest results
from the growth and consequent increase of the component crops,
the greatest danger to which aw Organisation Project is exposed is
the exhaustion of the forest for which itt isdrawn up. For when
once it is found necessary to reduce the figure of the annual ex-
ploitations, it is nearly always imypossible to effect the reduction to
the requisite extent. Thus the crops are felled too young, and the
impoverishment of the forest continues indefinitely. Indeed, when
once matters have reached this stage, it is only ashort step to make,
by progressively lowering the age of the crops brought under the
axe and hastening their deterioration, to accomplish the ruin of the
forest. But the Method of Organisation by Area affords a sure
means of obviating this danger and even of creating anew, in the
shortest space of time possible, those very age-classes which are
now wanting ; for by means of it the exploitations can be curtailed
to any extent required, and in order successfully to restore the
forest, it is generally sufficient to remove, in the Fellings of the
current Period, only sach trees as are really exploitable.

a
BOOK V.

ORGANISATION OF COPSES.

Oo

A Copss is a forest crop composed in an essential manner of
stool-shoots grouped several together in clumps, or of suckers stand-
ing singly on the parent roots. Copses are exploited at a compara-
tively early age in order that they might reproduce themselves
completely by means of the regrowth from the stool, and in the
majority of cases a less ‘or greater number ;of ‘choice stems (STAN-
DARDS) are preserved when all the surrounding forest is cut back.

SrmpLe Corpses differ from CompounpD CopsEs in that they do
not contain any standards, or, if they do, these are only of the Ist.
class. It need scarcely be mentioned that the standards are divi-
ded into classes according to their age. We will designate the vari-
ous classes as follows :—

Ist. Class Standards, those that have seen one exploitation of
the surrounding forest.

Drid scsets ke geavseesessune psghe ese two exploitations.

DUG: cstecdaea. s.cegesesseteus soneeiaens CHLOE wisi esswscsscies

AD Saisie cass caiieeeteencesaeeeedcn dua’ FOUL ieosie cae sasweeas

Dib wccususeeesswesees piddh(ekcenieciontnansa LAVOE! 5 cdveadnns cs vee
and so on.

Standards of the 4th. and higher classes we will frequently speak
of under one general name as VETERANS.

It is only after they have continued their growth, with crowns
spreading out above the underwood, during an entire Rotation at
least, that the standards become formed, or, as we may term them,

12
210 ORGANISATION OF COPSES.

high-forest trees. Hence the designation of CopsE UNDER HicH
Forest (Tuillis sous Futaie) can be applied only to such copses
as are surmounted by standards that have been spared at not less
than two successive exploitations, that, in other words, are at least
three Rotations old. All the standards considered collectively con-
stitute what we will term the RESERVE as opposed to the copse or

UNDERWOOD,

0 OS
CHAPTER I,

OUR COPSES AS THEY ARE,.

SECTION I.

SimPLeE CopseEs.°

 

 

4 <i o

The conrponent crops of forests that are worked as Simple
Coppice consist chiefly of shoots from the stool and accessorily of ,
suckers and seedlingt rees.

The majority of such forests are composed of several species
living side by side and associated together in diverse proportions.
The climate being the same, the distribution and growth of these
species may vary with the mineral composition of the soil and above
all with the depth and bygroscopicity of the topsoil. The chief
and most widely distributed are, among the hardwoods, the oaks,
the hornbeam, beech, birch, and ash, the elms, the sweet chestnut,
the maples, and the service trees ; among the softwoods, the aspen,
the alder and the lime.

Some of these species, like the oaks, the hornbeam, ash, and
sweet chestnut, the maples, the alder and the lime, possess the
faculty of reproducing themselves from the stool. The stools them-
selves enjoy, under the coppice method of cutting them, a longe-
vity extending over several centuries, and, thanks to a result
easily explained, they even seem under that treatment to acquire a
greater longevity than seedling trees. Other species, like the
beech, the birch, and the aspen, do not grow well from the
stool ; but the second of these three trees reproduces itself very
freely by seed, and the last by suckers, wherever they have
once gained a real footing. The sweet chestnut is often grown as
copse either pure or mixed with other species. It scarcely forms
212 OUR COPSES AS THEY ARE.

with us natural forests, those we have being nearly all artificially
raised. The sessile-flowered oak, like the holm oak and the Toza,
forms of itself furest masses which thrive well under the Coppice
Régime. Such forests, eomposed of a single species, are, to speak
truly, the exception, and the majority of our copses contain, asso-
ciated in varying proportions, nearly all the broad-leaved species
indigenous to the locality.

On lowlying, wet, level ground, in deep and rich alluvial soil,
the alder often constitutes the larger portion of the copses there, in
company with scattered ash, hornbeam, elms and peduncled oaks.
These copses are the best stocked and the most productive that we
have, and when standards are preserved in them, itis there that
we find the largest specimens of the peduncled oak, such as furnish
us with the strong and durable timber in such great request for
civil and naval constructions. The same species are met with in
the copses of our plains, where the soil, although less wet, is suffici-
ently deep and moist. There also they form well stocked crops,
in which the proportion of alder decreases, while that. of the aspen
and hornbeam increases. In our hilly and mountainous districts,
and even in those plains, of which the soil is dry, shallow, and occa-
sionally stony, the sessile-flowered oak is more abundant than its
peduncled congener. It forms frequently enough the greater por-
tion of the crops containing it, its companions being the hornbeam
and beech, and in silicious soils also the birch. In Southern
France the holm oak is found on dry and rocky soils. Associated
as a rule with the sessile-flowered oak and with various species of
shrubs, it constitutes simple copses covering immense areas. The
Toza also furms fairly good simple copses in the barren soils of the

Southwest.

Such are, if a few young standards be excepted, our principal
types of forest in which the method of Simple Coppice has now
for a long time prevailed. It is needless to observe that these types
present each a great many shades of variety in one and the same
forest. As regards the frequent differences in the outturn of
material or receipts yielded by simple copses, although growing
under identical conditions, they can be referred to only two causes :
viz., the condition of the standing stock, and the age fixed for ex-

ploitation.
OUR COPSES AS THEY ARE. 213

If the composition or condition of a copse is defective either
because the more valuable species are wanting or are present in in-
sufficient numbers, or because the crops are not as eomplete as they
might be, these shortcomings may be remedied by planting what is:
necessary as soon as each successive coupe is exploited and cleared.
This cultural operation need never fail, if the requisite care, money
and time are expended on it ; but it does not suffice of itself to
make the copse yield the best descriptions of produce or the largest
income of which it is capable. In copses, as in high forests, it is.
also necessary that the stock be exploited at the right age.

A forest worked as a simple copse yields scarcely anything be-
sides firewood or charcoal, vine props, hoops for casks, poles, and
bark. But even these descriptions of produce it will furnish in
very different quantities according to the age at which it is felled.
The clumps of young shoots on newly cut stools at first stand apart
from each other, leaving the greater portion of the soil exposed.
As long as this continues, the production of ligneous matter is small
in spite of the vigorous growth of the young shoots. As they grow
on, they close their crowns over the ground and thus reform the
leaf-canopy. From this time onwards the annual sum of produc-
tion is considerable until it reaches its maximum. It is only later
on, when the copse, then old, begins to thin itself under the action
of natural forces and allows the direct rays of the sun to reach the
ground here and there that the annual production diminishes like
the faculty itself of the copse to reproduce itself from the stool.
Such are the facts as we find them, and the conclusion to be drawn
from them is that the standing stock in simple copses increases in
a much higher ratio than its own age.*

People do not easily conceive what an enormous difference
five years added to the necessarily short Rotation makes in a copse.
Actual experience alone can carry with it complete conviction. A
copse at 30 years is, so to say, an entirely different forest from the

 

1. Oak copses are not seldom met with, which at the age of 10 years
contain 230 cubic feet per acre, being the equivalent of 28 cubic feet per acre
per annum ; at the age of 20 years 840 cubic feet, being an increase since the
age of 10 years at the rate of 56 cubic feet per acre per annum ; and at the age
of 30 years 1400 cubic feet, exclusive of 280 cubic feet removed in the interval
in thinning operations. This, during the third interval of 10 years, from the
age of 20 to 30 years, the annual sum of growth per acre is still 56 cubic feet,
and the actual production 84 cubic feet.
214 OUR COPSES AS THEY ARE.

same copse 10 years earlier, At the later age it consists principally
of large poles, the branches of which, in the high leaf-canopy they
form, are alone equal to all the thin branchlets which compose
the whole stock at the lower age. Moreover, at the former age cir-
culation under the leaf-canopy overhead is easy : the copse is no
longer the tangled mass of thin wiry stems it was ten years before.
If the age of felling is raised, before many Rotations are over, the
relative proportions of the various component species become entire-
ly changed, and this for the better. Indeed, in lengthening the
Rotation there is everything to gain, nothing to lose, But} unfor-
tunately the greater portion of our copses belongs to private pro-
prietors, who all, or nearly all, commit the egregious mistake of
exploiting their forests too early (at 12, 15, or at the outside 18
years), when they could in nearly every case double their income
by simply doubling the duration of the Rotation. If proof of this
is wanted, here it is. Asa rule the money value of a copse at the
age of 30 years is at least four times that of the same 15 years
earlier, so that by doubling the Rotation and exploiting only half
the original area, the receipts would still be twice as large as what
is now obtained by exploiting at 15 years instead of at 80.

SECTION IL
CoPrsES WITH STANDARDS.

The designation of Coppice with Standards, Compound Coppice,
Coppice under High Forest, or High Forest over Coppice we apply
to the method of treatment which consists in growing above the
copse or underwood trees of large size belonging especially to the
species oak, such trees standing out well away from each other
and, for that very reason, growing under conditions different from
those obtaining in completely canopied high forest. The produc-
tion, in a comparatively short time, of oaks of the largest size and
of closer grain than those grown in regular high forest, the rearing,
in a secondary manner, of large trees of other valuable species such
as ash or elm, which do not come up well in close leaf-canopy, such
are the chief advantages offered by the Compound Coppice method
of treatment. As regards the underwood, or copse properly so
OUR COPSES AS THEY ARE. OLS

called, without forgetting that it yields valuable produce, it must
be looked upon chiefly as an indispensable auxiliary means for pre-
serving and protecting the soil and asa nursery for future stand-
ards, those, viz., which are to take the place of the trees felled in
the exploitations.

In forests under State management the selection and number
of the trees to reserve in each coppice coupe is regulated by the
Edict promulgated in 1827 with the Forest Code. But the wise.
provisions of that Edict are very far from being followed everywhere
to the full extent required ; for it must be confessed that if, on the
one hand, care has been generally taken to reserve the number of
First Class standards prescribed by it, on the other hand, but little
attention has in the majority of cases been paid to the much more
important injunction, according to which no trees should be felled
except such as ARE DECAYING OR CANNOT GAIN BY BEING PRESERVED
FOR ANOTHER ROTATION OF THE UNDERWOOD. Let us also add
the sad fact that only too often have fine oak standards of the
second and higher classes been sacrificed with the avowed object of
reducing the area covered by the crowns of the reserve and of favor-
ing the growth of the underwood. It is to this circum-
stance chiefly that we must attribute the diversity to be now-
adays observed in the constitution and composition of our
copses with standards. This diversity may often be observed
simply by going from one eoupe to an adjacent one of
the selfsame forest, and reflects as clearly as in a mirror the
proclivities and mental attitude of the Forest Officers who have
selected the standards therein. However it be, the density, growth
and production of the underwood depend necessarily on the con-
stitution of the reserve ; the more numerous the latter is, especially
as regards large trees with dense, low crowns, the more open, sickly
and small will be the underwood. It has also been noticed that
in the immediate neighbourhood of large trees the coppice stools
lose earlier the property of throwing up shoots. But in revenge
it isin these very places that we find the greatest number of
seedlings of oak and other species, of which the former will furnish
the very finest individuals possible to recruit the reserve, and the
latter young and, therefore, vigorous stools to fill up the blanks
caused by the fall of the large trees and to replenish the underwood.
216 DUR COPSES AS THEY ARE.

Seedlings of the various species are produced in copses
under the most various conditions. Those of the soft woods and of
other species with light seeds come up as soon as the exploitation
ef a coupe uncovers the ground; while those of beech and oak
usually make their appearance under the cover of an old underwood
a few years before it is felled, this being of certain occurrence when
such underwood is tall and the reserve numerous. Then, again,
animals help to disseminate a fairly large quantity of acorns and
beechmast, and in consequence scattered seedlings of oak and beech
are not unfrequently to be met with under old underwood. But
seedlings of the hardwoods often disappear, if not wholly, still very
generally, from causes which affect each different species in a special
manner. Beech seedlings, which stand well under cover, die off as
soon as they are exposed to the sun, unless they have already at-
tained acertain age and size. The young oak seedling, on the
contrary, requires plenty of light ; but it grows slowly during the
first few years even in the open, and it disappears the moment it is
overtopped by young coppice regrowth possessing dense foliage,
like the stool clumps of the hornbeam and the lime. Herein we
see a fruitful cause of the paucity of young standards of the more
valuable species in so many of our copses.

The peduncled and sessile-flowered oaks are our two forest species,
which have been_ specially selected for growing as standards over
copse. These two species are often found standing side by side in
the forest ; but, as a general rule, the first flourishes chiefly in the
wet, deep and rich clays common to lowlying, level situations,
while the second delights in less clayey land and in the gravelly
soils of our plains and hills. Itis also an established fact that in
nearly every copse that is in a flourishing state the underwood is
composed of mixed species, a notable proportion of them consisting
of such trees as exercise a fertilising effect on the soil by reason of
their abundant foliage and are able to maintain themselves alive and
prosper under the spare crowns of the peduncled oak, and even
under the fairly dense cover of its sessile-flowered congener,

The faults attributed to oaks grown as coppice standards are
(i) that they do not possess the same length of bole as trees grown
continuously in leaf-canopy ; (ii) that they are more liable to be
misshappen than high forest trees ;and (iii) that they are more
OUR GOPSES AS THEY ARE. 217

ften than these latter rendered unsound through accidents and by
defects which affect principally oak-timber. These disadvantages
of the coppice systema are undeniable, but it does not rest with us
whether we are to rear high forests everywhere and give up a
method of treatment that is actually practised throughout a very
considerable portion of the forests of this country. Moreover we
consider that this method of coppice treatment is, asa rule, the
one best adapted to the interests of the private proprietor. We
believe that in a great many cases itis able to satisfy to a sufficient
extent the requirements and the special interests of the Communes.
Besides, it is incontestable that, when wellapplied, it offers the
means of assuring a supply, if not of the largest quantity of the
most useful produce, at least of a considerable quantity of very

useful produce and of cleser-grained timber than that furnished by
high forests.

It is not, therefore, unnecessary or unimportant to understand
thoroughly the advantages as well asthe disadvantages attaching
to the Compound Coppice Method of Treatment. The actual treat-
ment, 7.¢., the mode of applying it, always affords an opportunity
of attenuating the latter and turning the former to the best account.
And, indeed, the organisation itself of such forests furnishes that
opportunity. In forests worked as Compound Coppice, regeneration
is immediate and the treatment simple and easy, characteristics in
which that method of treatment shares to almost the full extent of
Simple Coppice. But the production and development of shoots from
the stools are hindered by the cover of the standards, and the
work of treatment becomes complicated by the always difficult task
of creating a Reserve composed of the more valuable species.
Copses with standards furnish timber of large size, almost
exactly as real high forests do; but the quantity of such timber
is small. The Compound Coppice method of working is suited
to the rearing of isolated trees ; it allows their crowns to develop in
perfect freedom, whereby their boles increase rapidly in diameter
and close grained wood is formed. But in consequence of the
ever recurring periodical clean felling, the roots of the trees find
themselves placed in a soil that is alternately covered and uncover-
ed, their boles remain short or become clothed with epicorms, some
of the branches in their crowns die or are broken off, and generally

they become liable to suffer from numerous defects and dangerous
13
218 OUR COPSES AS THEY ARE.

kinds of unsoundness. The standards may be felled one by one at
the very moment when each has acquired its highest utility, that
is to say, at extremely different ages, especially soin the case of oaks.
But, on the other hand, the ever-changing conditions through
which those trees have to pass bring about the premature decay of
a great many among them.

Such are the principal facts that may be observed in our com-
pound copses, facts of extreme diversity and varying importance from
forest to forest, coupe to coupe, nay from one point to the next.
The application of this method of treatment is thus far from being
easy and uniform, as one might be led to imagine. It demands in-
telligent and unceasing care in the selection of the standards, in
which operation the exercise of the forester’s judgment goes for
avery great deal. It presents difficulties of an entirely special
character, due to the mixture of species and the extremely various
conditions under which seedlings germinate and maintain them-
selves under the low cover of the underwood. A clear and enlighten-
ed knowledge of these facts is indispensable to obtain from the Com-
pound Coppice method of treatment really good results.
CHAPTER II.

ORGANISATION OF SIMPLE COPSES.

 

The organisation of a copse is often regarded as a more or less
mechanical operation, consisting simply in the division of the forest
into regularly worked coupes in accordance with local usage.

This ts an error greatly to-be deplored-in a country, the greater
porportion of the forest of which is treated as copse. The result of
this erroneous belief is seen in the enormous loss of produce and
income unconsciously incurred by a large number of proprietors,
whose forests, although laid owt in regularly worked coupes, are
nevertheless badly organised. For instance, some of them are
exploited at the age ef 20 years, whereas, if maintained up-to the
age of 30 years, their yield’ would be doubled; others again are
treated as simple copses, when they ought to be worked as com-

pound copses.

In nearly every eopse, we find ready: to hand a complete series.
of compartments eompletely defined on the ground both by the divi-.
sion lines between coupes already exploited, and.by roads, paths,
watercourses, and other natural lines. The first thing to do is to
survey and map out these compartments; or at least make a sketch
map of them, in order to enable the Aménagiste-to examine and de-~
scribe the various crops and’ group them. into Working Circles.

In forming the Workiag Circles.care must be taken. to avoid
making them too large. In. most cases, it will. be found advantageous
to limit the area of the annual coupes so as to distribute the fel-.
lings in the most convenient manner possible; and in this respect.
it is desirable, if not always, at least in the majority of instances,
to consult the interests: and convenience: of the local timber trade:
220 ORGANISATION OF SIMPLE COPSES.

But the number and size of the Working Circles must depend
chiefly on the configuration of the ground, on the system of roads
already laid out or projected, and on the distribution of the age-
classes resulting from previous exploitations.

The Working Circles being onee formed, the main point to be
attended to in organising a simple copse is the determination of
the Rotation. Formerly, the produce of such forests used, for the
most part, to be converted into charcoal for the metallurgist. In
order to meet this special circumstance it was usual to work simple
copses on short Rotations. Since then, however, the situation has
undergone a complete change. The demand for charcoal has great-
ly fallen off ; while cordwood, especially unsplit billets, and, in some
districts, certain descriptions of builders’ and artifieers’ wood, such
as mine props, for imstance, are more sought after and eommand
higher prices than wood suited for charcoal making. The bark also
raises in a very marked manner the value of oak copses. Hence
before adopting for the length of the Rotation 12,15, or 18 years,
which numbers seem to be fixed by universal custom in every part
of the country, the Aménagiste would act wisely if he first satis-
fied himself that no better results could be secured with a longer
Rotation. Whether we consider private woods or communal
forests, there is nearly always advantage in raising the Rotation to
25 years at the least, and often up to as high a figure as 30 years.

In the case of woods belonging to private proprietors, the only
safe and intelligent way of determining the length of the Rota-
tion is to compare the capitalised values of the standing crop at.
various ages with the corresponding receipts. *

If the copse is owned by a Commune, the interest of which class
of proprietor is to obtain the largest income it can from its forests,
the simple comparison of the annual receipts realizable with differ-
ent Rotations suffices to resolve the problem. As long as the
average annual receipts go on increasing with the age of the exploit-
ed crop, it is obviously to the interest of the Commune to lengthen
the Rotation accordingly. Suppose, for example, that the produce of
a copse is worth £6 per acre if felled at the age of 20 years, £10 per
acre if felled at 25 years, and £15 per acre if felled at 30 years ; then

 

1. For example see page 104.
ORGANISATION OF SIMPLE COPSES. Oot

the corresponding average annual receipts are respectively 6 shil-
lings, 8 shillmgsand 10 shillings per acre, and the most advantageous
Rotation would certainly be not Jess than 30 years. As a rule, the
average annual receipts go on increasing with the age of the crop,
and this, too, rapidly. And we may observe that Section 69 of the
Royal Edict promulgating the Forest Code, which Section applies
in the case in question by virtue of Section 134, directs that,
whenever possible, the lowest age at which a copse may be cut shall
be 25 years. And, as a fact, there is every advantage in lengthen-
ing the Rotation for the working of simple copses belonging to
Communes up to the highest Hmit of age, at which the stools can
throw up vigorous and abundant shoots. In dry and shallow, and
hence bad, soils a simple copse in no ease yields much produce. In
moist and deep, and, therefore, good soils, abundant and valuable
material can be obtained by growing old copse.

The Rotation being fixed, it now remains to draw up the
Working Scheme. The first thing to be done here is to divide the
Working Circle into coupes of equivalent productive power. The
expediency of this procedure has scarcely ever been contested, al-
though at first sight it might appear simply ealculated to save the
Executive Forest Officer the trouble of measuring out his annual
coupes by actual survey. Butit is easy to understand that the
definite location of the coupes on the ground guarantees the
exploitation of each one of them at the right time, assures a greater
equality in the outturn of produce each year, establishes once for all
in a permament manner a regular order for the successive fellings
and enables the eye as well as the judgment to reeognise with
precigion and clearness the desirability of certain improvement
works, when these should be undertaken, within what limits they
should be executed, and in what order they should be taken in hand.
Hence the expediency of effecting this primary division of the
forest area in the most advantageous manner possible. To this end
it is necessary first of all to ascertain what cantons are bounded by
natural lines, or what groups of compartments possess one and the
same situation and description of soil. This is the very keystone of
the whole division. The boundaries and topography of these can-
tons should then be entered on the map of the Working Circle
concerned, and their respective areas computed; after which each
canton should be divided into an integral number of equal coupes.
229 ORGANISATION OF SIMPLE COPSES.

Suppose, for instance, that we are given a Working Circle measu-
ring 625 acres, to be divided into 25 coupes, and that it contains a
natural canton consisting of a well-defined piece of sloping ground
comprising 90 acres. This canton must be divided into 3 or 4 coupes
according as its fertility is below or above the average. The pro-
cedure just described enables the Aménagiste to draw up a really
good and simple Working Scheme, instead of one that looks simple.
only on the map with coupes of perfectly equal extent bounded by
straight and parallel lines.

In dividing a copse into ‘coupes, the first two Rules for the Ioca-
tion of coupes must be rigorously observed. The necessity of exploit-
ing plot after plot in their successive relative order, and of giving the
coupes the most regular form possible is so obvious, that the forest-
er’s instinct alone would lead him to do so. The exploitation of all
the coupes situated in one and the same canton in accordance with
the order in which they suceeed each other on the ground is not
always feasible during the first Rotation; but it rarely happens that
this order cannot be followed from the commencement of the second
Rotation, and this without entailing any sacrifice worth considering.
Suppose for example, that in the Working Circle referred to in the
preceding paragraph there was a coupe that was badly placed as re-.
gards the age of the contained crop, so that, if taken in hand in the
relative order of its situation, it would have to be felled at the ave
of only 17 years. This age would obviously be too early, since the
Rotation is one of 25 years; but as it has to be exploited twice in
the course of 17+25—42 years, it could, if desired, be felled on
these first two occasions at the age of 21 years, a mode of procedure.
that would often be adopted with profit, ‘

The boundaries of the coupes ought to consist of straight lines,
or of natural lines such as roads, watercourses, ridges, &c. Under any
circumstances, they should be arranged, as far as possible, with
special reference to export lines, and in such a manner as to. provide
each and every coupe with an easy outlet for its produce.

The necessity of giving every coupe an independent outlet for
the export of its produce very frequently leads to the establishment.
of bridle-paths broad enough to serve as roads. But the preliminary
ORGANISATION OF SIMPLE COPSES. 293

divison of the Working Circle into natural cantons is the essential
point of departure in securing the best distribution and net-work
of export roads possible.

The breadth to give to the division lines between the coupes
must vary with circumstances. Forty inches may be enough fora
line on which, owing to steep gradients, carts could not be used;
while a width of 10 feet would allow of the easy passage of carts,
and 16 feet in most cases be as much as would ever be required.

The direction in which the successive coupes should follow each
other is not without some importance, even in simple copses. In
each canton taken separately the cuttings should progress in the
direction opposite to that of cold or dry winds or, in exceptional
cases, opposite tu that of winds which blow ina constant manner.
But it is easy to understand that this Rule for the location of coupes
possesses less importance here than anywhere else. Besides this,
the maintenance of permanent belts of forest fringing the outside
edge of the coupes is the best means of protecting them against
dangerous winds.

The number of standards to reserve in any simple copse
must be prescribed by the Aménagiste, who must also determine
what species aione shall be so reserved. In most cases oaks, ash and
birches are at once the most useful and the least hurtful of all our
species to preserve. Nevertheless it seldom happens that there is no
advantage to be gained by reserving a few individuals of all our
large forest species. As regards the damage resulting either from
the presence of cover overhead or from the loss of so many stodls
due to the preservation of the standards, it is very slight as long
as the number of the standards does not exceed sixteen per acre.

For communal forests the Royal Edict, under which the Forest
Code was promulgated, prescribes in a universal manner the reser-
vation per acre of from 16 to 20 standards of the second and higher
classes capable of growing on for another Rotation (Sections 70 and
134). The Compound Coppice Treatment is thus the rule for this
class of our forests, and the Simple Coppice method can only be
allowed under exceptional circumstances. These circumstances
should be fully described in every Organisation Project, which
proposes the adoption of Simple Coppice in forests belonging to

Communes,
2294 ORGANISATION OF SIMPLE COPSES.

The best distribution for the standards of a simple copse is, as
a rule, in belts fringing the division lines of coupes and the bound-
ary of the forest. With such a method of distribution a great num-
ber of standards, and these even standing quite near each other,
can be preserved without any detriment to the underwood. Such
standards produce an abundance of seed, which can be gathered
with profit in certain years ; they afford to the coupe in which they.
stand excellent protection ; they yield wood suited for the builder
and the artificer ; they form capital boundary marks; and, lastly,
they adorn the forest,

The establishment of these belts, whether single or double, the
width to give them along the edges of the coupes and along the
main division lines, the selection of the trees to be reserved for
that purpose, the stage up to which they should be allowed to grow,
and the special precautions to attend to in order successfully to
renew these belts, all these points should be equally indicated in
the Organisation Project.

The up-keep and improvement operations required in simple
copses are mostly limited to the mere exclusion of men and cattle;
and the filling up of blanks. The exclusion of men and cattle is
all the more necessary, as the stock is renewed at short intervals
and.is hence only for a very few years at a time old enough to have
little to fear from the numerous risks to which it is exposed, prin-
cipally from grazing and fires. On this head, what is required to
be done is different for different forests ; but the most important
work of all without exception is fencing. An effective barrier, such
as a sunk fence difficult to cross, is one of the best guarantees for
the safety of a copse. The Organisation Project ought to provide
for the establishment of such barriers as well as for the filling up
of the blanks which are common enough in simple copses.

The growth of sowings or plantations made with our most
valuable species is very slow as long as the young seedlings have
not joined their crowns and closed over the ground. Besides tiis,
it takes at least one Rotation and exploitation for the seedling
plants to furnish real stools ; and, indeed, it is only after such
individuals have been cut back a second time, that their stools
throw up a strong clump of shoots. This circumstance must not be
lost sight of by the Aménagiste.

es
CHAPTER IIL

ORGANISATION OF COPSES WITH STANDARDS.

 

SECTION I.

CoMPARTMENTS, WORKING CircLEs. RoratTion. Expiorra-
BILITY OF THE STANDARDS.

SoS

 

 

In copses with standards the Compartments and Working
Circles are formed in the same manner asin simple copses, and
with the same objects in view. In any case, in studying and de-
scribing the forest, special attention should be paid to the reserve,
not only because it represents the principal element of production,
but also because in the growth of the trees (frees in the strict
sense of the word), of which it is composed, it furnishes the most
certain criterion we can have of the fertility of the soil,

It is no doubt expedient to group together to form each Work-
ing Circle crops growing under the same conditions of fertility
But besides that this procedure presents many difficulties, there is
no great harm in including in the same Working Circle compart-
ments of unequal fertility, provided that the species composing the
underwood can all be exploited at one and the same age.

As a matter of principle the length of the Rotation to adupt in
copses with standards is irrevocably governed by two conditions.
In the first place, it cannot exceed the age at which the underwood
would cease to reproduce itself completely from the stool ; and, in
the second place, it must be long enough to allow the future first-
class standards (viz., those to be reserved from amongst the under-
wood when it is cut) to attain a length of bole sufficient tolet them
be considered as tall trees, and a diameter large enough to enable
them to stand being isolated. Determined on these considerations,
Rotations for copses with standards would, asa rule, be comprised

between 30 and 40 years.
14
226 THE ROTATION IN COPSES WITH STANDARDS.

It is certain that with a long Rotation, of 36 or 40 years for
instance, a Thinning would be required at about tne age of 30 years,
thereby rendering it possible to obtain in any kind of soil whatsoever
the best results that canbe expected from the Compound Coppice
Method of Treatment. #

As regards the Reserve, we know that it consists of standards
of the Ist., 2nd, and higher classes. Now it is clear that each time
a coupe reaches its turn for exploitation, it contains no standards of
a lower class than the second ; hence it is always those of the second
and higher classes which furnish the trees to be felled. Such trees
would be, firstly, those that are decaying, misshapen or weakly ;
secondly, those among the healthy and vigorous trees which, from
being badly situated, interfere with the growth of other standards
possessing a higher value and a higher future promise; and, thirdly
and lastly, all mature and exploitable trees.

Thus the age at which the standards are felled is always some
multiple of the Rotation of the underwood. But it is not possible
to express it in figures. The reason is evident; for, to take an
example, in copses belonging to the State and to Communes, the
oak is not exploitable until it yields the most useful produce of which
it is capable, and, since the utility and the money value of an oak
tree increases very rapidly in proportion to its size, it follows that
oak standards become really exploitable only one by one as each
reaches maturity. Hence as long as an oak is sound, as long as it
has no trace of decomposition either apparent or concealed, as long
as the aspect of the bark or the crown, the abundance and vigour of

 

1. A century or more ago the majority of the copses belonging to the Com-
munes and to the State in the east of France were worked on a Rotation of
30, 35 or 40 years. When this last figure was adopted, the copses so worked
were designated hauts taillis (high copses). But since the middle of the last cen-
tury, a large number of communal forests were divided into systematically
ordered coupes by officers of the Survey Branch of the Forest Department work-
ing more or less at haphazard and never departing from the number 25. This
was the be-all and end-all of the organisation of those forests. Thencefor-
ward the felling of large timber went on rapidly increasing and the trees were
cut for the most part atthe age of 75 years, instead of being preserved un-
til they were 150 years old. Thus was brought about the disappearance of the
oak from many and many a coupe, and from our finest forests.
EXPLOITABILITY OF COPPICE STANDARDS. 227

the foliage or branches show that it is healthy, or, to use the words
of the Royal Edict, that its condition is such that it can prosper
for another Rotation, it must not be abandoned to the woodcutter,
whatever its age or size might be. Such is the rule, simple enough,
to observe with regard to the exploitability of oaks reserved over
copse, if we wish to obtain from them the maximum utility or money
value of which they are capable.

The same rule holds good with regard to the other species,
standards of which it is expedient to preserve for the production of
timber, such as the ash and the common elm for instance. With
respect to such species as the hornbeam and even the beech, which
are included in the reserve simply to yield firewood and to furnish
a sufficient stock of seedlings for the maintenance of the underwood,
they need not b: spared after they have reached the category of
2nd. or 3rd. class standards. Nevertheless there are some forests in
which , the beech being the predominant tree, there is advantage
in preserving standards of that species up to a more advanced age.
But this circumstance is really peculiar and limited to communal
forests, for it is evident that State forests, situated ona soil
specially adapted for the cultivation of the beech, ought without
any hesitation to be converted into high forest, and that for that
reason the selection of the standards therein ought to be regulated
by the exigencies ‘of the conversion.

In copses belonging to private proprietors the standards cannot
be preserved except for a limited period. As soon as a certain age
has been reached, the rate of increase in the money-value of the
standing trees begins to fall below the percentage of interest de-
manded by investors in forest property in the locality ; this then
is the age at which the standards ought to be felled. But it is
clear that this age must vary for different trees according to the
less or greater vigour of their growth and the additional value
which each would acquire during the course of another Rotation.

If, as we have said, the treatment of forests of broad-leaved
species by the Compound Coppice method is eminently suited for
the private proprietor and satisfies well the interests of the Com-
mune, this is so only on the condition that the selection of the
standards is carried out methodically and in the proper spirit,
228 SELECTION OF STANDARDS.

Hereon hinges the success itself of the organisation and treatment
of such forests. We must hence dwell on this subject in a special
manner. And here the facts connected with the actual carrying out
of the operation require to be as fully discussed as the general
principles themselves on which it is based.

SECTION II.
THE SELECTION OF STANDARDS IN CompouND COPSES.

The trees to reserve as standards to grow above the underwood
or copse proper should be selected chiefly from among such species
as can yield timber. In the first line of these we must enter the
peduncled and sessile-flowered oaks, the cultivation of which species
as isolated specimens originally gave rise to the Compound Cop-
pice method of treatment, and is still to this day its chief

raison d étre.

After these two oaks, which are to be met with in nearly
every one of our copses, we will cite, as coming after them in
point of importance, theelm and the ash, and then the beech,
the true service tree (Pyrus Sorbus), the wild service tree, the
wild cherry (Prunus avium, Linn.) and the aspen. None ofthese
species, however, ought to play more than a secondary rdédle in the
constitution of the reserve. Asarule, therefore, they ought not
to be reserved except inorder to take the place of the oak, when
that species is quite absent or is represented only by individuals
of no promise whatsoever. Nevertheless, when in any copse the
growth of one of these secondary species is fine and vigorous,
it really seldom happens that there is no interest in reserving a
few good specimens of it and maintaining these until complete
maturity. Choice individuals of any species whatsoever will
always yield large timber of no inconsiderable value. Hence the
surest indication of the usefulness of any given standard is, after
the species to which it belongs, the state of its growth.

It is equally expedient to include among the standards of the
Ist.class, and even among those of the 2nd. class, a few individuals
of certain species, like the hornbeam and the birch for instance,
with a view to the production of a sufficient supply of seed and,
SELECTION OF STANDARDS. 229

hence, of young plants to perpetuate the copse, protect the soil, and
promote the growth of the more valuable species. Moreover, such
standards will furnish at each exploitation of the forest a not in-
considerable contingent of produce in the shape of firewood.

§ 1. Forests managed by the State.

In forests in which the production of standards is more remu-
nerative than that of the underwood, it may be taken for granted,
as a matter of principle, that every isolated and growing tree ought
to be reserved. Hence in copses belonging to the State, and espe-
cially in such as can produce oak of large size, no limit can be laid
down as regards the number of the standards to reserve, except in
in so far as that they shall not touch one another or interfere with
the free development of their neighbours. The same rule applies
to communal forests in the interests of the proprietary
Commune itself. It is prescribed in the last paragraph of
Section 70 of the Royal Edict of 1827 in so far as formed trees,
that is to say, standards of the 2nd. and higher classes, are concerned-
We would, moreover, be above all just reproach, if, as is prescribed in
the first paragraph of the same Section, we reserved only 20 standards
per acre from among the underwood at each exploitation. Even for
the private individual, it is, as a rule, advantageous to preserve all
formed trees that are not yet exploitable, provided always that their
crowns do not touch one another. Numerous cases are to be met
with of copses ruined or badly damaged by an immoderate felling
of the old standards. On the other hand, there is none to be seen
which has not been improved and enriched by a numerous reserve
composed of large trees. Such is the fact, and it is thereon that we
must base the treatment of our copses with standards.

A numerous reserve of oak, containing a considerable propor-
tion of trees of large size, has, besides, the cultural effect of helping
to maintain that species by means of abundant seedlings and of
assuring a constant supply of standards for future exploitations,
After the old oak standards have been felled, the underwood,
hitherto kept down by them, does not at once recover itself and
shoot up with any vigour. In this state it is replenished and com-
pleted by the appearance of certain species, like the aspen or the
230 SELECTION OF STANDARDS.

birch, under the light cover of which young oak seedlings can con-
tinue to vegetate on throughout a whole Rotation. Thin and lanky
and badly formed, these plants, when cut back at the next exploi-
tation, throw up each a strong master-shoot, which develops
vigorously and forms 30 years later on an excellent standard of the
first class. Thus, besides the direct advantage in point of revenue
which the reservation of formed trees offers, it is also accompanied
by most important cultural benefits in copses with standards, As
the rapid growth of trees reserved above coppice underwood has
for prime cause the isolation of their crowns, this isolation, com-
plete or almost complete as it must be, is naturally the principal
point to consider as regards the distribution of the standards.
Now it often happens that two crowns, that stood apart when the
trees were first reserved, begin to touch one another later on and to
crowd against one another to such an extent as to compromise
each the other’s growth. This undesirable contingency can be either
obviated from the very beginning or actually met by the exploita-
tion of one of the two trees. When they belong to different species,
there is, of course, no difficulty in knowing which of the two to fell ;
and, similarly, when they belong to the same species, it is obvious
that the one which is of inferior growth should be cut, But when
the only difference between them is that one is older than the other,
the question as to which of the two should be preserved becomes
slightly more complicated. Asarule, it would be the larger tree
that would be reserved, if it ishealthy and vigorous; for, in the
first place, that tree really produces not only more wood, but also
wood possessing a much higher value and utility, and, in the second
place, it will supply the axe of the wood-cuttersooner and with
greater certainty with an exploitable tree.

It will thus be seen that the problem to solve in the operations
connected with the selection of trees to be spared is not the forma-
tion of a reserve on any fixed and immutable type. On the contrary,
the end tobe kept in view is to turn to the best account possible
a given coupe and the materials it offers. The solution of the problem |
often of a complex nature, varies, so to say, at each step, a cireum-
stance that is a source of not a few difficulties, But once the nature
and extent of these difficulties are fully appreciated, the problem
stands out clear in all its bearings. The organisation of the forest
should provide for a correct solution of it.
SELECTION OF STANDARDS. 231

In actual practice, as the operations connected with the selec-
tion of standards require sustained attention, a distinct act of
judgment, so to say, for each separate tree, it is almost impossible
to direct them properly, while at the sametime keeping the Field
Record Book, in which the number and classes of the trees marked
for reservation are noted. It is, moreover, dangerous to complicate
the selection of the trees to be reserved by the simultaneous
measurement of the trees to be felled. As far as we our-
selves are concerned, if we were obliged to conduct these two opera-
tions simultaneously, it is our firm conviction that we would expose
ourselves to the certain risk of making most serious mistakes in
both of them. Besides this, after the trees to be reserved have
been marked, it requires very little time to estimate the quantity of
the trees to be felled, scarcely six minutes per acre. For the least
extent that the selection of the reserve is delayed and protracted
by the simultaneous valuation of the timber to be felled, what an
amount of time is wasted, that could be much more profitably spent !

The operations just referred to form the most important part of
the duties of a Forest Officer. One day spent in selecting trees for
reservation means thousands of pounds worth of wood finally given
up to the axe of the wood-cutter and large areas either irretriev-
ably ruined or maintained in a high state of production. Those who
conduct these operations must hence devote to them the full quota
of time required by them, and the owner of the forest must accept
as inevitable the larger outlay due to that very fact.

§ 2. Private Forests.

The selection of standards in private forests is just as important
an operation as in State and communal forests, and, indeed, is very
often beset with even greater difficulties. Here also the real gist of
the problem lies in the thorough appreciation ofthe conditions,
which the standards ought to satisfy in order that they may be con-
sidered exploitable. Whereas in copses managed by the Forest
Department th2 epoch of exploitability coincides for each tree with
that of its maturity, in the woods of private proprietors, on the con-
trary, every tree must be considered as exploitable, the value of
which, at the time the standards are selected for reservation,
232 SELECTION OF STANDARDS.

does not appear to be susceptible of further and continuous increase
throughout the whole of the next Rotation at the customary rate of
profits required by investors in forest property. By selecting a few
promising trees from among the standards of each class and com-
paring with each other the mean values of the Standards of the
several classes, we are enabled to estimate with sufficient approxi-
mation the profit or loss for the proprietor resulting from the further
preservation for one Rotation of standards of each of the several
classes, and thus to determine at what age the reserved trees should

be felled. ?

But if in this comparative estimate it be found that the oak
standards generally become exploitable at the end of their fourth
Rotation, are we to infer thence that it is the interest of the pro-
prietor to fell every one of his standards of the third class ? We
say, No; for amongst these trees there must always be a certain
number, which, being endowed with exceptional vigour, increase
in size much more rapidly than their contemporaries. Such trees,
belonging to the species oak, may be distinguished at once by their
general aspect—an ample and well-furnished crown, dense foliage
and superior girth ; thus they may measure 2 feet across, while the
rest of the same class are not more than 20 inches in diameter.
The consequence is that, cubic foot for cubic foot, they command
higher prices. It happens in nearly every case that it is advan-
tageous for the proprietor to preserve them for another Rotation,
and this not only on their own proper account and because of the
very considerably augmented value they must acquire, but because
they will furnish at the next exploitation fine large timber of a
class that is always in great demand, and which can hence never
fail to draw a much larger number of purchasers than if the fall
consisted only of small wood. On the other hand, it frequently
happens that there would be loss in preserving badly grown or
unpromising young trees, and, above all, inferior standards of the

first class.
The conclusions to draw from the preceding considerations

aré; firstly, that the trees to be exploited in each coupe should not
be indicated in advance in the Plan of Selection of Reserves, as

belonging to such and such a class ; and, secondly, that the ques«

 

(1) See example given at page 108, Footnote.
SELECTION OF STANDARDS. 238

tion of whether any given tree is exploitable or not, must be
decided only at the marking for reserves, just as is done in
forests managed by the State. As regards the selection of the
large trees which it is expedient to preserve as an exceptional
measure, thatis purely a matter of skill and policy, requiring
care, attention, discernment, and a thorough knowledge of all
facts regarding the growth of standards and the value they ac-
quire as they develop. In certain districts in France an increase
in diameter of 25 per cent. suftices to double the value of an oak
tree. Thus an oak standard measuring 16 inches in diameter
at this moment and worth £1-4s. may sell for £2-8s, when its
diameter has increased by only 4 inches. Prepared with such
facts, we may, it is easy to conceive, proceed to select the
standards to be preserved in any coupe with a full knowledge
of what we are going to do,

Asa matter of fact, whatever the nature of the proprietor
concerned, it is always the vigour of growth of the tree concerned,
which ought to decide whether it should be preserved or felled.
The vigorous tree attains a large size in a comparatively short
time, a circumstance which alone renders its preservation desirable.
An oak standard 2 feet in diameter is worth now, say, £4. Sup-
pose that the state of its vegetation is only moderately vigorous,
and that it will measure at the end of the next Rotation of 25
years not more than 28 inches ; it will then be worth in the same
market only £6-8s. But if its growth is vigorous, it may attain in
the same time a diameter of 32 inches and fetch £10. Supposing
the latter to be the case, would it be right to fell the tree at once
or let it stand for another Rotation? If it is felled at once, the
annual income it would represent would be 5 shillings. The same
method of arguing holds good for the tree of 32 inches diameter as
for that of 24 inches diameter, and it may be found that the very
same reasons exist for preserving also the bigger tree. In any case
the larger the tree is, the greater the vigour it should possess to
justify its further preservation.

The large standards which enrich the stock of a copse are, as
a rule, vigorous trees, since they have, as a fact, attained their pre-
sent dimensions in a relatively short time. We meet with enor-

mous beech which, thanks to an ample crown, have grown at the
15
234 j SELMCTION OF STANDARDS.

rate of more than two-fifths of an inch in diameter per annum, so
that they measure a good 40 inches when one hundred years old.
We have seen sold for £40 the bole of an ash 41 inches in diameter
and still comparatively young. Analogous cases may be cited
respecting trees belonging to all our large forest species. Thus it
is not the actual diameter that a standard has acquired, bus the

“state of its vegetation, which ought to decide whether it should be
felled or preserved. It hence follows that every operation for the
selection of standards involves considerable powers of appreciation,
even in woods belonging to private proprietors.

Moreover, the reservation of large trees has not only the single
advantage of increasing the income derivable from a torest. These
trees, since they would, as a rule, be felled at the next exploitation,
must on that occasion, be the best guarantee that the standards of
the third class will be respected : when old veterans are not to be
found in a coupe, it rarely happens that trees in full growth and
still vigorous are not felled in their place.

Again, large trees standing in an exploited coupe protect
against the wind standards of the first and second classes, which
would otherwise not unfrequently be irremediably ruined. Lastly,
they simplify in every exploitation the selection of the standards
to be reserved, and assure that operation being well conducted
merely from the fact that they render unnecessary the reservation
of numerous standards of the first class, which can attain their full
value only in a comparatively distaut future, after passing through
all the risks tc which growing trees are exposed; such standards
only harm the underwood with their low cover, and rob it of its
best stools. Hence it is an excellent rule to follow, in selecting
the standards, to reserve the finest specimens of every species
whatsoever, for the forester cannot fail to appreciate the other
trees according to their real merits.

A few words will suffice to serve as a conclusion to what we
have just said on the subject of the selection of a reserve over
copse. We possess in France 3,750,000 acres of State and com-
munal copses, the majority of which can furnish the most choice
produce, viz., oak timber of large size. Two-thirds of this area be-
long to Communes, and must remain for a long time yet, if not for
THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPSES. 235

all time, subjected to the present régime. If to this be added
the fact that private woods are also for the most part worked as
coppice with standards, it will be perceived that the area occupied
by forests treated according to this method must be measured by
millions of acres. Thus our copses with standards constitute un-
questionably the principal source of our forest wealth. They would
be for France a veritable mine of treasure, if properly treated and
endowed with a good reserve. We can now understand how im-
portant an operation the selection of coppice standards is, and how
much special and assiduous care and attention it demands from
those whose duty it is to conduct it.

SECTION
THE WoRKING SCHEME,
§ I. Selection Plan of Standards.

The points we have drawn attention to in the preceding pages
relative to the choice, number, and distribution of the trees to be
reserved over copse are in conformity with the prescriptions laid
down by the Royal Edict of 1827.1 But what we have said with
reference thereto, as well as the prescriptions actually enforced by
that Edict, necessarily possess the character of general rules. Itzis
easy to understand that in applying these rules, it may be expedient
to modify them according to the various prevailing conditions of
soil, crop, and vegetation, and according to the nature of the owner
of the forest concerned. The duty of suggesting these modifications

 

(1) Section 70.—At the exploitation of the underwood 20 poles from it shall be {reserr.

dperacre. When this cannot be done, the reasons for not so doing shall be stated in

the Report submitted on the completion of the operations connected with the selection and
marhing of the standards (procés-verbal de balivage et de martelage).

Standards of the 2nd. and higher classes shall not be feVed unless they ave ina
decaying state or are incapable of flourishing up to the beginning of the next Rotation.

Section 134.—All the prescriptions given in the second, third, fourth, afth, and
sixth chapters of Sub-head IT. of the present Decree are applicable to woods belonging to
Communes and Public Foundations, with the exception of Sections 68 and 88, and
saving the modifications which result from Sub-head VIof the Forest Code and the
prescriptions of the present Sub-head.

Section 137.—In coupes in woods belonging to Communes and Public Founda-
tions, the reserve prescribed by Section 70 of the present Decree shall consist of 16
standards at least, and of 20 at most per acre.

iy cuttings made in the Reserved Fourths the number of trees preserved shall be 24
at least, and 40 at most per acre,
236 THE WORKING SCHEME 1N COMPOUND COPSES.

belongs to the Organisation Project, and the examination and dis-
cussion of reasons, inseparable from a subject of so much difficulty,
leads in the case of every forest to the drawing up of a regulation,
which forms part of the Working Scheme, and which we will
term the Selection Plan of Standards.

This Plan is based on the exploitability of the standards of each
species concerned. In forests managed by the State, the standards
that are expected to yield builders’ and artificers’ timber ought to
be preserved up to their individual maturity. The Selection
Plan of standards should mention the species to which such
standards should be restricted, the relative order of preference to
observe with regard to them, the longevity of each species, and the
signs that indicate that they have become mature. The apprecia-
tion of these facts is necessarily left to the entire discretion of the
Executive Forest Officer. The Selection Plan of Standards should
also give a list, in their order of importance, of the secondary
species, such as the hornbeam, the birch, and some others included
in the reserve. It should state the reasons for preserving a cer-
tain number of individuals of these species either up to the end of
the third Rotation or up to the moment they reach the cate-
gory of standards of the third class. It should indicate and ex-
plain the reasons for any exceptions that may be called for to the
general prescriptions of the second clause of Section 70 of the Royal
Edict of 1827, and by this means obviate the evil results that would
arise from their strict application to all the standards without dis-
tinction of species. It is impossible to fix in advance tbe number
of standards of the several classes to reserve at each exploitation,
at least as regards the standards intended to yield timber. This
is due to the fact that no standards ought to be felled except
when they are mature, unless they are decayed, misshapen, or bad-
ly placed. In certain cases large trees approaching maturity may
form the most numerous class ; in other cases, it may be the second
or third class of standards that may compose the largest portion of
the reserve, thus rendering it impossible, in selecting the trees to be
reserved, to establish a fixed or the desirable proportion between the
various classes. These irregularities in the distribution and num-
ber of the Standards may present themselves even from coupe to
coupe, and even from one point to another in the same coupe. There
is no immediate remedy for this, and all that can be prescribed in
THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPBES. 287

the Selection Plan is the preservation as first class standards, quite
irrespective of number, of well-constituted individuals of the princi-
pal species, taking care that they are spaced in such a manner that
every one of them may be ina position to form a full, healthy
crown. As regards the secondary species, on the contrary, it is
necessary to restrict the number of the standards between an upper
and lower limit, since they naturally occupy the place of more
valuable species, and may even do harm to the reproduction of these
latter, when they are too numerous.

Thus, the Selection Plan may be drawn up in the most simple
manner. It ought to contain information indispensably required
by the Executive Forest Officer ; it ought to support the proposals
made by adducing the most important facts connected with the
growth of the forest ; it ought to demonstrate the necessity of ta-
king account of the condition and position of each tree before deci-
ding to preserve or fell it, of noting the object to keep in view and
the difficulties to be met with in selecting the trezs to be reserved,
and, by means of the special care and attenltivc which it should
enjoin in the carrying out of this operation, of making it attractive
for the operating Executive Officer, fully weighted as he is with
the interests and responsibility entrusted to him, Moreover, we
cannot fail to draw up a good Selection Plan if we always bear in
mind that it is the thickness of the reserved trees and not their
number, which constitutes the wealth of a copse as of a high forest.

§ 2. Division into Coupes and the Tabular Exploitation Scheme.

The division of a Working Circle into coupes, 4. e., the drawing
up of a Working Plan based on area, is effected on the same prin-
ciples in copses with standards as in simple copses. Thus each
natural canton must be divided into an integral number of equal
coupes bounded by lines following the natural movements of the
ground. The successive exploitation of the coupes must be arranged
exactly in the order in which they follow each other on the ground,
barring the few breaks that are unavoidable during the first passage
of the explotations i.e, during the First Rotation. Each coupe
should be provided with a convenient export road to serve as an
outlet for its produce. And lastly, the coupes should be arranged
so as always to conform to the Third Rule for locating them.

1, See example given at the end of the chapter.
238 THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPSES.

According to this Rule the coupes should succeed each other
in the direction contrary to that of dangerous winds. Its observ-
ance acquires great importance in copses with standards. The
reason is evident, for the reserved trees, being completely and all
at once isolated at each exploitation, run the risk of being uproot-
ed or snapped in two by the wind or damaged by the breaking off
of some of the principal branches. Now, it is a fact established by
experience that the majority of the trees blown down or injured
by the wind in Compound Coppice coupes suffer in this manner the
very year in which the coupe is exploited and also in the following
year.

If, therefore, the coupe under exploitation is protected by old
copse with all its numerous standards, the injuries caused by the
wind can in most cases be entirely prevented ; and if, besides this,
the coupe is narrow, the protection becomes in every respect com-
plete. Lastly, when it is possible, by exploiting the forest on each
side of the same road or path in alternate years, to maintain this
protection during the space of two years, the safety of all the stan-
dards, to whatever class they belong, is assured in the most effec-
tive manner during these two critical years of their existence. It
is unnecessary to add that the last coupe exploited in a canton
situated on the edge of a forest and directly exposed to dangerous
winds may be protected by means of numerous reserves forming to-
gether a curtain along the boundary, and composed principally of
trees capable of resisting the wind, like border beeches, for instance,
in France. ‘This is a detail of cultural work, which the Organisa-
tion Project need only recommend in a general manner.

The Working Scheme for a Circle of copse with standards does
not assure to any great extent a sustained yield or equality in the
annual outturn. This inequality is unavoidable, owing to the dif-
ferences to be always met with, in going from one coupe to the next,
in the constitution of their chief element, the reserve. This Work-
ing Scheme, to say the truth, is nothing better than an incomplete
framework, which collects into a single scheme the exploitation of
the most diverse crops. But the selection of the trees to reserve
always affords an opportunity for working each individual crop in
the happiest manner possible, according to the resources it offers:
A few special details of work, which the Organisation Project may
THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPSES. 239

legitimately discuss and prescribe often offer a further means of im-
proving the forest in the future.

We give below, as an example of a proper arrangement of work
as far as the mere paper Organisation Project is concerned, the
Tabular Working Scheme of a Circle of copse with standards.
240

THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPSES.

EXAMPLE OF A WORKING SCHEME OF A WORKING CIRCLE

OF COPSE.

WORKING SCHEME,
CIRCLE OF THE LITTLE Woop.anps ; AREA, 3]8A. OR. 26P.

 

 

 

 

 

BDH © Age o Age of Year of #23
Name of gae veg | "BO le! og at second | ‘$8 eS Remarks.
Canton /3 58 under-| $ that ex.|°XPloita-| 2 2 & 5
= wood ploitation tion 6 3
. R. P.| Year
{ 1 20) 32 33 1901 30 The age of
| 120) 32 34 1902 Oe jaa are
LeFays + 1 20; 32 35 1903 30 are left out of
| 1 20 17 25 1904 26 aceount.
i 1 20] 17 | 26 1905 26
( 2 8 26 | 80 1906 32
| 2 8| 26 i 31 1907 32
es 2 §| 26 32 | 1908 | 39
: 212 22 | 29 1909 32
; 20] 18 28 1910 30
Le vers 4 2 0} 18 29 1911 30
{ 1 36, 18 30 1912 30
; 136 17 3 1913 30
1 36) 17 31 1914 30
1 36] 16 31 1915 30
1 36} 15 31 1916 30
Rieppe 2 ALR.
1 36/13, 9 30, 26] 1917 Smee ae eee
1 28/13, 31, 27 | 1918 30 { 4 Len ap
0 4 4, 26 1919 Q?
0 44, 97 1920 27
0 8) 8 14 27, 33!) 1921 32 { io oe
Peer 0 8 14 34 1922 | 32
0 8 14 35 1923 32
20 7 31 1924 30
2 07, 6 31, 32 | 1925 oe oe ets
2 0 6 32 1926 30
20 5 32 1927 30
Bois banni 4 2°4 9 30 1928 30
2 4) 2 31 1929 30
24 1 31 1930 30

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPSES. 241

EXAMPLE OF A SELECTION PLAN FOR STANDARDS FOR A WORKING

CIRCLE OF COPSE WITH STANDARDS.
—<——es

SELECTION PLAN.

 

SS en

WORKING CIRCLE OF THE LITTLE WooDLANDS, BELONGING TO
THE COMMUNE OF.....0006

The species to be grown as standards in this forest are, accord-
ing to their order of preference, as follow :—(i) for the production
of timber, the oaks, ash, aspen, and the birches ; (ii) principally for
the production of seedlings and the maintenance thereby of those
species in the underwood, beech and hornbeam; and (iii) as an ex-
ceptional case, a few indviduals of any other species.

In this forest oaks remain in a flourishing condition for a whole
century or for two centuries, and even longer, according to the parti
cular individuals of those species and the places where they stand.
The timber of these two trees remains sound as long as visible
outward decay has not set in, and a few dead branches here and there
in the crown do not cause any appreciable harm to the trunk. It
has been observed that the boles deteriorate at the core only when
they present to the sight large excrescences or holes, or when the
tops of their crowns are rendered completely leafless by age. It is
the marked impoverishment of the foliage and the almost complete-
ly arrested production and development of the annual shoots which,
as a rule, indicate here the maturity of these oaks, Oak trees will,
therefore, not be felled until they are mature, unless, indeed, they
crowd one against another too much. In this latter case, all other
things being equal, that tree will be reserved by preference from
among the rest which possesses the largest dimensions.

The ash, which attains a large size only in the moister portions
of the forest, grows there vigorously and remains sound up to the
age of from 120 to 150 years. But whatever itsage and the locality
in which it stands, it ceases to flourish as soonasthe heretofore rapid
development of its crown falls off in an appreciable degree : the bark

§
242 THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPSES,

of the trunk then becomes blackish and covered with cryptogamic
plants, as also the extreme short and irregular branches. The
general appearance of the crown is then one of languishing vegeta-
tion. Where the oaks are wanting, the ash should be reserved with-
out any limit as to number, provided that the trees thus preserved
stand well apart.

The aspen enjoys here a longevity which varies greatly between
80 and 90 years. It remains sound only as long as itis growing
rapidly ; and while in this state, its bark retains its lustrous appear-
ance on the upper portion of the bole, and its crown is perfectly full
and well furnished with brancheson every side. It is mature, when
dead bark covers the whole length of the bole, and the extremities
of the branches begin to wither and dry up. Once it has reached
this stage, it decays in avery few years. In the absence of any
better species, the aspen may with advantage be reserved, but, as a
rule, for two Rotations only. "

The birch, which grows less rapidly, possesses on the whole great-
er longevity. It flourishes up to the age of 60 years at least, and
in most cases up to 100 years, provided, above all things, it stands
completely isolated. Trees which possess a broad and thick foot are
the most vigorous. There is no advantage in preserving birch, once
the crown has lost some of its branches and the branchlets begin
to die. This is a sign that the tree is mature. The birch, useful
as a standard scattered about here and there and up to the end
of the fourth Rotation at the outside, ought not to be numerous
enough to form a sort of leaf-canopy, which keeps down the under-
wood and does serious injury to the oak.

The beech has its use chiefly in those portions of the forest,
which are elevated and stocked with birch, where no other species
could protect the soil and yield a full underwood. Individuals of this
species may, asarule, be reserved up to the category of 3rd. class
standards in order to se-ve as prolific seedbearers. Those which
are of tall habit do least damage to the undergrowth. Beech stand-
ards should, as far as possible, be well distributed amongst more
numerous standards of the valuable species, and they should, with
rare exceptions, be felled at the end of their third Rotation, their
place being taken by younger individuals of the same species.
THE WORKING SCHEME IN COMPOUND COPSES. 243

The hornbeam, which grows abundantly in the low and tich
portions of the forest, forms an excellent auxiliary species in the
underwood ; but it may become harmful, especially as standards,
by taking up the place of other species and interfering with their
reproduction. It will be enough if we reserve afew trees of this
species for one or, at the outside, two Rotations, particularly in
places where it is rare.

The alder may be able to furnish a few standards of the second
and even the third class, but only along the immediate banks of
watercourses and in the absence of oak and ash.

The elm, which also grows in this forest and is of the common
kind, possesses a thick cover and yields a soft wood, which unfits it
for serving asa standard tree.

After the formed trees*have been marked, the further preserva-
tion of which is justified by the species to which they belong, by
their state of growth, and by their relative situation, and which
trees compose the essential portion of the reserve, the youngest
class of standards will be selected, first of all, from among the young-
est oak poles of the underwood. All individuals of this species that
are well grown must be preserved, provided they stand sufficiently
well apart from one another (from 20 to 27 feet for instance) so as
to be free to develop a full crown.

Where there is no oak, flourishing ash poles, strong and vigor-
ous aspen (easy to recognise by the distinctive marks they present
to the eye) and birches of robust growth selected at proper inter-
vals willform, no matter what their number, the necéssary com-
plement to advantageously complete the reserve.

With respect to beech and hornbeam the procedure must be
efitirely different. First class standards of these species should be
preserved here and there, not less than 8 to the acre. At the same
time they must not be so numerous as to predominate over all
other species and injuriously influence the composition and growth
of the forest. It will be safe to limit the maximum number to 16
per acre, that is to say, they should stand from 50 to 70 feet apart
when more or less uniformly distributed over the ground.
CHAPTER IV.

COMPLEMENTARY OPERATIONS OF THE ORGANISATION PRoJECT
FOR COPSES.

Cee lplpen ceed

The various works which the Organisation Project may have
to regulate and prescribe are of very different kinds. They include
works properly so called ; works necessary for protection, such as
fences, &c. ; for working, such as roads ; for surveillance, &c., &e.
They are, so to say, accidental in their nature, whereas cultural
works have, on the contrary, an essential character. These latter
are, according to the particular case concerned, Improvement Cut-
ings, viz., Thinnings and Cleanings, the pruning off of branches and
removal of epicorms, reboisements and draining.

The object of Thinnings in simple copses is, firstly, to favour
the diametral growth of the poles of the underwood by clearing the
forest round them to a sufficient extent (but such an operation can
be useful only to shade-fleeing species, like the aspen, the oaks, and
others 1) ; and, secondly, to render available, before and indepen-
dently of the main exploitation, certain kinds of produce, such as
osier, stool shoots with dead crowns, and decaying shrubby growth.
Neither of these objects possess under ordinary circumstances any
great importance ; and, indeed, in a simple copse, the Rotation is
too short for there to be any great number of cases of well-marked
advantage in making a Thinning.

 

1, The coppice crops composing the Reserved Fourth of the Commune of
Chargey-lés-Port (Haute Sadne), and which have been subjected to Thinnings
since 1832, were of the same age as the present century, z.¢.,50 years old in
1850. After that year these old coppice crops were exploited on three or four
several occasions, a very numerous reserve having been left on the first occa-
sion. Seedlings then made such a poor show, that the inhabitants of the Com-
mune formed the impression that the canton was ruined. To-dayitis covered
with an exceedingly fine pole crop of beech, oak, and hornbeam.
COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES 245

The case may, however, be quite different in compound copses
worked on a long Rotation. Nevertheless the growth of the poles
of the underwood is a minor matter compared with an abundant
yield ; the extraction of small wood that is in a dying state is costly
in proportion to its actual value, and can form only a secondary
object of thinning operations. Thus the main object here is quite
different from that sought in Thinnings made in a crop of trees of
the same age ; briefly, it is the encouragement of those poles of the
underwood, which are to become first-class standards at the next
exploitation. These may not only be improved in their growth by
means of Thinnings, but when that operation has been neglected
few and even no poles really fit for reservation may in consequence
be found to exist. The poles of an underwood which are to form
the First Class Standards of the next Rotation must, for the most
part, be thin and weakly, or at least be prevented from growing
freely by the surrounding inferior poles ; thinning operations offer
the means of opening out the forest round them sufficiently to en-
able them to expand their crowns and acquire a greater diameter
before the surrounding underwood is completely cleared at the
next exploitation.

If there are any seedlings on the ground, these cannot but be
suppressed by the immediate cover of the underwood overhead and
be eventually killed before the next coppice felling ; here, again,
thinning operations afford the means of saving a certain number of
them by raising the coverimmediately overhead. Lastly, it sometimes
happens that seedlings of the hardwoods are entirely wanting ; thin-
ning operations provoke their appearance by opening out the leaf-
canopy, and by necessarily getting rid of a portion of the trailing
shoots, which interfere with the work of the wood-cutter, and which
he, therefore, removes. All these excellent results may be obtained by
simply thinning out the leaf-canopy (i) over and round the poles
that are to form the first-class standards at the next coppice ex-
ploitation ; and (ii) in the portions of the forest stocked with'species
requiring abundant light, such as aspen, ash, alder, and oak ; and by
cutting out shoots that are in a dying state, so as to raise thereby
the cover, however slightly that may be. But it would be a great
mistake to prune off the side branches of the coppice poles, or to
clear the ground of low vegetation, or to cut out anything whatso-
246 COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES.

ever without well-proved necessity. When a Thinning has been pro-
perly made, the simple layman walking through the forest would
never imagine that the wood-cutter has just passed through with
his axe.

Thus the operation of Thinning, properly so called, is really
made, so to say, only in places. Taking the forest as a whole, the
underwood may seem not to have been touched at all and to be as
full as before, only obviously harmful or overdense growth having
been removed. Such Thinnings always constitute a delicate oper-
ation; to execute them successfully the one idea to bear in mind
before every thing else should be that the soil can never be too well
covered,

Indeed Thinnings made in copses are often termed Cleanings,
but this misnomer creates a mistaken idea and gives rise to a real
danger, since the operation of Thinning affects only the leaf-canopy,
and has nuthing to do with the general clearing of the soil below
In thinning copses, attention is scarcely ever paid to opening out
the leaf-canopy round the crowns of second-class and older stan-
dards hard pressed on every side by the surrounding coppice poles ;
and yet these trees are thereby exposed to the luss of some of their
principal limbs. unsoundness of the trunk being the result. Ina
great many cases, it is chiefly to trees thus menaced that Thinnings
are useful, to the individuals of the reserve, therefore, rather than to
those of the underwood—it being always clearly understood that the
operation should touch nothing below the tree or pole to be freed,
but be strictly confined to the portion of the forest ona level with
its crown.

A Thinning cannot be made with real success or with complete
cettainty as to results except in copses already of a certain age and
situated in good soil. In every case in which Thinnings are practi-
cable, they should be prescribed in the Working Scheme, and their
nature and extent should be defined in the General Statistical
Report, Instances have frequently occurred, in which the omission
of such details has led to deplorable mistakes on the part of the Execu-
tive Staff. In the last place, it is only about the eighth or tenth year
before the coppice exploitation that a Thinning can be made with
the most useful results; and we may say in a general manner that
COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES. 247

1 og: high forest, ought not to be thinned, except when
the crop considered as a whole is composed of individuals possess -
ing the dimensions of poles.

The operation of Cleaning in copses has also for special object
the preservation and unhampered growth of seedlings that are later
on to become standards. The intermixture of species in simple
copses improves and augments their production. In the mixed
crop, the softwoods furnish a large quantity of produce, and as they
shoot up rapidly in height, the cover of their crowns is low only for
a short time. Hence, in simple copses, the cases in which Cleanings
are really of any use are few and exceptional.

In copses with standards the réle played by the softwoods and
by secondary species varies with each of them. The coppice re-
growth of tue alder, for instance, forms during its first year a dense,
thicket, which seems to defy any of the hardwoods to grow under it.
Nevertheless, when towards the age of 20 years the alder crowns
have got up well above the ground, we find under them small seed-
lings of oak, which have persisted on in spite of the thick cover, and
which soon shoot up with considerable vigour, if the copse remains
unexploited for any length of time. Cut back at the next coppice
felling, or, when they are straight, even simply left to stand as they
are, they are able to keep pace with the new alder regrowth until
they get ahead of it and live on for centuries, It is scarcely pos-
sible, on account of the exuberant growth of the alder, to uncover
the young oak seedlings by means of cleaning operations, What is
required is rather an early Thinning made over the suppressed seed-
lings.

With aspen in the copse the case is quite different. Young oak
is never wanting on the ground under the light cover of that species,
and it would even appear that itis the natural forerunner of the
oak in good soils and must hence be utilised accordingly. But it
does some harm by its extreme abundance. Nevertheless as it
shoots up with difficulty from the stool, it often suffices simply to
top it off when it overhangs young oak.

Under birch the oaks and other hardwoods introduce them-
selves with even still greater freedom. To save young oak over-
248 COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES

topped by birch, it is enough to lop off a few of the lower branches
of the younger individuals of the latter species. Later on, the
crowns of the birch, which have a tendency to spread out rapidly,
may be completely isolated, with the oak standing out between.

The stool regrowth of the hardwoods is much more injurious
to seedlings under them, these seedlings rapidly dying off and com-
pletely disappearing under the action of the low cover it forms.
Hence it is to this regrowth that the ‘cleaning operations properly
so called, the object of which is to save the seedlings of the valua-
ble species, should be directed while the copse is still quite young.
But it is obvious that these Cleaningsrequire a light and skilful hand
Thus it is only a few branches that have to be broken off or have their
ends twisted or cut off, care being taken not to injure the under-
wood in any way. Again, the seedlings to be saved must be chosen
from among the largest and most vigorous ones, and their number
must be limited, so that they may not be tvo close together and may
be situated only at such points, as where they could afterwards be
utilised as standards. Executed in this spirit, the cleaning opera-
tions will be confined to a small number of isolated points and will
be undertaken in the interests of only a single seedling at any one
of them.

In copses with standards, even more so than in high forest,
the work of cleaning belongs chiefly and peculiarly to the guard in
charge of the beat. There is little to be done, but that little can-
not be done in a single operation. The copse is continually grow-
ing up with great rapidity, andif any useful results are to be
secured, the cleaning operation over each seedling must be repeated
over andover again. In other words, there is something of this
work to be done every day, and this something the moment it be-
comes necessary, Now no one can be better adapted for it than
the resident guard. The Organisation Project may with advantage
contain prescriptions respecting the execution of the Cleanings; it
may fix the years in which those Operations ought to be carried out
in each coupe and explain exactly what they require to be done. But
nothing can assure complete success except unremitting attention on
the part of the Forest Officer charged with the work and adequate
COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES. 249

remuneration given to the guards, who acquit themselves well of
a task demanding so much care and skill.

The pruning of the standards is a veritable plague in compound
copses. When it is resorted to, scarcely a single tree escapes the
operation, and we know of many a forest, in which it would now
be impossible to find a single tree, that has not been ruined by the
pruning to which it has been subjected. No formed tree can he
deprived of one or more of its large limbs without suffering a loss of
vigour and a marked derangement in its vital functions, and with-
out the production of a wound injurious in itself and often fatal cn
account of the various kinds of unsoundness it gives rise to in the
trunk itself of the tree.

Among the standards, timber trees like the oak, which, consti-
tuting as they do, the most precious element of the forest and des-
tined to be spared for several more Rotations, cannot be pruned in
the strict sense of the term. To convince oneself of this, one need
only cut through the trunk ofan oak that has been pruned some
years previously and observe for himself the deterioration and un-
soundness to be traced back to that operation. Except the removal
of the lower branches, already thin and half withered in consequence
of early suppression, of first class standards, it is never permissible
to touch the crowns of oak, ash, elm and other valuable trees.

As regards the standards preserved chiefly as seedbearers, and
which can yield only firewood, people might be led to think that
there was advantage in pruning off their lower branches in order to
raise the leaf-canopy, thereby allowing a certain number of such
trees (e. g. beech ) to be reserved without any serious injury to the
underwood. Here also pruning is more hurtful than useful, when-
ever it removes anything more than very thin branches, aud these
only from young trees, like first and second class standards, the ob-
ject of the operation being, as we all know, simply to prevent the
growth of low overhanging boughs. But when such branches have
once developed themselves, their contribution towards the annual
increment of the trees to which they belong more than compensates
for the slight loss of growth suffered by the underwood. We must,

17
2950 COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES.

therefore, always abstain from mutilating formed trees by depriving
them of their large limbs or any considerable portion of their foliage.
It is better to reserve a smaller number of such trees than to go
and spoil them.

The necessity of pruning, properly so called, its effectsin the
given forest, and the limits within which it may safely be carried
out, ought therefore to be separately discussed in the Statistical Re-
port attached to the Organisation Project.

But the proper organisation of a forest must have nothing to
say on the subject of this operation, unless it be to adopt a Rotation
of sufficient length to effect a natural pruning of all the boles up
to the required height.

If the organisation of a forest ought to occupy itself little or not
at all with the removal of large branches, the case becomes quite
different when we come to the removal of epicorms. In most copses
with standards, the pruning off of the epicormic branches, which
make their appearance on the boles of the reserved trees after the
underwood has been felled, constitutes an improvement operation of
very great importance. It is the necessary complement of a method
of treatment, which alternately isolates and shuts up in the midst
ot dense leaf-canopy the trees preserved at the general exploitations.
In many forests of mediocre growth, the operation in question be-
comes a necessity in order to save the oak standards from a prema-
ture death. Whenever this is so, the Aménagiste ought to consider
this improvement operation in all its bearings in the General Statis-
tical Report, and follow up the Selection Plan for Standards with
directions as to Low it should be effected. This is the surest means
of having the work done at the right time. As a rule, the epicorms,
which are mere branchlets, ought to be cut off flush with the trunk
of the tree, and it is enough if the boles of the trees operated upon
are in this manner cleared up to two-thirds of their length; but it
may be found expedient to repeat the operation at the end of the
second or third year,

It is not seldom that artificial restocking has to be resorted to
in some of the blanks, which are common in compound as well as
COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES. 251

in simple copses. The Organisation Project ought to consider and :

prescribe such works, so as to guarantee their proper, timely, and '

methodical execution. When a forest contains numerous blanks, it
may be found advantageous to wait and have them restocked
naturally by preserving on their edges, during a whole Rotation, a
helt of copse from 35 to 50 feet broad, instead of clean-felling with-
out any reservation the underwood of all the coupes. With tall
surrounding belts of copse such as these, the area of the blanks
must necessarily grow more and more contracted, and in nearly every
case end by becoming completely resown, thanks solely to the long-
continued influence of the shade afforded by those belts, of the
consequent moistness of the soil, and of the shelter and seed furnish-
ed by them.

The Organisation Project should prescribe the Thinnings that
must be made every ten or twelve years in these broad conserved
belts. If the blanks cover more than eight or ten acres, the Aména-
giste may, while not omitting to recommend the preservation of
such belts, enjoin their being artificially restocked with trees of
rapid growth, such as pines, or birch, or alder, according to the pre-
vaiiing soil, Under the light cover of those species the oak will
make its appearance unassisted; but that is no reason why the
Organisation Project should not discuss and lay down the various
operations that may be required in the crops thus raised. As re-
gards the reintroduction or augmentation, in the midst of the under-
wood, of any valuable species, it is, as a rule, scarcely possible to
obtain it successfully except by means of a judiciously chosen Rota-
tion and a well-constituted reserve, and with the aid of Improve-
ment Cuttings (Thinnivgs and Cleanings). Planting in the midst
of underwood standing on stools usually entails a heavy outlay
without any compensating advantage.

Draining is still more rarely called for than any of the prece-
ding operations. Itis required only in water-logged soils, where
excess of moisture is hurtful simply because it is due to the water
being stagnant; but bogs seldom occur except in mere patches, and
their draining would cost more than the game is worth. As regards
open drains cut through wet land, in which the water is perpetual-

wee
952 COMPLEMENTARY WORK IN THE ORGANISATION OF COPSES.

ly renewed, their only effect is to diminish vegetative vigour, and
they have often been known to cause the premature decay of oaks
that had already grown up into strong healthy trees, They only
affect detrimentally the quality of the timber of oak, elm, and ash
trees, and, after all, interfere with a proper mixture of the softwoods,

The keeping of a Control Register is of great use in the case
of copses with standards, and this chiefly for the information it can
furnish about the standards. The keeping of such a register, giv-
ing a simple but complete account of all necessary facts and cir-
cumstances, must be enforced by the Organisation Project. If, to
take a particular case, in marking for Standards it was decided to
exclude from the second class all trees exceeding 12 inches in
diameter, and to note down in the Recordet’s Field-book every
standard of the third and and higher classes measuring 20 inches
in diameter and upwards, it would be easy to keep a separate ac-
count in the Control Register (i) of all veterans, which possess
for us a higher value than any other portion of the crop, (ii) of
trees from 14 to 18 in inches in diameter, comprising all standards
of the third and higher classes except the veterans, (iii) of trees
with a diameter of 12 inches and less, comprising all the second-
class standards, and (iv) of all the standards of the first class.
With the oaks noted separately and all other species grouped under
a single head, the Register would be full of the most valuable in-
formation respecting the forest concerned. Then, again, if Control
Registers were kept everywhere, the Forest Department could know
at once how many large oak trees we possessed in France, and how
many it was raising to take their place when they would be felled.
CHAPTER V.

THE RESERVED FOURTHS.

SECTION I.

LEGAL BEARINGS OF THE SUBJECT.

 

A fourth of the area of communal woods has to be entirely set
aside from the remaining portion of those forests, this latter alone
being subjected to the ordinary exploitations. Section 938 of the
Forest Code puts this subject as follows :—

One-fourth of the forests belonging to Communes and Public
Foundations shall always be set aside us a reserve, whenever these
Communes or Public Foundations possess at least 25 acres of wooded
land, whether in one piece or in several plots.

This rule does not apply to forests cropped entirely with a coni-
ferous species.

The aggregate area of the Reserved Fourths established in
accordance with the Section just quoted is actually 677,500 acres.
They thus represent a considerable and a very important portion of

the forest property of our Communes.

The reservation of one-fourth of the area of Communal woods
may be traced back to a date much earlier than that of the Forest
Code of 1827. The rule which that Code enforces is simply repro-
duced from Section 2, Chapter 25, of the Royal Edict of 1669. That
Section runs thus :—A fourth of common wooded land situated on
the best soils and in the most convenient localities shall be reserved to
grow up into high forest. The Reserved Fourths of communal
woods have thus been in existence for a very long time, and very
often, indeed, they comprise thejbest portions of those forests. But
the intention of the Forest Code is not to let them grow up as high
forest, as was that of the Royal Edict of 1669, but simply to econo-
254: THE RESERVED TOURTHS.

mise for the Commune resources which could be utilised in extra-
ordinary emergencies ; and, as an actual fact, the greater portion of
these Reserved Fourths is subjected to the same Régime as the con-
tiguous Working Circle composed of the ordinary coupes.

Under the authority of sections 16 and 90 of the Forest Code,
the exploitation of the Reserved Fourths is classed under the head
of extraordinary cuttings, which, we know, cannot under any circum-
stance be made without the sperial order of the Chief of the State.
Thus, however important and extensive the Reserved Fourths may
be, their exploitation cannot be regulated in advance, that is to say,
it cannot be rendered amenable to any Organisation Project.

The Royal Edict, under the authority of which the Forest Code
was promulgated, clearly defines the object of the Reserved Fourths
by fixing the term of their exploitability. On this subject Section
140 of that Edict runs textually thus :-—

* Save in the case of death, permission to fell among the Re-
served Fourths shall not be granted except under well-proved neces-
sity an in the absence of other means of providing against it.”

The preceding rule discovers great wisdom and foresight, found-
ed on a perfect acquaintance with the circumstances and needs of
our Communes. The procedure to follow in applying this Section
is obvious. An application for an extraordinary felling having been
made by the proprietary Commune, on!y two fundamental questions
require to be answered, the first by the Forest Department, “ Are
the trees, permission to cut which is solicited, ina dying state ?
The other by the Civil Authorities, “ Has the necessity for such a
cutting been well proven, and is there no other way of meeting
this necessity ?”

The disadvantages arising from such a state of affairs are
numerous ; but they sink into insignificance béfore the advantages
offered by the reservation of a fourth of the total area of the com-
munal woods, which henceforth forms a constant provision against

distress, a necessary guarantee for the conservation of the whole of
such forests.
THE RESERVED FOURTHS. 255

Thus the Communes may (and they cannot be prevented from
doing so) make unreasonable or mischievous demands for permission
to cut in the Reserved Fourths. It does not matter a bit if they do
so, for it is in their own interests that these Reserved Fourths
have been established and that the duty of managing them under
such entirely special circumstances has been entrusted to our De-
partment. The treatment of the Reserved Fourth of a communal
forest consists, so to say, of a series of sudden and unforeseen ex-
ploitations. This is inevitable, but, thanks to special rules made
for its protection, the Reserved Fourth is usually that portion of the
forests in question, which is in the most satisfactory condition. The
exploitations in an unorganised forest can, of course, never be order-
ed in any rigid manner. Nevertheless, however true this may be,
it is not difficult to conceive what that order ought to be and to
adhere to it as closely as possible at each exploitation.

SECTION II.
DESCRIPTIVE STATEMENT.

If the regular organisation of the Reserved Fourths of com:
munal woods is incompatible with the satisfaction of extraordinary
and unforeseen wants as they arise, it is not the less indispensable to
organise a canton covering 125 acres and even less, in order to
impose some sort of order on the exploitations made therein. This
object may be secured by simply dividing off the Canton in question
into compartments. This division being effected, in a simple manner,
in accordance with the prevailing age-classes and natural topograph-
ical lines, and represented on a map which also gives the areas
of the several portions of the canton, the essential part of the work
is complete. Itis always easy to add to this mapa Descriptive
Statement of the compartments and to prescribe the regular
keeping of a Control Register, alloting to each a separate sheet on
which to note down all the exploitations made therein, together with
all concurrent and consequent facts. The order in which the com:
partments should be taken up may also be discussed and suggested.
In many cases this order may be secured by simply numbering the
compartments consecutively.
256 THE RESERVED FOURTHS.

Moreover, there is nothing to prevent the clearing and mainte-
nance of the boundary lines of the compartments, which should run
along natural features and be selected with a view to the easy ex-
port of produce rather than to give the compartments equal areas.
In a word, there is no measure for securing a well-ordered exploita-
tion, that is not compatible with the management of the communal
Reserved Fourths, if we except only the prevision of the epoch of
each felling and also its character, points which cannot, from the
very nature of tne things concerned, be determined beforehand.

The question of a well-ordered exploitation, of little account
when the Reserved Fourth covers only 25, 50, or 75 acres, acquires
a directly increasing importance with the area of the wood, and may
even sometimes become an absolutely necessary one, when the
Reserved Fourth is large enough to form of itself a veritable forest.
But, in that case, the number of the compartments is bound to be
large, the construction of roads or bridle-paths dividing off the forest
into compartments becomes a necessity, and, since the extraordinary
cuttings are naturally made more frequently, any order fixed for
them in the Descriptive Statement can be soon established on the
ground, if the Executive Forest Officer only takes the trouble to
observe it. The result of this is, that the working of the forest be-
trays all the characteristics of a regular organisation, only a single
essential element being wanting, viz., the prevision of the extent of

the exploitations.

We give below an example ofa Descriptive Statement of a
Reserved Fourth.
258

THE RESERVED FOURTHS.

DESCRIPTIVE

OF THE RESERVED FOURTH

 

 

Ble
a q g Boundaries. Area, Situation and soil.
3 BF
A. RB. P.
West, Compartment 2 ; Ria
ge and gentle slope
1 jsut oa from Velle :! 21-2-11 | { northwards; sandy clay
. with iron ore.
East, Compartment 1;
South- east, road from Northerly slope ; soil
: 2 Velle to Falun. ele j as shane, o
North-west, | Compart-
3 ment 2; South-east 11-0- 3 oe a a ae
Compartment 4, ie es
Wood North-east, | Compart- ‘ , ;
| 4 | {ment as south tool | an. || Blon ie ate
Shadlies Rayons road. side ; soil as above.
North, Les Rayons road ; i} Plateau and gentle
5 tue compartment 6. 15-3-16 southern slope ; sandy
clay with pebbles,
East, Compartment 5 ; Slope falling ver n-
6 { N orth, Les Rayons road. } 10-2-37 tly Eaten Plas
above.
” {rest bridle-path ; ; 0 Plateau and gentle
South, Compartment 8. 10-38-23 northward slope ; clay-
ey sand with pebbles.
8 North, Compartment 7 ; ie F
West, bridle-path. 17-1- 1 | As above.
9 East, bridle-path ; \ Plateau ; clayey sand
South, Compartment 10. 9-2-22 |? with pebbles; Ling
bushes here and there.
North, Compartment 9 ; i}
10 East, bridle-path. 11.1-33 | As above.

 

 

 

 

 

To impress the desirable order on the exploitations, in view
chiefly of providing the shelter so necessary for the standards,
the cuttings should pass aC through Compartments 71, 8,
9 and 10, and thea through 1, 2, 3, 4

,o aud. 6. In order to obtain

 

1. The boundaries ov those sides, of which no mention is made, are fields

and arable land.

2. All the compartments have been divided off from each other by means
@@ of cleared lines 6} feet wide,

18
YHE RESERVED FOURBTHS.

STATEMENT
OF THE COMMUNE OE VELLE.

259

 

 

 

Agei i
ica Standing Stock. Remarks,
Years Thi artment was last
: is compartment was
Copse of oak almost pure, with loited at th f 52
39 | } second-class standards, few, tall and re op a Preparatory
deteriorated through epicorms. Felling.
Copse of oak, hornbeam and soft-
15 woods ; standards few of oak with
some beech.

Copse conposed chieky of oak and
softwoods ; fine oak
growth of crop vigorous.

19 |

Copse of oak, hornbeam and soft-

19 Me reeee pet few but tall.
Young copse of almost pure oak ;

1 standards very numerous of oak,
first and second class.

( Copse of pure oak surmounted by a
numerous reserre of first and second
: class oak standards, of average
growth, clear of epicorms.
fe Simple copse of hornbeam, oak and
26 & 25 | 4 softwoods ; a few birches ; growth
active.

 

24&2)1 As above.’
26 & 25 Same as above, but less full.

24 & 20| As above.

}

standards ;
J

My

x

This oak copse, cnly recent-
ly raised, has just been ex-
ploited for the third time.

Same origin as above.

(This compartment was plant-
ed in 1818, cut back 10
‘years later, and hasas yet
been exploited only once,

As above.

——

As above.
As above.

 

the best result practicable it will be expedient at once to thin the
crop in Compartment 1, and postpone its exploitation till that of the

canton of La Brande has been completed.

 

3. The general situation is level, at 1000 feet above the sea. The soil be-

longs to the Oxford clays, covered over in places

with clayey sand containing”

pisiform grains «/ iron ore ; it is silicious and fairly stiff.

4. The crops of moderate vigour are the best, especially as concerns form-
ed trees, wherever hornbeam forms part of the underwood.
260. THE RESERVED FOURTHS.

SECTION UI.
"TREATMENT.

The Treatment of the Reserved Fourths of communal forests is
much more important than even their organisation. On this sub-
ject, as nearly all the Reserved Fourths hitherto established are
worked as copse, although the Forest Code just stops short of pre-
scribing their treatment as high forest, and the Royal Edict admits.
no term for their exploitation except the beginning of decay of the
individual trees, it is advisable before everything else to indicate the
rules and the principal points to observe and attend to in making
the Extraordinary Compound Coppice Fellings.

In the first place, as regards the age for exploitation, most crops
constituted as copse can with great advantage be allowed to stand
on, and not be cut except as compound copse, until they are 40
years old, It is not rare for a copse of that age to yield in hard
eash four times as much as a copse of 20 years, while the first-class
standards preserved are worth eight or ten times as much. Only it
is advisable to make, after the crop has reached the age of, say, 30:
years, a suitable Thinning as a preliminary measure. This operation
improves the growth of the underwood as well as of the standards,
while in addition to this it yields saleable produce and necessarily
provokes the appearance of seedlings, which become useful later on.

The selection of trees for standards is regulated by Section 70
of the Royal Edict of 1827. We know that Section 70, by its second
clause, which is of universal application, prohibits the fellings o¢
standards of the second and higher classes, unless they are in a de-
eaying state or are unable to live for another Rotation. On this
head it was not possible to prescribe any thing more for the extraor-
dinary cuttings than for those made in the reguiar way. As regards
first-class standards, their number is fixed in the ease of the ordi-
nary fellings at 16 at least and 20 at the most per acre by the first
elause of Section 137, which runs thus :— “ Jn the fellings made in
Forests belonging to Communes and to Public Foundations the re-
serve prescribed by Section 70 of the present Edict shall consist of
16 first-class standards at least and 20 at most per acre.’ But in
the Reserved Fourths these figures must be respectively 24 and 40
THE RESERVED FOURTHS. 261

im accordance with the second clause of section 127, which is
of entirely special application, and is couched in the following
terms “ Inthe fellings made in the Reserved Fourths the number of
trees to be reserved shall be 24 atleast and 40 at most per acre.”

It must not by any means be understood thereby that these
figures refer to the total number of standards of all classes. They
apply only to standards of the first class excluding those of all
higher elasses, whatever their number. This point has been clearly
established by M. Bagneris in his Manual of Sylviculture in which
he expresses himself thereon as follows :-—

“It has been argued from the word ‘ ¢ree’ in the clause in ques-
tion, that the number fixed includes standards of all classes. Now,
in the first place, Section 137 does not say so. It overrules only the
first clause of Section 70, the only one which lays down the number
of standards to be preserved. In the second place, by the expres-
sion ‘ first-class standards’ (baliveauax de Tage) is generally under-
stood individuals of the same age as the underwood from which
they are selected for preservation. Now Section 140 provides that
the portions which comprise the Reserved Fourth of a communal
forest, ought not, as a general rule, to be cut except when in a de-
caying state, that is to say, when every indinidual has become a
tree in the ordinary acceptation of the word. Being necessarily un-
able foresee at what age cuttings would be made in each case,
the legislator employed the word ‘ tree, by which must be under-
stood individuals of the same age as the underwood, without any
reference whatever to the standards of the other classes fixed by the
second clause of Section 70. It would besides be absurd to main-
tain that the legislator has shown less solicitude for the Reserved
Fourth than for the ordinary cuttings; and it would be just as reason-
able to assert that because the first clause of Section 137 does not
specify that first-class standards alone are meant, therefore, the
number ‘ not less than 40 and not more than 50’ ineludes equally
well all classes of standards. This contention has never been raised”.

As the Forest Code refrained from prescribing the rearing of
the Reserved Fourths as high forest, it was expedient for the Royal
Edict promulgating the Code to enforce the selection of the stan-
dards with a view to growing them as high forest over cuppice. If
262 THE RESERVED FOURTHS.

it can be of some importance to the inhabitants of a Commune to
receive a large quantity of firewood in their annual supply from the
produce of the regular fellings, it is alvays a matter to be desired
that the Reserved Fourths should produce chiefly timber. The
various classes of timber are what can alone satisfy in a direct
manner the extraordinary requirements of the Communes, just as
they constitute the chief value of the cuttings.

There are just a few communal forests, the Reserved Fourths
of which are stocked with broad-leaved species and are in the state
of high forest. In most of them the predominating tree is the beech,
which in one or several compartments forms crops of poles and some-
times even of high forest trees. In such woods reproduction from
the stool would be unsatisfactory both on account of the species
concerned and of the age of the standing crop. It would thus be an
operation extremely to be deplored if we were to work them by
tire et uire or as copse: the result would be the deterioration and
even the ruin of the canton. Now pole crops of beech allow of
fairly severe and very productive Thinnings being made in them,
Repeated frequently, as extraordinary wants arise, such Thinnings
would each time yield a considerable quantity of produce, and this
up to the age of fertility, 7.e, up to, say, from their sixtieth to
their seventieth year, Thereafter seedlings would begin to
make their appearance on the ground ; and the moment this took
place, the extraordinary wants of the Commune could be met to
their fullest extent and without compromising reproduction by
means of Secondary Fellings repeated at short intervals, should
those wants so require,

If the adoption of the High Forest method of treatment neces-
sarily postpones the realization of produce, can this be urged as a
prohibitive objection against it? It is true that if we have to wait
30 years at least before exploiting a copse, we must wait double that
time before attempting to regenerate a high forest crop. But, on
the other hand, this latter yields from time to time, at short inter-
vals, accessory produce and, in the end, an outturn of higher value
than that of coppice fellings renewed at short dates. Only, it is
necessary that Forest Officers alone should have authority to pro-
pose the Thinnings to be made, both in order to improve the stand-
ingcrop and to provoke the appearance of seedlings, objects the
THE RESERVED FOURTHS. 263

fulfilment of which alone would allow of the standing crop being
drawn upon incase of unforeseen necessity. The kind of treat-
ment here suggested, consisting as it does of successive Thinnings,
which permit of the high forest trees being exploited at a compara-
tively early age, was not known before in France. It is easy of
application, and it is moreover frequently adapted for private wood-
lands constituted as high forest.

Numbers of people are inclined to imagine that the money
value represented by no matter what high forest necessarily in-
creases only at a very low rate per cent. But the rate of profits
on investments in forest property, far from being allowed to regulate
the working of communal forests, is for the most part an indetermi-
nate quantity. It is certain that ifany one purchases a copse work-
ed on a short Rotation and yielding a fixed income, he can calculate
the profits he will derive by comparing the amount of that income
with the amount of the purchase money. Neverthless there is often
very great advantage, even as regards the rate of profits, in adopting
rather long Rotations. But when we have to deal with high forest
trees, who is in a position to say that it yields such and such a rate
of profits? When we preserve a tree, it is not for one or two years,
but for 25 years at least. The rate of profits then depends on the
present value of that tree and that which it will acquire at the end
of 25 years. Now this latter is unknown, and, in consequence, so
is the rate of profits,

The point to establish, one that leaves no room for doubt after-
wards, is the growth of the standing timber concerned—its increase
in diameter, for instance, whether itis slow or rapid. We fell a
tree, and examine the thickness of the youngest annualrings. If we
find that it is one-tenth of an inch, it follows that the tree has been
gaining in diameter at the rate of one-fifth of an inch every year or
5 inches in 25 years. Under these circumstauces, a beech tree with a
diameter of 15 inches would measure 20 inches at the end of that
time ; while its volume will have more than doubled, since the cubical
contents of a tree obviously increases as the square of the diameter.
The rate of profits derived from a forest composed of such trees would
be 3 per cent., if the price of a cubic foot of middle-sized timber were
the same as that of a small log, and if, moreover, it were taken for
granted that prices remained stationary during the whole period of 25
264 THE RESERVED FOURTHS.

years. But fluctuations are inevitable, and is it then possible for
any one to say whether the rate of profits would be three or four
or six per cent ? Ofcourse not. The future is pregnant with un-
certainties, and here again those will reap an advantage who dis-
play the greatest skill and the farthest-reaching foresight.

Too often it happens that a Commune, having debts to pay,
the interest on which is 5 per cent, finds that it possesses only
young timber in the Reserved Fourth of its forests. This young
timber, so people say, does not yield 5 per cent. Now, in the first
place, no one can prove the truth of this assumption, and, in the next
place, if, for argument’s sake, we granted its truth, it would be neces-
sary to sell off the whole forest, since by hypothesis it is unable to
yield as much as 5 per cent. The question to consider is hence this,
«“ Ts the forest in question worthless, and would the Commune better
its own position by selling it ?? When the Reserved Fourth does
not contain exploitable wood, it is to the ordinary fellings that the
Commune must look for the means wherewith to pay the interest
on its debt, and even to clear the debt itself once for all. There is

no other remedy.

Analogous conditions to those met with in high forest cantons of
broad-leaved species are found in reserved blocks cropped with coni-
fers, and in old copses of 50 or 60 years and upwards of age, the re-
generation of which by seed requires, so to say, only its partial
exploitation at short intervals of time, as we shall see in the follow-
ing Book on Conversion, Operations.

In the organisation by area of high forests of conifers belong-
ing to Communes, the present practice is to set aside as a reserve
not the fourth part of the area of the forest, but the fourth part of
the timber to work out every year. This procedure, inentire con-
formity as it is with the spirit of the Forest Code and of t he Royal
Edict promulgating the former, is an excellent one, but on two

 

1. Each species, in order that it may thrive, requires more or less expo-
sure to sunshine. Those that require it most are aspen, ash, the large maples,
the elms, the wild cherry, none of which grow well except with their crowns
perfectly free on every side. Then come birch, alder, oak, lime, the common elm,
which do better in the open than in leaf-canopy. Lastly, we have hornbe:
and beech, which attain a large size in leaf-canopy, provided their crowns are
allowed to spread out a little,
‘IHE RESERVEB FOURTHS. 265

conditions. The first is that the reserved portion shall not be con-
sidered as utilisable at the very owtset of the organisation, while
it exists only on paper and has not yet been constituted on
the ground; for to act otherwise would mean that there would
be nothing fit to cut when the day of necessity arrived. The other
condition is that the quantity reserved shall really represent the
fourth part of all the produce, prizcipal, accessory, and accidental,
for it ought to be sufficient to meet all the extraordinary wants of
tke Commune, as well as all emergencies arising out of the organisa-
tion itself, It must therefore be considerable,

19
BOOK VI.

CONVERSION OF COPPICE INTO HIGH FOREST,

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS,

Forests constituted as high forest yield on the whole more
useful and more abundant produce than if they were worked as
copse. The inference to draw from this is that it is the duty of
the State to convert into high forest all the copses it possesses. The
object of the conversion is to replace the copse, composed of shoots
from the stool, by high forest crops grown entirely from seed. In-
deed, to whatever age we may allow a copse to grow on, it will al-
ways remain a collection of stoolshoots. It cannot develop in the
same manner as a mass of high forest trees ; besides this, its growth
is precocious and begins to languish at an early age ; and, lastly, it
decays prematurely without yielding, as do crops of high forest,
timber of large size. Hence, whether we regard its origin or its
aftergrowth, or consider it from an economical or cultural point of
view, a copse presents no points of resemblance in any essential de~
tail toahigh forest. It hence follows that the conversion of a
copse into a high forest cannot be effected by means of Transfor-
mation Fellings, or by merely modifying the actual standing crop.
Simply making a few Thionings or removing some of the trees or
carrying out any other like operations would have no other result
than that of changing the condition of the copse, while still pre-
serving its essential character of being a copse. The conversion of
a copse means then nothing less than the regeneration of the entire
forest by seed, the end in view being to replace the old stock on
stools by high forest crops of all ages from the young seedling to
masses of exploitable timber.
268 CONVERSION OF COPPICE INTO HIGH FOREST.

Communes that are owners of forests would seem to be placed
in the same position as the State, but it is easy to understand at the
very first glance that the replacement of the crops aged, say, from
1 to 30 years, which constitute the accumulated capital of a copse,
by the much larger stock of a regular high forest, is possible only om
the condition of foregoing a portion of the annual production, and
thus necessarily of reducing the quota of the cuttings and restrict-
ing the exercise of its rights on the part of the present generation.
This reduction may be slight or considerable, according as the stand-
ing stock to be replaced by high forest is large or small, or con-
tains within itself the materials for easy and rapid or difficult and
protracted regeneration. Under certain circumstances it may be
kept down at as low a figure as one could desire by a skilful Organi-
sation Project, and spread more or less equally over all the succes-
sive Periods of the Rotation adopted for the conversion. But in no
case can it be obviated. The conversion of a copse into high forest
hence demands on the part of the owner a willingness to forego:
for the time being a portion of his income, and to transfer, for the
henefit of future generations, this portion to the capital sunk in the
standing stock. We have no right to expect the Communes to sub-
mit to such a sacrifice ; and, for a long time to come, save in a few
exceptional cases justified by special circumstances, there is very
little probability that the Communes asa body will be able to
undertake so desirable a modification of their forests. Hence it is.
only the forests of the State that we shall chiefly have in view in
considering the question of the conversion of copses inte high
forests.

If it is the duty of the State to convert its copses, we consider
that it is advisable to take up this work progressively, and not to
attempt it except in such forests as offer the necessary resources
for its success. To establislr our position we have only to remind
the student that the object of every conversion is to get rtd of actuak
stool-crops by having recourse to natural reproduction or to artifi-
cial planting and sowing. Now the conversion of a copse into a
high forest is an operation so full of risks and uncertainty, besides
being difficult and expensive, that it is much better to abandon aly

idea of attempting it than to undertake it without having the
CONVERSION OF COFPICE INTO HIGH FOREST 269

essential materials at hand.t. What we have just said admits of
only a single exception, viz. the case ofa forest growing in very
poor soil or in soil that has undergone hopeless deterioration, that
is to say, soil on which stool crops make wretched growth and can
be easily and profitably replaced by a couifer crop. This case
excepted, the conversion of copses into high forests by means of
natural reproduction is the sole method that ought to be adopted,
not only because regeneration by natural means is obtained with
greater certainty and at less cost than by artificial methods, but also
because self-sown crops are always finer anc more vigorous than
those raised artificially.

We ought also to add that in most copses the ground can be
sown naturally to a sufficient extent only by the standards and by
the older stool-poles, the cover of which is high enough up above
the ground. When an old copse, being exploitable as such, is pre-

 

1 The presence of stool-shoots in the midst of the seedlings is the worst
danger to be encountered in conversion operations. Whereas seedlings do not
begin to shoot up rapidly until after their first youth, after the age of 30 years
for instance, stool-shoots push up apace at once and it takes them only a few
years to suppress any seedlings coming up with them. Once stool-shoots are
exposed to abundant light, they can be kept down only by repeated Cleanings
which must be begun at once, otherwise the task soon multiplies and gets
beyond control, and a few years of delay may result in the stool-shoots gaining
complete possession of the ground. Inany case a mixture of seedlings and
stool-shoots forms two discordant elements of growth. The latter overtop
the former and oppose their development to such an extent that if the erop
when it arrives at the luw pole stage (which it generally reaches towards ‘he
age of 40 years), is not composed exclusively of seedling trees, it is only too
probable that it will bea wretched one and without any prospect of improve-
ment.

If the presence of stool-shoots in the midst of selfsown seedlings is so full
of danger to them and calls for so much careful precaution, what must be the
case when the seedlings have been raised artificially? For in this case the
young plants, necessarily few and far between and thrown back in their deve-
lopment, are fatally doomed to disappear from the midst of the stool-shoots in
the course of a few years. The creation of a forest on a perfectly bare soil is
certainly a less expensive aud more certain operation than the conversion of
a copse into a high forest by artificial sowing or planting. That method is
hence applicable only in the blauk portions of ruined copses. As for those
portions which are badly stocked, which contain only the softwoods or in
which the principal species is conspicuous by its absence (¢. g., a copse of horn-
beam), it is a safer plan to modify their condition gradually, say by exploiting
them twice over as compound copse, than to attempt their direct conversion,
270. CONVERSION OF COPPICE INTO HIGH FOREST.

served, its growth is obviously not stopped, the leaf-canopy conti~
nues to rise away from the ground for several years, and, when it
consists of mixed species, the stock thins itself spontaneously all
the earlier, the more rapidly the clumps of short-lived trees dis-
appear ; and, lastly, the faculty of producing seed increases as that
of throwing up shoots diminishes, But complete fertility is not
attained until the crowns have acquired a certain fulness and the
older stool-shoots have become small trees. Copses of oak and beech
often do not become completely fertile until about the age of
60 years. Complete fertility betrays itself on the ground by the
seedlings which make their appearance, no matter what tbe soil on
which the seed falls. Hence to regenerate a copse by seed it suffi-
ces to allow it to grow on until it becomes really fertile, and then,
and only then, to proceed to make Regeneration Fellings in the
manner best suited to the species concerned. This end is attained
all the earlier and the more effectively, the more numerous the
standards are. From the observations we have just been making
it follows that the conversion into high forests of the State copses
ought not to be undertaken except on the condition that the
crops contain within themselves all the necessary elements to se-
cure the regeneration of the forest by means of self-sown seedlings
of the one or several species, which it has been decided to rear as
high forest trees. When these elements are wanting or are present
only to an inadequate extent, it is much better to wait and to con-
tinue working the forest as coppice until a sufficiently large number
of standards has been reserved with which to obtain a more or less
complete sowing of the ground. It is only then that the Regenera-
tion Fellings can be taken in hand in a really timely manner, and
the new seedling crop obtained without any expenditure and with
the fullest possible measure of success, provided always that the
conversion operations are carried out with all due care and fore-
sight.

Such are, as regards the condition and composition of a com-
pound copse, the circumstances that, in our opinion, should exist to
justify its immediate conversion into high forest. We now proceed
to inquire what conditions as regards the soil it is necessary or
simply expedient to have in order to grow a high forest, and what
circumstances render urgent or desirable the conversion into hich
forests of the copses belonging to the State, .
CONVERSION OF COPPICE INTO HIGH FOREST. 27 1

It has been said with reason that the poorer a forest soil is, the
more careful we should be to maintain the cover, and, as a conse-
quence, the more important it is to grow high forest on it. Theo-
retically this proposition is rigorously true, provided always that
the species selected for this purpose are adapted to the soil and
climate. Practically it admits of some exceptions, and, to say the
least it requires some explanations.

In certain soils, deep, yet nevertheless free and little fertile of
themselves, the High Forest Régime becomes a necessity, as the
only one capable of preserving the fertility of the soil and of pr-vent-
ing the ruin of the forest. The finest high forests in France, viz.,
those of Bersay, of Belléme, of Perseigne, and of Fontaineblean are
a standing proof of this. These forests are situated on almost pure-
ly silicious soils, the fertility of which is due entirely to the pro~
tecting dense leaf-canopy overhead. Were this cover to be destroy-
ed either by unskilful working or by some accident, the topsoil
would at once lose all its valuable qualities under the direct action
of the sun, the ground would be overrun by ling bushes, and it
would be futile to demand from it under the Coppice Régime those
magnificent oak and beech, which form the present canopied masses
that now cover it. The ruined copses of Fontainebleau itself, of
Ermenonville and hosts of other forests situated on sandy soils
furnish too evident a proof of this. In such soils, therefore, there is
absolutely no choice leftas regards the Régime to adopt. Treated
under any other than the High Forest Régime, the forests stand-
ing thereon would be bound to deteriorate rapidly, and yield pro-
duce both limited in quantity and of poor quality. The sessile-
flowered oak, the beech, and the hornbeam associated with each
other are the chief species to grow in such forests. Besides these,
the birch is generally found in abundance on such soils.

The Jurassic limestones usually give a more or less undulating
character to the country. Often they form plateaux intersected
by sinuous valleys and ending in abrupt slopes. The topsoil, being
the remains of the limestone rock washed away by rain, is simply a
mixture of silicious sand, clay, oxide of iron, and of fragments
more or less small of the limestone. This red earth is generally
very shallow, being from 6 to 8 or 12 inches deep; it is apt to dry
up rapidly, because rain falling on it filters away with great ease
272 CONVERSION OF COPPICE INTO HIGH FOREST.

through it aud through the underlying fissured rocky strata.
Nevertheless the forests situated on these limestone plateaux are
not so liable to deteriorate under the coppice treatment as forests
on silicious soils. After every exploitation, soils resting on lime-
stone rocks are overrun with various and abundant herbaceous
and shrubby growth, which protects it from the direct influence of
the sun’s rays, On this account forests situated on such soils main-
tain themselves complete and full of vitality even after centuries
of treatmevt as copse. Nevertheless it is a matter of experience
that these copses grow slowly and yield at the age of 25, 30 or even
85 years only small firewood. Such are the forests of Haye, of
Auberive, of Chatillon-sur-Seine, of Braconne, and a great
many others, the formation in question being very extensively dis-
tributed, and composing the largest proportion of the forest soil of
France. Now it is beyond dispute that the High Forest Régime
is essentially suited for these forests, provided the beech is treated
there as the dominant tree, since it is the only one among the broad-
leaved species that can grow with some vigour and acquire large
dimensions in those soils. But it is advisable to associate with it
the sessile-flowered oak and to preserve, as stop-gaps to form a
complete leaf-canopy, individuals of the hornbeam which species
always grows in less or greater abundance in those copses, and
which more than any other helps to maintain them in full vigour.

There are also other soils containing a larger proportion of clay
in the top-soil than those already referred to, large extents of
which bear forests that are treated as copse. They are for the
most part met with in the plains, sometimes on hilly ground, more
rarely on low mountains. They belong to very various geological
formations, such as the clay schists, the variegated sandstones, the
iridescent marls, the lias, the green sandstones, the Bressan rocks,
&c, These soils, usually deeper than those referred to in the pre-
ceding paragraph, are always also moister and more fertile, and are
as a rule, adapted for the oak. The forests that cover them stand
being worked as copse perfectly; but it is indisputable that on
these soils, being as they are of average fertility and suited for the
oak, the High Forest Régime yields much better results than that
of Coppice. Instances of such forests are those of Champenoux in
Lorraine, of Trois Fontaines in Champagne, of Chaux in Franche
CONVERSION OF COPPICE INTO HIGH FOREST. 273

Comté, and of Longchamps in Burgundy, the sessile-flowered oak
in the drier portions or on rolling ground, the pedunculate species
in the moist or wet portions, associated the one with the beech, the
other with the hornbeam or with such species ascan be grown
there with the greatest advantage.

Going up the ascending scale of soils according to their fertility
for forest purposes, if we look at the forests situated on old or recent
alluvial deposits, such as are to be met with onthe banks of the
Sadne and of the Adour, or in localities analogous to those of the
forests of Mont-Dieu in the Ardennes, of Coucy-Basse in the
Aisne, and of the majority of the forests in the plains of Southern
France, we cannot but regret to find only copses there, where the
finest high forests of oak could be reared. But the pedunculate
oak, the only one of our two principal oaks that can be successfully
grown in these rich and wet soils, possesses a very light cover.
Even when standing close enough together to form leaf-canopy, it
affords to the soil below but little of that protection so necessary
to preserve its fertility and to prevent its becoming overrun with
grass, and to assure to its own bole the amount of shade necessary
to save it from an invasion of epicorms. When raising it as a high
forest tree, it becomes incumbent, much miore so than in the case
of the sessile-flowered species, to associate with it some species
possessing dense foliage, like the hornbeam for instance, to com-
plete the leaf-canopy.

In these very soils, the pedunculate oak grown as a standard
over copse shoots up rapidly and acquires a considerable length of
bole. It yields a close-grained wood, less suited than that of the
sessile-flowered species for the purposes of the cabinetmaker and
the cooper, but valuable for the civil and dockyard engineer, and,
as a rule, for all purposes which require combined strength, elasti-
city, and durability. Thanks to its light cover and to the height of
its crown above the ground, thanks also to the exceptional fertility
of the soils in question, in which the aspen, the ash and the alder
flourish, the underwood alone, filling up the space between the
crowns of the standards, yields a considerable quantity of produce,
which in certain districts, where poles of all species are used for
mine stays, commands an extensive sale at remunerative prices.

20
274 CONVERSION OF OCOPPICE INTO HIGH FOREST.

A well constituted high forest of the pedunculate oak would,
we believe, yield much more valuable produce. But at present
none such exists anywhere in France in the soils we have just been
describing. Moreover, on account of the difficulty of substituting
a high forest for copse in very rich soils which are liable, the mo-
ment the leaf-canopy has been rent, to be overrun with high
grass and the soft woods, we consider that for the present it is
better to maintain the present Régime and simply to perfect it as
far as possible, than to undertake conversion operations under
extremely difficult conditions and with doubtful prospects of
success.

7
CHAPTER 1.

ORGANISATION OF COMPOUND COPSES
UNDER CONVERSION,

 

SECTION 1.

PRELIMINARY OPERATIONS.
—

Taking the conversion of a forest as a whole, its object is te
form a Working Circle of High Forest containing a complete series
of the different age-classes. Hence the various portions of the forest
cannot be converted simultaneously, but gradually one after another,
the operation being spread over a space of time equal to the Rota-
tion, on which the forest would be worked if it were already con-
stituted as a high forest. The Aménagiste should, therefore, take
in hand first of all those portions,which are the best adapted for
the purpose, and gradually prepare the rest for conversion while at
the same time improving them.

But ifitis necessary to prepare a copse, whether simple or
compound, for conversion by letting it grow on, that is no reason
for doing this simultaneously all over the forest from one end of
it to the other. This preparation would be premature except du-
ring the period immediately preceding that in which the actual
conversion is to follow. We may, therefore, have to make one or
more coppice exploitations in those portions of the forest, the con-
version of which is vet distant; may, asa general rule, no other
procedure is practicable. A portion of the copse is by this means
renewed before its actual conversion, and the owxer of the forest
realises thereby what he cannot well do without, viz., his exploit-
able wood and timber.
276 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

After what precedes, it is easy to form an id3a of the
general march of the conversion operations. Given, for example,
a real copse, composed chiefly of shoots from the stool; the
Aménagiste must first determine what time the conversion of the
whole forest will require, then fix the successive Periods of the
Rotation and the portion of the forest to convert (that is to say, the
Block to regenerate by seed) during each of them. He must next
lay down for each Period prescriptions regarding the preparation
for conversion uf the corresponding Block, the actual conversion of
the Block thus prepared during the immediately preceding Period,
and the continuation of compound coppice exploitations in the
Blocks to be prepared during the subsequent Periods for conver-

Such is a general idea of all conversion organisations, to

sion.
It is as sim-

which each particular case can be referred as a type.

ple as it is excellent.

We now proceed to describe the various working combinations
-and cultural operations that enter into the conversion of compound
copses into high forests. Atthe outset we must take for granted as
a necessary postulate that all these copses contain within them-
selves all the elements required for their successful regeneration by
seed. We do not intend to say anything regarding simple copses,
since their conversion is after all only a particular case falling under
the general question treated.

The preliminary steps to take in drawing up the Organisation
Project for the conversion ofa copse into high forest are ia no way
different from those adopted in organising a high forest. It will
thus be sufficient if we explain what points require special atten-
tion in the examination of the compartments, in the formation of
the Working Circles, and in the determination of the Rotation.

§ 1. Formation of Compartments.

The diyision lines of the former coppice coupes can serve, pro-
visionally at least, for the boundary lines of the compartments, It
will be possible later on to decide which of these lines should be
permanently retained and which rejected ; and wherever new lines
are found necessary, these should follow topographical features and

other natural boundaries.
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 257

In examining the compartments, special attention should be
paid to the standards, to give a good idea of which the Aménagiste
must note the species to which they belong, their soundness and
vigour, their number and distribution, their vitality, and the length
of their holes. At the same time the constitution of the under-
wood must be regarded from the point of view of its mode and
vigour of growth, of the relative proportions of the component
species, of stool-shoots and seedling plants, of the density of the
stock and the effective causes that have brought about its present
state. It should always be borne in mind that the chief object of
the examination is to ascertain what available resources the copse
examined offers for its conversion into high forest by means of
natural reproduction. The situation and the soil must be descri-
bed and considered in the same manner as in every other case of
forest organisation ; but, as a rule, the safest criterion of the fertility
of each compartment is to be found in the way in which tue stan-
dards have grown up and are actually growing, and in the habit,
height, and degree of vigour of the formed trees. :

"The examination of the compartments thus conducted and
reccrded serves before everything else as the basis for the constitu-
tion of the Working Circles of the future high forest, and for the
determination of the Rotation to adopt in each of those Working
Circles.

§ 2% Working Circles,

When the forest to be converted covers a large area and con-
sists of a number of Working Circles of compound copse, it is advis-
able to group together in each Working Circle of the new organisa-
tion a certain number of the former. Many advantages result there-
from ; for instance, the Aménagiste may by this means be able to
form each of the Periodic Blocks either of a whole Coppice Working
Circle or of contiguous and similar portions of several such Working
Circles. Cases in which this is feasible are rather rare ; yet when the
opportunity offers itself, it should be seized at once, as it facilitates
the drawing up of the General Working Scheme, the advantageous
distribution of the felled produce, and the successive preparation of
the standing stock for the conversion operations as they fall due.
278 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

However it be, every Working Circle of the new organisation
ought, as a rule, to comprise more than one of the original Coppice
Working Circles, or parts of several such Circles. The main point
to insist on is that it should contain at the very beginning of the
new Rotation a sufficiently large area fit to be regenerated at once
by seed, and hence capable of constituting the First Periodic Block.

Nor is the condition of the other parts of the new Working
Circles without some importance. It is just as desirable to have
the second Block of each one of them rich in standards and well
‘constituted as regards its underwood, so as to yield a sufficient
quantity of produce and at the same time offer the means of success-
ful natural regeneration during the Second Period. And more than
this, it isa good thing to have, outside the First Block, coppice
crops old enough to bear productive fellings at the very commence-
ment of the conversion, and of sufficiently well-graduated ages to
provide against any interruption in the serial succession of the
exploitations to: be made.

It is easy to conceive how a period of waiting well spent in
the necessary preparation for conversion enables us in most cases
to secure all these results ina timely and complete manner.

Such, barring some exceptions, are the essential conditions
that must be realised in order to form the new Working Circles,
by grouping together into them the existing coppice crops, which
in other respects may, for the matter of that, present all and every
degree of variety.

§ 3. Rotation.

By the term Rotation of Conversion we understand the time
required to create a well-graduated succession of seed-grown crops
conveniently distributed between the principal broadly-defined high
forest age-classes, from the young carpet of seedlings to the exploit-
able mass of fuli-grown trees, When the conversion of the forest
that is, its replacement by a new generation of seed-grown trees,
can be taken in hand at once, the Rotation of Conversion ought to
be the same as the Rotation that would be adopted, had the forest
been already constituted as a high forest, We will term this the
Normal Rorarion,
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 279

The reason for not adopting a different Rotation for the con-
version is evident, for the essential point of the matter is that the
Rotation should be equal to the length of time necessary to obtain
a complete series of seed-grown crops of graduated ages from the
germinating seedling to the exploitable tree.

But if it is necessary to wait some time before undertaking the
conversion operations, if, for example, the coppice crops to regene-
rate first require to be allowed to grow on for another 30 years
while being in the meanwhile prepared for the purpose, the conver-
sion of the entire Circle cannot be completed before the eud of the
Normal Rotation augmented by 30 years.

Tn any case, the length of the Rotation of Conversion depends
on that of the Normal Rotation, which can be determined in accord-
ance with the same economic and cultural considerations as in the
ordinary organisation of a constituted high forest.)

SECTION II.

Tue GENERAL WORKING SCHEME.

The next step after the Working Circles have been constituted
is todraw up the General Working Scheme for each Working
Circle taken separately ; that is to say, the Rotation is divided into
Periods and the Circle into Periodic Blocks, and the compartments
of each Block are grouped together in the order in which they
should be taken up for conversion. The principles to follow in
arranging the Blocks and Periods in conversion organisations will
be apparent from a perusal of the following paragraphs, in which
we propose to examine some General Working Schemes drawn up
to suit the circumstances most usually met with.

 

1. The trees standing in a compound copse do not afford the means of
determining the length of the High Forest Rotation. Since they have grown
up in complete isolation, their boles have remained short, but have inereased in
girth more rapidly than those of otherwise similar trees forming part of a cano-
pied forest ‘The ages of these two categories of trees being the same, the
dimensions of the one and of the other are nevertheless different. Hence with
the help of the data furnished by the elements of a compound ecopse we can
estimate only approximately the time required for obtaining the girth suitable
for all the principal usages to which the wood is put. However it be, this
period of time ought to be long enough to render it certain that we shall find
trees of the exploitable dimensions at its close.
280 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.
First Case.

Let us suppose that it is desired to convert into high forest a
wood of small extent, consisting of a simple Working Circle of com-
pound copse, and divided into 30 coupes of equal extent stocked
respectively with crops from one to thirty years old. Let us also
suppose that this wood offers all the resources necessary to enable

conversion operations to be started forthwith.

An examination of the standing stock has shown (i) that the six
coupes cropped with underwood from 25 to 30 years old contain a
very numerous reserve, which forms a leaf-canopy equal to that of a
Close Primary Felling, the underwood being in consequence thin,
sickly and sparse, (ii) that the stock in the latter coupes contains
fewer standards, but consists of a flourishing underwood, in which
the more valuable species are well represented, and (iii) that the
exploitability of the forest under a seed-grown crop would require a
Rotation of 150 years.

This Rotation being divided into 5 Periods of 80 years each,
we will suppose that the General Working Scheme has been drawn

up thus :—

First Block ssscsaed ore Coupes aged from 30 to 25 years.
Second Block.........:.s06 do. do. 18 to13 i,
EMI. 55 aissccewagce sai do, do. 12to 7 ,
Fourth: 45  cmeseusssuvees do. do. 6to 1,
Witth, 4) suave oeesazens do. do. 24to19 ,,

The Special Scheme of Exploitations for each Period would
then be broadly thus :—

Pat LOCK y.0cps/Siaaniuet sums eeartiemeunne Regeneration Fellings.
Second Block.........eceeees Thinnings or Preparatory Cuttings.

Third, Fourth and Fifth ) Compound Coppice Fellings, over
one-thirtieth of the aggregate area
Blocks united ......... every year,

SECOND PERIOD.

First: Blk ...jscseas'sasiensecevieseas. Cleanings and First Thinnings
Hecond Blo. iesiccasasaemiasen uecses Regeneration Fellings.
Third Block ........see:... Thinnings Preparatory to Conversion.
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 281

Fourth and Fifth .., } Compound Coppice Fellings over one-
Blocks aessameiorne thirtieth of the aggregate area annually.

And so on for the remaining Periods.

The result of the treatment here sketched out would, of course,
be the successive replacement of the copse by seed-grown crops of
graduated ages forming together a regular high forest.

Second Case,

In the preceding case we supposed that the First Block could
be at once regenerated by means of self-sown seedlings obtained
from the large number of standards composing the existing stock.
A case of this kind rarely presents itself, and in the greater num-
ber of instances it is necessary to fall back on the poles of the
underwood, in order to supplement the standards in forming the
closeness of leaf-canopy required by a Primary Felling and effect-
ing the regeneration of the First Block by seed. But oak and beech
poles, even those that have grown up from the stool, seldom produce
fertile and abundant seed before the age of 50 or 60 years. More-
over, the self-sown seedlings of these species die out when the cover
of the trees that are to shelter them is not sufficiently high above
the ground. Lastly, the poles of the underwood that must neces-
sarily be cut back in a coppice crop aged only about 30 years when
a Primary Felling is made, cannot but shoot up again abundantly
from the stool and thus produce clumps of shoots offering an ob-
stacle to the appearance and maintenance of seedlings.

For all the reasons just given, it is necessary, in the case now
under discussion, to put off high forest regeneration operations until
the underwood has become old enough to be really fertile, to be no
longer able to shoot up anew, except in an imperfect manner, from the
stool, and to have attained a greater length of bole. While wait-
ing until this happens, the opportunity should be seized of preparing,
by a proper course of treatment, the crops that are first on the
roster for conversion ; and in order to simplify the work of organisa-
tion, this period of waiting, which we will term the PREPARATORY
PrRIop, may be made equal to one of the regular Periods of the
Normal Rotation.

21
282 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

The General Working Scheme will, of course, resemble very
closely that given under the first case, while the exploitations to
make throughout the whole Working Circle during the Preparatory
Period should be arranged thus :—

PREPARATORY PERIOD.

First Block............Preparatory Cuttings or Thinnings’

oe ae 4 Compound Coppice Fellings.

At the end of this Preparatory Period the forest will have be-
come fit for its conversion to be undertaken under the same
circumstances and in the same manner as those already described
in our first hypothetical case.

Third Case,

Instead of a wood of small extent, we will now suppose that
we have to do with a large forest divided into a considerable num-
ber of Working Circles. In this case it is,asa rule, necessary to
group together several of the Coppice Working Circles to forma
single one of high forest. Then, as under the preceding hypothesis,
we have first of all to decide whether the conversion of the crops
which constitute the First Block can be at once taken in hand, or
whether it is necessary to have recourse to a Preparatory Period.

In the former case we must group together in the First Block
old coppice crops containing numerous standards and fit at once to
reproduce themselves by seed by means simply of the ordinary
Regeneration Fellings. At the same time care must be taken to
place in the Third, Fourth, and later Blocks crops of sufficiently
well-graduated ages to enable us to form of the whole taken to-
gether, or better still of each separate Block, if that is possible, a
Working Circle of copse to be exploited regularly as Compound
Coppice during the First Period. As regards the Second Block, as
it must be subjected to purely Preparatory Cuttings (Thinnings and
Cleanings) during this same First Period, there is no object in con-
cerning ourselves about forming it of crops presenting a series of
graduated ages. We need simply allot to it Compartments which

wi at the end of that Period be fit to regenerate themselves by
seed.
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 283

We thus see that the exploitations to make throughout the
entire Working Circle during each Period of the Normal Rotation
may generally be summarised as follows :-—

First PEriop.

First Block ... ... Regeneration Fellings.
Second Block ... ... Preparatory Thinnings.
Third Block ... ... Compound Coppice Fellings,
Fourth Block 5 ss. do. do.

Fifth Block csv s+ do. do,

SEconD PERIOD.

First Block ... ... Cleanings and First Thinnings,
Second Block ... ... Regeneration Fellings.

Third Block ... -.. Preparatory Thinnings.

Fourth Block ... ... Compound Coppice Fellings.
Fifth Block .... ... do.

And so on for the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Periods,
Fourth Case.

However extensive the forest to be converted may be, it may
be found necessary to pass through a Preparatory Period before
beginning to regenerate it by seed. In this case, the First Block must
be constituted on the same principles as those sketched out for the
Second Block in the preceding hypothetical case, and, as regards
the Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth Blocks, care should be taken
to allot to them cropsoffering a suitable gradation of ages. The
exploitations to be made over the whole Working Circle during
the Preparatory Period would then follow the general plan given

below :-—
PREPARATORY PERIOD!

First Block...........se+s0s.--Preparatory Thinnings
Second Block..................Compound Coppice Fellings
Third, Block....5.ciscesssisecseses do.

Fifth Blockssssesssssvscsevnes do,
284 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

This preparatory stage would then be succeeded by the real
Conversion Rotation, during which the operations would follow the
general lines hereunder indicated.

First PERIOD OF THE CONVERSION ROTATION.

First Block.......ssseceeeeees Regeneration Fellings
Second Block.....ssesceeners Preparatory Thinnings
Third Block-oc..sscsseseeeeeeeee Compound Coppice Fellings.
Fourth Block...c.-.seeesereee do.

Fifth Block.....ccsseneseeeoeees do.

And so on during the Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth
Periods, If, besides this, each of the Blocks other than the First
comprises in itself a complete series of Coppice Fellings, the general
Working Scheme becomes very simple.

But actually this happy coincidence rarely occurs, and when it
does not exist, it would be a great mistake to force matters in or-
der to obtain the simple outline of work which it renders possible.
It is in the general conditions imposed by the organisation of the
forest, in the cultural treatment which the conversion demands, and
in the gradual improvement of the forest, that the necessary solu-
tion to the question conuected with the General Working Scheme
should be sought.

Thus, by way of resuming what we have said, we see that the
success of an organisation for conversion depends entirely on the
efficient manner in which the various cultural operations are execu-
ted, ifthe General’ Working Scheme is based on the following
conditions :-—

(a) The First Block stocked with old copse possessing a high
cover and containing a sufficiently large number of seedbearers to
admit of the immediate conversion of that portion of the Work-
ing Circle. (b) The Second Block composed of coppice crops of
any ages whatsoever, but containing in a numerous reserve, or at
least in the underwood, or still better in the reserve and the under-
wood together, species suited for high forest growth in sufficient
proportion to be capable in a short time of forming by themselves
a complete leaf-canopy. (c) The other Blocks comprising the
rest of the coppice crops, no matter what their density and the com-
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 285

ponent species, but only of sufficiently well-graduated ages, and
above all, old enough to furnish at once and without any inter-
ruption principal produce, that is to say, to admit of being worked
profitably and continuously for the market.

Such are the general conditions which it is always possible to
realise after a Preparatory Period of sufficient length, equal, say, to
a long Coppice Rotation. Occasionally, of course, there are circum-
stances of an exceptional nature to be met with, such as compart-
ments so rich in seedlings, or saplings and poles sprung up from
seed, that they can be transformed into a true high forest by means
of mere Improvement Cuttings accompanied with the extraction
ofa few trees. It is evident that such crops would find their
natural place either in the last Block or in the first, since regenera-
tion by seed has already been effected and the chief and sole object
of the conversion fully accomplished. In other cases, in compound
copses in which the beech is the dominant species, it may happen
that by far the greater proportion of the stock of a large part of the
forest has sprung up directly from seed, stool-shoots, birches and the
soft woods being in the minority. Here, instead of continuing to
work the last few Blocks as Coppice, it is often found advisable to
execute therein mere Improvement Cuttings or even simple Trans-
formation Cuttings. These latter operations, consisting as they do
in the extraction one by one of the reserved trees, of stool-shootg
and of the soft woods, may be found suited either for whole Blocks
or for only some of their component compartments. There are many
other special circumstances to be met with. Neverthless, all things
said, copses seldom, if ever, lose their inherent constitutional defect
due to their having grown up from the stool; and as the presence
of stool-shoots in the midst of seedlings is the greatest danger to
be obviated or overcome in the conversion of a forest, it is wise to
mistrust all exceptional cases in drawing up the General Working
Scheme: too often such exceptional cases are entirely delusive, and
exist only in the imagination of the Aménagiste.

SECTION III.

SrecraL SCHEME OF EXPLOITATIONS.

The various combinations, which enter into the organisation and
working of a forest in each of the hypothetical cases of conversion
286 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

that we have just been describing, have alla close analogy with
each other and possess the same characteristics of symmetry and

simplicity.

The Special Scheme of Exploitations ought also to be clear and
precise as respects its form, which ought to be so constructed as to
meet every kind of difficulty that may be encountered in practice
with regard to the nature, march, and location of the ordinary fel-
lings. This object is easily enough attained, thanks to the fact
that a large proportion of the fellings are necessarily based on area,
and may, therefore, be rigidly fixed in advance for every successive
year for each Separate Block.

We give below an example ofa Special Scheme of Exploitations
to be made during the First Period of 40 years in a Working Circle
divided into 4 Blocks and already in a perfect state of preparation
for conversion. It will help to explain, better than any amount of
rules, the general procedure to follow.
287

COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

 

 

 

 

efeyiopy
!
y
t
|

$09,001

> Taaeg slog

 

seer eneccees OG eee es eee ¢ 0} , eee eee eee eee eee , eee eAoqe sy 0 e col N
tiserseiee oGresenseseere! gop Gg fit tt ttt spxepusys snoomnu
Apuey yt ‘soroeds poompareyg jo osdop} #3 0 ZIT] W
oe erreeneree OG eres: OL 0} IL wae oes eee wee ove eee OA0qe BY 91 0 69 Ty
sterserecses oCpsetstttereered OT OF ZT [tt tt tte ttt ttt tte onoqusy] 8 ¢ 26] U
stasenseanee cpretemeeeereeed! QT ae sa ene ee se ee BRON RY OEE Te |
"ROULUUITLT, [eIUTADap UOT}
‘syesodoid = eroods qi «| GT OF TS ft spaepueys
souBplmoOOR Ul ssu1Uvety) snodeumnu TyIM ‘soroads poxtu jo asdon] 9¢ g col] H
leseaerees ogg steerer] GE OF og fet ttt tee tt oct tts eaxoqe sy] #z 0 cB] D J
Pe bes eressee oq ee eeeesrenraneor g¢ 04 09 ee oon @ee eee ace spaepueys ou
‘yvo 2 utvaquioy ‘qo0eq ‘esdoo plol g z 38]
‘sSuryjeg| 9¢ OF Ag [7 TT Ott Tt Spavpayzs snosour
DON eisUaAsey pur ssuauryy, -nu yA ‘qoveq pus yvo ‘esdoo plo] ze o OS | A
ec eewaressae og’'"’ od weeeee 99 0} GL Ee. as “s90.1} Od18] jo ssvur pardon
-vo uddo uv sSuiwioj spavpurys
fq poyunowsns ‘oreds poomzepun| g§ ¢ eat] a
ee eenaeweren oct wey 7 19 OF. GG. |P ~ SeR e eeee al ore 8V| 21 0 OF 0
Poerseeseree oq" og sesso] ©Q OF GQ |" "'sprrpueys MOT v Yaa BAOqU BY ZZ ag I
‘sBauo,q uoTwsouesoy| OL OF ZL |" “*wUBEquI0Y pu yvo ‘asdoo plo] 0 T 06! V
“1% 'V
a B g
‘poatnbas quowqvary, 23 dois Barpuvys jo wordisoseq ‘woly eg
es BE

 

 

 

“BUOPUNTY

e

“POOLE

 

 

‘OIGT OL 1481 WOU COIWAd LSAT AHL ONIUNG AAV TA OL SNOLLVLIOTaAXa
«

COMPOUND COPSES UNDEB CONVERSION.

288

————S

 

  

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

P-T-eroe "TOL
Ceersereanes ree oon vee ace od eee 1. e918 ae OL 0 Tol ‘av )
eaevereares ogee" eeeeetres cee ose eee eee od eee eee eee oes 0 0 £9 ‘Av
nny | 27800. |
Beerensseoen GC Gpeere se cmtenses ss G see eee eee eee eee eee aaoqe SY 0g g oP O'V U -nv-ale
oo reeercecce Oey reese 9% 04 1% sprepueys Moy
B YIM “yeo pue weeqaioy jo osdon| 8 T 28 |‘a'¥ |
ee evecceeres Cop es 62 Tele oe eos cee syUe[q pus 4 x AI
sopry[3 Surmiezuco esdoo punodmop) GE @ 64 | "V'V |
vecrecveanes OG eee SE 0} ee ‘x20 pue Tapye “qoTq jo asdoo ejduig GL G OF 7, assed eustay
; ‘uorqe}10[dxe Pg)
erojoq srvok Ol Ssurauly J ee 04 1& see vee eee vee eee ose se OI1q
‘s8aryfa,q oorddog punodwoy pav ‘xeo ‘creoqusoy ‘esdoo punoduop| 0 € 90T) A
wa eceereenes OQ ee g » 7 see eee vee ver o”"d eee eee vee eee ZI 0 9L X 4
saevsesensee Qcpremsettteesere| ap Gg [ee tte tes ee wey FR APR NEE ee Z 0 08 A }
wer rereeeree oquen . OL sae vee eee eee od ese eas eae eee Ze g IP oO L XNOTIIeO
Openers eee oL see see vee eee eee vee aaoqe sy CS 0 §2 iL sop slog
eceres paces OC ese ZL 0} eT vee wee ee are eee ***sprepueys JII
Moy TV YA SyBO puw Yoood JO asdon| 0 T 001) § [
reaseteereee Qcpreeeeereeesseesnee 8 tee eee bey nee Hee see gprepueys |
yeo Moy @ YUM “Topye Jo esdon) G1 2 16] O
eeareervenee Gere ete eons Ze rr BAo0ge SV 0 € 0& o j
ce neeereceee ig nS re ee HS ae wei eae Age SY 98 0 9E d + OIAIOA BT 7
abiyeiojdxe| ge 07 OF [7 ts SpaepitEys ene |
arojoq saved OT ssurmurqy, -zounu Ayrrey yy ‘osdoo punodmop| 96 6 19! O |
‘sSurl[o,g aorddog panodwoy ‘au ov | |
& Ts
*parmbat yaamywaty, = ‘dois Suarpueys jo worydisoseqy "eal 83 | “smoyUey) "HOOT

 

 

 

(panuzquod)
‘O16T OL LI8t NOUA GOW LSU AHL ONTUNAC ACVA dd OL SNOILYLIOTI Xa
289

COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

*‘sansy
SatMojpoy OY TLGT TW oavs
‘JoJOWVIP UI spreadn puv soyour
p sojod pur seary Sa “Lr ‘sdnt
-[]Q1 esoyy UL [Te 07 seot} Oty
Jo ToTyVUTVA pus Torere tM
eu ‘seapeg Avewig oy4
8 Jepto ewes ayy Ur ‘afqrssod
gv avy gu ‘Toyerenesor srapun
syuem4ivdmos ayy Ysnorgy 08
a ssuryeq Avepuosag eyy

‘spesodord Surytoa
yenuuy rwnSer oyy 07 papued
-de spesodoid yetads jo yoafqus
OY} WAOF TILA faTqQuy SIT} UT LOF
peplaocid useq you oavty qoryas
ware WO poseq SsuTyINd Aayyo
pue ssurtveQ oy pur oun
puooses v apeMt aq OF SAVY [IIA
qeqy ssayeg Arwmg ous,

OT &
be T 1%
86 T IZ
8 S 2
b&b LG
y 6 16 |
91 T 9&8
91 T 98

oA

addaqqq

MAAd

 

4<
q<

86 T 06 Z
v T 06 Z

 

seveeeee

GES 9G A
BEG 9G A
G66 96 A
CJ B 96 A

eevee rec sten ans feteeneons

ee een en enerene

 

 

él S 1% a

or Te 0

 

9€ 0 9& d

ver meeencanctne | Serene

  

 

 

‘au c‘v

 

s “sysvUOy

“S70 dL

 

“story -gred og BUOLY: greed 0p

*syUdT

 

*HOolA YANO

‘Old PATUL

 

 

“sBurpog eorddog punodwop

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

gee 03! A | 068 & H FST QS 9 | 06st
96 € 06 no SIT e@ 6e H 6L T 8@ dD 688T
$6 LT FS iL 06 € GG N 6I I 8@ p 88st
$3 LT FG iL OG & &g N 91 0 Gs of LS8T
FZ T F6 L éI @ 8¢ W 91 0 & os 988L
GL 0 G6 8 cL &@ 8G Ww b&b Lb ru Sgst
8.0 G& 8 91 0 69 T PG LB As F8sl
8 0 & 8 #6 T SP SI. 0 6 Lb A §ssr
8 0 & iS) Fel 8P ww 8 0 && 0 eer
oo |] avioes Is I PO & 0 ESst
0 0 | TV/06€8 @g H SLE Lb qd osst
QT i; OV |9T 8 &g H GI € 26 f 6LST
84 1 12} OV | FET 8 p ce 8 os a SL8E
8 6 26} 4V | 61 T 8 Dd GEE GS qd LL8T
yr @ 146} IV | 6IT 8e@ 9 Ee GS ad 9180
yr @ 1461 4V |98T0O 66 W 7E EG Gs a GL8E
GIG 16 a 91 0 &@ ah Gl 3 G Vv FL8T
OTT g9€) VV ,F &@ 28 ul SIG GS Vv EL8TE
OTT 98! VV & Lb As 8 G & Vv ELST
o © iw! & |0 @ £4 i 8° S & Vo | Y28t
‘ad *a “V ‘at cw OW a SU CW

Prey ee ARNON ainaincs, ISROLY Saedicosl 3
anor su iae Bietee cme 4st HOOT SALT a

2

s S

“sSuyauyy, 3

 

 

 

 

‘VaUV NO GASVd SONILINO AHL FO CIAIA

22
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

2906

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

            
 

 

 

    

 

    

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

OL I & BE [ne Sees ae gt 08 z oT ¢@ N Sewn ee tees roe T OTer
9T I GS Wy Vv eonene eee Pp t C3 uy 0 I ce N dep teetttoeenn oe eeeee 606L
‘ él 1 G3 ad V 900 G6 A Oo t && N eatgite tia SeiSee
CLT dV vee [Lore g gz x 8 0 GE rt cbisieke wancex
‘SSAIUTITY UL, Iveq PEA PO | og Tg X Jee 97] AX 18 06 GE) W
sniy poytwur godnod oul» Peper, eee nace oy GOI cl s xX CBG FS A 8 0 6 W
Pasties 9L 1 &@ X |933 ov | A | 9F0 69 | T
bo& SS A £6 @ Ge O to iT S&P wt
“49a OI Nd Teg’ ye aouryTe” YS. SE A 86 G ee O fe T SF M
WEN GEE OG A 6G O 066 18 le I
*oay otqno Pre” se QATOSAT OY4
vj z younped ere ee eee ee ener ree 9e > 0B o OT I cz T ¥ CG a cg % bal rae si CO6T
"aay o1qno oper T8401, PEER A OG al OT t cé “av | 91¢ @€ | #8 Lt oe | GOEL
= i 76 1 FG ih @L iT c% HV | 06 € EG N £68TL
veer Qype 73. TG L ELL &% avi} oe cg N LOST
see eee EGET been Ae IST 1] GL [OST Cel KX | Bs ee | W oo O68
"SOL ee tea ee GOS Ue 8 QTL co! xX iTS’ sg | W sod COST
So pggreeneg tte feel oT eg g Ol tl ce x 910 69 rf "T T6ET
+ gE Dee reel og og g - & 9G A FZ AF x Get
EG € meen OID. SG 8 b& 96 A TOT &P M “ed C6RT
qaaz oiqno sya 0 0 &E yo" TE Be 9S A 06 e IE I : 168L
a ‘Ion ov “aM cv ‘dm cy “I CV
a =. ay
PEIN. Z cumaen RRRAY: Sit tere aad adios *svaay oun aGew - 1e8 weal 2
io
"eHLEUI YT HUI YANO “NOOTG FUL aisha Got Date dase De dae “HOvTG - 1 2
*sSurq]aq o01ddog punodurop sSuluuiqy, see ae at a
( panurqur9)

‘VAUV NO GaSVd SONLLINO FHL 40 GIA
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 391

A study of the preceding tables, with the operations prescribed
therein, and of the state of the various standing crops will bring
out the following leading points :—

(a) The First Block, covered with very old coppice crops
preserved now for 40 years, some of them poor, others rich in form-
ed trees, but all completely fertile, will be subjected to Primary
Fellings during the first 20 years of the Period; there thus re-
main 20 years in which to obtain the regeneration of the portions
reached last of all by these Fellings. These Fellings, which ought
to be very lightly made, are not expected to yield any considerable
quantity of principal produce. Instead of being regulated by volume,
a procedure which would lead to the whole Block being work-
ed through in a very short time, or would have for necessary re-
sult the untimely felling of the standards, they must be located on
the basis of area. The advantages of this are (i) that they can
thereby be spread over a convenient number of years, and (ii) that
the Executive Forest Officers are given the complete latitude neces-
sary for operating with all due care and foresight. The Secondary
Fellings will remove a fairly large quantity of produce, about 3000
cubic feet per acre, and will be made in accordance with the vary-
ing requirements of the seedlings. With respect to them also full
latitude is left to the Executive Officers within the limits compati-
ble with the management of the forest by the Department itself.

The whole of the Second Block, as well as the compartments
of the First Block to be regenerated last, will be subjected to De-
cenvial Preparatory Cuttings as soon as the coppice crops they con-
tain reach the age of 30 years. Arranged so as to form a simple and
continuous succession of annual operations, these cuttings will heip
to gradually bring the Second Block into as favorable a condition
for regeneration as the First Block actually is. The Thinnings to be
made at the end of the Period in compartments H andI, which
will stand first for regeneration during the Second Period, have
been characterised as Final Thinnings. The result of these Thin-
nings will be the appearance of seedlings, which will probably en-
able the Executive Establishment to begin the Secondary Fellings
from the very commencement of the Period, and to at once and for

ever afterwards employ the volumetric method of working out the
yield.
292 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONYVRSION.

The coppice crops of the Third and Fourth Blocks can be cut
as compound copse only once during the entire course of the First
Period; but, by reason of the actual distribution of the age-classes,
these twa Blocks will be worked thus in alternate years, so that
at the end of the following Period it will be possible to continue
the series of Compound Coppice Fellings in the Fourth Block alone.
Indeed, the crops in question will be felled only between the ages
of 36 and 42 years, so that they will necessarily yield avery large
quantity of produce. Moreover, the preceding tables prescribe a
thinning of the underwood in these crops 10 years before they are
finally felled. The advanced age fixed for their exploitation and
this preliminary Thinning will contribute to modify in the most
happy manner the constitution of these crops as rezards their
component species, while a judicious selection of Standards will
endow them with numerous well-grown trees,

The maintenance of the yield at a sufficiently high figure du-
ring the Second Period may be reasonably counted upon. The re-
servation of promising trees in the First Block, the constitution
and age of the crops in the Second Block, the abundance of useful
material fin the compound coppice crops composing the Fourth
Block, and the reserved fourth of the total volumetric yield, a por-
tion of which can always be drawn upon, will be a sure guarantee
of this,
CHAPTER II.

 

CULTURAL OPERATIONS IN CONVERSIONS.

It is especially easy to study, plan out, and establish the orga-
nisation of a forest with a view to its conversion ; in revenge, there
is nothing which requires more care, foresight and savoir faire on
the part of the officers charged with its execution. A few general
observations, therefore, seem to be called for on this subject. With-
out them it will be impossible to understand thoroughly the con~-
ditions which underlie the drawing up, as well as the execution, of
Grganisation Projects for the conversion of copses into high forest.

In a copse containing within itself all the elements necessary
for its conversion into high forest by means of self-sown seedlings,
the cultural operations required for effecting its conversion consist
asa rule of Preparatory Cuttings, of Regeneration Fellings, anl
of Compound Coppice exploitations. What are the points to be
specially attended to in making these several fellings? We pro-
ceed to answer this question below.

SECTION I.

Toe PREPARATORY CUTTINGS.

The object of the Preparatory Cuttings, as their name indicates,
is to prepare the crops composing the Block concerned for conver-
sion, that is to say, for natural reproduction by seed by means of
the ordinary High Forest Regeneration Fellings. This preparation
itself consists in letting the copse grow on until it becomes fertile,
and in favouring its growth by means of judiciously executed Clean-
ings and Thinnings. It is especially these Thinnings that have re-
ceived the designation of Preparatory Cuttings.
294 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

It is advisable to repeat them pretty frequently, say, every 10
or 12 years. As regards the manner in which they must be made,
the main points to attend to are (i) to set free the crowns of
the standards that are surrounded on every side by the underwood,
(ii) to diminish gradually the proportion of the softwoods in the
underwood by removing such individuals of those species as inter-
fere with the development of poles of the hardwoods, and by thin-
ning out some of these latter where they are growing too close to-
gether, and (iii), and lastly, to thin out the stool- clumps by extract-
ing the weaker of the erect shoots, so as to strengthen the crowns
of the rest. But every thing that helps in covering the soil, such
as overtopped shoots, and even trailers, brushwood and bushes of
every species, ought not to be removed except in the Last Thin-
ning, viz., that which immediately precedes the Regeneration Fell-
ings. All the standards without exception, which can prove useful
in the regeneration, ought to be respected. It is chiefly, and one
may say, even solely, on the standards that we have to rely for sow-
ing the ground. Besides this wecould not remove a large tree
without breaking the leaf-canopy and thus encouraging the appear-
ance of brushwood in the space now covered by the lofty crown of
that tree. And more than this, to cut down any of the standards
means to deprive the compound copse of its most effective elements
of production.

The essential object of the Preparatory Cuttings is thus to se-
cure general favorable growth and the developm:nt of trees of the
hardwood species, primarily in the reserve and subsidiarily in ‘he
underwood. Their execution is at the same time difficult, and ad-
mits of no vacillation and timidity on the part of the operating
forester.

SECTION II.
THE REGENERATION FELLINGS.

In conversion operations the Regeneration Fellings comprise
Primary and Secondary Fellings.

The Primary Felling can be made the more effectively, the
more numerous the standards are. Considering the circumstances
in which those trees have grown, each one standing well away from
the rest, and all possessing a spreading crown, it is obvious that
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 295

none of them can be removed by this felling. Indeed, t> obtain as
much cover as is required after the Primary Felling has been made,
there is no alternative but to preserve, besides all the standards, a
goodly number of the poles of the underwood ; for, otherwise
the coupe would consist entirely of trees standing each one some
distance from the next, the result being not such a Primary Coupe
as is here required, with an all but complete leaf-canopy overhead,
but a Compound Coppice Coupe, in which the exploited stools are
sure to throw up shoots and the production of a pure seedling crop
thus become a physical impossibility. The Primary Felling we re-
quire may hence be summarily described as follows :—Clearing the
ground of all low bushy growth, extraction of all overtopped stool-
shoots, lopping off of the low branches of poles, and sometimes even
of formed trees, to raise their cover, and, lastly, the removal from
the upper story of the leaf-canopy of trees possessing only a slight
development of crown, these being selected one here, another there,
and so on, so as to make small well-distributed lacunz throughout
the entire leaf-canopy. After such a felling, the soil ought to be
quite clean and the view unobstructed, a characteristic which dif-
ferentiates it froma well-executed Thinning ; moreover, the cir-
culation of the air should be unimpeded and the rays of the sun
ought to reach the ground in small patches as if passed through a
sieve. The seeds that fall from the trees above would then remain
in a perfect state of preservation throughout the winter and germi-
nate early enough in spring ; while, thanks to the cover overhead,
any oak and beech and even hornbeam seedlings that came up
thus, would not only receive sufficient light to live on for years but
also run no risk of being choked up by a rank crop of grass or by a
strong regrowth from exploited stools. Such a Primary Felling (we
may aptly term ita CaNopreD Primary Coup) can yield but a
small outturn, and with respect tv is executivn it is both expedient
and necessary to give complete latitude to the Executive Forest
Offcer, just as is done in the case of Thinnings. We thus see that
the operation in question differs, and this in several Tespects, from
the Dark Primary Felling, which finds its true place in a regularly

constituted high forest. Here lies the very keystone of the whole
conversion.

According to the prevailing climate the years of abundant seed-
ing occur at longer or shorter intervals. Besides this, it isan
296 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

established fact that every fall of acorns and beech mast, even the
most abundant, frequently produces only a partial crop of seedlings.
But the oak and the beech trees in a large forest bear no incon-
siderable quantity of fruit almost every second year. The conse-
quence is that in a Primary Coupe, that is not allowed to close up
and form a complete leaf-canopy again, we find self-sown seedlings
come up, at first few and far between, but increasing in number year
after year, until they form a complete thicket. If then, aftera few
years, say, 5 or 6, the seedling crop has not produced itself with
sufficient completeness, there ought to be no hesitation in restoring
the state of the Primary Coupe, which must have by this time dis-
appeared owing to the spreading out of the crowns of the standing
trees. The operation which effects this consists in clearing’the soil
once more of brushwood and stool-growth, in cutting away poles
bent down under their own weight, in pruning off all low epicorms;
and, lastly, as the leaf-canopy is again complete, in opening it out
here and there by the removal of some of the poles. After that one
must have patience and wait,

But as soon as the soil is dotted over with seedlings of the
principal species, it is necessary to begin a Secondary Felling. In the °
first of these Fellings the operation should be restricted simply to
the bare isolation of the crowns of the trees or poles overhead. The
reason for this is evident, for what is wanted is simply to open out
the leaf-canopy sufficiently to enable seedlings already on the grouud
to maintain themselves and make their first effort of growth. Under
the amount of cover thus produced, hornbeam seedlings are sure to
come up, if they have not already done so ; and, besides this, stool-
shoots and suckers, if any appear at all, will possess but little vigour,
while it will be izpossible for the softwoods and the birch to invade
and get the upper hand of everything else. Hence the expediency
of repeating the Secondary Felling from time to time, and of keep-
ing duwn stool-regrowth by cutting back at least the more injuri-
ous shoots. Under this treatment the young forest of oak and horn-
beam, or of beech, oak, and hornbeam, according to the prevailing
soil, will form itself under the most favorable conditions, and this
even if the oak plants in it are scattered, or are as much as 10 feet
apart, provided always that the proportion of the associated species
is large enough.
COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION. 297

To these various positive justificatory reasons for acting gradu-
ally and with moderation in the execution of the Secondary Fell-
ings, we will add that there is no advantage in operating in any
other way, that is to say, in completing this class of fellings in one
or two operations instead of in three or four. By adhering to the
rule we have just been enjoining, the risks which a crop of young
seedlings is exposed to, are obviated, the young seed-grown forest is
advantageously composed of all the species spontaneous in the loca-
lity, and the merely apparent backwardness of the young seedlings
is largely compensated for by the development of the trees compo-
sing the reserve.

As regards the Final Felling, it ought not to be undertaken
until the new self-sown crop is of sufficient height to be beyond the
reach of early frosts, so fatal to young oak and beech. And, in-
deed, to say the truth, the reserved oak trees that must be main-
tained until then, and which are still in more or less full growth,
render an early Final Felling unnecessary. The oaks which may
have been preserved at the previous coppice exploitations, because
they were full of promise, should also be left untouched in the Con-
version Fellings above the seedling growth below, which is neces-
sarily less valuable than standards of no matter what class. To
fell these trees, while they are still in full growth, would mean the
increasing impoverishment of the forest in proportion as the conver-
sion drew nearer to its conclusion, a result deplorable in itself and
one that would belie the very object of the conversion itself If
conversions necessarily involved the premature extraction of trees
in full growth standing in the compound coppice crops to be con-
verted, there could not be the shadow of a doubt that it would be
better to give up at once all idea of effecting the conversion.

Hence in conversion operations the Final Felling should be
entirely restricted to the removal of the last coppice poles spared
in the previous Regeneration Fellings. But hand in hand with this,
it may be found expedient to execute another work of no little im-
portance. In spite of all the possible care and foresight that may
have been displayed in making the Regeneration Fellings, it seldom
happens that the seed-grown portion of the young crop is not inter-
fered with, or even overtopped, by abundant stool-shoots. To cut
back these latter once for all is the best means of assuring the good

23
298 COMPOUND COPSES UNDER CONVERSION.

growth of the former. But this must be done at the right time,
viz., when the stool-shoots are on the point of spreading out later-
ally to meet their crowns and before they have reached the sapling
stage, that is to say, as arule, simultaneously with the extraction
of the last poles of the original coppice crops. After such an opera-
tion, the new shoots that grow up from the stools cut back, being
10, 12 or 15 years behind their seed-growa neighbours, quickly, fill
up the interstices in the leaf-canopy left between these latter, and,
where they are exposed enough overhead, catch them up in a few
years, but this time without any longer being able to harm them
before the First Thinning, which finally removes them, falls due.

In high forests already constituted as such, all the Regenera-
tion Fellings are established volumetrically ; this cannot, of course,
be done in copses undér conversion. In the latter case the Primary
Fellings are naturally not required to furnish anything better than
produce insignificant both as regards quantity and quality. It is,
therefore, better to establish them by area, and to subject them to
the condition that they shall pass through all the crops to be re-
generated in a certain limited time, say, the first 12 or 15 years of
the current Period. Hence it is only the Secondary Fellings that
can be based on volume, and their yield is accordingly determined
by dividing the total contents of the trees to fall in the crops under-
going regeneration by the number of years to run trom the com-
mencement of these fellings to the end of that Period. It is, of
course, unnecessary to take into account the small coppice poles,
some of which must fall in the Primary Felling; these will, on the
whole, be a sort of set-off against the trees left standing in the last
Secondary Felling.

SECTION IIT.
THE Compounp CoprPicre FELLINGS.

The Compound Coppice Fellings to be made, while the Prepa-
ratory Cuttings and regeneration operations are in progress in other
parts of the Working Cirele, ought to be located on the basis of
area and ought to be subjected toa long Rotation. The crops to
be exploited as compound copse will, according as they belong to
+ Ssogond, Third, Fourth or Fifth Blocks, be worked ia this manner
COtrecwas COrause « SS attiedoes ve zyy.

once, twice, thrice or four times before being put under the prepa-
ratory treatment for conversion and finally under direct conversion
itself. It is hence necessary to direct the treatment and working of
these crops in view of the final object, viz, their regeneration by
seed, and consequently to get together in them, by the beginning of
the Period fixed for their conversion, a reserve numerous enough to
form that required in a Primary Coupe.

=

Hence it seems only natural that we should adopt a special set
of rules for the Selection of the Standards in these exploitations.
The further a crop is from the Period fixed for its regeneration, the
less necessary is it to reserve in it large trees, This being so, the
Aménagiste, in organising the conversion of a forest, might consider
himself justified in prescribing or authorizing the fall of the stand-
ards of the second and higher classes in the Coppice exploitations
made in the last Blocks, a procedure that would throw into the yield
of the First Period produce at least as considerable as the total
outturn of all the Coppice crops composing the newly organised
Working Circle before its conversion was taken in hand. Such a step
would be greatly to be deplored. Its result would be, that, during
the preparation of the coppice crops for conversion, the material to
reserve in the coppice exploitations would be less than what
would be conformable with the general prescriptions of the
Royal Edict promulgated for the working of the Forest Code,
Now it is always tantamount to robbing the State and, therefore,
the nation at Jarge, to fell unexploitable timber, which has acqui-
red neither its full sum of utility nor its highest money value. And
more than this, by felling in the First Period not only all exploit-
able trees but also others which can become exploitable only during
the following Periods, the Aménagiste would at one stroke, at the
very beginning of his work, get rid of produce, which he would re-
quire afterwards in order to have some stock to fall back upon in
order to preserve the necessary equilibrium between the yields of
the various Periods, or, at least, to attenuate the difference between
the yields of the First and last Periods.

In our own opinion the best rule to foilow in selecting the
standards and executing these Compound Coppice Fellings is that
prescribed by Section 70 of the Royal Edict of 1827,

<<)
CHAPTER III.

A Sustainep YIELD ty CoNVERSION ORGANISATIONS.

The question of a Sustained Yield in conversion organisations
can be considered from two widely different points of view. The
first is offered by the comparison of the outturn of the original crops
and that of the forest organised for conversion. The second is tobe
found in the comparison of the outturns of produce to realize during
the various Periods of the High Forest Rotation.

To take the case of any forest whatsoever, before its conversion
was undertaken, that is to say, during the last Coppice Rotation that
preceded the conversion, the revenue yielded by the forest was obvi-
ously derived partly from the sale of the large trees exploited. If
the revenue furnished by the forest under the Coppice Régime was
exaggerated by the exploitation ofa large number of such trees, the
effect thereof on the forest would have been its impoverishment.
If, on the contrary, the selection of the standards was made ina
liberal spirit, the former rate of outturn could only have been ona
restricted scale. Here then we see an element altogether extrane-
ous to the comparison to be made, and yet one which may have had
the effect of causing the rate of outturn of the last years of the cop-

pice exploitation to differ very materially from the figure of the
mean annual production.

However it be, the copse in question does, of course, contain
some material. And further more, we expect the seed-grown forest,
which is to take its place, to contain a known quantity and quality
of stock, which must not only be more abundant but also more valu-
able than the existing material of the Copse. Hence, as we have
before said, the only way to obtain this surplus over and above the
actual capital represented by the standing copse, is to lay by, in the
form of savings, a part of the annual production. As in all other
financial undertakings, so in forest management, capital can be in-
SUSTAINED YIELD IN CONVERSION OBGADiS2Ti0NS. 301

creas2i only by saving: 1r-m income. Uenee, as a general rule, ani
provided the compound cop32 dsez mot contin any
mumber ci s-andards. ihe revent2 mis: necessarily i_r ai

SITS LTCIGaT Ee

 

as a conseqaence of conversion ¢p2rations being undertaken. Tis

a_inz off will be the less appreciable, tae I:nz2zr the Rotation is
on which the copse to the convertzd bag ven hitherto exploited,
and th2 greater the number of staniaris it contains. Tais being so,
it is easy to understani tae great u-ii:y of a lonz veriod of prepara-
tion. Tnanks to it, the Rotation for tae ersps stui to be exoloited
a: copse can be lenzthened if necessary, and the eczps thems=lves
enric.2i with a num-rsus reserve ; while the maintenance and un-
checked growth up to matariiy of «ze underwood aud formed trezs
included <n the Block under preparation is the iirst step towards
the realization o7 the ¢.7ings put by in 92 1i:n22 19 the exigencies
of the conversion, Here is a rzs2arce not leis valuable than the
elemen:s <i certain regeneration iis21i

The falling off in the revenue will be al the less appreciable,
the greater the number of years over whicao the period of dimi-
nished receipts is spread, a1 ] actually this period is equal to the whole
length of the nz~ High Fores: Rotation. In the majori:y of cases
we see in tais one reason the more, ani that 2 powerful one, for
avoiding all hurry in effecting a csuversion, and for cakizz the iat
time necessary for the production of a ::mplete s22i-zrown forest.
The art of the Aménaz:s:2 overs him no 37h2r means of mitizating
the difficulties inherent in taz worx of conversion ; whatever help
can be derived from a proper syszem oi c1.ture is always remote in
ics results,

There is often reason to fear wide flaztuations in the vield of
a forest under conversion during tae various successive Perici: of
the Rotation. For instance, iz after comparatively productive ex-
ploitations dur:zz the First Pzr:od there ensuej a suiien falling off
in tle vieid. this contretemps mizs: mean the ruin of ih2 Wiss
undertaking after iz had been in cani fr 3) or 40 years. Tao
Organisation Project shou.d provide against such a continzency.

The establishment of a Rzzerv2 Fand offers the first means to
this end. It is clear that during the Preparatory Per:2i no atten-
tion ee tuis matter, for during its course savings a7e

a.t

ipso fa:to i2ariz] up in fhe First Block, in which all tha: can be
302 SUSTAINED YIELV 1N CONVERSION ORGANISATION

preserved is preserved, and often even in the coppice crops, the
exploitation of which falls due at a more or less distant date. But
during the following Period (the First Period, that is, of the con-
version), the necessary provision has to be made by the establish-
ment of a Reserve Fund, just as is done, as we have already seen,
in the organisation of already constituted high forest. For the
annual increment neglected in the estimation of the yield a full or
partial compensation will be found in the promising oaks reserved
at the exploitations, which trees will not, as a rule, be felled for a
half century at least. It is, therefore, absolutely necessary, i
establishing a Reserve Fund, to draw upon the actual stock.

If, moreover, during this same Period the large trees of the
last Blocks are preserved in the coppice exploitations, if, in fine,
the Second Block has been well provided for by the Organisation
Project, and worked accordingly with a sparing hand, it is evident
that the increasing richness of the forest will cover any threatened
deficit. The same economical spirit observed in each and every ex-
ploitation, and the addition, whenever necessary and as they become
available, of a few individuals from among the trees left standing in
the Secondary Fellings will never fail to secure a sustained yield
during the subsequent Periods.

We may, therefore, take it for granted that with the close of
the Preparatory Period the essential basis of the conversion has
been achieved, and that during the First Period of the actual con-
version a decisive step has been made in a definite path clear of
all difficulties and obstacles. Provided the cultural operations have
been well executed and a spirit of economy has presided through-
out the organisation as well as the treatment of the forest, the im-
provements realized will be found to be already extensive, and the
success of the undertaking fully assured. An entire Block covered
with a young seed-grown forest, another portion of equal extent
well stocked with exploitable timber, and, lastly, the rest of the
forest modified in the happiest manner by two coppice exploitations,
that have left in it a numerous reserve of long-boled hardwood trees
—such are the results accomplished. The stock and production of
the forest have already undergone a complete transformation, and
the elements for a successful conversion multiplied to the highest
degree desired.
SUSTAINED YIELD IN CONVERSION ORGANISATIONS. 303

The results in the contrary case would be very different in-
deed. Conversion operations undertaken in crops insufficiently
prepared for them, reproduction by seed compromisal by the less
or more unimpeded growth of shoots from the stool (dus to the un-
timely exploitation of formed trees in the various exploitations), a
material falling off in the yield manifesting its2if from the very
beginning of the Second Period, such are the manner and circum-
stances in which the work would be done; thus undertaken, the
conversion of the forest would be ali but impossible, and compound
coppice crops would gradualiy be transformed into simple copses.

Time as well as economy is an element of the first necessity in
conversions. And when the forest to be convertel contains no large
mass of compound copse sufficiently well constituted, both as re-
gards the underwood and the reserve, to form, after a Preparatory
Period, a convenient First Block, it would be wise to postpone the
conversion. Coppice exploitations on a long Rotation and a judici-
ous selection of standards would not be Jong in bringing about a
better state of things.+ Then again the adoption of a long High
Forest Rotation has for immediate result the lessening of all exist-
in: difficulties. It restricts the area to be converted and the quan-
tity of produce to be extracted during a given time; it affords the
best guarantee that none but exploitable timber shall be cut during
as well as after the conversion ; it assures, of necessity, a sustained
yield from the very beginning of the Second Period ; it allows of the
formation of a numerous reserve of well-grown trees in the coppice
exploitations of the last Blocks: and, finally, it modifies in a favor
able manner the standing stock by means of gradual improvements,
without which a successful conversion would often be impossible. Re-
garded in the light of these observations, the conversion of a forest is
unquestionably a work de longue haleine, requiring the aid of several

 

1 It seems superfluous to insist once more on the results ofa good selec-
tion of standards. In complete conformity with the prescriptions of the Royal
Edict of 1527, it assures the progressive improvement of the coppice crops ; in
certain cases il may suffice to bring about the high forest state itself ; it is
obligatory, and the wealth it stores up is not savings clipped out of income.
And yet, in the majority of cases, it is all that can be done in the in‘erests of
the future. “he analysis of a Compound Cuppice Felling given in the Anven-
dix shows clearly how the results of a selection of standards can be appreciated
in all its bearinks.
304 SUSTAINED YIELD IN CONVERSION ORGANISATIONS.

generations of men. It is sometimes possible to attain the desired
result in a shorter time, but then without that same degree of cer-
tainty, To enlist time on one’s side in creating the seed-grown forest,
means to have all the natural forces in one’s favour ; to run against
time is to run counter to them.

s

Already we have in France some well-conceived Organisation
Projects for the conversion of certain forests, which are in course of
execution ina manner.that leaves nothing to be desired. Thus,
in the Department of the Ardennes, there is the State forest of
Signy-PAbbaye, which contains 7125 acres. Situated on an ex-
cellent forest soil formed of Oxford Clay, in which the silicious ele-
ment is considerable, it is stocked chiefly with hornbean, the soft-
woods, and birch and oak. ‘Trees of this latter species, rising up as
standards above the underwood, attain a diameter of 40 inches in
from 150 to 200 years. But, in consequence of the great fertility of
the soil, the oak had already begun to disappear from this fine
forest, which was then worked as Compound Copse on a Rotation of
25 years. Certain prescriptive rights, moreover, prevented Improve-
ment Cuttings, that is Cleanings and Thinnings, from being made.
The true remedy was a return to the High Forest Régime. Its
conversion, ordered by Government, was organised, at the same
time that the prescriptive rights referred to were commuted by
transferring a portion of the forest in full proprietorship to the
persons exercising those rights, and it has been in hand since 1868,

The forest was found to be naturally divided into 3 regions;
hence three High Forest Working Circles of about 2400 acres each.
The Rotation adopted is one of 180 years. This is the space of
time judged necessary to obtain from regular high forest growth
trees 30 inches in diameter, and it is supposed to represent the pro-
bable longevity of canopied crops of oak. The Rotation has been di-
vided into 5 Periods of 36 years each, that interval being considered
long enough for obtaining the complete regeneration by selfsown
seedlings of a whole Block, Each Working Circle is thus divided
into 5 Blocks, which will be successively brought under conversion
operations in their respective turns.

The broad lines of work being thus laid down, it was necessary
todo nothing but what was certain to yield the desired results.
SUSTAINED YIELD IN CONVERSION ORGANISATIONS. 305

The only way tc accomplish this was to make the most of the
existing crops, and even to improve the composition and produc-
tion of those constituted as compound copse. Accordingly, the
Organisation Project prescribes a Preparatory Period of 36 years
during which the following work is ordered for each Working
Circle :—

(i) Strict conservation of the crops forming the First Block.
This Block. will thus find itself stocked in 30 years with cn old
copse aged from 61 years to 36 years at the least, well dravn up
in height, well provided with standards, almost as well adapted
for regeneration by seed as if they were real high forest crops,
and in a position to yield at once a large quantity of valuable pro-
duce. During the whole Period the only operations to make in
this Block are Thinnings every 12 years, Cleanings on a small
scale, and the removal of trees thai happen to decay.

Gi) The exploitation as compound copse every year of one-
thirty-sixth of the area of the four remaining Blocks. The effect
of this rule will be that the crops worked as copse will, for the
first few years indeed, be felled when they are only 25 years old
or not much older; but year by year they will naturally be of
increasing age, until from the last year of the Period, a future far
from remote, none will be cut that is not at least 36 years of age.
The resulting advantazes will be the realisation of preduce of far
higher value than if the Coppice Rotation were fixed at only 25
years, and a happy change in the condition of the standing stock.
The unqualified reservation of all promising oaks and the execu-
tion of well-directed Improvement Cuttings will increase the pro-
portion of that species in the copse and ameliorate the composition
of the various crops in the highest degree possible.

Such are the essential provisions of this Organisation Project
They place every thing at once on a certain basis, and will bear
scrutiny from every point of view. Our immediate successors
will receive the forest from us admirably prepared for conversion
and, to speak absolutely, in a much better condition than it is in
at the present day. Now it is poorly stocked; then, i.e. from the
very beginning of the next century, it will be richly endowed with
every element that goes to the making of a fine forest. But
these excellent results cannot be obtained wilhout keeping down
the quantity to be worked out annually. The Aménagistes, whose
806 SUSTAINED YIELD IN CONVERSION ORGANISATIONS,

work the Organisation Project is, have been guided throughout
by the necessary spirit of economy. Ia former times, before the
stock of standards was exhausted in the last century by~ the Bene-
dictine proprietors of the forest, the exploitations yielded £9,400
anpually. Now they will yield only £6,000 for the first few
years ; but this figure will go on increasing from year to year,
from Period to Period, for the next two centuries, if the present
respect for growing stock is perpetuated. The state of things was
such that there was no choice left except between certain ruin on
the one hand and uncompromising, but eventually fruitful, economy
on the other. The Aménagistes chose without hesitation the
better part. It is by work such as the organisation of this forest
that our Department covers itself with honour, just as it is by
labour and frugality that a nation amasses its wealth,
307
CONCLUSION.

~<a oe

-

Every tree, whether isolated or forming part of a canopied
group, is a living entity possessing an individual existence. Its
species, condition, age, habit, situation, and countless other details
combine, to make it a tree different from all others.

The object to demand from forest trees being in a special
maoner the wood which they produce, the Forester’s duty is obvi-
ously so to place promising trees, as to enable them to acquire
the most desirable form, dimensions and qualities. At the com-
mencement of their existence and during their early years, we can
exercise a marked influence over the form of trees, either by
growing them in complete isolation or in continuous leaf-canopy,
or by removing some of their branches, or even by straightening
them or, on the contrary, bending them to any shape we please.
But once they become formed trees or reach the age of complete
fertility, they possess a distinct form and habit of their own,
which cannot be changed without ruining them. If the trees
in question have grown up in complete freedom, with a full and
unhampered crown, they must retain their large branches, or they
will languish, contract unsoundness and blemishes, and be doomed
to premature decay. Shonld they, on the contrary, have grown
up in the midst of a full leaf-canopy, tall and lanky, they could
not be isolated without running the greatest risks as respects their
boles, their crowns and their root apparatus, The form they
have actually assumed is here again their own, and it is beyond
human power to alter it without destroying their vigour and
soundness.

The action of the forester on the formed tree, a vegetable
entity endowed with its own peculiar cozstitution and tempera-
ment, ought to be limited simply to placing it under the most
favourable conditions for developing itself and acquiring its highest
qualities, while maintaining it always in a sound state. This
action may be exercised on the crown, the bole, and the roots—
on the crown, by giving it the room in space and the amount of
light it requires ; on the bole, by protecting it by means of the
neighbouring trees or the surrounding underwood; on the soil,
308 CONCLUSION.

by maintaining, by means of the same trees or underwood, cover
overhead and shelter from the heat of the sun’s rays, its covering
of organic detritus, and a spontaneous growth of species adapted
to the locality, Then again, in producing a change of condition,
it is often possible to effect the transition with caution and judg-
ment, so as to minimize its concomitant evil effects and thus
obviate the deterioration and decay of the tree. But when we
have said so much, we have said all, and in maintaining any tree
under conditions favorable to its longevity, its growth, and the
quality of its timber, we may be said to have done to it all the
good of which we are capable. Only these conditions are not the
same for one species as for another, and they differ also for one
and the same species with the state of the individual tree and
‘its surrounding circumstances, so that the task of the sylvicul-
turist too varies with every tree that he has to deal with.

The work of organisation also is necessarily varied accord-
ing to the forest concerned. All points of difference have, therefore
to be noted and indicated, after the general rules applicable have
been laid down, Every forest offers a real and living individua-
lity. It differsfrom every other forest by its situation, its soil
and.component crops, by its area, the outline of the cantons which
compose it, by the roads which intersect it, by the estates which
surround it, and by the conditions under which it is at the time
growing. ‘There are no two forests, avy more than two towns,
exactly alike, and it would be a great mistake to suppose that
the organisation of forests adjoining each other or situated in the
same region can be built up on the same framework or pattern.
The Amcnagiste, if he laboured under so erroneous an impreesion
would lack the very fundamental idea that should guide him, and
instead of adapting himself to circumstances, would vainly en-
deavour to force circumstances to suit his silly imaginings.

A good Organisation Project ought to take into full ac-
count all the available resources of the forest concerned that
constitute its actual value, of the existing factors of production
on which its future value depends, of the’distribution of the age
classes on the ground, of its internal and external export lines, of
all noteworthy facts peculiar to it that combine to distinguish it
from all other forests, These facts must first of all be recognised
CONCLUSION. 309

then tke irelative importance estimated, and the various specia]
conditions resulting therefrom and influencing the organisation of
the forest, combined and co-ordinated in the most advantageous
manner; in the next place, what is accessory and contingent
should be subordinated to what is principal and necessary; and,
lastly, every point of detail should be taken into account to the
desirable extent and all useful improvements foreseen, arranged
for and accomplished as far as possible. This done, the result
will be an Organisation Project well suited to the given forest,

and, as a consequence, suited to that forest alone and to no other.
Hence, however small and simply constituted that forest may be,

its organisation will always be a complicated and difficult work.

_ It may le effected in a thousand different ways, each of
these thousand ways being a more orless good one. Without
going so iar as to seek the very best one of these thousand pos-
sible solutions of the problem before us, we ought at least to avoid
acting aud deciding questions without any definite aim, and trust-
ing everything to mere chance, as we would, for instance, do if
we were to divide a high forest into 4 equal Blocks by means of
two straight lines iutersecting one another at right angles, ora
copse into 25 coupes by means of perfectly parallel lines; if, in
a word, we acted as if we had nothing more to do than trace out
a few lines on a piece of blank paper, instead of being obliged to
guide ourselves by what we find on the ground.

Suppose, to take an instance, there was a small wood of
250 acres, situated on level ground and composed of coppice crops
from 1 to 20 yards old. What could be more simple than this
forest, one would ask, and what difficulties could its organisation

resent ? Well then let us take for granted that the essential points
in this individual case are identical with those peculiar to the
whole region in general in which this forest is situated. Let us
also admit, for the sake of argument, that this wood ought .to be
treated as a compound copse, that the Rotation to adopt should
be one of 30 years, and that the annual cuttings should pass over
equal areas. But granting all this, isit not a fact, firstly, that
the trees that are to be grown above the underwood are already
represented by more or less numerous standards all short in the
bole, and that this circumstance must be looked to and the pre-
310 CONCLUSION.

sent state of things modified, either by means of Thinnings or
otherwise, when the age of exploitation is raised from 20 to 30
years? Then again, we have to enquire whether this raising of
the age of exploitation to 30 years must beeffected gradually, by
beginning at once to fell one-thirtieth of the areaevery year, or
whether the forest ought to be left untouched for the next 10
years, until the age of the oldest crop reaches 30 years, or whe-
ther any other plan ought to be adopted? Lastly, the question
remains to be answered whether it is better to have 80 annual
coupes of 8 acres, 1 rood, and 13 poles each, or only 15 biennial
coupes of 16 acres, 2 roods and 27 poles each, or any other arrange-
ment of coupes? Each of these three questions may be answer-
ed in several ways, but of these several answers only a compara-
tively small number will be found to suit the case of the forest

in question.

The next thing to do is to divide off the forest into coupes
and to open out bridle-paths and roads, following the configura-
tion of the ground. Either there are existing roads sufficient for
the purpose required, or new ones have to be made to suit the
shape of the forest and to provide the necessary outlet for its pro-
duce. In the same manner one or more new bridle-paths form-
ing division lines, straight or zigzagging as the case may be, may
be required. All such other paths ought to be laid out with refe-
rence to the roads and tothe form of the perimeter of the various
cantons; it is not always advantageous toalign them perpendi-
cularly to the boundary-paths or parallel to each other. It may
be found expedient to make the coupes more or less wide, and
preferable to cut the boundary-paths in continuous straight lines
instead of resorting to curves and sharp zigzags on the plea of
making the areas of the coupes as equal as possible. Then again
it might be desirable to let certain paths abut at an angle or on
a foot-path. To insist once more on this subject, we cannot re-
peat it too often that roads and paths cannot be laid out without
some intelligent plan, or only with the aid of a rough map: due
attention must always be paid to the shape of the forest and the
topographical features, to the most convenient lines for export,
and to other peculiarities presented by the locality. Often in-
deed it is easy and also advisable to lay out the net-work of
roads and pathsin such a manner as to be an ornament to the
forest and to facilitate inspection,
CONCLUSION. 811

If, when we have simply a small plains forest to deal with,
we have to reckon with so many facts ofa special nature, what
must it be, if, and this even in the slightest degree, the ground is
undulating, the age classes mixed up, and the crops varied ? The
organisation of a forest, like every other question of a professional
character, is thus always a complicated, difficult, and important
operation, for the Aménagiste has to adapt it to the forest in ques-
tion, to the locality in which his work lies and on which after the
lapse of a few years his Organisation Project must leave a faith-
ful impression of itself.

A danger to be avoided in work like this is preconceived
ideas and foregone conclusions. After what we have just said, it
is easy to understand that the idea one forms, in advance or from
a distance, of any forest never corresponds to the reality, and that
. @ personal knowledge of it is absolutely necessary for drawing up
or for carrying out any project forits organisation. To guard
oneself completely against all chance and uncertainty, one must
moreover be intimately acquainted with the conditions prevail-
ing outside the forest, and even with the manners and customs of
the surrounding population. These facts, although external to
the forest itself, exercise for good or for evil a powerful and last-
ing influence on it, and their disregard by the Aménagiste or the
Executive Forest Officer may frequently sooner or later render
the Organisation Project impracticable.

Foregone conclusions and stereotyped ideas may lead to
further dangers. At the end of the last century the greater num-
ber of the compound copses belonging to the Communes of East-
ern France were worked on a Rotation of 25 years. This rule of
25 years was adopted with the most uncompromising rigour
whether it suited the forest in question or not. Whether the,
copse was composed of oak, of hornbeam, of beech, of hazel, of
alder, or of birch, whether the soil on which it was situated was
rich or poor, moist or dry, deep or superficial, it was exploited at
the age of 25 years. It is obvious that, however well this Rota-
tion suited some forests, there were many others for which it
proved disastrous ; and it is quite possible that it is responsible,
together with other causes of course, for the rarity of oak in so
many of our Compound Copses. Every rigid system, refusing
312 CONCLUSION.

to yield to the varying requirements of different forests and loca-
lities, must be equally vicious; and more than this, it must infaJ-
libly result in its slaves overlooking some important facts and
indispensable conditions.

Indeed, it is this very danger of carrying into effect precon-
ceived opinions that justifies us in warning the Améuagiste against
seeking any perfect solution of the problems before him, the reali-
zation of some impossible ideal, and in advising him to confine
himself to doing his best to obtain the results required and no more.
If imbued with this spirit , he knows the forest he is dealing with,
if, moreover, he is careful to conform to the essential rules of forest
organisation, and allows himself ‘to be guided by the true prin-
ciples of sylviculture by endeavouring to obtain from well-constituted
crops and promising trees only such products as the soil can yield,
he will scarcely ever fail to draw up good Organisation Projects.
313
APPENDIX.

GRAZING IN FORESTS.

Tn certain districts the organization of a forest must take into
account the grazing rights or privilezes exercised there. In the
broad-leaved fores's of our plains, where woud is a valuable com-
modity and agriculture isin an advanced state, these rights and
privileges are, as a rule, either too restricted to require any atten-
tion, or do not exist at all; the advanced farmer and stock-breeder
there would care little for such a wretched way of feeding his
eatile. Thus it is in the conifer fores's of our mountain districts
that forest grazing is chiefly resorted to.

Before every thing else it is necessary here to distinguish
for grazing purposes the ovine class of animals, that is, sheep and
goats, from the bovine and equine classes, viz. cows, bulls, horses,
mares, ass2s, and mules. The grazing of the first class of animals
is the most fruitful cause of the destruction of our mountain
forests; and Sections 73 and 110 of the Forest Code accordingly
prohibit it in a complete manner in forests managed by the State-
Some exceptions, however, are made in favour of sheep alone, but
they are all the more to be deplored for the reason that the graz-
jng of sheep in forests yields smaller returns than even the slen-
der profits derived from the similar grazing of cows. The area
required to feed one cow is sufficient for only 5 sheep, whereas the
money value of the 5 sheep is only one-third that of the single
cow. Thus in the Alps the aggregate price of the former would
be only 16 shillings, while the latter, even if only a small animal,
would fetch £8 shillings. It is, therefore, a question of urgency,
both in the interests of private individuals and of the community
at large, to suppress the grazing of sheep in our forests. To
think of maintaining it and providing against unnecessary damage
to the forest by means of special restrictions would be futile,
for mountain forests on the ose hand and sheep on the other are
two totally incomyaiivle things.

The grazing of cows, profitless in forests of silver fir, in which
grass can grow only in the blanks, is never of much value in pine
forests, the soil of which isalways unfertile and dry. It is always
in the open forests formed by larch that rich pasture is found
314 GRAZING IN FORESTS.

But in any case the number of cattle allowed therein rust be
limited in proportion to the area; and in order to prevent the
soil from being caked, beaten hard by the hoofs of the animals,
and rendered bare of low yegetation, and to guard against the
trees themselves being attacked after the grass has been complete-
ly browsed down, it must be made arule never to let in more
than one cow for every 24 acres in those portions of a forest, in
which the standing crop has grown up out of the reach of cattle
and is composed of stems sufficiently thick to resist being bent
down. This precautionary measure must be adopted both in the
interests of the cattle and of the forests,

No forest crop is safe against cattle until it has reached the
pole stage. In other words, cattle may not be admitted into a
high forest before it is at least 40 years old. And more than
this, cantons stocked with old timber ought also to be closed
against grazing, say 10 years before they are felled. This precau-
tion is necessary to enable the soil to regain its original freeness
and thus become fit for the reception of seed. Hence the Rota-
tion for forests, in which grazing is permitted, ought to be long.
Allowing 50 years for each canton to be kept closed, that is,
closed against cattle, it would remain open for grazing for only
50 years during a Rotation of 100 years, 100 years during a Rota-
tion of 150 years, and 150 years during a Rotation of 200 years,
the portion of the forest kept open for grazing being respectively
one half, two-thirds and three-fourths.

What we have said with reference to high forests applies, it
will be perceived, also to those copses, in which, as an exceptional
measure, grazing is permitted. It is not only during the first 10,
12 or 15 years of the life of the underwood that cattle must be
kept out at all hazards, but also during the last 3, 4 or 5 years
immediately preceding its exploitation, If this rule were neg-
lected, seedlings of the valuable species would have no chance of
coming up and the forest would go on steadily deteriorating.
Closing any portion of a forest against grazing can only be effec-
tive, if that portion has proper boundaries, such as ravines, ditch-
es, walls or any other kind of fence, Hence it is very necessary
in those high forests in which grazing is allowed, to form the
Blocks each in one piece, and to enclose them with good bounda-
ries In the absence of natural boundary lines difficult for cattle
to get over, the Organisation Project ought to provide for the
GRAZING IN FORESTS. 3135

making of ditches, walls, or earthworks. These precautions are
equally; necessary in forests, themselves closed against grazing, but
adjoining others in which that privilege is exercised.

Blanks, or such portions of a forest as are in a bad state, con-
not be re-stocked or restored as long as they are kept open to
grazing. Indeed, grazing is in most cases itself the cause of the
existence of blanks. and nothing can be worse for a forest than to
allow men and cattle the free run of it. It is, therefore, necessary
to close, in a permanent manner, against both man and beast,
such cantons as have naturally become blank or are placed under
unfavorable conditions for close forest growth, where, for instance,
‘the slopes are abrupt, where hard rock crops up in every part,
where the elevation is great, &c. To close such places could mean
no loss to the grazier.

Cattle cannot be allowed into forests worked by Selection, for
in such forests every canton may be said to be continually under
regeneration, and all the age-classes are necessarily mixed up in
the most confused manner. Here-is an unanswerable reason for
abandoning the Selection System for the Natural Method, when-
ever that is practicable, in forests in which grazing cannot be
stopped. When this change is impracticable, there is only one
course left open, viz. to divide the forest into two portions, aban-
doning one, covtaining of course, the best soils, completely to
the grazier, and reserving the other for treatment by Selection,
free for ever of all rights and protected by means of good bound-
aries. With any other arrangement the forest is bound to

Cisappear.

The creation and maintenance of what we may term grazing
forests, the salvation of the A'ps, requires the same precautionary
measures as those described for timber forests, viz, effective clos-
ing, by means of ravines chosen as boundaries, or of fencing and
earthworks, during a sufficiently long period ; the substitution of
cows for sheep; restriction of the number of head of cattle ad-
mitted; and, lastly, temporary rest for the soil and herbage from

time to time.
Forest Fires.

The pineta of the Landes and the forests of the Maures and
Esterel are constantly ravaged by that plague—rirz. In organis-
ing those forests, whether with a view to tle production of resin
or of cork, the first care of all should be to suggest efficacious
measures for their protection against fire. The leaf-canopy in
those forests being never complete, the soil is always more or less
covered with brushwood, and the pine trees, gorged with resin,
are constantly dropping on it highly inflammable matter. It is
with the brushwood and the pine trees that the fires originate, and
it is, therefore, with them that we must begin, if we wish to keep
them out.

Everywhere in France the means adopted for protection
against fire and for preventing it from spreading consists of fire-
paths or shelter trenches cut through the forest at regular dis-
tances, and in keeping the soil clear of brushwood. Indeed, these
measures constitute the only: effective procedure for preventing
and checking forest conflagrations. But the paths, although
absolutcly necessary to facilitate the circulation of the establish-
ment and to form protective lines, are by themselves insufficient
to check the progress of fire; while as regards the clearing away
of the brushwood, that operation necessitates an outlay and an
amount of labour which are altogether prohibitory in the vast
areas we have to deal with; and besides this, the removal of the
brushwood is unfavorable to the growth of the forest itself. But
it is always possible to cotnbine the two systems, in the right
proportion, by employing a limited network of protective paths
and partial clearing of the brushwood, and taking the further
precaution of planting belts of trees which lend themselves less
than the pine to the kindling and progress of fire.

The method of procedure in each case must depend on the
character of the district and forest concerned, on the means at
one’s disposal, and on the object sought. Thus the private owner
of a small forest can keep the entire length of its boundary clear
of bushes over a considerable width, and even go so far as to ex-
tend the clearing to the whole area of the forest. But when it
comes to protecting vast surfaces, the first of those two methods ig
not effective enough, while the second ceases to be practicable.
FIRE CONSERVANCY, 317

In the wooded dunes belonging [to the State, the forests,
consisting of the Cluster Pine, are intersected by two series of
parallel protective paths cleared one kilometre (about % mile)
a part and cutting one another at right angles, thus forming squares
of about 250 acres each. This system is to be commended, sioce
it is casy to clear and keep free of dead leaves a path of from 17
to 20 feet wide, which is constantly used by the establishment and
others, and thus kept in a well-beaten state. It is no less easy
to remove from along the boundary also all heather bushes over
a width of from 130 tu I70 feet, a width which will, as a rule, be
found amply sufficient. But as the pines are continually dropping
and strewing the soil with their dead needles, the best aliment the
fire can have, and feeding the conflagrations, once these have begun,
with large pieces of birk full of resin and light enoughto be carried
in a blazing state by the wind over great distances, every pine tree
ought to be removed from this protective zone. Only instead of
letting it remain bare, itis much better in every respect to raise
on ita belt of the peduncled oak. This is effected by planting
out young seedlings of that species under the pines, so thinned
out as to form a sort of Primary Felling for the oak. As these
latter grow up, the pines should be gradually cleared away until
only a belt of pure oak remains. When this work is complete,
the pinetum will be found divided off into squares by bands of high
forest of oak, which occupy in the aggregate about a tenth of tke
whole area. Under these open belts of oak, with the soil kept
free from brushwood and the protection-paths along its middle
maintained perfectly clear like regular avenues, fire can make but
little progress, the [work of protection is thereby rendered easy,
and the regular establishment of guards and labourers will in most
cases be found quite sufficient to carry it out successfully.

The protective measures, which we have just described, seem
to us to be all that can possibly be adopted at the present day in
the dunes and in the'similarly wooded dandvs of Gascony. Later
on, if the population in the Landes increases and cultivation
extends, it will be possible to separate the various forest cantons
from each otker by means of lines of fields, themselves dotted over
with large oak. In any case, the penduncled oak, which is in-
digerous and grows well in that district, onght to form a valuable
element of those forests: We cannot continue to neglect its cul-
tivetion except at the risk of extensive injuries and heavy loss,
318 FIRE CONSERVANCY.

In the Maures and Esterel the conditions as regards soil and
l imate are of an entirely different character, and the cork oak is
the most important and abundant of the broad leaved denizens of
the forest. There roads and paths, without which access to and
inspection of the forests would be impossible, and their manage-
ment, as it were, get out of hand altogether, could not be run in
straight lines or be cleared at equal distances apart. They must
before everything else, be laid out in accordance with the lie of the
ground and be given just sufficient width (say, from 7 to 10 feet for
carts, and only 3 feet for men on foot), soas toadmit of alarge num-
ber of them being made. But,as before, the sides of these roads and
foot-paths should be cleared of brushwood over an aggregate breadth
of from 130 to 170 feet. Within these belts all ling and other
bushes, offering easy access to fire must be rooted out; arbutus,
lentisks and other shrubs with broad fleshy leaves, which cover the
soil and do not become dry and combustible, should be preserved.
Pines growing on these belts should be felled to enable cork oaks,
whether selt-sown or artificially introduced, to push up, so as to
destroy all connection for the spread of fire between adjacent
insulated blocks of the forest. Often the protective belts may
even be planted up with the sweet chestnut, the thick foliage of
which keeps the soil moist and kills out all low vegetation, Such
canopied belts of chestnut would present an impassable barrier to
the progress of fire, provided that at the end of every winter the
soil was swept clear, at least partially, of the dead leaves covering

it.

We thus see that the same method of fire protection as before
is applicable here, with differences only of practical detail. It is
of a more complex character in the Maures, modifications being
necessary in going from one slope to an adjacent one; but its
essential characteristic of being based on the establishment of
roads, tracks and paths in accordance with the nature of the soil
and topography alwaysremains unchanged. Thus the economical
construction of this network of export and communication lines,
which are as indispensable for creating a market for the produce
of those forests as for protecting them, constitutes the most im-
portant question involved in their organisation. But protection
against fire is at the same time a necessary condition imposed by.
Sylviculture, which art here again as elsewhere cannot he dis-
sociated from its sister and handmaid, the Organisation of Forests.
ANALYSIS

OF

Coupe No. 8, Communal Forest of
Velaine-sous-Amance

to be exploited in 1876.

Area 5a, Or. 34p; age 52 years.
230

Estimated quantity and net value of stock
; to be removed.

TIMBER (OAK).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 a +e g
Ag ee gr | eae eel ee
qn ox 8 s. d £8. d
6 46 613 0-156 96 96 |0 4% 1 }14] 0
8 46 | 920 0-278 256
10 9 180 0°432 78 | 0 52 10 | 16 | 13
12 8 187 0°625 117
14 7 187 0°839 159
16 7 187 1096 | 208 | 0 113 23 | 12 | 53
18° 3 90 1:388 126
20 2 60 1-736 | 104 104 | 1 23 6 | 3| 6
22 0 0 27101 0 0
24 0 0 2°500 0 0
26 1 30 2932 88 88 | 1 Bt 6 jlo} 2
1,232 48 | 16 | 23
FIREWoopD.

The Standards. £ os.

d.
980 stacked cubic feet of oak @ 20 s. per 100 ce. ft. 9 16 0
210 4, » 9 » hornbeam @ 33s, per 100¢ ft.8 9 3

 

Total 18 5 3

Total estimated net value of standards eee ae 62 1 53

 

 

The Underwood.
735 stacked cubic feet of hardwoods W 26 s. per 100 ¢. ft.9 11 1}
7385, 55 a. oy BOlbwoods:., ZUR 6 6 ge ¥ FO
2,500 faggots @ 20 s. per 100 oa -. 25 0 0

 

Estimated net value of underwood ... 41 18 1}

Total estimated net value of all produce ... «» 103 19 7

Hence estimated net receipts per acre 19 19 14
321

Estimated quantity and net value of stock
to be reserved.

‘TIMBER.
First Class Standards: &£ 8s d
7990ak @3d_sss. as ea . 019 9
84 other species @ 3d ove aes - 11 0

Second Class Standards.

96 oak, average contents 7 c. ft., total 672. ¢. ft. @ 67d 1818 0
5 other species average contents 7 ¢. ft., total 35 ¢.
ft.lid. ... i we O 4 4h

Third Class Standards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

= .
Oo. ai
a ae 3 s
& g ale no Ss.
gf | 22) ga] BSS | 2 [22d | nom] N=
aa | 6S | ga Bos B23 | fae | value.
aS Deo Se 2:3 a Ss |e gg :
Ada | 4e |] 3 oe 3 85 S58 :
“ Ose a | 2 |» a] 8 m= afi
iS 2 i
14 20 533 0°839 447
16 6 160 1096 175 ‘aso 0 1% 53 |15| 3
18 12 366 1:388 500
20 6 180 1736 312 \ a9 = ale
22 1 30 2101 63 .
76 | 0| 62)
FIREWOOD.

1,960 stacked cubic feet @ 20s. per 100 ¢. ft. »- 19120

 

Total estimated net value of stock reserved ... 116 15 8}

 

 

 

a. & per acre ies -. 22 8 32
ESTIMATED NET VALUE OF ENTIRE STOCK IN 1878.
Value of prod ce to be removed voy LOB 19-7

» 9) Stock » reserved .. 116 15 8}

Total v-» 220 15 3}

Value per acre 303 we 42 7 5k

a
322

Probable value of the coupe 25 years hence,
2. e, in 1908.

The standards of the first class, about 10 per cent. of which
die on being isolated at.the exploitation of the coppice, scarcely
attain a diameter of 8 inches by the end of the second rotation.
But the standards of the second and higher classes put on average
diametral increment of 6 inches during each Rotation of 25 years.
The trees now reserved will, therefore, be worth as follows in
1903 :—

Second Class Standards.

g £8
71 oaks of 8 “a average contents 34. ft., total 2483 c. ft.

i te nee vee aon ar 19 1
76 other species, average csntents 9 stacked cubic feet, total 684 c. ft. 2
@ 33 s. per 100 Gass a a53 - ll 5 8%

Third Class Standards.

96 oaks of 16 in. diameter, average contents 21 c. ft., total 2,016 c. ft,
@ligd 12 0

5 others, average contents 35 stacked cubic feet, total 175 c. ft. @
, ote wad a DIT?

33s. per 100 siti

Veterans (Timber).

 

 

 

 

ou oy
3 g Be | ng | 3
as ag 4d eae Be | ae N
a3 ee | B& EE ep Bo | ga8 | Rave Sala
s 2 38 45's 43 |ag4
a. g as oa Se a Oe a
<q oe #8 a s. d ® “we. de
s 21s
20 20 | 533 | - 1736 | 925
22 6 | 160 2101 | 336 | 2,161} 1 38) 141 | 16| 32
24 12 | 360 2500 | 900
5 ;
6 6 | 210 2-932 | 616 \ ie) heel) Se ala
28 1 30 3403 | 102
2,879 197 | 3 [23

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Veterans (Firewood).

4,620 stacked cubic feet @ 20s. per 100... ow. 464 0
The underwood.

Half the value of the present underwood .., --. 20 19 03

 

—

Estimated total net value per acre in 1908... 881 0 8}

\__-Estimated net value per acre in 1908... 73 2 84

 
323

It is easy to deduce from the above figures the total incre-

ment added during the rotation from 1879 to 1903. Expressed

in money it is £ 381 0s. 83d—£ 116 15s. 8id.—=£ 264 5s;i.e,

£& 50 14s, 42d. per acre for the whole rotation, or very nearly £2

Os. 6d. per acre per aanum. Expressed in cubic feet the incre-
ment per acre per annum is as follows :—

Oak timber ... ves -. 22. ¢. ft, approximately
Fuel from standards ‘* eee TT 5 33 i
Fuel from underwood ... wo» «12

20d »

Total awe «=sé

Again the figures of the preceding exploitation of 1858 are
available, and reference to them will show that whereas only 10
standards having a girth of 14 inches and upwards were probably
left in that year, 45 are to be spared in 1878, and as the net value
of these trees alone will have increased by as much as £ 200, it
is in their reservation that we must recognise the chief merit of the
coppice proposals for 1878,

The preceding analysis, which is only a skeleton of what such
analyses should be, suffices to show how we may interrogate the
future of any coupe or crop and correctly forecast from a financial
point of view the probable results that may follow from a givea
operation,

ama D> @ Game
TABLE FOR COMPUTING PRESENT VALUE OF A
PERPETUAL INCOME, °
‘On page 104 the formula
Giese
~ A +a"—-1
was explained. In the following table are given the value of the

expression apy t for different values of ¢ and m. Hence to

find out what capital will produce a given periodically recurring
income we have only to multiply the amount of that income by
the coefficient taken from this table and corresponding to the rate
of compound interest and the number of years in the period in
question.

 

RATE OF COMPOUND INTEREST PER CENT,

 

3 3h 4 4h 5

Number of
years in the
period.

 

33°3333 | 28°5714 | 25:0000 | 22:2222 | 20-0000
16°4204 | 140400 | 12:2549 | 10-8666 97561
10°7843 9:1981 80087 70838 63442
79666 6°7786 5'8872 5°1943 46402
6°2785 | - 5°3280 4°6157 4°0620 3°6195

5°1532 43619 3°3862 3'3084 2°9403
4°3502 3°6727 3°1652 27711 2°4564
3°7485 3°1565 2°7132 23691 20944
3°2811 2°7556 2°3623 20572 1:8138
2°9077 2°4355 2°0828 1:8084 15901

2°6026 21740 1:8537 I 6055 1:4078
2 8515 19567 16638 1:4370 1:2565
2°1843 1:7732 1:5036 1:2950 1:1291
1:9509 16168 13667 1:1738 1:0205
17922 1:4807 1:2485 1:0692 0:9268

1°6537 1:3624 11455 0:9781 0°8454
15318 1:2584 1:0550 0°8982 0:°7740
1:4236 11662 09748 0°8275 07109
1:3271 1:0840 0°9035 07646 0:°6549
12405 1:0103°| 0°8895 0°7084 0:6048

.

 

 

 

 

 

De eae e ee eee Be
% CEOND ARWNH DOONS oxwpore

 

 
PRESENT VALUE OF UNIT OF PERPETUAL INCOME, 325

 

period.

Number of
years in the

RaTE OF COMPOUND INTEREST PER CENT.

 

3 3h 4 4h 5

 

 

 

1/1624 0:9439 0°7820 06578 0*5599
1:0916 0°8838 0°7300 0-6121 0°5194
1:0271 0°8291 06827 05707 0°4827
0:9682 0°7792 06397 0 5330 0°4495
0:9143 0°7335 0:6003 0°4986 0°4190

0'8646 0-6916 05642 04671 0°3913
0°8188 0°6529 0°5310 0°4382 0°3658

07764 06172 0:5003 0-4116 03424
0 7371 05841 0°4720 0°3870 0°3209
0°7006 0°5535 0:44:57 0‘3642 | 0°3010

0-6666 0°5250 0:4214 03432 0:2826
0°6349 0:4983 0°3987 0°3236 0°2656
0°6052 0 4735 0°3776 0°3054 0-2498
0°5774 04503 0°3579 0°2885 0-2351
0°5513 0°4285 0°3394 02727 0°2214

0°5268 0-4081 0°3222 0°2579 02087
0°5037 0°3889 03060 | 0:2441 071968
0°4820 0-3709 0°2915 0:2311 0°1857
0°4615 0°3539 0 2765 0 2191 01753
0°4421 0:3379 0°2631 0°2076 01656

0 4237 0°3228 0°2504 0°1969 0'1564
0 4064 0°3085 0 2385 0°1869 01479
0+3899 0°2950 0 2272 O-1774 0°1399
0 3743 0°2822 0°2166 0‘1685 01323
0°3595 02701 0:2066 0‘1600 0°1252

0°3454 0:2586 0°1970 0°1521 0 1186
0°3320 0:2477 0°1880 0'1446 0°1123
0°3193 02373 0°1795 01375 01064
0°3071 0:2275 0:1714 0‘1308 0°1008
0°2956 0‘2181 0-1637 0°1245 0'0955

0-2845 | 02092 |! 01565 | 0-1185 | 0-0902
0:2739 | 02007 | 01495 | 01128 | 0-0859
0-2638 | £01926 | 01430 | 01074 | 0-0815
02542 | 01849 | 01352 | 01023 | 0-0773
02450 | O1775 | 01808 | 0-C.475-}~ 0 0733

 

 

 

 

 
 

826 PRESENT VALUE OF UNIT OF PERPETUAL INCOME.

 

RATE OF COMPOUND INTEREST PER CENT.

 

Number of
years in the
period.

3 3s 4 44 5

 

56 |. 0:2361 0°1705 0°1251 0:0929 00696
57 | 0:2277 0°1638 0°1197 0 0885 0-0661
58 0:2196 0°1574 0:1146 0°0844 0:0627
59 0:2119 01512 0°1097 0:0805 0:0596
60 0°2044 0°1454 0°1050 0-0768 0:0566

61 0-1973 0°1398 0°1005 0:0732 0:0537
62 0-1900 0°1344 0:0964 0:0698 0:0510
63 0°1839 0°1293 0°0923 0:0666 0 0485
64 0°1776 01244 0:0884 0:0636 0:0461
65 0-1715 0:1197 0°0847 0:0607 0:0438

66 01657 01151 0:0812 0:0579 0-0416
67 0°1601 0 1108 0:0779 0°0553 0:0395.
68 071547 0°1067 0:0746 0:0528 0-0376
69 0°1495 0°1027 0:0716 0°9504 0:0357
70 0°1445 0-0989 0-0686 0:0481 0°0340

 

71 01397 0°0952 00658 0:04.59 0:0323
72 0:1351 0:0917 0:0631 0:04:39 0:0807
73 0°1307 00883 0-0605 0°0419 0:0292
74 0°1264 0:0851 0°0581 0:0400 0:0278
75 071228 0:0820 0:0557 0-0382 0°0264

76 071183 0:0790 0:0535 0:0365 0:0251
77 0-1144 0-0761 0:0513 0:0349 00239
78 0°1107 0-0733 0:0492 0:0333 0:0227
79 01072 0:0707 0°0472 0°0319 0°0216
80 0:1037 0:0681 0°0453 0:0305 0:0206

81 0:1004 0:0657 0:0435 0:0291 0-0196
82 0:0972 0:0633 0:0418 0:0278 0:0186
83 0:0941 0:0610 0:0401 0:0266 00177 ©
84 0-0911 0:0589 0:0385 0°0254 0-0169
85 0:0882 0:0568 0:0870 0°0243 0-0167

86 0:0854 0:0547 0°0355 0:0232 0:0158
| 87 0:0827 00528 0°0341 0:0222 0°0145
a Se ttt 0509 0°0827 0°0212 0:0188
OO7 9491 0-:0314 0°0203 0:0132
Tae 474 0:0302 0:0194 0°0125

 

 

 

 

 

 
PRESENT VALUE OF UNIT OF PERPETUAL INCOME. 327

 

RaTE OF COMPOUND INTEREST PER CENT.

 

Number of
years fn the
period.

3 34 4 43 5

 

 

91 0:0728 0.0457 0:0290 00185 00119
92 0-0706 00441 00278 0°0177 00114
93 0°0684 0 0425 00267 00170 00108
94 00662 0:0410 00256 0°0162 0 0103
95 00642 00396 00247 00155 00098

96 0:0622 00382 00237 00148 0:0093
97 0:0603 00368 0 0228 0:0142 0:0089
98 0°0584 00356 0:0219 00136 00084
99 00566 0:0343 00210 00130 00080
100 00549 0 0331 00202 00124 00077

101 00532 00320 0:0194 00119 00073
102 0:0516 0:0308 00186 00113 00069
103 0:0500 0:0298 00179 0:0109 0:0066
104 0°0485 00287 00172 00104 0 0063
105 0:0470 00277 00165 00099 06060

106 00456 00268 00159 00095 0:0057
107 0:04.42 0:0258 00152 00091 00054
108 0:04.28 00249 00147 0:0087 0:0052
109 00415 00241 00141 00083 0 0049
110 00403 1)'0232 00136 00079 00047

111 00391 0°0224 00130 0-C076 0°0045
112 00379 00217 00125 00073 00042
113 00367 00209 00120 00070 0 0040
lit 00356 00202 00116 00067 00038
115 00346 00195 00111 00064 00037

116 0°0335 00188 0:0107 00061 0:0035
117 0°0325 00182 | 00103 00058 0:0033
118 0°0315 00176 0:0099 00056 0:0032
119 00306 00170 0:0095 00053 0:0030
120 00297 00164 0:0091 00051 0:0029

121 0:0288 00158 0:0088 0:0049 00027
122 00279 \-<$0153 0°0084 00047 0°0026
123 0-0271 00147 00081 \ W045 0:0025
124 00263 00142 0 0078 0-043 0:0024
125 00255 00139 00075 0-041 o00z2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
328 PRESENT VALUE OF UNIT OF PERPETUAL INCOME.

RATE OF COMPOUND INTEREST PER CENT.

 

Number of
years in the
period.

8 34 4 43 5

 

 

126 00248 00133 0:0072 00039 00021
127 0:0240 00128 00069 00037 0°020
128 00234 0 0124 0:0066 0:0036 0-0019
129 0:0226 0:0120 68-0064 0:0034 00018
130 0:0219 00116 0 0061 00033 0:0018

13] | 0-0212 00112 0:0059 00031 00017
} 182 0-02¢6 00108 00057 0:0030 0:0016
} 133 0:0200 00104 00055 0.0029 00015
| 134 00194 00100 00052 00027 00014
J 135 00188 00097 00050 0 0026 00014

| 186 00183 0:0094 0:0048 0:0025 00013
| 137 00177 00091 00047 9 0024 0:0012
138 0:0172 0°0087 00045 0°0023 0:0012
139 00167 00084 0°0043 0 6022 00011
140. 0°0162 00082 00041 00021 00011

| 144 00157 00079 0:0040 0 0020 0:0010
142 00153 00076 00038 0:0019 0:0010
143 00148 00074 | 0:0037 0:0018 0:0009
144 00144 0:0071 000385 00018 00009
145 00139 0 0069 00034 00017 00008

146 0°0135 00066 0.0033 00016 0:0008
14:7 00131 0:0064 00031 0:0015 0:0008
148 0:0)27 00062 0:0030 0:0015 00007
149 0:0124 0:0060 0 0029 0:0014 0:0007
150 0°0120 00058 0:0028 0:0014 -0007