nh a We, ornell University Library “Ta RALPH S. HOSMER Professor of Forestry Cornell University Ithaca, N. Y. IMPRESSIONS OF EUROPEAN FORESTRY Letters written during a six months’ visit to England and to the Continent BY RALPH S. HOSMER, MI. F. PROFESSOR OF FORESTRY t CORNELL UNIVERSITY s PRICE ONE DOLLAR Published by THE LUMBER WORLD REVIEW Transportation Building Chicago, Illinois 1922 CopyRIGHTED, 1922 BY R. 8. HOSMER @_26298 FOREWORD SSS In the summer and autumn of 1921 it was the privilege of the writer, during a period of sabbatic leave from Cornell University, to visit a number of the countries of northern Eur- ope. His main object in making this trip was to obtain first hand acquaintance with cer- tain features of the forests and forestry work of these countries, particularly with reference to his work as a teacher of forestry and also because of the pearing that European experience has on some of the forest problems of the United States. The eight letters here reprinted were written as contributions to the LumMBER WorLD RE- view, at the request of the editor and publisher of that journal, Mr. Bolling Arthur Johnson. Written en route as they were, these letters make no pretension of covering comprehensively the forest work of any of the countries visited. Rather the idea was to present in a non- technical way the personal reaction of one American forester to certain European forest practices. Their publication in this form is made with the thought that some of the matters commented upon may be of interest to foresters and timberland owners in the United States. If they serve to quicken an interest in what is being done in forestry overseas, their purpose will have been achieved. . Grateful acknowledgment is here made to all those foresters of whatever station with whom the writer came in contact while abroad for the very many courtesies which he received at their hands. In almost every one of the letters he has had occasion to refer to the cor- diality of the welcome accorded him. He wishes here once more to express his keen and lasting appreciation of all that was done to assist and aid him in accomplishing the objects that he had in mind. He can but feel that such contacts as are establishéd by meetings of this type go a long way toward increasing mutual understanding and good relations between this country and our friends overseas. —RALPH 8. HOSMER. Department of Forestry . Cornell University Ithaca, N. Y. , June 27, 1922 (5) The text and illustrations of this book were orig- inally published as a series of eight articles in the Publication Offices, 1740 Transportation Building 608 South Dearborn Street CHICAGO of the following dates in 1921-22: Oct. 10; Nov. 25; Jan. 10; Feb. 25; March 25; April 25; May 10; May 25. ADDENDA Impressions of European Forestry By Ralph S. Hosmer Since the republication of these letters in book form the attention of the author has been called to certain inaccuracies in a few of his statements. He is glad to take this means of correcting these errors. Chapter 2, pp. 21, 28, 24. Sweden. In a letter dated October 20, 1922, Hon. Karl Fredenberg, General Direktér of the Kung]. Domanstyrelsen, says: “Referring to your excellent description of forests and forestry in Sweden I beg to make herewith a few remarks: “You say that the organization in Sweden is strictly centralized so that even questions of minor import go to Stockholm for decision. This depends of course on what means by minor questions. I wish to remind you that, for example, a forester (jagmistare) has the right of accepting sale bids up to an amount of 1000 Swedish kronors’ value, and the district inspector (6verjagmastare) up to 10,000 kronors. In questions of principle it is, how- ever, possible that even small questions are put to the central office for de- cision. “Referring to the ‘protection forest’ laws, a private owner cannot appeal to the government to buy his land on the ground that he is displeased with the blazing obtained, but he has the right to do so when it has been considered necessary to so restrict the cutting as to include even his privilege of taking timber for his private needs. “The General law of 1903 does not apply to the whole of Sweden. The two most northern provinces (lan) are excepted from it, where the more se- vere forest laws are in force. In consequence there are no local forest com- missions (skogsvardsstyrelse) there, as these latter laws are handled by the central office.” On page 24, through a typographic error, 10 acres is given as the equiva- lent of 2 hectare. One hectare—2.47 acres. Chapter 5, p. 44. Forestry in France. The title of Theodore Salisbury Wesley: Jr., the author of “Studies in French Forestry”, is Lt. Colonel, not ajor. Chapter 8, pp. 79 and 80. Forest Schools in Great Britain. In regard to the statement covering the Forestry Department of the University of Aber- deen, Mr. Fraser Story, Education Officer and University Examiner, British Forestry Commission, writes under the date of Sept. 16, 1922: “As regards your comments on British Universities, I must say I am doubtful if you are right in conveying the impression that more advanced courses are offered at Oxford and Cambridge than elsewhere. Aberdeen Uni- versity and the University of Wales (Bangor) provide courses of a standard quite equal to those of the older Universities and Dr. Borthwick (Sec’y of the Forestry Commission, Scotland), to whom I have just put the question, is of my opinion. You may have got a different impression because the Commis- sioners are anxious to develop forestry teaching at Oxford and, in course of time, I have no doubt better facilities will be forth-coming at that centre but, at present, I am personally convinced no distinction can be made.” Further on this point, Mr. P. Leslie, Head of the Department of Forestry at Aberdeen, says, Oct. 17, 1922: “Aberdeen is a very old university, going back to nearly 1400, although our forestry school was not started until 1908; William Dawson, now of Cam- bridge, being the first member of the Lectureship. As regards the type of men turned out at Aberdeen, they are sometimes already graduates before they enter the forestry courses, although it is not compulsory that they should be so. One of the Research men of the Forestry Commission was a graduate student who received his forestry training wholly with us.” w TABLE OF CONTENTS Great Britain’s Afforestation Program e : Why it was undertaken; how it is being carried forward ........... 0. eee eevee 9 Forests and Forestry in Sweden Methods of dealing with privately owned forests; supervision by Community Com- MUItteS plots. The resuits of the experiments, shown both in tabular form and graphically, appear in the reports of the experiment station. Other lines of research work conducted by the Forest Experiment Station are: (1) The de- termination of the strains or “races” of the native trees best adapted to given localities, it having been found that trees resulting from seed gathered in certain localities produce taller and better formed trees than that se- cured in certain other places. (2) The study of problems having to do with the drainage of swampy areas, so that forests may be grown thereon. This is a highly important matter in Sweden and is receiving much attention. The cost of drainage is high, but the results in the forest stands secured justify the outlay, when figured over a long period of years, as is pos- sible in government work. (3) Investigation and research in forest entomology and forest pathology. Trouble from both these sources is closely guarded against. Diseased trees, for example, are removed very shortly after they are found to be infected, while equally prompt ) Measures are applied in combating insects. (4) Soil studies, under Professor Dr. Hessel- man, and (5) miscellaneous investigations of special problems as they arise. The Forest Experiment Station has its head- quarters in Stockholm, on the grounds of the Forestry College, where are well equipped offices and laboratories and an excellent for- estry library, but the greater part of the work of the experiment station is in the field, on the various crown forests. The sample plot work carried on by the supervisors is less intensive than that of the experiment station plots, but nevertheless yields many valuable data. These are turned over to Professor Schotte in due course for compilation with the experiment station work. The inter- esting point about this phase of activity is that it shows the keen appreciation that all the members of the Swedish Forest Service have of the value and importance of carefully kept scientific records. It places the work on the forests on a very solid foundation. GOVERNMENT REGULATION OF THE PRIVATE FOREST OWNER The third feature of special interest about forestry in Sweden is the governmental regula- tion of the private owner. The outstanding thing in this matter is that while the super- vision exercised by the forestry officials is, or may be, somewhat drastic, there appears to be little or no objection thereto. This is due apparently to the fact that the forest owners realize the importance of perpetuating the for- ests and are therefore willing to submit to what might well be considered a curtailment of their personal liberties. That there should be thought to be any sort of serious objection to the regulations impesed, seemed decidedly to amuse the various cfficials with whom I talked, and I took pains to repeat my questions to many of them. More than one of the Swedish foresters had a “come back” to my questions, by jokingly referring to our prohibition laws as ‘an example of how things were done in “the land of the free.” Indeed, about the first re- mark that is made to an American in all the countries on this side of the ocean, is the in- quiry as to how we like prohibition, and if it really works? Sweden is not dry—not yet. ‘With regard to the enforcement of the for- estry laws, the facts seem to be that in Sweden’ regulation of the private forest owner is ef- féctive, that the system works, and that the general public, including the forest owner, is in favor of it. It may, therefore, be of interest to outline briefly how it is accomplished. LAWS ADMINISTERED BY GOVERNMENT FORESTERS The laws regulating what and how the private owner shall cut and manage his forest fall into two classes; one, those administered by the Swedish Forest Service, the other, those enforced by local forest commissions. In the first case, the supervisors, in their respective - districts, see that the laws are enforced and, through assistants, actually mark the trees that are to be felled on privately owned forest land. The two more important are the “Lappmark law” and the “Protection Forest law.” These laws date from 1866—’73 and ’74, but have been re-enacted and amended since that time. The laws of this class all have to do es- sentially with “protection forests,” i. e., areas where a forest cover must be permanently maintained primarily for one or more of the three following reasons: (a) Prevention of ava- lanches, snow slides and in some cases erosion on steep mountain slopes, (b) protection of watersheds of drivable and navigable streams, (c) control of shifting sands and dunes. The laws of this class apply almost wholly only in the mountain districts and especially in the northern provinces, except for the laws con- cerning sand dunes, which are applicable to certain stretches of the coast and to the two large islands in the Baltic sea, Gotland and Oland. ‘There is also for the northern provinces a so-called “dimension law.” This sought to regulate by a fixed diameter limit the over-ex- ploitation of the forests in that section. The essential feature of all these ‘protection forest” laws is that the timber to be cut must first be marked—the trees blazed—by a govern- ment forester. Should he deem it unwise to mark enough in a given locality to make a profitable logging chance, the private owner can appeal to the government to buy the land, at a price fixed by agreement, or by arbitration by three appraisers. But such cases appear to be rare. It is usually possible to mark for fell- ing enough to satisfy the needs of the owner and still comply with the spirit and letter of the law. Where purchase or expropriation has to be resorted to, the purchase money is taken from the appropriation made annually to the Forest Service for the acquisition of state for- est. I did not have the opportunity personally to visit the northern districts of Sweden, but I was given to understand that these laws are all being enforced without serious objection from the private owners. Under each of them the owner is permitted to take what he needs for domestic use. The law applies only to timber cut for commercial purposes. The main criticism seems to be that in some of the northern forests there is much over-mature timber that should be marketed. This problem will doubtless be solved when working plans, now in progress, are completed for all the forests in these districts. LAWS ADMINISTERED BY FOREST COMMISSIONS The general law governing the management of privately owned forests applies to the whole of Sweden. It was passed in 1908 and is in sev- eral parts, different acts dealing with the prin- ciples involved, methods of administration, and financing of the. administrative organization. This is the Swedish forest law that is of special interest to, Americans because it may be pos- (23) sible that certain features of it could be with advantage introduced into the United States. The gist of the law and the method of its administration is about as follows: UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES OF SWEDEN’S FOREST LAWS That privately owned forest lands must be cut in such a way that the perpetuation of the forest shall be assured and that if cut other- wise the owner must take necessary steps, un- der supervision, again to bring the forest into productive condition. (Incidentally this is not unlike “minimum silvicultural requirements” proposed by Col. Graves, in February, 1919.) A further law, passed in 1918 as a war-time measure, but since re-enacted, deals with the regulation of intermediate cuttings (thinnings), so that together these laws safeguard not only the continuation, but also to some extent the character and quality of the existing forests. Perhaps this will be more apparent if a word is inserted here as to the methods of forest management generally followed in Sweden, for while the usage differs from place to place, es- pecially between the northern and southern provinces, it all conforms to a general system. This is, essentially, that the young forest is given a light thinning when from 20 to 30 years old. Other thinnings follow, approximately at intervals of 10 years, until the stand is 60 to 80 years old. A heavy thinning then takes place that opens up the crown canopy, induces the production of seed and gives some ad- ditional increment to the best trees that are allowed to remain for the final harvest. This cut is made 20 years or so later, the rotation varying from 80 to 100 years, longer in the north. It is very seldom that more than 10 acres (2 hectare) are clean cut in any one spot. It follows that the stands are of rela- tively limited area. Reproduction is secured either naturally from seed trees, or artificially by seed sown in seed spots, or by planting out nursery grown stock. The usage varies with the natural conditions obtaining in each local- ity. The underlying object is, of course, to secure the largest financial return. The proceeds from the thinnings contribute materially, for it must be remembered that Swedish forests are very intensively managed and that owing to local economic conditions, ready markets and a per- manent road system in the forests, it is pos- sible to dispose at a profit of what to an Amer- ican is incredibly small stuff. The larger logs go out for lumber or as pulp wood, the tops for which there is no other market are made into charcoal, and in many places there is a ready sale even for the small slash that results from the cutting. In several of the crown forests I saw wood stacked for charcoal burning, some of it to be shipped, where the diameter at the small end was barely one-half inch! There is no trouble about practicing intensive forestry under such conditions. In the northern, prov- inces the methods approach more the plan of y selection cutting, but as rapidly as possible, on both government and private land, the idea is to put the forest under working plans that shall develop what the forester terms a “nor- mal forest,’ i. e., a forest with normal age classes, in size and distribution, normal in- crement, and normal growing stock. And at the present rate of development it will not be long before most Swedish forests are in this condition. HOW THE FOREST COMMISSIONS WORK On the theory that more effective control could be exercised and that friction could thereby also be reduced to the minimum, the law of 1903 specifies that the regulation of the private forest owner shall be by a committee of local officials, residents of the district over which the committee has jurisdiction. Conse- quently the laws of 1903 are administered by local bodies that are entirely independent of ‘the Swedish Forest Service, and for that mat- ter of one another. Each of the 24 provinces (lin) has a forest commission. The only es- sential connection between them seems to be that all submit annual reports following a common outline, that are issued together in a single volume, which by the way is published by the Swedish Forestry Association. The key- note of the whole thing is strict local autonomy. Each forest commission is made up of a gov- erning committee of three members who serve without salary, but receive traveling expenses for attending meetings. All are local men, usually prominent citizens and landowners, for it is considered a distinction to hold the posi- tion. One, the chairman, represents the gov- ernment, one, the provincial government (the executive council of which is called the Linsting); and one, an influential private as- sociation (Hushallnings salskap) whose func- tion is to promote the interests of the local community in general, but particularly in mat- ters having to do with agriculture and with for- estry. This association seems to perform many of the functions that in the United States come under the head of farm bureau work. The three committeemen decide on questions of policy and direct the work of the paid staff. Ten meetings a year is the rule in a district that may be considered as typical. Under the commission, and acting as secretary but with- out a vote at the meetings, is employed a pro- fessional forester (Linsjiigmiistare). He is usually a man of some maturity, and often one who has had considerable previous experience in the Forest Service. His standing and salary is essentially the same as that of the super- visor of crown forests. He usually has one or more professional foresters as assistants, and, throughout the province, a number of rangers, each in charge of a stated district. There is also an office force of a number of persons. The duties of the forester and his assistants are twofold; first, inspective in character, to (24) see that the provisions of the law are being carried out;, and second, promotive, through ‘the giving of aid and assistance to forest own- ers. A part of the duty of the forester is to visit all forests in his district, even tracts down to 5 acres in area, and give suggestions on the ground as to management. This usually suf- fices for the small owner, but his forest must thereafter be managed substantially in accord- ance with the directions given. If not, he is warned, once verbally, again, if necessary, in writing. Persistent disregard would lead to.im- prisonment, but I was told this almost never happens. The usual size of the smaller forest properties is between 50 and 60 acres, Sug- gestions are also made to larger owners, but such persons usually prefer to have regular working plans prepared for their forests. Such work is done by firms of consulting foresters, or by members of the Swedish Forest Service during their vacation periods. The fee for making working plans is around Kr. 2.20 per hectare. It will thus be seen that the inspec- tion work, while entailing much time in the field is relatively simple, especially where work- ing plans, in many cases under a resident for- ester, are in operation. The commission forester has nothing to do with either the government forests, or the government controlled forests, within his province, nor has the government supervisor anything to do with the privately owned lands; although the districts of the two men may be practically the same as ,to boundaries. But good personal relations usually exist between these foresters and co-operation, outside of strictly administrative matters, as for example in meetings of the Forestry Association, and the like. The promotive phase of the work of the for- est commissions is carried on through the dis- tribution and sale of a series of bulletins on forest work, prepared by the Swedish Forestry Association, by the holding of “schools” simi- lar to our own extension schools in agriculture, and in work with school children, especially on arbor days when considerable areas of actual forest are planted by groups from nearby ‘schools. The schools are practical in charac- ter and consist of demonstrations in which those enrolled do the actual work, as in char- ~ coal making, draining swamp land to make it productive for forest growing, seeding and planting, timber measurement, and the like. These schools run from one to seven weeks. The forest commissions also run forest nur- series from which seed and plants are sold at cost. The point of special interest in all this pro- motive work is that none of it is propaganda to induce the public to practice forestry, but rather the giving of help and assistance as to how to proceed with work the need of which the public already thoroughly recognizes. The Swedes understand the value of forestry. Argu- ment is unnecessary. — The work of the forest commissions (skogsvardstyrelsen) is financed by.a tax on the stumpage value of the timber cut in a given province, 1.38 percent. Ninety percent is ex- pended in that province. The other 10 percent goes into a general fund for the whole country. Other sources of additional income are an an- nual allotment from the Swedish parliament, appropriations by the local provincial govern- ment, proceeds derived from the sale of seeds, nursery stock, etc., and gifts and special allot- ments from individuals and private associa- tions. As has’ been said, the annual reports are published by the Swedish Forestry Association, indicating the close-knit connection in Sweden between the various organizations engaged in forestry work. A further sidelight is that the secretary of the Forestry Association is Pro- fessor Schotte, chief of the Forest Experiment Station. It may not be out of place to mention here, too, that the Forestry Association each year arranges an excursion to one or more for- ests. that includes all those interested and that it also holds a forest week each spring, which is said to be a very interesting and important meeting. Whether or not it would be desirable, or feas- ible, to attempt to introduce into the United States any such type of organization as that of the Swedish Forest Commissions, the writer of this letter is not now prepared to say. But there is no question but that it is a success in Sweden and that it is serving a very useful end in insuring to that country permanence in its forest industries. (25) Forestry in Norway and Denmark Methods of Dealing with Privately Owned Forests—Government Supervision An earlier letter in this series has set forth the impressions made upon the writer by what he saw of the forests and the forestry work in Sweden. The present contribution has to do with the two other Scandinavian countries, Norway and Denmark. Racially similar, the people have much in common but the two countries differ markedly in character, location, climate, composition of the forests and in eco- nomic ways. They must be considered sep- arateiv, but in each there are points of forest interest that appeal to the visitor from Amer- ica. FORESTRY IN NORWAY Quite apart from the interest that attaches to its forests, Norway is preeminently a coun- try for the tourist. The combination of moun- tain and sea, the wonderful trip through the fjords, the snow capped peaks and the glaciers at the higher elevation, not to mention the ex- cellent automobile roads, the good hotels and the comfortable railroad service, all unite to make Norway a country where one can enjoy a delightful vacation. The Norwegians have frankly capitalized the scenic value of their country. And why should they not? It cer- tainly has much to offer. While in Norway the writer departed from his forestry schedule and for a time became a tourist. He would advise other visitors to do likewise, and in their travels not to omit from their itinerary Balestrand, Gudvangen and Stalheim on the Singe Fjord, north of Bergen. A journey by rail over the mountains from Kristiania to Bergen is also to be recommend- ed, with enough time to see those two cities. A GOOD NORWEGIAN FOREST SHOWING A FINE GROWTH OF MATURE PINE OF MERCHANTABLE SIZE A BIRCH FOREST NEAR HAMAR, N _ BI : us NE: AMAR, NOR- WAY. : THIS IS SAID TO BE THE FINEST STAND OF BIRCH IN EUROPE It is hardly to be advised that one visit a foreign country without at least some knowl- edge of the language, but in Norway as far as getting about goes, the English speaking traveler has but little diffculty. The trouble comes when he starts in hopefully on the dis- cussion of some technical matter that the phrase books wot not of. But notwithstand- ing the differences in customs and the foreign tongue, an American feels very much at home ia Norway. They have a standing joke that there are more Norwegians in the United States than there are at home. This naturally is not strictly accurate, but it shows that there are many close ties between the two countries which it is to be hoped may be strengthened and increased. Certainly the writer has reason to think pleasantly of Nor- way because of the courteous treatment that ‘he everywhere received, but especially on ac- count of the hospitality shown him by the Nor- wegian foresters. AREA, POPULATION AND INDUSTRIES OF NORWAY The population of Norway in 1920 is given as about 2,649,000. The total area is 322,909 square kilometers (124,643 square miles), made the country, especially in the fjord districts, every bit of agricultural land is tilled, even if it is but a tiny patch lying high up on a steep mountain side. Here, too, the short growing season and humid climate make it necessary to hang the grass on fences in order to cure it. The small farmers would seem to have a hard fight to wrest a living from the soil, but as one sees the people they appear to be well nour- ished. Thrift is the key note. The export of forest products ranks high in the business of the nation, being 25 percent of the total, in value, in 1915. Great Britain is the largest single customer. As compared with Sweden, Norway sends out less rough lumber, so that there is comparatively little active cempetition. Further the exporters in the two countries co-operate, at least to some extent. The official handbooks in Norway give long lists of firms that deal in pulp and paper. The lumber industry is well organized also, per- haps the special feature being the _ river driving and timber rafting associations (Foel- leshdtnings foreningen) and the organizations of the scalers (T6mmermaalere) in the sever- al main timber producing districts. Another industry in Norway, that is still in A LOG SHOOT ON ONE OF THE CANALS IN NORWAY up approximately as follows: agricultural area 4.45 percent, water 3.21, forest 22.31, mcuntain- ous and infertile 70.3. The productive forest area. amounts to about 48,000 square kilomet- ers (18,528 square miles), of which about 45,000 square kilometers (16,374 square miles) con- sists cf conifers. The main industries of Norway are its mer- chant marine, its fisheries and sea food can- neries, and the products of its forests, inclu4- ing both lumber and pulp and paper. Agri- culture plays but a small part, although there are productive and fertile farms along the lower reaches ot the Glommen river on the eastern side of Norway. In the central part of its infancy, is the development of electrical power from the mountain streams. So far only a small percentage of the potential power has been harnessed. Developments will follow im- provements in methods of long distance trans- mission. It is now even being suggested that through the co-operation of the Norwegian and Swedish electric companies, power may in time be transmitted by cable, under the channel, to Denmark. But the details of industrial devel- opment are not within the scope of this letter. THE FORESTS OF NORWAY The productive forests of Norway lie in the (27) southwestern part of the country, in the dis- tricts of Telemarken and Saetersdalen, south of the latitude of 60 degrees, and especially in the long interior valley of the Glommen Tiv- er, that drains the entire eastern side of Nor- way, up to the latitude of 63 degrees. In the northern part of Norway the mountains are too steep and rocky to permit of good tree growth, and even farther south timber line is reached at about 900 meters (2,950 feet). Pine and spruce are the important species, although in some localities birch grows well. Larch is found in planted stands. The broad leaf trees are relatively unimportant. They are found only in the southern part of the country, except birch and aspen which extend farther north. Of the total forest area of Norway, the gov- ernment forests cover 12.36 percent. These forests divide into several classes: (a) State forest proper; (hb) church or ecclesiastical for- ests (prastergirdskog); (c) commercial for- ests; and (d) district commons (bygdealmen- ninger), or areas of forest in which the people “Herred”’, or commune, to which the forest be- longs, or, in the case of the forest commons, those who have an interest in the forest. Nor- way is divided into eighteen counties, known locally either as “amt” or “fylke”. The her- reder are local communities within the county. As a matter of fact, in a large number of in- stances, the committees in charge of these forests employ a professional forester, perma- nently or for consultation. But the govern- ment forester for the fylke, the skogforvalter, has general supervision over what takes place therecn. This official in America usage would be called supervisor. As regards the privately owned forest lands the control is even more strict. This indeed is the characteristic feature of Norwegian for- est law. In the acts of August 8, 1908, and June 7, 1916, it is provided, in the interest of pro- tecting and perpetuating the forests, that cut- ting on private forest land shall conform to cefinite regulations. These rules are drawn up by local committees, consisting of three men RAFTING LOGS THROUGH A PICTURESQUE CANAL IN NORWAY of that locality enjoy joint ownership, with certain rights of user. Directly or indirectly the government forestry officials exercise con- trol over all these forests. On the state for- ests it is of course absolute. On the ecclesias- tical forests, the state foresters determine and regulate the cut but do not benefit from the revenue. These forests were set apart for the partiai support of the local parishes of the established church. The first consideration is to supply what timber and wood may be need- ed by the minister, or for buildings and repairs on church property. After that the forest prod- ucts are sold and the proceeds, less operating costs, are turned over to a special fund admin- istered by the ecclesiastical authorities. REGULATION OF PRIVATE FOREST OWNERS The other two groups of forest are under the direct control of local committees, repre- senting respectively the district council of the familiar with the district, two of whom must by the terms of the law be forest owners. The committee may be assisted by a forester, usual- ly the supervisor, but the forester does not have a vote in the meetings. Elaborate pro- vision is made for public notice and hearings while the regulations are being drawn up, and when finally prepared they must be approved by the King. But when these steps have been taken the regulations are binding on all owners and must be carried out. _On paper this looks like a rather comprehen- sive program, but in practice it works out to little more than a dimension law with a fixed diameter limit. Each district fixes its own lim- its but they-more or less conform to a common standard, usually for conifers either 18 to 20 centimeters (7 to 8 inches) at 1.5 meters (59 inches) above the ground, or 15 to 17 centi- meters at a height of 4 or 5 meters. The Norwegian forestry officials feel that (28) this law has had very beneficial results and is good as far as it goes, but they are not satis- fied with it and at an early session of parlia- ment, probably however not until 1923, a bill will be introduced that may, if it becomes law, considerably alter the character of the regula- tions and perhaps even introduce some silvi- . cultural requirements. But that is a matter for the future and can only come about after there has been full discussion of the whole question. Another forest law of some interest is that whereby ownership of forest land in any large amount is restricted to residents of the dis- trict. The purpose of this law was to prevent speculative holding of forest areas, particularly by aliens; although it also applies to Nor- wegians who are non-residents of the district in question. THE NORWEGIAN FOREST SERVICE The Norwegian Forest Service (Skogvaese- net) is a branch of the Department of Agricul- skole) at Aas, near Kristiania. There are also several ranger schools. One piece of work, now going on in Norway, is of especial interest to Americans—a compre- hensive survey of the forest resources of the country. So far only one fylke, or district, has been covered, that of OGstfold in the south- eastern corner of the country, but it is proposed to extend the survey to include all of the com- mercially valuable forest areas. The method followed is to gridiron the district with strip survey lines, spaced fairly close together, so’ that an accurate estimate will result, both of merchantable timber and of the young growth. With this are of course collected various other facts and figures of general interest. The making available of exact data of this sort gives a basis on which proper methods of forest management can rest. There would be less discussion and more accomplishment in forest- ry in the United States if we had a survey of this type actually under way and yielding re- sults. FOREST ALONG THE RAILROAD FROM KRISTIANIA TO BERGEN ture (Landbruksdepartementet). The head- quarters are at Kristiania; the chief of the service being Skogdirektor Henrik Jelstrup, a gentleman to whom the writer is indebted for many courtesies in connection with his visit to the forests of Norway. In the field there are three inspection districts, which subdivide into 38 forest districts (in 1919) each with a super- visor (Skogforvalter). In 20 of the districts there are assistants as well. The rangers, really guards, are usually men on part time, who combine their forestry work with other vocations, although this is not true of all of the ranger staff. Connected with the Kristiania office are a number of technical men, some of whom have the special duty of preparing work- ing plans for the state forests. All the super- visors and assistants must be graduates of the State Forest School, a department of the Nor- wegian Agricultural College (Landbrukshdi- NORWAY’S FOREST EXPERIMENT STATION Connected with the Forest Service, but di- rectly under a committee that directs the gen- eral policy, is the Forest Experiment Station (Skogforsdéksvaesenet). This station was es- tablished in 1917 and is located at Aas, adjoin- ing the college. The first director was Erling Ramsay Archer, a Norwegian of Scottish de- scent, who however has recently transferred to the administrative branch of the service. An extensive program of forest research has been outlined, but necessarily at the beginning much attention has had to be paid to the de- tails of organization, so that the work of the station can as yet hardly be said fully to be under way. Important contributions are how: ever to be looked for from this station in later years. (29) Research work in forestry is also being car- ried on at the Natural History Museum at Ber- gen, where Prof. Dr. Oscar Hagem is in charge of an experiment station at Séfteland. Planta- tions are being made of western American species, Douglas fir and Sitka spruce, which indicate that these species may be found to be adapted for rather general use on the west coast of central Norway. Various publications have been issued from the museum at Bergen, among them one elaborately illustrated bulle- tin on the forests of western North America by Dr. Anton Smitt, the result of an expedition made by him to the United States and British Columbia. OTHER WORK IN FORESTRY No account of forest work in Norway would be complete without at least mention of the two leading forestry associations, that of the professional foresters, Norsk Forstmandsfor- ening, and the popular association Det Norske forest area of Norway in private ownership, where insurance is desirable, is said now to be covered by policies of this company. The basic rate for insurance is 1.25 percent. After four years the premium is reduced by 20 percent, with further reductions for longer periods. In certain parts of Norway the company maintains fire lookout stations. It is an energetic and going concern. The forester for the company is Julius Nygaard, who is also the editor of the “Skogalmanak,” a very useful little handbook, full of all sorts of facts and figures’ concerning forestry and the lumber industry of Norway. Compared with its neighbor on the Scandi- navian Peninsula, Norway has still much to do to bring its forests under full management. In Sweden the influence of Germany is much more apparent. Things are done there in a highly systematic way and with an elaboration of organization that has not as yet been possible in Norway. It should be remembered, however, that Sweden is a larger country, with over THIRTY-FIVE- YEAR-OLD PINE FOREST NEAR SKIEN, NORWAY Skogseiskap. This is an influential organiza- tion publishing a forestry magazine, ‘‘Tidss- krift for Skogbruk”’ and other informational maiter, and in connection with its branches, local associations ail over Norway, doing much practical work in planting, draining swampland and in conducting forest nurseries. Under the direction of this association a suc- cessful excursion was made through certain typical Norwegian forests in 1920, when a considerable party of Swedish foresters were the guests of the Norwegians. A return €x- cursion, in Sweden, was held in June, 1921, under the auspices of the Swedish Forestry Association. A commercial organization that is also of in- terest is the Norwegian Mutual Forest Fire In- surance Association, Det Norske Gjensidige Skogbrand Forsikringsselskap. This company was started in 1912, the sum insured that year being just under Kr. 45,000,000. In 1920 the fig- ure was Kr. 259,000,000. Sixty percent of the twice the population of Norway and with great- er natural resources. But the Norwegians are fully awake to the necessity of proper forest management and are energetically tackling their problem. It will be interesting to see how much they are able to accomplish when the time comes for strengthening and extending their forest laws. And Americans can very profitably watch this development, for there are enough points of resemblance between Nor- way and the United States to make whatever is accomplished there of interes ai of the Atlantic, rest on our side FORESTRY IN DENMARK : ee is essentially an agricultural coun- ae Bes principal exports are dairy products, bacon and ham, a large part of which goes to Great Britain. Forests play a relatively i t ' un- important part, but because the forest «: area (30) necessarily is limited—it was 8.5 percent of the total area in 1912—it becomes all the more important locally to take good care of what forest there is. And this the Danes have been doing for something over a century. Denmark imports rather than exports unmanufactured lumber. All that the Danish forests produce is needed for home consumption. It follows naturally that forestry in Denmark is intensive, and it is because this is so that gives to the for- est work of the Danes the interest that rightly attaches to it. The total area of Denmark proper, excluding the Faroe Islands and Iceland, is 39,033 square kilometers (14,866 square miles). The forest area is about 333,000 hectare, or 822,500 acres. The population of Denmark in 1920 was reck- oned as about three and one half million. To these figures must now be added the area and population of that part of Schleswig-Holstein that the Great War restored to Denmark. The at Viborg in Jutland, the peninsula that consti- tutes the western portion of Denmark. While not directly applicable to America these several phases of forestry are all of interest and worthy of comment. In connection with the use of the forest as royal game preserves, methods of definite for- est management began to be introduced about the middle of the seventeenth century, so that it was no new departure when under the in- fluence of a German forester, Georg von Lang- en, a definite forestry policy was set up in 1763 that paved the way for the enactment in 1805 of a forestry law that is today still in full force and eifective operation. Along with the work in the forest came the early establish- ment of a Forest School (1784), so that the Danes make the proud claim to be the first of the Scandinavian countries to get forestry really under way. The forest experiment sta- tion work dates from 1882, reorganized and expanded in 1901 and 1910. The forest law of 1805 was a comprehensive PINE FOREST IN NORWAY —TIMBER PILED IN FGREGROUND Danes call this region “S6nderjylland” (South Jutland). The area is about 3,900 square kilo- meters (1,506 square miles). The population in 1910 was 166,600. In common with the other Scandinavian countries many persons from Denmark have emigrated to the United States. For the period from 1880 to 1910 the average per year was around 6,000. Some of course have returned. At the leading hotel in Esbjerg—the main port on the west coast of Jutland—the pro- prietor, the head waiter and the porter are all American citizens. FORESTRY LAWS AND OPERATION The outstanding points about forestry in Denmark are its historical basis, certain fea- tures of its forest laws, the work of its forest experiment station, and in particular the activities of the Danish Heath Society—a quasi public association that has its headquarters act that dealt with many phases of forestry. Among other things, it provided for the extin- guishment of the ancient rights of user, or serv- itudes, that so interfered with the proper man- agement of forest. properties; it directed that all grazing animals should be excluded from the forest; it provided through a cadaster, or elaborate land survey, for the determination of what were the areas that should be kept per- manently as forest, as distinct from agricul- tural land, and by regulations led to the actual demarkation of these lands on the ground by the erection of earth mounds, some 4 or 5 feet high, that are still a characteristic feature of the Danish forests. It had other provisions as well, but perhaps the most important of alk from the standpoint of policy, was that no one who purchased forest land could cut it during a period of 10 years except with the approval of a state forester, who was to mark the timber to be removed. The purpose of this clause was to prevent speculation and to perpetuate the (31) existing forest. Ten years is too long a time to wait for returns on a speculative venture. And there seems to have been the idea, too, that after an owner had cared for his forest for a decade, he would have got the habit and desire for continuing proper management. Anyway the 1805 law is still in force, and particularly the ten-year cutting provision. There is likelihood that all the Danish for- est laws will be codified, amended and re-en- acted at an early session of parliament, but it was the opinion of more than one Danish forest- er that the essential provisions of the law of 1805 were fairly sure to be continued. In Den- mark, as in Sweden, the public appreciates the value of the forests and apparently makes little objection to the law nor attempts to evade it. Some railroad fire laws have recently been enacted (1920) that provide for the payment of damages by the railways for fires set from sparks from the locomotives. These are of in- The forest area of Denmark (333,000 hectare) is divided into a number of classes of owner- ship: State forests, 17 percent; sand dune for- ests, 7 percent; communal forests, 2 percent; estate and “foundation” forests, 21 percent; those controlled by the Heath Society, 2 per- cent; association and corporation owned for- ests, 4 percent; privately owned (largely in small holdings), 47 percent. The Danish Forest Service is a branch of the Department of Agriculture (Landbrugs- ministeriet) and has two principal divisions: That charged with administering the state for- ests and the dunes (Domaene Kontoret), and that which oversees the privately owned for- est land (Landvaesenskontoret). The head- quarters are in Copenhagen but there are vari- ous districts covering the country. Under old laws the forest lands belonging tc the families of the nobility could be neither sold nor mortgaged, the idea being to make cer- a|A PARTICULARLY 4|FINE FOREST IN GLOMMEN VALLEY, ' NORWAY terest because the greater part of the Danish railroads are owned and operated by the gov- ernment. These laws also make elaborate provision for fire lines to be constructed par- alleling the right of way, on the privately owned land, but at the expense of the railway. The traveler in Denmark should not confuse these fire protective strips with the shelter belts along certain of the lines made to prevent the drifting of snow. These snow guard planta- tions are conspicuous and characteristic fea- tures of the Danish railways. , Beech is an important forest tree in Den- mark along with the pine and the spruce, and there is also some oak. The best beech forests are in the southern part of Jutland where the stands consist of tall trees with 50 to 60 feet of merchantable length; clear, straight stems with diameters in the mature trees of 13 to 16 inches, breast high. The oaks are usually not of as good form. But in the forest plantations one usually finds the coni- fers, pine and spruce, and in some places the ‘introduced Douglas fir and Sitka spruce. tain an assured income, but in 1916 a law was enacted to break up the entail so that these for- ests may now be subdivided and sold. The “foundation forests” are areas set apart, usual- ly by provisions in the will of the Owner, to provide an income for his widow or other de- pendents, or for some other specified purpose. Many elderly ladies of noble families are thus provided for. In American usage they might be called “old ladies’ home forests.” It is also a rather general custom in Denmark, particu- larly through the Heath Society, for persons of means to give or bequeath money for the es- tablishment of memorial forests, that shall for- ever bear the name of the donor. This is a practice that might advantageously be intro- duced into the United States, especially in the establishment of town or village forests. Cer- tainly no better memorial could be erected than a forest under continuous management that forever keeps green the name of the man who established it. Individual memorial trees are very good in their way, but a forest that eat be renewed in perpetuity is vastly better. RESEARCH IN FORESTRY Experiment station work in forestry began, as has been said, in 1882, but the organization was much expanded between the years 1902 and 1915. In 1917 an office and laboratory build- ing, with an adjoining dwelling, was provided for the director, Professor Adolph Oppermann, in one of the outer suburbs of Copenhagen, Springforbi, where there is also an experiment- al garden and an interesting. beech woods. At Egelund, near Hillerod, 34 kilometers from Co- penhagen, is a large experimental garden and nursery where many “races” of timber tree species are being tried out, to determine which ones are best adapted to given sites and soils. Seed.is eollected in known localities and the resulting plants are set out in carefully marked plots. Beech, oak and the several conifers— pine, spruce, fir and larch, with some exotics, among them Douglas fir and Sitka spruce—are thus being tested. Near, by this garden is the Frederiksborg Slot, formerly a royal castle, but now kept as a museum. This is one of the show places of Denmark and a Mecca for tour- ists. A visit to the castle can well,be combined with an inspection of the Egelund Experimen- tal Nursery, A few miles away, by rail, is El- sinore, where on the ramparts of Kronberg Castle is pointed out the spot where Hamlet is supposed to have met his father’s ghost. It was the good fortune of the writer to see in Copenhagen a production of Hamlet by a Nor- wegian actor, Ingolf Schanche, who gave an interesting interpretation of the part. The actors of course spoke Danish, but to one fa- miliar with the play there was no difficulty in following the action. The director of the Danish Experimental Forestry Service (Forségsvaesensts) is Pro- fessor Doctor Adolph Oppermann, a man well known from his writings on forestry subjects, as well as on account of the valuable contribu- tions that are contained in the reports of the station. Beside the tests on races of forest tree species, the Forest Experiment Station main- tains permanent sample plots in the state for- ests all over Denmark for the study of growth and yield; conducts research in problems deal- ing with forest soils; and investigates ways of combatting! insects and disease in the forest. The writer of this letter is indebted to Profes- sor Oppermann for a most courteous reception at the experiment station at Springforbi and for a very interesting day in the nursery and plantations at Egelund. There is a sort of free- masonry about forestry that seems to insure to any properly introduced forester a warm wel- come from his colleagues in the profession in any country. This is certainly true in Scandi- navia, and the writer of this letter is most hap- py here to record his very sincere appreciation of the many favors he received at the hands of the Danish foresters. The technical education of foresters is one of the functions of the Danish College of Vet- erinary Medicine and Agriculture, Forestry be- ing a department of the Landbohdjskole. The ‘gas, a son of Captain Dalgas. head of the staff is Professor J. Helms, with whom is associated Professor C. V. Prytz and Professor Oppermann, director of the experi- ment station. There are also schools for forest rangers. A popular Forestry Association (Dansk Skovforening) established in 1888, issues a quarterly magazine, “Tidsskrift,’ which also serves as the organ of the association of the technically trained foresters (Danske Forst- kandidaters Forening). C. M. Moller acts as secretary for both associations and editor of the “Tidsskrift.”. To him also the writer is in- debted for numerous favors. THE DANISH HEATH SOCIETY The unique feature about Danish forestry is, however, the work of the Heath Society (Det Danske Hedeselskab). This is a private asso- ciation formed in 1866 on the initiative of Cap- tain Enrico Mylius Daigas with the aim of re- claiming and making productive the extensive areas in Jutland that are covered with heather. This plant, so dear to the hearts of all Scottish folk, presents a most attractive sight when in bloom, but it is not an economic proposition, as are the pines and especially the spruce that in Denmark can be made to grow in its stead. Consequently the work of the Heath Society is of great local significance and has resulted in the development of Jutland in a rather remark- able way. The Heath Society is managed by a board of 85 directors who eléct an executive committee of three, with a technical deputy. This last po- sition is now filled by Skovrider Christian Dal- It is interesting to note that his son, in turn, is also a member, of the Danish Forest Service, being the com- piler of a book of yield tables of beech, oak, pine and spruce. The work of the Heath So- ciety falls into several divisions: The estab- lishment of forest plantations on the heath; the construction of both drainage and irrigation canals for the improvement of meadow land; the making of marl railways—transportable tracks, whereby lime can be carried out easily to the fields; and, through the regulation of water courses and the making of dikes, the development of marsh land areas. The head- quarters of the society are at Viborg, in cen- tral Jutland, where from a handsome and com- modious building the work of the several branches is directed. In 1866 the area of un- productive land in Denmark amounted to 11,464 square kilometers (3,425 square miles). In 1920, the figure was only 3,824.5 (1,476 square miles). To the Heath Society is due most of the credit for bringing into economic use the other 7,640.5 square kilometers (1,949 square miles), a reduction of the waste area of 1866 by considerably over one-half. In all the activities of the Heath Society the actual work has been done by the people liv- ing on the heath, with the consequence that prosperity has come to this section, both to in- dividuals and to communities. Thriving towns (33) have resulted directly from this development and a substantial increase in the wealth of the country. A typical instance of benefit to an individual is given in a publication, in English, issued by the Heath Society in 1919, that may here be quoted as it stands: “Johan Peder Krath took possession of the property ,in 1895 as an inheritance from his native farm. The property consisted ,of a heath lot of 85 td. of land (about 110 acres), thereof 8 td. cultivated and 5 td. ploughed, without buildings and stock. It was valued at 800 kroner; but surely nobody would have paid so much for that heath-lot then. Krath owned 150 kroner himself, which he used to dig a well. “In 1896 he married Eva Philbert, who brought nothing but a couple of hands accustomed to work, and then between themselves they set to work with a good will and, it must be said, a good health, and there was good use of both. Now we see the result. On the formerly black heath there now stands a nice farm, surrounded by a garden and well cultivated fields, and with a stock of 2 horses, 10 or 12 cows, 6 or 8 heifers and calves, 5 sheep and 10 to 15 pigs, etc. “The first year he grew a crop of 1200 kg. corn and 3000 kg. potatoes; now about 12,000 kg. corn and 40,000 kg. potatoes, besides tur- nips, etc. “We must concede that it is a fine result of the heath and the 150 kroner he began with, both for the man himself and for the whole so- ciety.” The foregoing of course relates to another phase of the work, but it must be remembered that the initial impetus in all the Heath recla- mation work came from the idea of Captain ‘Dalgas \and his associates to establish forest plantations. To aid in establishing forests on the heath, the government gives subventions to private owers through the Heath Society, but to receive this aid the owner must agree that thereafter the land shall forever be kept under forest. SO Ay Cr <7} (Eee sae Ba ae The method followed in the tree planting work on the heath is first to burn off the heath- er in the summer. That autumn the ground is plowed to destroy the roots of the heather. A second plowing and disk harrowing comes a year later, and in the third autumn a trench plowing that goes down to a depth of 22 inches, The trees, pine and spruce in mixture, are planted the next spring. In from 8 to 10 years the pines are removed and the spruces left to form the forest crop. Thinnings occur at fre- quent intervals, 3 to,5 years apart. On the bet- ter heath lands the rotation is 60 to 80 years; cn the poorer, 80 to 100. Everything cut in the plantations finds a ready market, even the branches that are trimmed off the pines at the age of 8 years be- ing sold for fuel, while garden stakes, bean poles and the like use saplings down to one-half inch in diameter. Denmark can and does prac- tice absolute utilization. This fact, coupled with the regularity of the forests—even-aged, fully stocked stands, with the closely spaced trees all standing in marshalled rows—gives one a lasting impression of the extreme to which forestry can profitably be carried in countries of dense population and limited for- est area. Considered in terms of larger countries, the forests of Denmark are insignificant, but looked at from the standpoint of an example of a coun- . try that is making the most of scanty natural resources, Denmark has many lessons to teach to nations that are blessed with large areas and a greater variety of timber trees. Small countries may in a sense be considered as labo- ratories where can be tried out on a limited scale experiments that are of far-reaching im- portance in their application. So with Den- mark, The achievements of the Danish forest- ers can with profit be studied by those who are charged with the administration of the forests of other countries. And nowhere does the vis- itor receive a more cordial welcome than he bas at the hands of the Danes. (34) A Few Observations on Forestry in Germany A Visit to German State Forests—A Meeting With Dr. C. A. Schenck It was not originally the intention of the writer to include a letter from Germany in this series of contributions. Indeed in) his first schedule a visit to that country was purposely omitted, notwithstanding the in- terest that German forests must have, both historically and from the standpoint of man- agement, for all members of the forestry pro- fession. But if one is in Scandinavia and wishes to get to France, his only alternatives since the war are to cross Germany, or to go round by sea, via England. The lines of steamers from the Swedish and Danish ports to the Netherlands and to France have not as 7 A STAND OF SILVER FIR IN 'THE FOREST OF HERRENWEIS—THE TREES ARE 80 YEARS OLD yet resumed operation. Having thus per- force to pass through Germany it was but natural to take advantage of the opportunity to see something en route of German forests, particularly the Odenwald, the Spessart, and the Black Forest. Hence this letter. So much has been written about these par- ticular forests that it seems almost presump- tuous to attempt to treat of them on the basis of only a few days’ visit. But owing to the fact that he saw what he did under pe- culiarly favorable auspices, the writer feels that perhaps he may be justified in making a few observations concerning points of spe- cial interest; the more so as it has been diffi- A GROUP OF GIANT WHITE OAKS IN THE SPESSART—THESE TREES ARE 270 YEARS OLD cult since the war to obtain authentic infor- mation as to what is going on in Germany. In that the observations made are essentially personal impressions, an informal tone char- acterizes this letter. GERMANY AS IT IS TODAY Perhaps it may be well, first, to note certain impressions that even the casual visitor to Germany cannot but receive in these days. The outstanding point is that the people are willing to work and that they are working. Notwithstanding the depreciation of the mark in the world markets, and the fact that in certain places even the fractional currency is paper, those of the laboring class and the small shopkeepers appear to be prosperous. There seems to be plenty of food for those who have the wherewithal. The store win- dows are full of attractive things, and the theaters well patronized. Prices to be sure are 10 or 12 or even 15 times what they were in prewar days, but wages also have advanced. It appears, for comparison, that conditions in Germany today are in a way not unlike those that obtained in the United States during the war, when labor was paid high wages and the badge of the working man was the silk shirt. The German laborer may prefer other styles of personal adornment. but one sees the same sort of thing. The working man can have meat three times a day if he likes, whereas the man on a fixed income, as with us in the United States in war time, is fortunate if he has meat once a week. There is unquestion- ably much privation in Germany now among those on salaries and fixed incomes, but the working man is having his innings. It of course, must be remembered that these notes refer to the first part of October, 1921. Con- ditions in Germany are subject to sudden change. No one seems able to forecast the future. In the lower section of the Murg river, in the Black forest, the saw mills and paper mills are running on a 24 hour day with three 8-hour shifts. This was said to be typical also of other industrial regions. The Ger- mans have begun to work, while the people of other countries are as yet only talking about it. Whether it will profit Germany to pile up manufactured goods when she cannot sell them, and what will happen if the mark actually drops altogether out of sight, are questions that the writer of this letter makes no pretense whatsoever of being able to an- swer. Roughly three-fourths of the German la- borers are employed in industrial plants; one- fourth in agriculture. What will happen if production stops and these persons are thrown out of employment no one likes to contem- plate. There is enough unrest and turmoil in Europe as it is. Were Germany to become actually bankrupt no one can foretell the out- come. The whole economic fabric in Ger- many at the present time seems to be resting on a very thin crust over a caldron of which no one knows the contents. In connection with the apparent prosperity of those who are now making money in Ger- many one point ought to be noted that is sometimes overlooked, that by no means all the people one sees spending money in Ger- many are Germans. The low exchange rate of the German mark (it was 7/10 of a cent American money early in October, and is much lower now, as against 23 cents in prewar days) has attracted to Germany many persons from The people of the Scandina- other countries. z ‘ DE Pe i A BEAUTIFUL STAND OF MATURE BEECH TREES IN DARMSTADT CITY FOREST —THE ODENWALD vian countries and of Holland have not failed to take advantage of this chance for a pleas- ant holiday at low cost. And so, in part at least, it may be that it is visitors who crowd the theaters, fill the opera house and are seen in Sop lounges of the big hotels. 1s not surprising that this m¢ raw Even in the best hotels in aaa spot furt-am-Main, one can order a dinner for sey- eral persons, without thinking of prices, adorn it with cocktails, wines and liquors (they stil] (36) have such things in Germany!), and rest as- sured that, including the tips, he will not have exceeded $5 or $6, American money. In smaller towns the advantage to the holder of American travelers’ checks is even more marked. One who is so inclined can live like a prince on a very few dollars a day. From quite another standpoint: The atti- tude manifested toward Americans in Ger- many is a matter of interest. There seems to be no animosity, but only kindly feeling. This cannot be accounted for by the fact that foreign money is welcome, for it was shown in various ways by those who had personally no advantage to gain thereby; small courte- sies by street car conductors, persons from whom one inquired the way, and the like. One small shopkeeper for instance, from whom I had bought only a few picture post- cards, accompanied me half way down the block to point out the way to the post office. sons and by personal observation. It is cer- tainly true of the Black forest and is borne out by what one sees from the car window in crossing Prussia and in passing through other forested sections. The German army helped itself to the French forests on the west front, and to those of Poland on the east. The Ger- man forests came through the war essentially intact. And, contrary to newspaper stories current at that time, it is said there were no serious forest fires anywhere in Germany dur- ing the war. ' The payment in forest products of a part of the reparations account is at the present time one of the subjects under active discus- sion, but so far the representatives of the French and the German governments have not been able to agree as to terms. Much lumber is going out of the Black forest. Of this considerable amounts, it is said, are be- ing bought by French wood merchants, who { A STAND OF SPRUCE AND SILVER FIR IN THE SCHIFFER- SCHAFTWALD— TREES ARE 140 YEARS OLD In explanation, one German gentleman who is in a position to know of what he'speaks, said that this good feeling was due in part to the fact that after all the American army killed but comparatively few German soldiers, that those who were captured were treated better in our prison camps than in those of the other allies, and in general that the Germans have no ill feeling whatsoever toward the United States. This may be taken for what it is worth. Possibly it may not be as true in Prussia as in southern Germany, and perhaps also it may not hold with those who belonged to the military party under the Empire. But the facts do seem to bear out the assertion that there is no animosity among the rank and file of the people. GERMAN FORESTS UNTOUCHED BY THE WAR As regards the forests of Germany, the outstanding point is that they were practically untouched by the war. I was able to check this statement both by inquiry of various per- in turn sell to their government. This is in- teresting and a rather curious anomoly in view of the official situation. MEETING WITH DR. SCHENCK FORMERLY OF BILTMORE, N. C. The writer has been unusually fortunate in seeing European forests under favorable aus- pices. On his. visits to certain typical Ger- man forests he had the great good luck to have as his guide a German forester formerly well known in the United States, Forstmeister Dr. Carl Alwin Schenck, ex-director of the Forest Academy at Biltmore, N. C. Dr. Schenck is so well known throughout the United States that he needs no introduction to American lumbermen. He was much interested in hearing late news of what was happening in forestry in America, and particularly of the better understanding that has developed in re- © cent years between lumbermen and foresters. To those who knew him in earlier days he would send friendly greetings. (37) During the war, Dr. Schenck was in service in the German army. First in Poland, where he was badly wounded, then, after his recov- ery, he had to do with prisoners of war; and later, for a time, was in Belgium. He left the army in 1917, before America entered the war. After the Armistice he was in charge, until about six months ago, of relief work for children under the direction of a Quaker or- ganization having its headquarters in Phila- delphia. At present he is living at Linden- fels, near Darmstadt, Hesse, in which city he has his permanent home, It will be recalled that in the later years of the Biltmore Forest Academy, Dr. Schenck was in the habit of conducting his students both to certain of the European forests and also to various centers of the lumber industry in the United States. It was my good fortune to visit with him some of the forests that his peripatetic school used to frequent. I by no means saw all of the forests of Germany, and use as well and are removed from the forest, and (3) the permanent road system by which all parts of the forest are made accessible. It goes without saying that neither close utiliza- tion nor permanent reads would pay unless there were markets near at hand and a rela- tively dense population in close proximity to the forest. These things are functions one of the other. In Germany one has such condi- tions, with the result that it is possible profit- ably to practice extremely intensive manage- ment. These forests are interesting primarily as examples of what can be done in forest management where economic conditions war- rant highly intensive treatment. All the forests are of course under very definite and exact working plans. A revision of the plan is made every ten years and a grand revision each twenty years. The basic idea is that of sustained yield and care is tak- en not to exceed the allowed cut per annum. THESE OLD OAKS IN THE SPESSART ARE 270 YEARS OLD— THE SMALL TREES BETWEEN BEECH ARE omitted Saxony altogether—a section noted for its spruce, managed with particular rela- tion to high financial returns—but I did see excellent examples of what may be regarded as the best forests of south Germany, and near Darmstadt I saw something of pine forests on sand plains, of the same type that character- izes the forests of Prussia. The areas visited were the Odenwald in Hesse, the Spessart in Bavaria, the city forest of Heidelberg, and in the Schwarzwald, the forest of Herrenwies, the Schénmiinzwald and the Schifferschaft- wald, in the states of Baden and Wiirttem- berg. SOME TYPICAL GERMAN FORESTS The outstanding features about all these forests, especially to the American visitor, are (1) the fully stocked stands of tall symetri- cal trees, (2) the absolutely complete utiliza- tion of every part of the tree, down to branch wood one inch and less in diameter, while often the smaller branches and twigs find a But the surprising thing is that notwithstand- ing all the prescriptions in the working plan and the faithful adherence to certain general rules, there is yet plenty of room for individ- ual initiative on the part of the forester. These German forests are by no means managed by the exact methods set forth in the text ‘books. Each forstmeister has the opportunity and the duty to modify the plan, within given limits. The result is that in forests of practically the same composition and of similar topography lying only a few miles apart, there may be very distinct differences in the way in which they are Managed. These distinctions may, it is true, be rather fine ones, but to the forester they are interesting subjects of study. The important point is that the German forester is not bound by any set rules in his mManage- ment but must use good, common horse sense all the while to get the results desired and still to keep within the limits imposed by his working plan. ; The method of Management naturally ya- (38) ries in the several forest regions visited. But wherever possible dependence is placed on se- curing the new crop by natural reproduction. The planting of nursery grown stock in re- sorted to only when the desired stand cannot be secured naturally, or where the forester is unwilling to wait for nature to give a good seed year. In the Black forest the method generally followed is that known to foresters as ‘“‘shelterwood,” but it is variously modified to meet local conditions. Another point of forest interest is the rela- tively large amount of damage that is done in certain forests by windfall, particularly of course, with the shallow rooted spruce. On some forests a definite allowance is made in the working plan for a certain percentage of the allowed annual cut to be made up of trees that have been blown down. The figure some- times runs as high as 20 percent of the al- lowed cut in a given year. Factors of this in a year from the time the trouble is first noticed. Forest sanitation is here a reality, and as in the more accessible portions of the forests all the small branches and the litter on the forest floor are gathered up and car- ried away to be used as fuel by those living near the forest, it is no exaggeration to say that the forest is as clean as a hound’s tooth. The American visitor may perfectly appre- ciate why all this is possible, but he neverthe- less finds that his mind keeps constantly turn- ing back to the fact that the roads were built solely to get out the timber and that they have no other function.