Part 14

The timber forest is the most general form of silvicultural management. Selection forest with 150 to 200 year rotations is practised in the Alps and in the smaller private forest areas. Shelterwood system in compartments is in use in other parts (with a rotation of 60 to 80 years in the deciduous, and 80 to 120 years in conifer forest), supplanting largely the clearing and planting system which had found favor during the middle of last century.

In corporation forests, large areas are still under coppice with standards, but will probably soon be converted into timber forest, a policy favored by cantonal instructions. Pure coppice is only rarely met, usually confined to the overflow lands and small private holdings. In some of the public forests in the French territory it is practised with a “double rotation” (_furetage_) according to French pattern.

Artificial means to secure complete stands in natural regenerations is favored by the cantonal regulations, but thinning operations are still mostly neglected, except where local market for inferior material makes them advisable, which is mostly in the plains country, where the annual yield from thinnings may represent 30% of the total harvest yield.

Conversion from coppice and coppice with standards into timber forest, and change from clearing systems to natural regeneration (proper for mountain forest), and from pure to mixed forest have become general provisions of the working plans.

The average cut in the State forests during four years prior to 1893 was over 64 cub. ft. p. acre, and 42 cub. ft. for the corporation forests; an average for all the public forests of round 45 cub. ft.,--not a very good showing as yet. So far, the collection of material for yield tables and for a statement of increment and stock on hand in the country at large are still insufficient, although, in 1882, Prof. Landolt estimated the annual product at little less than 500 million cubic feet, or 50 cubic feet per acre.

Only for the intensively managed city forests of Zürich and the cantonal forests of Bern are more accurate data available. In the latter, the State forests yield 50 cubic feet in the plateau country, 73 cubic feet, in the middle country, and 76 cubic feet in the Jura, while the communal forests of that canton yield 15, 66 and 56 cubic feet respectively. Prices for wood are higher in the low country than the average in Germany and have been steadily rising for the last 40 years, especially for coniferous saw material which at present brings stumpage prices of 12 to 15 cents.

Owing to these high prices the gross yield of some Swiss forests is the largest known in Europe; the city forest of Zürich, exhibiting yields of $12, and the city forest of Aarau as much as $14 per acre on the average, although in the Alps forests the gross yield sinks to $3 and $4. The more intensively managed city forests mentioned spend on their management $6 and even $7 per acre, while most of the State forests keep their expenditures within $2.50 to $3.50, and in some places down to $1.50 per acre. The net yields vary therefore for the State and communal forests of the plateau country between $3 and $6.50 for some of the city forests from $6.50 to $8 and $9.

Switzerland has long ago ceased to produce its wood requirements, and imports from 8 to 9 million dollars annually of wood and wood manufactures.

4. _Education and Literature._

For the education of the higher forest officials the Federal government instituted a two year course at the Polytechnicum at Zürich which was founded in 1885, the course being, in 1884, increased to three years. Three professors of forestry besides the faculty of the institution in fundamental and accessory branches are active here, the number of students averaging in the neighborhood of thirty-five.

Two examinations, a scientific and a practical one, the latter taken before a special commission, tests the eligibility of candidates, foreigners not excluded, for positions. For the education of the lower grade foresters, the Cantons themselves are responsible, the Bund only contributing by paying for teachers and demonstration material (about $1,250) to carry on cantonal or intercantonal forestry courses. The courses usually last from two weeks to two months, in succession or divided into spring and fall courses; they are mainly practical, and require candidates to be not less than 18 years of age and to possess a primary school education. Their number must be at least 15, and not more than 25. There have also been instituted specially conducted excursions and progressive underforesters’ courses, as well as additional scientific courses which the Bund subsidizes.

In connection with the Zürich school, forestry science and art are furthermore advanced by a well-endowed central Forest Experiment Station, with several substations and an annual budget of $10,000.

The greatest credit for the advancement of forestry and forest legislation is due to the Swiss Forestry Association (365 members in 1911), which was founded in 1843, meeting annually in various places, managed by a Committee of five elected for 3 years. This Association is subsidized by the Bund for its educational work. _Schweizerische Zeitschrift für das Forstwesen_ (begun 1850) is its organ, with _Dr. Fankhauser_ as editor.

In 1898, an association of underforesters with a special organ, _Der Forstwirth_, came into existence (526 members in 1902), and several cantonal foresters’ associations are also active.

* * * * *

In the literature, which is largely in German, with some French and Italian volumes, notable works have appeared and real advances in forestry science especially with reference to management of mountain forests are due to Swiss writers.

In 1767, the _Société d’Economie de Zurich_ published a foresters’ manual, and during the first quarter of the nineteenth century, _Zschokke_ and _Kasthofer_ developed silviculture in the Alps. _Landolt_, in 1860, published the results of his investigations (under the order of the Bund of 1857) into the forest conditions of the Alps, and contributed other volumes along similar lines.

He was succeeded by the now venerable _Dr. J. Coaz_ as Inspector-General of the Bund (still active at 90 years of age), who also contributed to the science of mountain reboisement and in other directions. The work on the management of the City forest of Zürich by its long-time manager _Meister_ is classic. Under the active direction of _Anton Bühler_ for many years, the publication of (now under _Dr. Engler_) _Mittheilungen der eidgenössischen Centralanstalt für das forstliche Versuchswesen_, since 1891, have become important contributions to forestry science. In the direction of wood technology the name of _L. Tetmajer_, who is conducting timber tests, should be mentioned.

FRANCE.

No complete monographic history of forestry in France is in existence, and mainly incomplete notes scattered through various volumes were at the disposal of the writer.

The work which contains the largest amount of historic information is G. HUFFEL, _Economie Forestière_, 3 volumes, 1904-1907, pp. 422, 484, 510, perhaps the most ambitious work in the French language, which has been largely followed in the account here given. It is a collection of ten studies, historical data being interspersed throughout the three volumes, the third volume containing one study entirely historical.

L. F. A. MAURY, _Les forêts de la Gaule et de l’ancienne France_, 1867, 501 pp. is mainly descriptive, but full of interesting historic data and detail up to the revolutionary period.

JULES CLAVÉ, _Etudes sur l’économie forestière_, 1862, 377 pp., 12^o, while mainly a propagandist essay, rehearses to some extent the history of forest practice, policies, etc., and gives a good insight into conditions at that time.

_Die forstlichen Verhältnisse Frankreichs_, by Dr. A. V. SECKENDORFF, 1879, pp. 228, furnishes a few historical notes.

Three English publications by JOHN CROUMBIE BROWN, _Pine Plantations in France_, _Reboisement in France_, 1876; _French Forest Ordinance of 1669_, 1882, are profuse and not entirely accurate, but give hints of historic development.

CH. GUYOT, _L’enseignement forestier en France_, 1898, 398 pp., gives an insight into the development of forestry education and a complete history of the school at Nancy, and throws much light on other developments.

_Code de la législation forestière_, _par_ PUTON, contains all the legislation having reference to forests.

An article on _L’idée forestière dans l’histoire_, by L. F. TESSIER, in Revue des eaux et forêts, 1905, Jan., Feb., gives on 26 pages an interesting brief survey of the history of forest policy in France.

_Forestry in France_, by F. BAILEY, in the _Indian Forester_, 1886, 61 pp., describes well conditions at that time.

France is one of the countries in which forestry has been practised for a long time and forestry practice has been almost as highly developed as in the preceding Teutonic countries.

Germany’s neighbor to the West has evolved, however, forest policies and practices which are different in some respects from those of Germany, although the early history of forestry in France was largely analogous to that of Germany. Indeed, until the end of the ninth century, the two countries being undivided, the same usages existed more or less in both, except that in the Gallic country Roman influence left a stronger imprint, Gallia having been long under the dominion of Rome.

The fact that France has for nearly a thousand years been a unit, while Germany has until recently been split up into many independent principalities, did much for uniform, albeit less ambitious, development in forestry matters.

Most of the forest policy as it exists to-day was inaugurated during the monarchical regime, which came to an end in 1871. Since that year, a republican form of government, with an assembly of 584, a senate of 300 members, under a President elected by the legislature for seven years, has been in existence.

The country is principally a plain, mostly below 1200 feet in altitude, sloping to the north and west; the mountain ranges (Pyrenées, Alps, Jura, Vosges) are confined mainly to the south and east boundaries, with secondary ranges (Cevennes, Côte d’Or, Auvergne, etc.,) in the southeast part of the country.

Of the 204,000 square miles of territory, just about 18 per cent. is wooded, which, with a population of nearly 40 million, leaves only about .6 of an acre per capita.

In its present condition this area does not produce more than one-third of the home demand, which requires on the average an import in excess over export to the amount of about 25 million dollars ($33 million in 1902), representing over 110 million cubic feet annually, mostly workwood, while the export is of mine props and railroad ties at about half the value of the imported wood.

Since, in 1892, there were still nearly 12% (over 15 million acres) waste land, opportunity for enlargement of the forest area seems to exist. It appears that about two-thirds of this waste land is capable of bearing forest, and the existing forest area is capable of much larger production than the present; three quarters of the production being fuel wood.

The distribution of forest area is very uneven, varying from 3.5 to 56 per cent. in the various departments. Only about 20% of the area is located on the mountains, 19% in hill country, and 60% in the plains.

Six forest regions may be differentiated according to Huffel, which, however, are mainly geographical divisions: the northeast; valleys of Seine and Loire; northwest and central; southwest and Pyrenees; Mediterranean and Pre-alps; Alps.

Hardwoods, oak (40%), beech and ash, etc., occupy fully 80%, while pine--the two species _silvestris_ and _maritima_, largely planted--represents the bulk of the 20% of coniferous forest area, fir, spruce and larch in the mountains forming a very small part.

Only 25% of the forest area is timber forest, 38% is coppice, and 35% coppice with standards, 2% being in process of conversion into timber forest. In the State forests alone, however, 68% are timber forest or in process of conversion to that form.

Of the 227 million acres, hardly more than one-third, belonging to state and communities, are placed under the _régime forestier_, i.e., supervised and managed under working plans. The larger area is under coppice.

Three-fourths of the communal and one-sixth of the state’s timber forest is managed under selection system. Combinations of farm and forest culture (_sartage_ and _furetage_) are still quite extensively practised. The production of saw-timber under these practices is naturally small. Of the 40 cubic feet of wood per acre produced in the better class of managed state and communal properties, only 10 cubic feet are saw-logs, and if the private forests were taken into consideration, the average product, on the whole would appear still smaller, the private properties being mostly small, poorly managed, and largely coppice. Neither the owners, nor their managers and guards have, as a rule, any professional education, although the means of obtaining it exist in the schools at Nancy and Barres.

Blessed for the largest part with a most favorable climate and with rich soil of tertiary formation, the difficulties in forestry practices experienced by other, more northern and continental countries are hardly known. Hence many practices which are successful in France might in Germany prove disastrous, and such yields as some of the oak forests show, unattainable.

The greatest interest for the forester attaches to the methods of conversion of coppice into timber forest, to the extensive areas reforested during the last century, which probably exceed 3 million acres, and to the reboisement work in the mountains.

1. _Development of Forest Property._

As in Austria, private ownership of forest property is largely preponderant, while state property is small.

In ancient Gaul, the Romans found the forest outside of holy groves as communal property. After the conquest, all the unseated lands, especially the extensive mountain forests, were declared either State or imperial property--more than half the whole territory--and were managed as _res publica_ by the administrators of public affairs. And while later, with the advent of the German hordes, property conditions shaped themselves somewhat according to their ways, the influence of the Roman law and institutions were never quite eradicated.

* * * * *

The country, outside of the public property, was by the Romans divided into communities, called _fundus_, each placed under a Gallic seigneur (_eques_), a former chief, now proprietor, his tribesmen and the remnants of the earlier sessile population becoming serfs. One-third of the _fundus_ was handed to the serfs as their property and divided among them--the first private property--; another third was retained by the seigneur and utilized by means of the service of the serfs (_corvées_), but usually also burdened by rights of user on their part; and the last third became common property of the community at large. There remained, however, here and there, also, some of the original free communes or Mark (_vicus_), so that five different property classes were in existence.

The 5th century saw the Teutonic tribes, Suevi, Alani, Vandals and Burgundians, overwhelm the Romans, who had for 500 years kept the Gallo-Celtic population under their rule; and these were followed by Visigoths and Franks, who in turn took possession of the country. The conquerors did not drive out the Gallo-Romans, but merely quartered themselves on them under the euphemistic title of “guests,” assuming to themselves two-thirds of each estate, and leaving the remainder to their “hosts.” On these lands, undoubtedly, similar economic and social institutions were developed as in Germany. Communal ownership under these was at first developed to such an extent that the Salic laws declared all trees which were not reserved by special sign as subject to the use of all and any of the Markers. But later, as in Germany, the socialistic Mark was followed by the feudal system with its ban forests and the creation of great landed proprietors or lords.

When Clovis, the king of the Franks, in the first decade of the 6th century defeated the Visigoths and took possession of the country (see p. 29), he found communal forests of the villagers (_vicus_), property of seigneurs (_equites_), royal forests and State forests, remnants of Roman origin. The latter properties and much of the Mark forests he claimed for himself and divided two-thirds among his vassals; but the larger part of the other third became also gradually property of the nobility and church, so that, by the 12th century, only a relatively small royal property remained. Afterwards, the royal or State property grew again in various ways, as the power of the kings grew. In 1539, Francis I declared the same inalienable. But neither himself nor his successors paid heed to this self-imposed prohibition and, whenever financial troubles made it expedient, they disposed of some of their holdings.

By the ordinance of 1566 (_Edit de Moulins_), King Charles IX again declared the domain of the crown inalienable. Nevertheless he himself in the same year, and repeatedly afterwards, sold parts of his domain. Henry III, in 1579, renewed the ordinance of non-alienation and restored some of the last parcels to the domain by the exercise of the royal right. Himself and his successors, however, continually broke this contract, and the royal domain decreased while that of the seigneurs grew. Similarly to what happened in Germany, the church property was taken by machination or force to increase the holdings of kings or seigneurs. Nevertheless, at the beginning of the revolution in 1789, the royal domain comprised not more than 1,200,000 acres, producing a net income of 1.2 million dollars. Then followed an era of ups and downs, continuous changes of policy, increases and decreases of the property until with the inauguration of the republic, in 1871, comparative stability was secured.

In 1791, after the revolution, the royal property became national domain, and by further spoliation of church property, and otherwise, attained an area of 4,300,000 acres. In the law of 1791, a distinction was made between the inalienable domain, which comprises roads, canals, fortresses, harbors, etc., and the alienable national domain, including the forest and other property derived from royal or crown domains. To this national domain was added, by the law of 1792, the forest property of the refugees of the revolution which was, however, later for the most part restored or indemnified. Finally, when, by the treaty of Basel (1795), the French frontier had been pushed to the Rhine, the total state forest had grown to around 6,500,000 acres, nearly one-third of the total forest area.

But, through sales and otherwise, this area had, by 1815, been reduced to 3,200,000 acres, and during the period until 1872, the area had been further again reduced to less than 2,500,000 acres. At present (1905) it comprises 2.9 million acres, or less than 12 per cent., of the total forest area, 55 per cent. of which comes from the original royal domain, 22 per cent. from original church property and 23 per cent. from recent acquisitions, secured under the laws of reboisement of mountains, sand dunes, etc.

The communal property developed largely in a similar manner as in Germany, from the Mark, and through the feudal system, with its rights of user as a result. In the twelfth century, the grandees or seigneurs were active in colonizing their domains, acquired as fiefs or otherwise, with serfs and others, giving them charters for villages with communal privileges and rights. Under this method, another kind of communal forest property grew up, by written instruments or contracts, in which limitations and reservations of rights are imposed by the seigneurs. One of the most usual conditions of the contract was the prevention of clearing or sale; at the same time a new set of rights of user, this time on the part of the seigneur, brought new complications. One of the worst features originating in the 14th century as an outgrowth of feudal relations, was “the right of the third” (_triage_), which gave to the seigneur, whenever he wished to exercise it, one-third of the property free of all rights of user. In this way, the communal area was diminished until, in 1667, the widespread abuse of this right led to an ordinance abolishing it. It was, however, re-established by the ordinance of 1669 in all cases where the forest had been gratuitously ceded by the seigneurs, or when the remaining two-thirds was deemed sufficient for the needs of the parish. Not until 1790-1792 was this exorbitant right finally abolished.

As an outgrowth of the revolutionary doctrine of 1793, the most radical legislation decreed presumptive ownership by the municipal corporations of all lands for which the claimant could not show a deed of purchase, excluding any title acquired as a result of feudal relations. The day of revenge of all old wrongs had come, and, appeal to justice being useless, the municipalities increased their holdings freely. Although later legislation attempted to arrest this public theft and to restitute some of the stolen property, much of the communal forest area of to-day consists of this kind of ill-gotten property.

Another method of increasing municipal properties was by exchange of territory for the rights of user. Efforts to get rid of these rights, which grew up as described and to prevent their extension were instituted much earlier than in Germany, Philip of Valois expressly forbidding such extension as early as 1346. Nevertheless they continued to grow so that, by the middle of the 18th century, they were as general and afforded as great a hindrance to forest management, as in Germany. The ordinance of 1669 also provided for the extinction of these rights, apparently without much success, and the troublesome times after 1789 increased their number. Only when the orderly regime following the reign of Napoleon gave rise to the Code Forestier (1827), was a systematic attempt for their extinguishment by the cession of territory and cash payment begun, and by this time the extinction may be considered practically concluded, at least for the state and communal property.

Private property, not seignorial, was but little developed before the 16th century; after that the frequent sales by the kings and barons gave rise to small forest owners, so that, by 1789, over 10 million acres were in such possession. During the 19th century this grew by purchase, by cessions, and by reforestation of waste lands to double that amount, not less than two million acres being added by the latter cause alone, while some decrease came from clearings.

In 1905, private holdings comprised 15 million acres or 65 per cent. of the total; the communal and institutional forests 4.8 million acres or 21 per cent., leaving for State forest 2.9 million acres, or a little over 12 per cent. of the total of 22.7 million acres. Twenty-two per cent. of state and communal property is, however, waste land, and such areas in private hands may be six times as large; there being altogether between 14 and 15 million acres of waste lands.

2. _Development of Forest Administration._

In the earlier times, and, indeed, into the 18th century, the most important use of the forest was in the mast from oak and beech for the pigs and pasture for the cattle, besides firewood, for which mostly the soft woods were used. This was given free from the royal domain, and the administration consisted mainly in regulating this use. The main incentive for the regulation of forest use on the part of the king were the interests of the chase.

Towards the end of the ninth century, special forest officers, _forestarii_, are mentioned in Charlemagne’s celebrated _capitularium_, which describes in detail the administration of the public domains. These were, to be sure, only lower rank officials, working under mayors, intendants and the count (_comes_), who was the administrator and soon independent arbiter of the royal domain as well as of the administration of justice in general. His office early became hereditary.