The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1894-04-18
FOREST PROTECTION.
LAWS FoRBIDDING THE DESTRUCTION
OF TIMBER IN EUROPE.

Governments Have Supervision Over Pri-
waite as Well as National and Communal
Forests-Reforesting Carried on by Es-
tablished Departments.
In Germany the various governments
own and manage, i'll conservative
spirit, about one-third of the forest
area, and they also control the manage
ment of another sixth, which belongs to
villages, cities and public institutions,
in so far as these communities are
obliged t. employ expert foresters and
must submit their working plans to the
government for approval, thus prevent
ing improvident and wasteful methods
The other half of the forest property,
| in the hands of private owners, is man.
aged mostly without interference. al
| though upon methods similar TO those
employed by the government, and by
| trained foresters, who receive their edu-
cation in one of the eight higher and sew
! eral lower schools of forestry which the
various governments have established.
The several states differ in their laws
regarding forest property. OF the pri-
vate forests 20 per cent are without any
control whatever, while 30 per cent are
subject to supervision, so far as clearing
and devastation are concerned.
The tendency on the part of the gov
eminent has been rather toward persua-
sive measures. Thus in addition to buy
ing up or acquiring by exchange and re-
foresting waste lands-some 800, 900
acres have been so reforested during the
last % years-the government gives as
sistance to private owners in reforesting
their waste land. During the last 10
years $500, 900 was granted in this way.
III Austria, by law adopted i'll 1852,
not only are the state forests-compris-
| ing less than 30 per cent of the total
| forest Internationally managed and
the management of the communal for
ests-nearly 40 per cent-officially su-
pervised, but private owners-holding
| about 80 per cent-are prevented from
devastating their forest property to the
detriment of adjoiners. No clearing for
| agricultural use can be made without
| the consent of the district authorities,
from which, however, an appeal to n
civil judge is possible who adjusts the
conflict of interests.
Any cleared or cut forest must be re-
planted or reseeded within five years
On sandy soils and mountain sides clear
ing is forbidden, and only culling of the
ripe timber is allowed.
In Hungary, also, where liberty of
private property rights and strong OBJ
lection to government interference had
been jealousy upheld, complete reac-
ton set in some 10 years ago, which led
to the law of 1880, giving the state con-
troll Of private forest property as in Aus
| tria
Under n law adopted in Italy in 1888
the department of agriculture, in coop
Grafton with the department of public
| works ana IN consultation with the for
estal committee of the province and the
respective owners is to designate the
territory which for public reasons must
be reforested under governmental con-
troll
The owners may associate themselves
for the purpose of reforestation and for
the purpose may then borrow money at
low interest from the State Soil Credit
institution, the forest department con-
tributing three fifths of the cost of re-
forestation upon condition that the work
is done according to its plans and within
the time specified by the government.
In Russia until lately liberty to cut
burn, destroy and devastate was unre-
stricted, but i'll 1883 IL comprehensive
and we'll considered law cut off, so far
as this can be done on paper, this liberty
of vandalism. For autocratic Russia
this law is rather timid and is in the ma
ture of compromise between commu-
nal and private interests in which much
if not all depends on the good will of
the private owner.
A federal law was adopted III SwitZer-
land in 1876 which gives the federation
control over the forests of the mountain
region embracing eight entire cantons
and parts of seven others, or over H. OO,-
600 acres of forest. The federation itself
does not own any forest land, and the
cantons hardly 100 600 acres somewhat
over per cent of the forest area, two
t0lTuS Oh WnlCu ID ucll III Spbiihuh"A
ownership and the rest by private own
ers
The federal authorities have supervi-
sion over all cantonal, communal and
private forests, so far as they are pro
| tective forests, but the execution OF the
law rests with the cantonal authorities
under the inspection of federal officers
In France not only does the state man
age its own forest property, one-ninth
of the forest area, in approved manner,
and supervise the management of for
ests belonging to communities and other
public institutions, double the area Of
state forests in manner similar to the
regulation of forests in Germany, but it
| extends its control over the large area of
private forests by forbidding any clear
ing except with the consent of the forest
administration. Magazine.
a,