Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-10-01
GREAT FORESTS OF INDIA.
A System Which Affords a Revenue to
the Government.

A System Which Affords a Revenue to
the Government.
From the San Francisco Chronicle
B. Ribbeltrop, inspector general OF forests
for India, Is at the Occidental Mr. Ribben-
trop is away on an eighteen months leave
of absence. and is showing his daughter
some of the sights to be seen on a tour of
the world. They have been through AUS
tralia, ard arrived yesterday on the
steamer Monowai for a tour Of the United
States and Europe. incidentally. Mr. Rib
bentrop proposes to see something of the
big forests of the world.
After eighteen years OF legislation" %
he said. at the Occidental Hotel last even
ing. I'VE have succeeded in getting the
kind of laws We need in India for the pres
ervation of our forests. Under the system
now In vogue the perlnanency of the big
forests In India Is assured, and the govern
ment Will get handsome and permanent
income from them. Last year the govern
ment tecetv I'd 10 lakhs of rupees from the
sale of timber. One lakh is supposed to
be 10000. but it isn't, on account of the
is large. OF the 40 lakhs of rupees,
seventy lakhs were clear profit.
The government of India is gradually
obtaining possession of all the forest lamb
We now have $1,000 square miles of wooded
country under our supervision, in which all
claims have been proved and permanently
settled. When the English took India the
forests were In a bad way Under the
Hindcos they were well cared for and
then followed 800 years under Mahome:an
sway, when vast tracts of woodland were
burned TO create grazing lands for hocks.
when the English came a tide of western
civilization set IN Railroads were built
and houses were constructed, and these
improvements wrought such a sad destruc-
ton Of the forests of the country that the
government deemed it advisable to take
prudential steps.
Tie government at intervals gives no.
dce that it intends to take q certain piece
of forest land SO many miles in size and
claimants have six months in which to
appear and prove their claims. An individ-
ual or town, probably. has a prescriptiye
right to take building timber from the for
est in question. That right Is proved and
such trees as are marked by the inspector
can be cut. We handle the matter scienti-
ncally. and In such a manner that the for
ests are being continually renewed.
The study Of forestry in India ig differ
ent from what 1t is in Europe. In all Eu-
rope there are not more than seventy off
ferent kinds of forest trees. In Burmah
alone We have between LOCO and l,lOO
Some are very valuable. and many are not
and IT Is the propagation of the valuable
species and the wedding out of those that
are useless that requires much of our at
tention.
Il spent some time in inspecting the
forests of Australia. 1 admired them
greatly, but I cannot say that I admired
the manner in which they are looked after.
The hrst question / was asked when ar
rived In Australia was in relation to Aus
tralia's prospects for shipping timber TO
foreign markets. The people there would
cut down any stick Of timber II they could
profit by 1t. In India We think first of pre-
serving our forests and leok to. the profit
sfterWard,"