The Monticellonian., 1915-01-21

as reserve to the end of the third
year, when they become partly for
ested. Sheep are the first animals ad-
mitted to the new pastures. as they
do not rise on their hind legs to de-
YOUR the growing tops of the plants.
Then, the year after opening to the
sheep, the cattle are admitted, as
these also do not reach the tops, and,
finally one year still later, the goat is
admitted. the shrubbery being now
high enough to care for itself.
Parallel plots of these reserves gre
laid out over the province, so that
when plot No. l is entirely reserved,
in the next there are sheep and its
neighbor has sheep and cows. In the
fourth, sheep, cows and goats Craze
together. Each year the previous re-
serve will be ready for sheep and the
other areas each advance one stage, so
that, eventually, the entire barren Her
zegovina will be fertile and green.
Some dozen years ago we intro
duced the latest innovation, /. e., the
resurrection idea. A field is taken by
the government, cleared of everything,
declared reserve and then the weeds,
which had previously been crushed by
the nibbling of cattle and smaller
herds, so that they sent out several
sideshoots, instead of one main stalk,
are permitted to rise. Then such
plants as are harmful to the majority
are cut out and the land allowed to
green with the others. The venture is
paying one and thousands of acres
have been covered by the process.
Still another way of fighting the
havoc done through the centuries by
the goat is in sowing vast amount of
seeds over the barrens by hand We
have very strict forestry laws in this
region and violations are subject to
Imprisonment. Instead of falling the
men, however, they are set to gather
ing seeds, which is far more pleasant,
/ being out in the open, than remaining
in the cells.
Water Must Be Conserved.
Conservation of the water, too,
needs to be considered along with the
| forest In the winter we now have
too much water by far in the deserts
and in the summer not nearly enough.
! Streams dry up. and when 1t rains
the water is sucked into the soil be-
/ fore it can trickle down the noun
tains, the stones carrying it off and
causing it to disappear until Deem
Der, when the country is flooded.
Government cisterns have to be built.
in consequence each city keeping her
eisterns clean. and in July and August
each year laws are passed regulating
how much water each householder
may draw
"At such times the goats and cattle
are driven into the mountains by the
children, six to eight hours distance,
TO find running water and pasturage.
Into the Bosnian Alps the cattle and
sheep and horses and goats are driven
together The pastures there are
guarded by the government, and it Is
fixed just who may pasture in given
area and exactly how many head Of
animals he may bring into such a
space, in order to prevent the ruina-
ton of grazing. The end of April wit
nesses thousands of goats driven into
the mountains for the summer. Herd
ers from each family accompany, and
these spend the summer on the peaks,
making cheese and white, round cakes
of lard or butter, from which the folk
will live in the winter"
Now, though, the war has changed
all this. Most of the goats have been
driven off, along with the cattle and
horses, for the armies of Franz Jozef.
What remain must be tended by the
women, who must also look after
their homes, tend the wounded as they
come back, and bury the dead Mean
while the reserves are being plundered
by such animals as remain and the
guards to these are busy elsewhere
Havoc, ruin will result, and destruc-
ton from which the region will not
recover for weary decades to come.