158 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



trating the rational principles upon which the little republic 

 works, maintaining close relationship between the general 

 and cantonal governments. The Federal authorities have 

 supervision over all cantonal, connnunal, and private forests 

 so far as they are " protective forests" ; but the execution of 

 the law rests with the cantonal authorities, under the inspec- 

 tion of Federal officers. "Protective forests" are those which, 

 by reason of elevation and situation on steep mountain-sides, 

 or on nuirshy soils on the banks of brooks or rivers, or 

 where a deficiency of woodland exists, serve as a protection 

 against injurious climatic influences, damages from winds, 

 avalanches, land-slides, falls of rock, inundations, &c. The 

 cutting in these forests is regulated so ■ as to insure a con- 

 servative use and to prevent destruction. Where needful re- 

 forestation is mandatory, the Federal and cantonal govern- 

 ments share in the expense, or may expropriate, with payment 

 of full indemnification to the owners. No diminution of the 

 forest area within the established area of supervised forest is 

 permissible, and replanting is prescribed where necessary ; nor 

 can township or corporation forests be sold without the con- 

 sent of the cantonal authorities. The national government 

 contributes from 30 to 70 per cent, of the cost for the 

 establishment of new forests, and from 20 to 50 per cent, 

 for planting in pi-otective forests. Where special difficulties 

 in reforestation are encountered, or where the planting is 

 deemed of general utility, the cantonal government assunies 

 the obligation of caring for and providing improvements in the 

 plantings. The employment of educated foresters is obligatory, 

 and, to render this possible, courses of lectures to the active 

 foresters are maintained in the cantons. There is also an 

 excellent forestry school at Zurich. 



In France, before the Eevolution, the Forest Code of 1G69 

 enjoined private ovkfuers to manage their forests upon the prin- 

 ciples on which the Government forests were managed, which 

 was by no means a very rational management, according to 

 modern ideas, yet was meant to be conservative and systematic. 

 During the Eevolution a law forbidding clearing for twenty- 

 five years was enacted ; and later laws, the most important of 

 which are those of 1860, 1862, and 1882, establish the con- 

 trol of the State over all "protective forests," and make 

 mandatory the reforestation of denuded mountains. Not only 

 does the State manage its own forest property (one-ninth 

 of the forest area) in approved manner, and supervise the 

 management of forests belonging to communities and public 

 institutions (double the area of the State forests) in a manner 

 similar to the regulation of forests in Germany, but it extends 

 its control over the large area of private forests by forbidding any 

 clearing except with the consent of the forest administration. 



