774 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



The Forest of Fontainebleau. 



here were gathered many thousands of french reserves, during the time that the german advance 

 was drawing close to paris. this is a well stocked middle aged stand of 



european oak. 



cut for fuel and construction work; 

 trees will be felled to block roads ; whole 

 stands may be leveled to clear the way 

 for artillery fire; and the rain of shot 

 and shell will do much damage to stand- 

 ing trees, much more than the damage 

 done similar forests in the Franco- 

 Prussian war. Equally serious will be 

 the havoc wrought by forest fires. These 

 will be set not only by accident, but also 

 purposely in order to harass the enemy. 

 This was the case in the Forest of Com- 

 piegne, which is said to have been fired 

 by the British in order to drive out the 

 Germans. While the fire may have 

 been effective from this point of view, 

 it also doubtless destroyed very largely 

 the natural beauty of the famous forest 

 and seriously disarranged the carefully 

 laid plans for its management. If the 

 war lasts as long as experts predict, it is 

 certain that large sections of the forests 

 in which the armies will operate will be 

 cut down for fire wood. To date it is 

 evident that there has been much 

 cutting' of young growth to use as 



screens in. hiding entrenchments and 

 masking batteries. Cathedrals and 

 other edifices are not the only objects 

 that have been devastated. Like the 

 cities and towns, the forests will for 

 many years bear unmistakable evidence 

 of the ravages of war, and in many cases 

 the damage done them will take much 

 longer to repair. 



And what of the character of the 

 forests which are having such an im- 

 portant influence on military operations 

 and which will in turn be so profoundly 

 affected by them? The achievements 

 of the French foresters in reforesting 

 large areas of barren sand dunes and 

 limestone wastes and in controlling 

 mountain torrents have been widely 

 proclaimed. Less is known, however, of 

 French forestry and forest conditions 

 in general, and a brief account of a few 

 typical forests in the war zone may 

 therefore be of interest at the present 

 time, 5 i 



Ndar Compiigne, the scene of Joan 

 of Arc''s capture in 1430 and of a Ger- 



