162 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N . Y . 



Tree Stumps Used for Wire Entanglements. 



the author says the military authorities have now dispensed with the use of tree stumps for this 

 purpose although many were so used in the first part of the war. 



same city. It was written by an ancient 

 officer, Monsieur de Metz Is^oblat, who 

 died soon after the beginning of the 

 present hostihties. 



The forests in the East, which were 

 the scene of some of the most violent 

 encounters at the beginning of the 

 campaign, were literally cut to pieces 

 by artillery fire. The trees within the 

 zone of fire were completely ruined. 

 The forests of the Argonne ha\'e suffered 

 particularly in this respect, while the 

 official French statements still mention 

 almost daily combats in the w^oods of 

 La Gnme, Le Pretre, de Forges, and 

 Champenoux, all of which must have 

 already suffered heavy damages. 



The wooded sections in the East have 

 endured the most terrible bombard- 

 ments. They are reduced to a ghastly 

 array of skeletons; torn to bits by the 

 bursting of shells; riddled by fire; 

 blackened with smoke, these forests 

 must be entirely cleared aw^ay and the 

 area reforested. 



In certain forests such as that of 

 Aran court, where the French troops lay 

 in concealment, and where the Germans 



attempted to dislodge them with artil- 

 lery fire, the shells were hurled upon 

 carefully calculated lines, which, con- 

 verging toward the outlet, rendered the 

 woods absolutely untenable. But after 

 the first effect of the bombardment 

 became visible, the French officers 

 ordered their men to rettirn to the 

 forest and take shelter in the craters 

 which had been made by the bursting 

 shells. In this manner the men were 

 so well protected from the enemy's fire 

 that few were killed or wounded, and 

 the position was held. But the bom- 

 bardment produced an enormous 

 damage. Such trees as were not cut 

 down by the fire were entirely denuded 

 of their branches. 



SHATTERED BY SHELLS. 



I have seen enormous trees cut down 

 as though they were mere tinder. 

 Thus, near Mont St. Eloi, by the towers 

 of the celebrated abbey and during the 

 destruction of which by bombardment, 

 I was a sad spectator, I saw^ a magnifi- 

 cent balsam poplar which had been cut 

 off at its base and which lav stretched 



