122 SERBIA - AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY IN GENERAL 



Kach district administration comprises a cliief administrator who is 

 at its head, several subordinate administrators and a suitable number 

 of keepers. The chief administrator must have studied in a secondary' 

 and the subordinate administrators in a secondary or primary school of 

 forestr}', while the keepers must have followed simple courses of instruc- 

 tion in forestry. As there are no schools in Serbia for this branch of know- 

 ledge the administrators, both chief and subordinate, must have studied 

 abroad ; but the courses of instruction in forestry for the keepers take 

 place in Belgrade. 



The central forest administration is part of the Ministry of Agricul- 

 ture, Industr3' and Commerce, forming that one of its five sections which 

 is called the forestry section. This has economic and jurisdictory^ divisions, 

 of which the former directs the forest policy of the country, while 

 the latter has charge of the delimitation of forest landed property' and of 

 summonses to appear in cases of contravention of the law in matters pe^ 

 taining to forests. 



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If we study sylviculture in vSerbia with any depth we perceive its two 

 principal defects : 



i) The division into forest departments, that is into forest departmen- 

 tal administrations, is inadequate. The departments are too vast : it is 

 impossible for the administrator to superintend and control forestry 

 within one of them and to adopt opportune measures in good time. This 

 division must therefore be completely recast, less extent must be given to 

 the departments, and the staff employed in each of them must be increased. 



2) Reforestation, which has certainly been somewhat neglected, should 

 be the object of more care. We have stated that the woods of New Serbia 

 occupy only 15 per cent, of the total area while more than 60 per cent, 

 is fitted for sy-lviculture. It is therefore necessary to reforest if not all 

 the extent of territory admitting of reforestation at least a considerable 

 part of it. 



In OldvSerbia, where the woods occupy 31.4 per cent, of the total area, 

 the problem is easier to solve : the matter is merely one of building up the 

 woods in proportion to the amount of tree-felling done. The law makes 

 reforestation compulsory only in the case of felling for a commercial or in- 

 dustrial object All other felling, whatever its object, has the effect of 

 thinning the woods. It is therefore absolutely necessary to render refor- 

 estation compulsory in every case, and in every wood, whether public or 

 private. 



