THE CREATION OF AN IDEAL. 



By James B. Berry. 



While the correlation of theory and practice in American forest 

 schools is usually very good, it is, one must admit, far from per- 

 fect, since the student is not brought into actual contact with 

 practical problems until after his period of training is over and 

 he is on a salaried basis. In other words, his possibilities, 

 whether great or small, remain dormant during his period of 

 training, and it remains for his employer to bear the expense of 

 his further development, to see whether he possesses the "making" 

 of a forester. Certainly this is unjust to the employer, for he 

 must shoulder the responsibility of the student's training with- 

 out any guarantee that the time and expense will be repaid. As 

 conditions become intensive and competition stronger the dis- 

 crepancies of the present system will become more api,-arent and 

 will, undoubtedly, be righted in the process of economic evolution, 

 which will in all probability be somewhat similar to that wMch 

 has taken place in Germany. The German forestry student must 

 have completed four years of work of University grade before he 

 may come up for the State examination, the successful comple- 

 tion of which entitles him to further training and a position in 

 the Government Service. Up to this time he may or may not 

 have had "field work" — if he is the son of a forest ofificial, his 

 training has been very good indeed ; otherwise the chances are that 

 he has had little training outside of his University or Forest 

 School courses.* That is to say, to the son who expects to follow 

 his father in the profession, come greater opportunities than 

 come to the man whose father is in another profession. Before 

 completing the four-year course of study it is possible for the 

 student to have obtained considerable practical experience, either 

 through inspection of operations on various forests or by secur- 

 ing actual employment in a survey or estimating crew ; although 



*The writer overlooks that in most German State forest services, the 

 young men entering the forestry career are required to spend one-half 

 to one year on a forest under guidance of the manager, doing practical 

 work and becoming acquainted with the business. — Editor. 



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