IMPRESSIONS OF FOREST ADMINISTRATION IN 

 BRITISH INDIA. 



By Theodore S. Woolsey, Jr. 



In the fall of 1904, the writer made a three months' trip to study 

 the methods of forest management in British India. The trip 

 included a visit to the sal forests around Dehra Dun ; to the spruce, 

 fir, chir pine and oak forests of the Himalaya Mountains at ele- 

 vations of from 5,000 to 10,000 feet; also a visit to the planta- 

 tions around Lahore. During this trip the writer had the oppor- 

 tunity of discussing administrative problems with a number of of- 

 ficers. This much is given by way of introduction to point out 

 why the writer has used the title "Impressions of Forest Ad- 

 ministration in British India." On the other hand, the Indian 

 Forester has been studiously read in the last five years and per- 

 haps a correct idea of some of the main points in Indian forest 

 administration has been gained. 



The climatic conditions in India make forest administration 

 very difficult for a white man. He must live in out-of-the-way 

 places ; he must wage a continual warfare with the climate, and 

 in less favorable localities — as in certain parts of Burmah — forest 

 officers are in danger of fever or other tropical diseases. Conse- 

 quently, the success of the administration is all the more remark- 

 able. Starting as it did in a small way, under the leadership of the 

 late Sir Dietrich Brandis, it has reached its present efficiency in a 

 period of less than 50 years. The success is largely due to the per- 

 sonnel. The pay is excellent, ranging roughly from $1400 for the 

 green Assistant Conservator of Forests to $6400 for the experi- 

 enced Conservator (District Forester), and at the end of 25 

 years' service, an average pension of $2500 per annum may be 

 expected. In the early days the officers were ordinarily trained 

 in France or Germany, but now there is a well-established school 

 at Oxford where officers receive the major part of their train- 

 ing, supplemented by tours and assignments in Continental For- 

 ests. Of course the subordinate force is paid far less than the 

 average laborer in this country — a fire watcher receiving perhaps 

 $2.50 a month, ivithout expenses — but one must make allowances 



