Forest Administration in British India. 627 



for the unreliability of the native laborer and the necessity for 

 close supervision in considering the net cost of labor. The 

 ranger force is well trained at Dehra Dun, and allowing for the 

 native temperament, they may be said to be an excellent body of 

 men. 



A practical business administration stands forth as the foremost 

 achievement. A substantial net revenue can always be assured. 

 In the business success of the forest administration, economy, 

 as well as the development and exploitation of the natural re- 

 sources, have played important parts. Possibly in some parts 

 of India there has been serious over-cutting due to the keen de- 

 sire to secure financial results. For instance, it has been stated 

 that the sandalwood forests have been depleted in order to enrich 

 the exchequer. 



Perhaps the most delicate problem which the forest administra- 

 tion has had to face is how to deal with the natives. An amicable 

 settlement of the grazing and forage problems has often re- 

 quired great diplomacy. Even in fire protection the native must 

 be carefully handled, since in case of a large fire the untrained 

 coolie must often be relied upon. Even the effect of the restric- 

 tion of wanton timber cutting on local sentiment must be weighed ; 

 in almost every forest there is the so called "village forest" which 

 apparently is mutilated and grazed at will. 



Fire protection in British India it seems to me has been suc- 

 cessful. In the "protected forest" there are carefully planned fire 

 lines, supplemented by a corps of fire watchers and fire fighters. 

 Especially dangerous meadows are periodically burned over and 

 natural water courses are often improved to make broad fire 

 breaks. In the chir pine forests in the mountains the fire lines 

 usually run along ridges and there are many arguments presented 

 locally in favor of not entirely clearing the line, but maintaining 

 a scattered pine forest upon it in order to reduce the cost of 

 clearance. The lines are burned periodically; first guide lines 

 (their width equals height of grass plus or minus) are cut on 

 each border of the main fire break, then when the grass is suf- 

 ficiently dry, the whole break is burned under close control. 

 There are numerous instances, however, where fires have es- 

 caped while these lines are burned, owing to the blaze unex- 

 pectedly getting out of control. 



