Current Literature. 703 



frosts ; the upper layers of the soil dry out considerably, and the 

 rains which are brought by westerly and southwesterly winds, are 

 intercepted and so reach the ground only in small quantities. A 

 cutting area is in optimum condition when it is fully open to the 

 rains, and at the same time shaded. In central Europe where the 

 prevailing westerly and southwesterly winds are the ones which 

 bring rains, natural reproduction springs up most readily on the 

 edge of a forest exposed to the northwest and north. Here the 

 dessicating effect of the midday sun is absent. Here the danger 

 from frost is not great, and here also the snow accumulates in 

 greatest quantities and, as it thaws gradually in the spring, helps 

 to conserve the winter moisture in the ground. Furthermore, the 

 formation of dew on these situations is greater and remains for 

 a longer time of the day. In a word, the northwesterly and 

 northerly walls or edges of the forest present the optimum con- 

 ditions of soil moisture. The cuttings on east and south sides or 

 edges of the forest are, on the other hand, exposed to the strongest 

 light and for the longest time and therefore suffer from drought 

 and frost and for this reason are not favorable to natural repro- 

 duction. An ideal direction in which cuttings should proceed is 

 from the northwest to southeast. Because of the danger from 

 wind he gives his cuttings an orientation from north to south. As 

 the cuttings are scattered and only small, narrow strips are 

 exposed to the wind, the damage from this source cannot be very 

 great in one place. 



The selection cutting in the form of narrow strips advocated 

 by Wagner has the advantage of providing conditions for natural 

 reproduction such as exist in a virgin forest. It affords an oppor- 

 tunity of making use not of one but of several good seed years ; 

 it can be practiced on very small areas and therefore adjusts itself 

 to different requirements of forest management. It makes pos- 

 sible to raise mixed stands in any desirable combinations. If it 

 is desired to have a predominance of tolerant species, the timber 

 on the strips is thinned very lightly and gradually; if, however, 

 intolerant species are preferred the crowns are thinned out more 

 fully. As a result of this system of cutting pure, even-aged 

 stands over large areas which are the necessary consequence of the 

 present day methods of forest regulation in the European forests 

 must disappear. In the last chapters of his book the author 



