FORESTRY IN FRANCE. 283 
above 3000 feet, chiefly in Oran; while the Aleppo pine covers 
vast areas in all three departments. Among other trees which 
are also found in Provence may be'mentioned the maritime pine, 
the ash, the elm, the poplar, and the wild olive. The Zéen oak 
(Q. lusitanica), which is not found in France, occupies a large 
extent of country, the most important forest of this species being 
that of Beni Sala, in Constantine. The Thuya (Callitris quadri- 
valvis), a coniferous tree, of which the wood is extremely valuable 
for cabinet-making, is also found. In localities where the forests 
have been destroyed, a more or less dense growth of evergreen 
shrubs of various families, nearly all of them characterised by 
thick, coriaceous leaves, has sprung up, and a palm (Chamerops 
humilis) covers a large extent of waste land. 
On the hills sloping down to the plateau from the north and south, 
the most important trees are the Zéen oak and the cedar, the largest 
forests of the latter being those on the Aures, and at Belesma in 
Constantine, with that of Teniel-el-Had, in Algiers. The cedar 
(Cedrus atlantica) forests are usually found at altitudes above 
5000 feet, but they cannot at present be worked for want of roads. 
The Aleppo pine, the edible oak (Quercus Ballota), the elm, ash, 
and other trees, are also found in this region. The growth of 
trees upon the plateau itself is extremely poor, being confined 
almost entirely to a species of Zizyphus and a Pistacia ; but im- 
mense areas are covered with alpha grass (Stipa tenacissima), 
which is largely used for the manufacture of textiles and paper. 
The following is a statement of the forest areas which now 
remain in Algeria :— 
Square miles. 
Managed by the Forest Department— 
State forests, . ‘ ‘ ; : : , 7604 
Communal forests, . : : : y P 300 
—— (304 
Jot managed by the Forest Department— 
Communal and private forests, : ‘ : . 1211 
9115 
This amounts to a little more than 5} per cent. only of the total 
area of the country. The State forests, as well as those belonging 
to communes and private proprietors, are much cut up by patches 
of cultivated land ; while about one-half of the area managed by 
the Department is covered with scrub, and is not worthy of the 
name of forest. The demarcation of the State forests is making 
VOL. XI., PART Il. U 
