THE ZURICH WOODS. 39 



that it has seldom risen or fallen more than 5 per cent. The 

 single marked exception to this rule occurred quite unavoidably 

 in the period between 1885 and 1888, when a terrible snowstorm 

 upset temporarily the normal course of action. This snowstorm, 

 which occurred so early as September 28th, in the year 1885, 

 completely destroyed 250 acres of most beautiful beech forest, 

 and caused a great deal of injury to all the woods. The first 

 clearance, made immediately after the storm, showed that 

 432,000 cubic feet of timber had been destroyed, but later 

 operations connected with the removal of damaged material 

 brought the total up to 1,200,000 cubic feet (British measure). 



One can imagine the chaos that would reign in the hitherto 

 orderly forest, and the feeling of despair that must have pos- 

 sessed the Forstmeister. To him it must have seemed that the 

 elaborate system of forest conservancy for which the Zurich 

 woods are famous, and over which he and his predecessors in 

 office had so patiently toiled, was hopelessly disorganised. But 

 such is the healing power of time and labour, that to-day the 

 forest shows but little trace of the catastrophe, and the annual 

 yield, far from being lessened, has materially increased. 



Income from the Forest. 



The forest now provides an average return of 30s. 6d. 

 (9570 fr. per hectare) net profit per acre each year. This sum 

 is mainly derived from the forest itself, 79*40 fr. being thus 

 obtained, the works of utilisation accounting for the remaining 

 16-30 fr. In other words, forest management alone produces 

 83 per cent, of the profit, and the conversion of the raw material 

 17 per cent. The gross annual income is 97s. 6d. per acre, 

 and the expenditure 67s. per acre. Such expenditure appears 

 at first sight almost excessive, and it is improbable that any 

 other forest district in Europe spends so large a sum. The 

 explanation, of course, lies in the intensive treatment which the 

 forest receives, and its justification is found in the high and 

 steady income which accrues. 



The Forest Staff. 



At the head of the controlling staff is the Stadtforstmeister. 

 He has the assistance of a highly-trained assessor, a secretary 

 and office clerk. There are some five foresters, or gangers, 



