CLEARING THE FELLING-AREA. 263 



2. Purpose of the Clearance. 



The wood is removed generally from the felling-area before 

 selling it, for different reasons : first, to facilitate the estima- 

 tion of the yield of the felling in quantity and quality ; then, 

 for silvicultural reasons, and finally, to improve the forest 

 revenue. 



The first of these objects is obvious, and wherever the 

 estimation of the yield depends on the clearance, that is clearly 

 a part of the classification of the timber which has been already 

 described (p. 254). The wood must be stacked in assortments 

 in the forest depot, and the woodcutter who assists in removing 

 it from the felling-area must understand the local classification 

 of the material. 



It is evident also that the removal of the material must act 

 beneficially on the growing-stock, and that the preservation of 

 the latter is much better secured when the forest-manager 

 controls the clearance of the felling-area, than when the 

 indifferent or careless wood-merchant deals with it, and is, 

 therefore, admitted into all parts of the forest. Besides, 

 in many conditions of the standing-crop it is essential that the 

 converted material, which must remain in the forest until it is 

 removed by the purchaser, should without delay be withdrawn 

 from the felling-area, so that the latter may be left free and 

 undisturbed for silvicultural operations. This is above all 

 necessary in the case of coppice and coppice- with -standards, 

 and also in natural regeneration-fellings in high forest. 



The collection of the produce of a felling in depots accessible 

 to ordinary carts, and which offer no difficulty of access to 

 timber-merchants, must act beneficially on the prices and 

 increase the forest revenue. Experience proves clearly that 

 money carefully spent in this way will repay itself amply ; 

 even if there were no other objection to the clearance being 

 effected by the purchaser, it is evident that the forest-manager 

 can do the work cheaper than the individual purchasers of 

 different lots. 



3. Choice of a Forest-Depot. 



In order to secure the above objects as thoroughly as possible, 

 the proper choice of an area to serve as a forest-depot is highly 



