DISPOSAL AND SALE OF LITTER. 779 



either been commuted [by purchase, or by granting a forest 

 area to the commune which held the right. Tr.], or are now 

 in process of commutation, so that no plan of operations for 

 the removal of litter is required. In Prussia the local forest 

 official is authorised, according to the actual requirements of 

 the people, to open those forest areas for the removal of litter 

 which are best able to bear it. 



SECTION VII. MODE OF DISPOSAL AND SALE OF FOREST- 

 LITTER. 



1. Persons icho may remove Litter. 



Owing to the great prejudice to wood production caused by 

 the removal of litter, this usage is not considered as a regular 

 form of forest utilization, as in the case of wood and other 

 minor produce ; but unless there is any actual right of user, 

 it should be permitted only as an extraordinary concession 

 for otherwise irremediable agricultural distress. Thus, litter 

 is granted by a forest official only to right-holders, or by 

 special permit. In both cases the amount granted is limited 

 by silvicultural requirements, as laid down for instance in the 

 plan of operations, and in cases of urgent necessity even these 

 may be exceeded. 



(a) Right-holders. Eights to litter are generally unlimited 

 in amount ; even then they must be limited by the require- 

 ments of the right-holders, or by those of silviculture. It is 

 extremely difficult to decide what are the actual requirements 

 of the right-holders, so that silvicultural requirements may be 

 paramount. All national-economic laws in Germany prescribe 

 that rights to minor-produce from a forest must be so limited 

 in volume as not to endanger the production of wood. The 

 necessary limits are laid down in the plans of operation for 

 litter, which have been drawn up by competent persons, and 

 all grants of litter to right-holders must therefore be kept 

 within the limits prescribed in these plans. 



(b) Permit-holders. Permits to remove litter should be 

 given only to persons actually in need of it. 



It is evident that to supply litter too liberally to farmers 



