PART III. 



CHAPTER I. 



THE OBJECTS OF COVERING MOUNTAINS WITH 

 FOREST-TREES. 



THE aforesting of mountains has for its object the 

 creation of a forest vegetation, which should pervade the 

 soil with a net of numerous roots and rootlets in order 

 to bind the soil, especially on the steep slopes, and to 

 prevent its dissolution or sliding down into the valleys 

 by heavy rain storms which underwash the surface soil. 



The forests of mountains are furthermore destined to 

 furnish to the lower situated, cultivated parts of a 

 country an effective and lasting shelter against meteoro- 

 logical influences, especially against the fury of strong 

 winds. When a tempest beats upon the denuded slopes of 

 a mountain, it will shake the boulders, catch up the stones 

 and overturn isolated trees. These obstacles, far from 

 calming the storm, will redouble its fury; it will re- 

 bound and form in the valleys tornadoes which devastate 

 everything that is lying in their way. But when it strikes 

 a wooded slope, each tree, each branch will bend under 

 the force of the wind, but will check its force by its 

 elasticity ; the hurricane will be sifted and absorbed by 

 the woods. 



But the principal advantage of wooded mountains 

 consists in the furnishing :m<l regulating of a continual 

 flow of water to the lower situated regions. Usually the 

 surface soil of mountains is not very thick and, there- 

 fore, unable to retain, for a long time, the quantity of 

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