NATIONAL FOREST GR.\ZING POLICY 25 



little value, and the large forested areas were held by the nobles, 

 kings, and emperors as breeding grounds for game and as tracts 

 for hunting. The peasant population that was located conven- 

 iently near these game preserves was allowed, free of charge, the 

 privilege of grazing cattle, horses, sheep, goats, and hogs, and of 

 cutting fuel wood and some timber under certain restrictions. 

 No restrictions were placed upon the use of the range or the tim- 

 ber so long as it did not seem to interfere more or less directly 

 with the breeding and proper protection of the game, or with 

 hunting. 



These conditions existed in Germany up to about 1800, when 

 the need for conserving and increasing the forest resources was 

 keenly felt, and the practice of forestry was given serious con- 

 sideration by the Govermnent. With a rapidly diminishing 

 supply of meat and timber and the consequent necessity of im- 

 proving the productivity of the range lands and the methods of 

 handling livestock, as well as of resorting to more intensive silvi- 

 cultural methods, the free use of the forage and timber crops 

 was found to be a great nuisance. In the Spessart Mountains 

 in Bavaria, for instance, there are vast Goverrmient forests of 

 oak and beech. In order to maintain a maximum stand of these 

 timber trees, it is necessary to protect the acorn and beechnut 

 mast, at least at periodic intervals. But this rich mast affords 

 a most palatable and fattening feed for range hogs, and the seed 

 crop is annually used for that purpose. The practice of running 

 hogs on these beech and oak lands is quite extensive. As a 

 consequence, pork is often produced, and the reproduction of 

 the forest is prevented. 



By proper regulation it is probable that both livestock and 

 timber industries could be carried on successfully. However, 

 as the peasants for so long a time have enjoyed the privilege of 

 providing themselves with firewood and of using the range lands, 

 their privileges have by law become unquestionable property 

 rights, and the practice apparently can be overcome only in one 

 of two ways — by the Government's purchasing the privileges 

 from the claimants as property rights, or by the legislature's 

 voting away prescriptive rights entirely. It is not probable that 



