vi PREFACE. 



books to the Forest have been published ; but 

 they do not enter with sufficient minuteness into 

 topographical details to serve as a handbook to 

 the stranger who desires to penetrate the wilder 

 parts of the wood. An essential part of my 

 scheme is that the descriptions should be accom- 

 panied by correct maps of a scale sufficiently 

 large to facilitate identification of the leading 

 features. Taking the official map published by 

 the conservators, which is of the scale of 3 inches 

 to the mile, I have divided it into sections of a 

 convenient size, which, after careful correction, 

 have been engraved with great care by Mr. Stan- 

 ford, to whose manager, Mr. Bolton, my acknow- 

 ledgments are especially due. 



To the Itinerary I added an historical chapter, 

 believing that those who use the Forest would 

 wish to know the influences which, centuries ago, 

 made it what it is, and how it came to be rescued 

 for their enjoyment. For some very useful sug- 

 gestions bearing on this part of the work I have 

 to thank Sir Arthur Hobhouse and Mr. Robert 

 Hunter, than whom no men are better acquainted 

 with the legal aspects of the question. 



I find that the most intelligent interest is taken 

 in our woodlands by those who there pursue their 

 studies in one or other of the branches of Natural 

 History. Many of them are of humble station ; 

 but as members of societies, which are very 

 numerous in London, of botanists, ornithologists, 

 fungologists and microscopists, they are enthusiastic 



