50 



Another potent cause of destruction that will have to be checked consists in the 

 native practice of forest cultivation. The forest soil is naturally rich and mellow, and for 

 ages, the Natives have been accustomed to make their mealie gardens by clearing a portion of 

 forest and planting it with crops. In a few years the land became exhausted, and a fresh 

 piece of forest was cleared. Recently, however, the forests on the plains having nearly 

 disappeared from this and other causes, some of the mealie gardens had to be made else- 

 where ; but most of the forests may still be seen fringed with mealie gardens, which 

 fasten parasitically upon them and eat away into the boundary from every side, till there 

 are only a few patches left on ground too steep or stony for cultivation. 



This rude system of cultivation is the commonest among primitive races, and still 

 prevails in many parts of the world. It is as ancient as it is general, and probably was 

 the earliest mode of agriculture practised by man, being the easiest to races wanting 

 Implements, such as are used in the agriculture of the present day. 



One of the advantages of a demarkated forest is that it opposes a fixed front to en- 

 croachments of this kind ; whereas the forest edge itself becomes of too fleeting a nature 

 if it is adopted as the protective line. Inside the demarkated line, no cultivation 

 should be allowed except by special permission ; and when the forest is demarkated, notice to 

 quit should be given, in terms of Section 4 of the Squatter's Rent Law of 1884, to the 

 squatters found inside of the line adopted. 



LEGISLATIVE MEASURES NECESSARY. 



A Law should be passed to provide for the better protection of forests. Many forest 

 offences cannot be dealt with adequately under Common Law, and the want of special 

 legislation would be seriously felt. At present, the only enactments that relate to the Natal 

 forests are various Proclamations issued under Ordinance No. 4, 1853, namely, those dated 

 24th September, 1853, 1st March, 1867, and 26th September, 1882. The preservation of 

 forests has not been, and cannot be enforced with their aid. They are meagre and 

 unsatisfactory in the extreme, deal with certain offences, omit others eqnally serious, and 

 contain no provision to meet a single essential condition of forest management. They 

 have been worse than useless, because they have been allowed to remain a dead letter, 

 while legalising many ruinous practices, by omission, if not by commission. Considering 

 the rapid rate of destruction of the forests, and the almost total absence of convictions for 

 forest offences, it must be conceded that the various measures that have been taken in 

 the past have not been successful, and are not suitable to present circumstances. 

 Past attempts to protect forests have failed because of the want of proper laws and 

 of proper supervision. Stringent laws are required for forest protectiou. In India, the 

 first legislation was too lax and did not succeed ; the forest laws had to be strengthened 

 from time to time, till the Madras Act of 1882 was passed and found effective. The Cape 

 ITorest Act of 1888, based on the Madras Act, is proving very useful and marks an 



