Development of Forest Policy. 333 



object of which was, as a first step towards improve- 

 ment, to survey and delimit and round off the State 

 property. It provided that enclaves, and all abso- 

 lute forest soil was to be expropriated. If no amicable 

 agreement with the owner could be reached, the price 

 was to be determined by the net yield which had 

 been obtained from the property during the last five 

 years, capitalized at 5 per cent. No attempts, how- 

 ever, at an efficient organization or change of the 

 destructive permit system were made. 



By general law, the State has the right to surveillance 

 of private property, although the extent of this right 

 is not fully defined. The government may take for 

 its own use, by paying for it, upwards of one-sixth of 

 the annual cut; it collects a tax of 12 to 18 per cent, 

 for all woodwork cut; it forbids the pasturing of woods 

 that have been burned within 10 years, and obliges 

 all owners of over 1200 acres to employ forest guards. 

 This and other interference with property rights 

 naturally acts as deterrent to private forest manage- 

 ment. A notable exception is the small private royal 

 forest property near Athens, which, since 1872 under 

 a Danish forester, appears to have been managed 

 under forestry principles. 



A thorough re-organization of the forest service 

 was effected in 1893, when 20 district foresters were 

 employed, the number of forest inspectors was in- 

 creased to four, and a regular Division. of Forestry 

 was instituted in the Finance Department. The 

 general police or gendarmerie was continued as forest 

 guards. Until a native personnel could be educated 

 by sending young men to Germany, foreigners 



