86 ANNUAL REPORT OF 



about $80,000. The annual sale of the raw material from 

 the state forests averages $150,000. The number of 

 acres annually reforested with trees is 1 50. The method 

 of reforesting varies according to the different species of 

 trees and the local conditions; but seeding, whether arti- 

 ficially or naturally, is used only for the oak and the 

 beech. For other kinds, such as the fir, pine, larch and 

 chestnut, reforesting is done by planting. Generally 

 good care is taken to maintain a sustained yield. In re- 

 gard to cutting, the practice is to cut only those trees 

 which have reached fiscal maturity and those that are 

 dead or about to die. 



Only a very small number of forest fires are caused by 



railway locomotives. The forest service has much im- 

 portance in the protection of mountainous land and in the 

 control of water. The annual salary of the chief in- 

 spector of the forests of the first class is 6,000 lire; that 

 of the chief inspector of forests of the second class, 5,000 

 lire; that of inspector of forests of first class, 4,000 lire. 

 The Minister of Agriculture generally publishes a detailed 

 report on the administration of the forests every five or 

 six years. 



NORWAY. 



STATE FORESTS. 



The extent of the public and semi-public forests, ac- 

 cording to the latest returns, cover an area of 546,932 

 hektars of coniferous trees and 369,967 hektars of folifer- 

 ous trees (almost exclusively birch), making together 

 916,899 hektars, estimated at a total value of Kr. 

 34,720,837, no consideration having been taken to 

 rights of use (usufruct) connected with the forests. The 

 average value of the woodland makes thus about Kr.37,86 

 pr. hektar. 



