222 THE FORESTS OF ENGLAND. 



" Assart is the plucking up covert by the roots, and con- 

 verting the vert into tillage ; and Pizr reste is erecting 

 houses or enclosures in the forest, botb of them offences 

 against the forest laws, to be severely punished. Agistment 

 is the pasturage of the forest, or money received for this. 

 Pannage is the money received for mast, acorns, &c., eaten 

 by hogs : and Fence Moneth is the close time enacted for 

 the security of the game, at the time of dropping and 

 suckling the young." 



All of these, and many other subjects connected with 

 the game and venison, are discussed in the work. Included 

 amongst these are the designations to be employed in 

 describing the different animals at different ages, or in 

 herds, and the designation to be given to the different 

 parts of the animals and their cries, &c. 



With regnrd to designations given to wood, it is stated 

 by a writer in the Journal of Forestry : 



" Lop and Top is that part of the stem or body of the 

 tree, stripped of the branches, which in navy timber is cut 

 off by direction of the purveyor, as unfit for naval use ; 

 and in stolen timber that part which the thief either 

 voluntarily leaves behind him, or has not an opportunity 

 of conveying away. It frequently happens that these 

 tops contain timber fit for carpenters' or coopers' uses, 

 and sometimes knees and crooked timbers fit for small 

 vessels, but very rarely for king's ships. When they are 

 unfit for any of these uses they are cut into cordwood. 



" Cordwood consists of the boughs and branches of trees 

 cut into pieces a little over two feet in length, and gene- 

 rally about the thickness of a man's arm. Where the 

 branches happen to exceed that thickness, they are cleft 

 into two or more pieces to reduce them to that size, in 

 order to be made into charcoal. A cord of wood is a pile 

 of these pieces of the exact dimensions of 8 ft. 8 in. long, 

 4 ft. 4 in. high, and 2 ft. 2 in. thick, which last is the 

 length of each piece. 



"Lop, crop, and offal have all the same signification, 



