336 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



Photograph by Underwood eV 



Underwood. n 



NOVEL EFFECT OF SHELL FIRE 



A German shell struck this tree adjacent to a French trench and it fell in such a manner as to im- 

 prove the fortification. An incident is related of how between Barcy and Varreddes the top of a 

 tree was blown off by a shell. In falling the severed part of the tree was caught on a projecting 

 branch and hung balanced in a horizontal position at right angles to the trunk, thus forming a 

 cross. Nearby are the graves of thirty French soldiers killed in September, 1914. 



have been subjected to the mili- 

 tary operations of this conflict. 

 He finds that, in general, the for- 

 ests at the front have been laid 

 waste ; the soil as well as the for- 

 ests themselves has been de- 

 stroyed. At those places where 

 the struggle has been most acute, 

 the land will have to be com- 

 pletely razed. With regard to 

 the trees injured by bullets, it 

 has been found that their 

 wounds, unlike those of man, do 

 not heal. After a few years the 

 trees die, and can then only be 

 used as firewood ; as they are 

 liable to rot, it is better to fell 

 them soon so as to obtain the 

 best possible use of them. 



The writer then discusses a 

 bill he has prepared with a view 

 to overcome the disaster caused 

 by this war, and in which he 

 suggests a thorough reconstruc- 

 tion of the ruined forests of h : s 

 country. The bill deals with 

 "the gravity of the damages 

 caused to our woods and forests ; 

 the calculation and the estimates 



of these damages, the means and 

 methods to be adopted in the re- 

 construction of the said forests; 

 the necessity of special legisla- 

 tion in connection with these im- 

 provements; the difficulties of all 

 kinds to be confronted in the 

 application of the present law ; 

 the solution of the problem in 

 the purchase by the state of all 

 forests affected." 



In explaining his bill, he ad- 

 mits that it will be difficult to 

 ascertain the whole extent of the 

 damages. A committee of ex- 

 perts would be entrusted with 

 this task. M. de la Roussiere, 

 general secretary to the Forest 

 Committee, is quoted as saying: 

 "About 515,000 hectares of our 

 forests are damaged. It is not 

 completely devastated, but in es- 

 timating the loss at two-thirds 

 we should not be far from the 

 truth. It will take at least a 

 century before our forests are 

 restored to their original condi- 

 tions." 



Referring once more to the 



Photograph by Underwood & Underwood. 



ONE LARGE SHELL DID THIS 

 This tree, within the French lines near Verdun, was destroyed by one large German shell. The shell 

 struck at the base of the tree and the splintered trunk is evidence of the tremendous shattering 

 power of the explosive with which the missile was loaded. 



