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KINGDOM OF PRUSSIA ; REPORT OF CONSUL WAMER OF COLOGNE. 



FOREST AREA IN THE PRUSSIAN MONARCHY. 



The total area of the Prussian Monarchy amounts to 35,479,536 hectares.* 

 Of this amount 8,124,521 hectares are forests, being an equivalent of 23.33 per 

 cent, of the total area. It may be stated that this estimate includes all land 

 devoted to the culture of wood. 



The apportionment of the forests is as follows : 



(a) 29.4 per cent., equivalent to 2,374,039 hectares belong to the State. 



(6) 11.9 per cent., equivalent to 983,727 hectares belong to the Communes. 



(c) 1.5 per cent., equivalent to 122,759 hectares belong to institutions. 



(d) 2.1 per cent., equivalent to 170,063 hectares belong to corporations. 



(e) 55.1 per cent., equivalent to 4,473,933 hectares belong to private 

 individuals. 



Under the same heads the Rhenish Province and the district of Cologne have 

 the following area respectively : 



RHENISH PROVINCE. COLOGNE. 



Hectares. Hectares. 



(a) 143,284 (a) 11,766 



(b) 321,019 (b) 7,358 



(c) 7,149 (c) 1,773 



(d) 15,303 (d) 1,201 



(e) 342,687 (e) 98,284 



The forests of Prussia stretch from the Baltic coast over the mountains of 

 the Sudeten, Hartz, Thuringia, Teutoburg, Meissner, Taunus, Rhon, and the slate 

 mountains of the Lower Rhine. 



According to a rough estimate, 4,043,800 hectares of forest area are level, 

 2,089,500 hectares are hilly, and 1,991,200 hectares are mountainous. 



GOVERNMENT SUPERVISION OVER COMMUNAL FORESTS. 



Although the Communes are left free to manage the Communal forests, the 

 State government reserves for itself certain rights over the general administra- 

 tion in order to prevent any mismanagement or abuses. For instance, in West- 

 phalia and the Rhineland, which embrace this consular district, the communities 

 and public institutions are left free to administer their own forests, but at the same 

 time the government gives certain instructions regarding the culture and 

 utilization of the forests, which, the local authorities are bound to carry out without 

 any alteration on their part not first consented to by the government. Whether 

 it is considered best that the Commune should appoint the officials intrusted 

 with the supervision of the forest is left to the discretion of the government. 

 In leaving the election of the forest officials to the Communes, they are to elect 



*Consul Warner says : Considering the vast amount of technical knowledge required to fully com- 

 prehend the whole system of forest culture in Prussia, I have found it extremely difficult in preparing 

 a report on this subject, and I am greatly indebted to Oberforstmeister (head forest master) von Wurmb, 

 chief sf the forest departmpnt oP the Governrrent district of Cologne for such information. 



One hectare is equivalent to 2.471 acres. 



The total area of forest in the Empire of Germany is 13,900,611 hectares, or 55 per cent, of the 

 total land area. 



