THE APPRAISAL OF DAMAGES 1 29 



than the value of the wood, and, under definition b, this difference 

 in value for the entire property must be the basis of damage. 



For such losses, affecting the value of the entire property, 

 the appraised loss in sale value is the safest guide, as it eliminates 

 sentiment or personal considerations ( i^d). 



Were the general public fully alive to prospective values of 

 young timber and of forest lands, and agreed upon the rate of 

 interest which should apply to forest investments, and if a suffi- 

 cient movement in forest real estate existed so that these opinions 

 could be crystallized by sales, there is no doubt that sale value 

 for immature timber would approximate its real value so closely 

 that it might be accepted as a basis for damages as readily as 

 the sale value of mature or saleable trees. This would be an 

 immense advantage, as there is never any objection to accept- 

 ing sale values whenever they are evidently just to the owner. 

 But with the growing of trees as a business still in its infancy, 

 or perhaps not practiced at all, the sale value of such young 

 timber is likely to be far below its capital or expectation value. 

 Under principle c ( 133) a great injustice would be done the 

 owner by accepting such a basis of settlement. 



In regions where immature timber is commonly regarded as 

 having little if any value, the claimant must prove the injus- 

 tice of such valuation by demonstrating his intention and ability 

 to bring the young trees to maturity and to realize the ultimate 

 revenue. It would be difficult for a lumberman who customarily 

 abandons his lands to fire, to do this. But the United States 

 Forest Service has no trouble in proving the value which it 

 places upon such young growth. In regions where forestry is 

 extensively practiced, and upon lands which the owner has had 

 under management, such as plantations, not only will sale value 

 more nearly approximate real value, but it will be easier to secure 

 the true expectation value independent of the standard set by 

 sales. 



139. A Basis of Damages: Expectation or Capital Value. 

 Not only does sale value fail to establish the value of property 

 to the owner for his own use, when this value is unfamiliar to the 

 public at large, but it frequently happens that there are no sales 



