4 INTRODUCTION. 



Chemistry, Inorganic and Organic, including a knowledge 



of Soils. 

 Mineralogy and Geology. 

 Zoology, especially Entomology. 

 Botany. 



The study of natural history should be conducted ^Yith 

 special reference to forestry, but for economic forestry a 

 knowledge of mathematics is equally important. 



The present object is to place before the reader an account 

 of the more important branches of forestry itself. In doing 

 this, it is assumed that the student has acquired a sutiicient 

 knowledge of the sciences auxiliary to forestry. Before pro- 

 ceeding with that task, it is necessary to ex})lain a few terms 

 which are used in the following pages. 



The term "Forest'' has been used above. Although most 

 people know what a forest is, a definition of it which suits 

 all cases is by no means easy to give. In England, a forest 

 was formerly understood to mean an area Avhich was stocked 

 with deer ; such an area was more or less covered with trees and 

 shrubs, but not necessarily so. Thus Manivood, in his treatise 

 of the " Lawes of the Forest, 1598," defines a forest as follows : — 



"A forest is a certain territory of woody grounds, fruitful 

 pastures, privileged for wild beasts and fowls of forest, chase, 

 and warren, to nest and abide in, in the safe protection of the 

 King, for his princely delight and i)leasure, which territory of 

 ground, so privileged, is meered and bounded with unremov- 

 able marks, meers and boundaries, either known by matter of 

 record, or else by prescription," etc. 



This definition has in modern times, when the economic 

 aspect of forests came more into the foreground, given way to 

 others. Thus HtindcsluKjeii, in the early part of the nineteenth 

 century, understood by forest an area which contains wild 

 growing trees. This definition is not in all cases correct, 

 because many forests,* wliich now exist, were artificially 



* Even the greater part of J'Jjipiiiij fuifst sfcms to have been artificially 

 created, especially the [larts where hoinlunui pif\ ;iils. 



