FIELD-CROPS IX FORESTS. 537 



would grow without manure. The land was subsequently put 

 under pasture. It then became gradually restocked with trees by 

 means of coppice-shoots and seeds coming from adjoining woods. 

 In Europe this barbarous manner of destroying forests and 

 using the burned area for field-crops or pasture is still followed 

 in Finland, Northern Sweden, certain parts of Eussia and here 

 and there in the Alps and Carpathian mountains. In other 

 localities a regular utilisation of the wood has been introduced, 

 only the unsaleable parts being burned, as well as the shrubs and 

 soil-covering. Such a system is still in force in the Swiss 

 cantons of Luzern and Wallis. The wood on these areas is 

 felled every 10 — 20 years, the stumps extracted, and the refuse 

 burned ; potatoes or corn are then grown for a few years, when 

 the land is abandoned to forest growth or used for pasture. 

 Gradually, woody growth reappears, and after a number of years 

 the same treatment is repeated. In the district of Birkenberge 

 in LoAver Bavaria, a similar system, now falling into disuse, was 

 followed in woods chiefly stocked with birch and spruce trees ; 

 but in this case, a few standard trees were left to give seed, and 

 the land constantly subjected to pasture and removal of litter 

 after 2 — 3 years of potato or corn crops had been harvested. 

 Some districts of the Eeutberge in the Black Forest may be 

 mentioned here, as the cultivation of trees is quite subordinated 

 to that of field-crops. Some of the better tracts in the Reut- 

 berge are, however, managed more in accordance with the system 

 which will be described in paragraph 4. 



[In many hill-districts in India, a similar custom, termed jhujning, 

 prevails. As an instance, the mode adopted in the Garo Hills, south 

 of the Brahmaputra river, will be described. The Garo village-com- 

 munities own land natm-ally stocked with trees, bamboos or grass. In 

 October they fell all the woody growth on areas they Avish to cultivate, 

 and cut the herbage, &c., reserving a few large trees, if found on tho 

 area. Sometimes they remove a cez-tain number of poles and other 

 pieces of wood or bamboos for their own use, or for sale in the plains 

 of Sylhet, and the rest of the wood is spread on the ground, and 

 burned in March. The stumps are not extracted, but the land hoed 

 between them and cotton or rice sown. In the second year, a crop 

 of yams, chillies, tapioca, Arc, is taken off the land, and then the area 

 is abandoned to woody growth from coppice-shoots, seedlings, &c. In 

 about ten years or less, according to the total area of land possessed 



