188 Canadian Forestry Journal. 



Some of the old enactments in regard to forest protection 

 are both quaint and interesting. Attention is called to one such 

 instance in a recent work on Alfred the Great. The Law-book 

 in use previous to that issued by Alfred was that of King Ina 

 (688-726). 



In the case of damage to a wood, this old law drew a dis- 

 tinction between injury by fire and injury by the axe, and that 

 by fire was punished far more heavily than the other, for this 

 assigned reason — that fire is a thief and works silently, whereas 

 the axe announces itself. 



"In case anyone burn a tree in a wood, and it come to light 

 who did it let him pay full penalty, let him give sixty shillings, 

 because fire is a thief. If one fell in a wood ever so many trees 

 and it be found out afterwards, let him pay for three trees, each 

 with thirty shillings. He is not required to pay for more of 

 them, however many they might be, because the axe is a re- 

 porter and not a thief." 



"This contrast could be retorted: for it might be urged 

 that if fire is a thief relatively to the owner of a wood, so is it 

 also relatively to the defendant, for it had started up afresh 

 when he had left the place thinking that all was safe. The 

 worst that could be proved on him was the want of sufficient 

 caution. In fact the law is only good as against arson, wanton 

 or malicious ; and for that case it is not severe enough. It may be 

 assumed that in the bulk of cases damage by fire would be un- 

 designed and accidental. 



"But where the axe is used there can be no doubt about 

 the motive. The man who fells another man's timber does so 

 plainly with intent to steal, and the noise of the axe is not ex- 

 tenuating but rather aggravating by reason of its audacity. 



"In Ina's law all such considerations w^ere prevented by 

 two venerable maxims which said, 'Fire is a thief but the axe 

 is outspoken.' Moreover, as an indication of the national in- 

 stinct which is favorable to whatever is open and straightfor- 

 ward, it may be interesting; but the distinction was bad as 

 law, and it was abolished by King Alfred. His new law equal- 

 ized the penalty thus: 'If a man burn or hew another man's 

 wool without leave, let him pay for every great tree w-ith five 

 shillings, and afterwards for each, let there be ever so many, 

 with five pence; and a fine of thirty shillings.' " 



The following extracts from an official report of the United 

 States Bureau of Forestry on Forest Conditions in Northern New 

 Hampshire are of interest to Canada: — 



The total amount of wood consumed by the mills in this 

 region (310,795,000 ft. B.M.) exceeds the total cut by over 



