FORESTRY OF JAPAN. 89 



regeneration of forests in ancient times being effected by these 

 means ; in fact, a majority of the existing forests in Japan was 

 brought into existence by the same process. When, however, 

 the progress of economic forest workings has reached the stage 

 as at present, this method requiring as it does a long time in 

 the process of regeneration, and its results being far from 

 meeting the desired end, there is a steady tendency towarsd 

 the disuse of this method. Only in the case of forests in steep 

 mountain sides as well as of protection forests where the 

 special treatment is required, the natural method of seed 

 sowing is applied to a considerable space of area either by the 

 selection system or pre-regeneration system. 



The sprout system is only applied in the case of the 

 regeneration of forests for firewood. The trees which easily 

 shoot forth sprouts are cut off close to the ground, and when 

 a clump of sprouts come out from the cut, leave a few shoots 

 taking off the rest Trees thus grown may be felled in some 

 7 or 8 years in the quickest case, but in the slowest case, they 

 take some 17 or 18 years. Thus, it will be seen that according 

 to this method the period for the felling arrives soon and the 

 outcrop is raised with great rapidity so that it produces a large 

 profit with small labour, and hence the method is most exten- 

 sively adopted in the forests owned by the people, and in the 

 suburbs of large cities Qncrcus scrrata Thunb. and Querciis 

 glandulifcra Bl. are most appropriately cultivated by this 

 method. 



The reproduction by pollarding consists of the cutting of 

 stem at the 6 or 7 feet height from the ground, and letting the 

 sprouts spring from the cut. This method is comonly used 



