ANCIENT AND MODERN FORESTRY 5 



hot, moist tracts densely covered with evergreen 

 tropical jungle. These two form, indeed, one of 

 the exceptional extremes which never meet. 



Before man could acquire his dominion over 

 the beasts of the field, he had of course first of 

 all to form his fields by clearance of the natural 

 forests. And this is a process which we still 

 can see in practical working in various parts of 

 the world. The Canadian backwoodsman and 

 the Australian squatter are doing in temperate 

 regions much the same as the hill -tribes of 

 thickly-wooded parts of India and Burma, in 

 clearing away * the forest primeval ' for agri- 

 cultural or pastoral occupation. It was ever 

 thus, probably from long before the days when 

 the Psalmist sang that * a man was famous 

 according as he had lifted up axes upon the 

 thick trees ' ; and it was thus also in England, 

 no doubt, long before the historic epoch. 



During the early days of the historic period, 

 when Caractacus and Boadicea vainly tried to 

 resist the legions of Rome, Britain was densely 

 wooded. Caesar, in his Commentaries, describes 

 the ancient Britons as a true forest people, whose 

 military tactics consisted in retreating hastily to 



