ioo PRACTICAL FORESTRY. 



The question will naturally arise What is timber ? 

 The lawyers tell us that oak, ash, and elm are alone 

 timber, other classes are timber-like trees ; but from 

 the forester's point of view all trees are timber which 

 have a quarter girth of six inches under the bark. This 

 custom has become almost universal ; and go where 

 we will we seldom find it disputed. 



In some districts beech is timber, especially in those 

 counties where it grows largely and is in demand, such 

 as in Bucks, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, and so on. 

 Birch, again, is in great demand in the Northern 

 counties, and counts as timber ; in others it is not 

 always so. Again, it is considered by some that a tree 

 is not timber until it has reached a content of nine or 

 ten solid feet ; under this they are treated as saplings. 

 But these are the exceptions, the rule is as stated. 



The object of the forester, then, is to obtain the sale- 

 able content of the tree. This quantity lies between 

 the die square and the full contents. The die square 

 measurement represents the largest piece of scantling 

 that can be obtained from a piece of round timber, the 

 full contents is that obtained by taking the full cir- 

 cumference. The saleable contents is obtained by 

 taking the quarter girth, or one-fourth of the circum- 

 ference. 



In measuring standing timber the girth is taken by 

 the measuring strap as high as can be readily reached, 

 and an allowance made for fall ; which means that a 

 deduction is made from the circumference thus obtained 

 so as to approach as closely as possible to the true 

 girth in the middle. This is usually taken at six inches 

 from the full measure ; but although this is usually 



