40 THE FORESTS OF UPPER INDIA 



It may be premised that the forest survey did not in- 

 clude the general survey of the country. This had already 

 been well performed by the trigonometrical survey officers 

 of the Royal Engineers, whose work had been published 

 by Government, and very excellent maps existed, show- 

 ing the exact positions of all the highest peaks and minor 

 points of all the ridges of hills where cairns of stone had 

 been erected ; and the courses of all the rivers and 

 streams were fairly well mapped out. These maps were 

 the basis of the Forest Survey. The sheets of twelve 

 miles by twelve were taken on an enlarged scale from the 

 map, and carried in the form of a book, upon which the 

 positions of ridges and spurs were drawn in with the 

 assistance of the prismatic compass and protractor. The 

 forests were delineated, and areas calculated where 

 timber grows. The average was taken, in each forest, of 

 the number of trees per acre, by running a line through 

 the forest with a 66-foot chain. The contents of each 

 square chain were counted by the operators. It may be 

 stated that, as the result of many observations, the general 

 average of a measurable forest was thirty trees per acre, 

 of which about seven were first class or over 6 feet in 

 girth ; and usually there was an equal proportion of second 

 and third class trees of 4 feet and 2 feet girth, and a 

 growth of fourth class trees and saplings under 2 feet, 

 fairly scattered through the forest, besides innumerable 

 seedlings not counted. This was the normal condition 

 of the natural forest, where, as the hoary and mature 

 trees fell from storm or old age, there were generally 

 younger ones of aU ages ready to take the places of the 

 dead ones. Thus in natural course the forest, like the 

 population of mankind, renews itself gradually. 



One seldom sees here, as in America, whole forests 

 devastated by fire, since, owing to the copious rainfall, 



