SYSTEMATIC FORESTRY 117 



woods. In this way systematic management is 

 compulsory for him. The English owner, whose 

 woods are of comparatively small extent is 

 under no necessity to have annual fellings. He 

 is content with intermittent returns, and cuts 

 his timber simply in accordance with its maturity 

 and the state of the market, and he sees no 

 necessity for systematic management. Further, 

 systematic management is very difficult under 

 the present circumstances of English woods. 

 In most English estates a large proportion of 

 the woodland consists of even- aged mature 

 or nearly mature oak, and at present prices 

 this class of timber has a very poor sale. 

 Felling these woods produces a very poor 

 return and destroys the beauty of the land- 

 scape. The result is that in many cases 

 nothing is done and the woods slowly decay. 

 The owner hopes that perhaps some day they 

 may be available as a reserve to meet death 

 duties or some other pressing financial necessity. 

 In spite of these difficulties there are some 

 considerations which suggest that an owner 

 would find it to his advantage to introduce 

 gradually a more systematic management by 

 reducing the area of mature timber, and then by 

 regulating both planting and future fellings so 



