AREA, DISTRIBUTION, MANAGEMENT, &c. 49 



' The soil in these clearings, originally poor, becomes 

 further impoverished by the long continued action of the 

 light promoting the decomposition of the humus ; and from 

 the continuance of this influence a natural reproduction 

 of the forest there can scarcely be expected. 



* This system of making a complete clearance, leaving 

 only balweaux for seed, is very much followed throughout 

 the kingdom, and notwithstanding the discouraging results 

 which have been witnessed, occasioning in many cases 

 considerable loss, they are still continued even in the most 

 valuable forests, where, in view of the effects on the 

 revenue, and of the natural hindrances to reproduction, 

 it might have been advantageous to have sacrificed a portion 

 of the proceeds to effect without loss of time an artificial 

 reproduction.' 



M. Bitney mentions that in the Government of Plotsk, 

 in a forest growing on very poor sandy soil, the natural 

 sowing of fellings so cleared is proved by many cases to 

 proceed very slowly, requiring from ten to thirteen years, 

 and even then it is very irregularly done. Yet while this is 

 one of the most pecuniarily productive of the forests, yielding 

 annually 1*75 roubles of nett returns for each desatin, the 

 fellings are conducted in the manner, and with the result 

 stated, that of a tardy and poor reproduction of the forest 

 through the false economy of leaving the space to the 

 chances incidental here to natural sowings. 



' With regard to the sections of the forest which are in 

 the second and third stages of reproduction and growth, 

 their condition is in general most satisfactory, especially 

 when we take into account that these forests were in the 

 locality where, for about two years, the fighting chiefly 

 took place, and for some time after that they were left 

 open to depredations, which were only repressed by the 

 forests being placed under the guardianship of the soldiers ; 

 but we have seen elsewhere that forests have suffered in 

 this way chiefly on their outer verge, and that to such an 

 extent that there were left there only bare poles, while the 



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