50 ALGERIA 



pitable climate, considering the early record of general over- 

 grazing, damage from fires, and losses through ill-advised sales 

 of cork-oak lands, one is forced to the conclusion that the recent 

 reform in organization, forest regulations, and administrative 

 methods came none too soon. 



It is true that extensive damage from fires continues, in 

 spite of the expensive system of fire lines now maintained. 

 The difficulties still encountered in preventing or punishing 

 grazing trespass is likely to form the chief problem of the forest 

 service for years to come, for the very life of the native popu- 

 lation is linked to their pastoral rights — or what they conceive 

 to be such. A great deal can be done to alleviate the damage 

 in this field, however, by teaching grazers to pasture the kind 

 of stock which does least harm. 



In addition to the losses from grazing trespass there has been 

 in former years a direct diminution of forest area through the 

 sale of valuable cork-oak lands. The excellent results now 

 obtained by government exploitations of similar areas, where 

 the state reaps the benefits of higher prices and increased per 

 acre production, serve but to emphasize the gravity of the 

 error committed in parting with the lands in question. 



To sum up the effect of these early administrative laxities — 

 to use no harsher word — coupled with the necessary clearings 

 for colonization, has been to bring about a serious decrease 

 in the total forest area of the country. One writer estimates 

 that the forested areas near Constantine, Batna, Medea, and 

 Setif have shrunk by from lo to more than 60 per cent since 

 1871. 



Jonnart's Reforms. — It is possible that a good many of 

 the early difficulties of administration were due to the fact 

 that the Forest Service at first attempted to copy, too closely 

 for local necessities, methods used in France. At any rate, 

 it is certain that in 1902- 1909 the criticism of the forest ad- 

 ministration became so severe that Governor Jonnart, in 1904, 

 assembled a commission to study the cause of the dissatisfaction 

 and to prescribe remedies. It may be safely stated that modern 

 Algerian forest administration, in its broadest sense, dates from 



