WarkER.— On State Forestry. XXXY 
servator of Forests at Bordeaux, it has been ascertained that the average 
rate of their progression towards the interior is 4:30 mètres (14 feet) a year, 
and that the quantity of sand thus brought up is in the proportion of 75 
eubie métres for évery métre of coast-line (109 eubie yards for every yard). 
The hollow between two consecutive dunes (called lette by the natives), is 
very variable. It is flat at the bottom, and generally marshy when the 
dunes are devoid of all vegetation. | 
** One ean easily conceive the great importance of fixing and utilizing 
these dunes, whose onward march has swallowed up everything before it, 
and has been a perpetual source of danger to human dwellings, which more 
than once have had to retire before them. 
«The first attempt to fix these sand-hills was made with hurdles, and 
certain plants having well-developed roots, such as the Psamma arenaria, 
a Huphorbia, Festuca, etc. But these succeeded only temporarily. At length 
the Pinus pinaster was tried, with all the desired result. This pine is 
admirably adapted to the locality. It'is indigenous in the parts of France 
possessing a mild climate ; its tap-root penetrates deep into the soil and 
throws outstronglateral roots, which in their turn develope along their whole 
length numerous secondary roots in a vertical direction. In addition to 
these valuable properties, we may add the abundance and fine quality of 
its resin. 
* The Pinus pinaster had long before been employed in the dunes, as is 
witnessed by the forest of La Teste, which dates back several centuries. 
But such attempts were successful only on the dunes in the interior, which 
were protected by those nearer the sea. It was not till the year 1787, when 
Brémontier began his labours, that they sueceeded in planting up to the 
sea-shore. The method used at present for fixing the dunes is described in 
what follows :— 
* Before any sowing operations can be attempted, it is absolutely 
necessary to establish a protecting-wall, in order to prevent the seeds and 
young plants from being buried over by the drifting sand. This wall is 
nothing more nor less than a dune, which is purposely allowed to form, 
called the littoral dune. A continuous line of paling is erected parallel to 
the coast-line, about 100 mètres from high-water mark. The paling is 
eonstrueted of planks 1:60 métres long, 8 eentimétres thick, and from 12 to 
15 centimètres broad, and pointed at the lower end. These planks are put 
into a trench 40 eentimétres deep, and then driven 20 centimetres into the 
sand, so that, when the trench is filled in, one métre remains above ground. 
An interval of two centimétres is left between two consecutive planks. 
* The sand is arrested by the paling, and is thus deposited in the form 
of an inclined plane, sloping very graduaily seawards. Some of it passes 
L* 
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