CHAPTER I 



COMPARTMENTS. 



The division of a forest into Compartments is the very founda- 

 tion stone on wLicli is built up the inventory of the forest, and must 

 precede every other operation. That inventory must take in every 

 one of the component parte of the forest, and describe its condition 

 and special character. The produce one may expect from the forest 

 may be extremely varied, according to the species, and the quantity, 

 qualities, and dimensions of the wood when exploited, and to the 

 time for exploitation, which may be near or remote. Thus in order 

 to ascertain what produce we can obtain from a forest which, by 

 reason of its very nature, must cover a wide extent of country, it is 

 indispensable first of all to draw up an inventory of it. 



§ 1. Boundary Map. 



In order to be able to divide a forest into compartments, it is 

 necessary to have in the hand a' plan, or at least an approximately 

 accurate sketch of the forest : there is no other way of obtaining a 

 thorough knowledge of the ground. The first thing to do is thus to 

 procure such a plan, which we will call the BoUNDATiY Plan. It 

 ought to give not only the boundary of the whole forest, but also that 

 of the principal large masses composing it, or, better still, of its 

 various cantons or beats known under popular local names. The 

 Plan ought thus to have figured on it all great internal natural 

 lines, such as watercourses, valleys, crests, or ridges, as well as the 

 chief artificial lines, like roads, lanes and important paths. 



It is expedient that this Plan should be drawn on a medium 

 scale, so as to give sufficient details, while still allowing the whole of 

 one or several cantons to be easily taken in at a glance. The scale 



