TEE RESERVED FOURTHS. 255 



Thus the Communes may (aud they cannot be prevented from 

 doing so) make unreasonable or mischievous demands for permission 

 to cut ia the Reserved Fourths. It does not matter a bit if they do 

 so, for it is in their own interests that these Reserved Fourths 

 have been established and that the duty of managing them under 

 such entirely special circumstances has been entrusted to our De- 

 partment. The treatment of the Reserved Fourth of a communal 

 forest consists, so to say, of a series of sudden and unforeseen ex- 

 ploitations. This is inevitable, but, thanks to special rules made 

 for its protection, the Reserved Fourth is usually that portion of the 

 forests in question, which is in the most satisfactory condition. The 

 exploitations in an unorganised forest can, of course, never be order- 

 ed iu any rigid manner. Nevertheless, however true this may be, 

 it is not difficult to conceive what that order ought to be and to 

 adhere to it as closely as possible at each exploitation. 



SECTION II. 



Descriptive Statement. 



If the regulai" organisation of the Reserved Fourths of com-- 

 iTiunal woods is incompatible with the satisfaction of extraordinary 

 and unforeseen wants as they arise, it is not the less indispensable to 

 organise a canton covering 125 acres and even less, in order to 

 impose some sort of order on the exploitations made therein. This 

 object may be secured by simply dividing off the Canton in question 

 into compartments. This division being effected, in A simple manner, 

 ia accordance with the prevailing age-classes and natural topograph- 

 ical lines, and represented on a map which also gives the areas 

 of the several portions of the canton, the essential jiart of the work 

 is complete. It is always ensy to add to this map a Descriptive 

 Statement of the compartments and to prescribe the regular 

 keeping of a Control Register, alloting to each a separate sheet on 

 which to note down all the exploitations made therein, together with 

 all concurrent and consequent facts. The order in which the com- 

 partments should be taken up may also be discussed and suggested. 

 Iu many cases this order may be secured by simply numbering the 

 compartments consecutirely. 



