southwestern part of the country, in the dis- 
tricts of Telemarken and Saetersdalen, south 
of the latitude of 60 degrees, and especially 
in the long interior valley of the Glommen Tiv- 
er, that drains the entire eastern side of Nor- 
Way, up to the latitude of 63 degrees. In the 
northern part of Norway the mountains are 
too steep and rocky to permit of good tree 
growth, and even farther south timber line is 
reached at about 900 meters (2,950 feet). Pine 
and spruce are the important species, although 
in some localities birch grows well. Larch is 
found in planted stands. The broad leaf trees 
are relatively unimportant. They are found 
only in the southern part of the country, except 
birch and aspen which extend farther north. 
Of the total forest area of Norway, the gov- 
ernment forests cover 12.36 percent. These 
forests divide into several classes: (a) State 
forest proper; (b) church or ecclesiastical for- 
ests (prastergirdskog); (c) commercial for- 
ests; and (d) district commons (bygdealmen- 
ninger), or areas of forest in which the people 
“Herred”’, or commune, to which the forest be- 
longs, or, in the case of the forest commons, 
those who have an interest in the forest. Nor- 
way is divided into eighteen counties, known 
locally either as “amt” or “fylke”. The her- 
reder are local communities within the county. 
As a matter of fact, in a large number of in- 
stances, the committees in charge of these 
forests employ a professional forester, perma- 
nently or for consultation. But the govern- 
ment forester for the fylke, the skogforvalter, 
has general supervision over what takes place 
therecn. This official in America usage would 
be called supervisor. 
As regards the privately owned forest lands 
the control is even more strict. This indeed 
is the characteristic feature of Norwegian for- 
est law. In the acts of August 8, 1908, and June 
7, 1916, it is provided, in the interest of pro- 
tecting and perpetuating the forests, that cut- 
ting on private forest land shall conform to 
cefinite regulations. These rules are drawn 
up by local committees, consisting of three men 
RAFTING LOGS 
THROUGH A 
PICTURESQUE 
CANAL IN 
NORWAY 
of that locality enjoy joint ownership, with 
certain rights of user. Directly or indirectly 
the government forestry officials exercise con- 
trol over all these forests. On the state for- 
ests it is of course absolute. On the ecclesias- 
tical forests, the state foresters determine and 
regulate the cut but do not benefit from the 
revenue. These forests were set apart for the 
partiai support of the local parishes of the 
established church. The first consideration is 
to supply what timber and wood may be need- 
ed by the minister, or for buildings and repairs 
on church property. After that the forest prod- 
ucts are sold and the proceeds, less operating 
costs, are turned over to a special fund admin- 
istered by the ecclesiastical authorities. 
REGULATION OF 
PRIVATE FOREST OWNERS 
The other two groups of forest are under 
the direct control of local committees, repre- 
senting respectively the district council of the 
familiar with the district, two of whom must 
by the terms of the law be forest owners. The 
committee may be assisted by a forester, usual- 
ly the supervisor, but the forester does not 
have a vote in the meetings. Elaborate pro- 
vision is made for public notice and hearings 
while the regulations are being drawn up, and 
when finally prepared they must be approved 
by the King. But when these steps have been 
taken the regulations are binding on all owners 
and must be carried out. 
On paper this looks like a rather comprehen- 
sive program, but in practice it works out to 
little more than a dimension law with a fixed 
ciameter limit. Each district fixes its own lim- 
its but they-more or less conform to a common 
standard, usually for conifers either 18 to 20 
centimeters (7 to 8 inches) at 1.5 meters (59 
inches) above the ground, or 15 to 17 centi- 
meters at a height of 4 or 5 meters. 
The Norwegian forestry officials feel that 
(28) 
