FORESTRY IN AUSTRIA-HUNGARY. 265 



meters of wood. .Through the concerted action of the authorities and pro- 

 prietors the ravages were stopped, and since then the beetle appeared only 

 sporadically. The amount spent for the purpose of its extermination in 

 the years 1873-1876 was 1,259,354 florins, and the number of men employed 

 thereat was 9,850. The Bohemian diet appropriated 100,000 florins to 

 create outlets for the fallen and felled affected timber from inaccessible re- 

 gions. 



The pine caterpillar has lately caused some damage in the pine forests, 

 but the authorities have been very prompt in adopting measures for its sup- 

 pression. The elephant beetle and the larvse of the may bug are dangerous 

 to the young pine and spruce plantations and the nurseries. The provincial 

 board of Bohemia offers annually bounties for the destruction of the may- 

 bug, and the law protects such species of birds as are destructive to the 

 larvse, especially crows and jackdaws. 



J. Forest fires. — Extensive forest fires do not occur, and indeed they are 

 impossible in Bohemia. Causing a fire through carelessness is punished with 

 fine and imprisonment. Whoever observes the forest fire is obliged to notify 

 the inmates of the next house he passes, and they are bound to give notice 

 to the chairman of the next village and to the owner of the .forest or his 

 officers under penalty of fine and imprisonment. The chairmen of the 

 neighboring villages and the owner' of the forest or his officers are authorized 

 to call upon the population to assist in putting out the fire, and all are bound 

 to obey the summons. 



LUMBER SUPPLY TRADE IN LUMBER. 



Permission to use water courses for the purpose of floating or rafting tim- 

 ber and to establish booms is granted by the captain of the district ; or if 

 the timber passes through several districts by the governor, but only for 

 three years at a time. For a longer period it can only be granted by the 

 ministry of agriculture. 



Most of the timber comes from the Boehmerwald ; a moderate amount is 

 brought from the mountain regions in the northeast and northwest of Bohemia. 

 The Moldau and the Elbe, with their tributaries, are the main waterways for 

 the supply of timber. To facilitate the movement of timber, artificial reser- 

 voirs have been established in the Boehmerwald, collecting water from the 

 rivulets and brooks. . Canals have also been built, the principal of which is' 

 the Schwarzenberg canal, 51 kilometers long, cutting through several thousand 

 hectares of forest in the domain of Krumau, belonging to Prince Adolf 

 Schwarzenberg. It serves to float timber and wood to Vienna. 



The principal lumber market is Prague, situated on the river Moldau, 

 nearly in the center of the country. From there the export of lumber takes 

 place to Dresden, Leipsic, and Magdeburg, in Germany, and a certain quan- 

 tity of logs is carried down to Hamburg, to be used in ship building. But 

 the export of ship-timber, especially oak, has greatly decreased of late. A 

 good deal of timber is exported on the Elbe river direct to Germany. Since 



