S(5 



orgamsed nnlei' a special plar, and ia «oiBe instances artas burdened with rigbts hav« 

 even been omitted from the plan : bis.t it is now ieca_giiii.ed that the oorroot procedni*- 

 is to deal with entire charges, a R»nge or a whole Uivision, in one report. 



3. luforniatiou to be collected.— The area to be dealt with- 

 having been decided upon, tlie next step in the preparation 

 of the plan is to explore the locality so as to gain a general 

 knowledge of the configuration of the country, the distribu- 

 tion and composition of the forests, tbe marketable products 

 they contain, the best mode of disposing of those products ; 

 as well as of all other facts likely to be useful in enabling 

 the working-plan officer to compare the real forest with tbe 

 normal forest under the method of treatment decided upon 

 and so to determine , the future plan of management. The 

 heads of examination and enquiry may be summarized as- 

 follows : — 



(i) General description of tracts. 



Name and situation of the area dealt with. — Civil 

 District, Forest Division, etc. 



Configuration of the country. — Flat, hilly or plateau ;- 

 altitude ; prevailing aspects, etc. 



Booh and soil. — Geological formation ; underlying rock ; 

 general characters of the soil and their effect on forest 

 growth. 



Climate. — Temperature, mean and extreme, with its effect 

 on the forest growth ; rainfall, periods of draught and rain ;; 

 prevailing winds, storms ; other climatic influences on forest 

 treatment. 



Population. — Numbers and condition ; agricultural cus^ 

 toms or requirements which influence the system of forest- 

 management. , 



(ii) The composition and condition of the forests. 



Distribution and area. — The distribution of the forest ; 

 total area and areas under tree-growth, grass, streams, etc., 

 in each class of forest ; enclosures within the boundaries ; 

 maps available, their degree of accuracy, etc. 



Boundaries and boundary marks. — Nature and state of 

 repair of the marks used ; enclosures and their boundaries 

 whether a revision of the boundaries is required or not. 



Legal position of the foreHs. — Brief history of the acquisi- 

 tion by Government and settlement (where there has been 



