FOREST ECONOMY. 



203 



present in proper gradation and amount ; some of 

 them are probably entirely lacking, others are in 

 excess, either too many stands of older or of 

 younger timber, so that even if the normal stock 

 of wood in amount be on hand, it may be in abnor- 

 mal distribution. 



The normal accretion can, of course, be estab- 

 lished only by silvicultural methods. The other 

 two conditions are attained or approached by reg- 

 ulating the felling budget in area and amount, so 

 that gradually the age classes and the normal stock 

 are established. Various methods are employed 

 to determine the actual felling budget, which will 

 gradually lead to the final possibility of the nor- 

 mal felling budget. 



The simplest method would be to divide the 

 forest into as many areas as there are years or pe- 

 riods in the rotation, and cut one, or the equivalent 

 in volume, every year or during every period, when 

 after one rotation the age classes are established. 

 If proper attention has been given to the re- 

 production and to keeping the reproduced areas 

 fully stocked, the normal conditions are attained 

 after the forest has been once cut over, i.e. during 

 the first rotation. But this would burden the pres- 

 ent generation with the entire cost of securing the 

 normality ; at the same time necessitating not only 

 unequal felling budgets, as better or poorer stands 

 are cut, but also requiring that the harvest of 

 timber past its prime be deferred, if the forest 



