REPORT ON FORESTS. 305 



planting in its lee. The surface of the sand is covered with 

 brush arranged like the slates on a roof, with a shovelful of sand 

 here and there to hold it down. Then the seeds of Pinus mari- 

 tima are sown, with seeds of other plants to shade the young 

 pines. The pines usually come up well, and grow quickly, 

 although close to the littoral dune they are gnarled and stunted 

 by the salt winds. Thus the sands are fixed, and, although the 

 forests do not yield a large interest in cash, they are of incal- 

 culable value to a large proportion of the people of Gascony — in 

 fact, indirectly, to the whole of France. Fire-lanes have been 

 constructed across the dunes, and, thanks to the watchfulness of 

 the guards and the rigid enforcement of laws, fires are not fre- 

 quent. Owing to a lack of roads and means of transportation 

 on these dunes, only the most valuable timber is marketed after 

 being tapped for resin. If it is desirable to remove a tree, it is 

 bled to death before being cut. 



The fixation of the Dunes rendered possible the work of M. 

 Chambrelent, which was the reclamation of the Landes by 

 drainage and plantings. It is a unique example of personal 

 initiative. M. Chambrelent, a young engineer in the Depart- 

 ment of Bridges and Roads, in 1837 "^^^ sent to Gironde to 

 study the drainage of 800,000 hectares of land in the districts 

 of Gascony and the Landes. His conclusions were not accepted, 

 so he bought some land and put into eSect the measures he 

 advocated. In 1855 the results of his experiments were sub- 

 mitted to an international jury. The jury was so favorably 

 impressed that it recommended the application of Chambrelent's 

 plans to the entire region, and in 1857 a law was passed requir- 

 ing the Communes to do this work. The Communes paid for it 

 by selling a part of this land which increased in value after the 

 completion of the work. This region was one hundred nieters 

 above sea level, flat and sandy. It was underlain with a hard- 

 pan called " alios." In summer it was a bed of burning sand, in 

 winter constant inundation, and between the two a period of 

 pestilence. The country was characterized by its sterility and 

 insalubrity. 



A complete system of drain-ditches was dug and the seeds of 

 Pinus maritima sown. In 1865 all works of drainage were 

 •complete. The pines grew with extraordinary rapidity. The 



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