l'eoole fobbstibrb des babbes. 103 



department of the Loiret, which is now maintained by the Govern- 

 ment as L'Ecole Forestiere des Barres. This, strictly speaking, is a 

 Forest School ; while that at Nancy, strictly speaking, is a School 

 of Forestry. 



The designation Ecole Forestiere, or Forest School, was given to 

 the establishment apparently in contradistinction, on the one hand, 

 to Nursery, a designation borrowed from domestic life ; and in contra- 

 distinction, on the other hand, to a plantation or forest, it being a 

 collection of trees raised from seed obtained from - forests, or from 

 nurserymen and seedsmen of note, and reared with a view to the 

 study of their habits, their identity, and their differences. 



The design of M. de Vilmorin and the results of his operation 

 we learn from himself. He died in March, 1862, a venerable man, 

 full of years and of honour, — Memhre de la Societe Imperiale et 

 Centrale d' Agriculture de France, and Correspondent de Vlnstitut. 



The Bureau de la Societe oV Agriculture, in collecting documents, of 

 which they might avail themselves in preparing a historical notice 

 of their honoured colleague, learned that he had written a history of 

 his experiments, and procured from his family a copy of this docu- 

 ment, with permission to publish it in^their memoirs. 



In the introduction to this record, which related exclusively to 

 this establishment, which was only one of many experiments and 

 related researches with which his valuable life was occupied, he 

 says : — •" The work or treatise, of which this is but the first part, 

 has for its object to report collected observations made during a 

 long course of years on the trees composing the collection forestiere, 

 which I have made on my estate of Barres. Studies of this kind 

 have at this day a much greater interest for France than they ever 

 have had before. 



" The forests which, in a former day covered a great part of her 

 territory, are, if not entirely destroyed, at least so much reduced 

 that the products are far below her actual requirements. 



" For a long time now France has been dependent on the foreigner 

 for a considerable portion of the timber requisite for the maintenance 

 of her navy, and more especially for wood suitable for masts. 

 Throughout nearly the whole of the last century masts for the navy 

 were only to be found in the Baltic ports, and chiefly in Biga, and 

 now that timber of very great dimensions fit for this purpose is only 

 to be obtained at great price, we find it necessary to draw a great 

 portion of our supplies from the United States. 



