MTSOBE AND OOOKQ. 241 



they do not appear to come to anything. Crows 

 are very fond of the ripe fruit, and are supposed 

 to deposit the seeds favourably in hedgerows and 

 bushes, where the seedhngs procure the neces- 

 sary shade and protection required by them during 

 the first two or three years of development. 

 In artificial treatment, the introduced shrub, 

 Lantana ca/mara, Linn, has proved to be a good 

 nurse for sandal seedlings. This is a great discovery 

 which should not be lost sight of wl'.enever the 

 question of reclaiming karnb, or waste h nd, presents 

 itself. A peculiarity of sandalwood is that it will 

 not grow within walled enclosures, noi- is it found 

 on the sites of deserted villages. Mr. I). E. Hutch- 

 ins, a former officer of the Mysore Forest Depart- 

 ment, has written as follows : — " When young, 

 sandal, has to cojitend with many enemies. The 

 smooth succulent character of the leaves of sandal 

 doubtless contributes to render them the favourite 

 food of hares and deer. (Cattle and goats are also 

 very partial to the leaves). When planting sandal, 

 it is usually necessary to place thorns over each 

 plant tp keep off hares. If spotted deer are abund- 

 ant in the locality, it becomes necessary to fence 

 plots of sandal planting. Self-sown seedlings of 

 sandal are rarely seen except among clumps of 

 thorns, and tDther bushes where they are naturally 

 protected from browsing. The sandal tree attains 

 its, commercial maturity, i.e., the age at which^ it 

 pays best to cut it down, at 27 to 30 years. At this 

 period, the heartwood is well developed (i.e., at a 

 g.enera.1 depth of aboi^t 2 inches below the surface) 

 and jthe growth of ithis is so slow that it cannot in a 

 year attaj.n an increased value eqaal to the interest 

 on its, present selling, price, plus the value of the 

 spg.ce it- would occupy. 



it 'is therefore found most profitable to cut it. 

 down Isetween the age of 2V to 30 years." 



31 



