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tinue to be used in place of iron and steel in construction. In addi- 

 tion to the forest area needed to supply fuel, twice that area ought to 

 be maintained in forest for construction timber, boat building, tools, 

 implements, public works, railways, etc. One-half an acre of forest 

 per head of population will be needed to meet all these demands. 

 This would call for 17 per cent of the total area of the British prov- 

 inces; and the other large demands for minor products, principally 

 range and grass, would raise the minimum requirements for forest to 

 25 per cent of that area. Since, at the best, not more than 15 per cent 

 of British India is likely to become State forest lands, the need of 

 broadening the field of forest management is very obvious. 



The need of what the English term " forest conservancy " was felt 

 at the very beginning of the nineteenth century on account of the dif- 

 ficulty in securing the timber required for public works. A timber 

 agency was established at Bombay, but was abolished in 1823 because 

 of friction with local civil officers. In 1843 the protection of teak 

 forests was vigorously agitated, and a teak plantation was started 

 which is now well known as the Nilambur teak plantation. A con- 

 servator of forests was appointed in Bombay in 1847. Forest con- 

 servancy was commenced in Mysore in the same year, and in 1856 a 

 conservator of forests was appointed in Madras. The first compre- 

 hensive forest policy for India was, however, laid down in 1856 by 

 Lord Dalhousie, who, at the close of his administration, appointed 

 the celebrated Sir Dietrich Brandis to the post of superintendent of 

 the forests of Pegu, which had been annexed by England. By dint 

 of persistent effort Brandis succeeded in carrying through measures 

 to protect the supplies of teak in the Burma forests, which now yield 

 an annual net revenue of $810,000, and became the first inspector-gen- 

 eral of forests. From that time the various other presidencies have 

 been putting forestry into prftctice, and the forest laws of 1865 and 

 1878 complete the legislation necessary to carry on the present suc- 

 cessful forest department. 



Forest fires were always exceedingly destructive in India, but since 

 1860 protective measures have been so improved that an area of 

 3,500,000 acres, or 36 per cent of the area of reserved State forests, is 

 now effectively protected against fire. The protected area is to be 

 steadily increased. 



Working plans for 3,000,000 acres are being carried out, and plans 

 for a million acres more are being prepared. 



Since forest planting was begun, more than sixty years ago, 128,000 

 acres have been planted, about one-half of which, consisting of teak, 

 will materially increase the output of teak from Burma hereafter. 



The State forests are handled on the principle of a sustained and 

 increasing yield. Both natural reproduction and artificial planting 



[Cir. 14UJ 



