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SIR DIETRICH BRANDIS, 1824—1907. 
By the death of Sir Dietrich Brandis, which occurred at Bonn, on May 28, 
1907, a man of world-wide renown has been removed. He was born on 
April 1, 1824, at Bonn, being the son of Dr. Christian Brandis, Professor of 
Philosophy in the University of that place. As a boy, he followed his 
father to Greece, where he spent several years, and thus came into touch at 
an early age with the life and customs of the nearer East. On his return 
from Greece he was educated at the Universities of Copenhagen, Gottingen, 
and Bonn. In 1849 he established himself as “ Privatdocent” on Botany at 
Bonn. While he thus started life as a Botanist, during his Botanical 
excursions his attention was soon turned to questions connected with the 
management of forests. 
After the occupation of the Province of Pegu, in Burma, Lord Dalhousie 
offered Brandis the appointment of Superintendent of the Pegu teak forests, 
an offer which he accepted. He landed in India in 1856, and a year 
afterwards the rest of the Burma forests was placed under his charge. 
Brandis proceeded from Calcutta, where he had an interview with Lord 
Dalhousie, to Rangoon in a separate vessel from that which conveyed his 
herbarium and botanical library. The latter was wrecked in the Rangoon 
River, and Brandis thus lost his herbarium and books. He looked upon this 
almost as a direction to his future line of action. While he never quite 
abandoned botanical studies, he devoted for years his main energies to. 
mastering the science and practice of Forestry. It was only thirteen years 
later that he resumed earnest botanical studies for the space of three or four 
years, and he then again returned to Forestry for a further period of nine 
years. After his retirement he occupied himself once more chiefly with 
botanical work. 
From 1856 to 1862 Brandis worked indefatigably to bring the forests of 
Burma under: systematic management. During these years a great conflict 
raged between the merchants of Burma and the Government, the former 
maintaining that the supply of teak timber from the forests was 
inexhaustible, and that, therefore, State interference was unnecessary. 
Brandis, supported by the Commissioner of Pegu, Major (afterwards Sir 
Arthur) Phayre, held different views. After a long continued struggle the 
forests were placed under systematic management, and they, with those of 
Upper Burma, are now the chief supply of teak timber to the world. 
If Brandis had done nothing else than.save the Burma teak forests from 
destruction, he would have deserved well of the British Empire and the world 
in general. 
In 1862, he was called to Simla at the suggestion, it is believed, of 
Dr. Cleghorn, one of the principal pioneers of forest conservancy in India, 
to advise the Government on forest matters in other parts of the country, 
and in 1864, he was appointed the first Inspector-General of Forests to the 
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