2 Indian Forest Records . [Vol. VIII 
saplings a few feet high, which are easily destroyed by small 
creepers.” 
This plan prescribed the felling of :— 
(I) All sal trees over 2' in diameter not required for seed. 
(II) Unsound and unpromising sal trees under 2' diameter when 
interfering with the development of more promising neighbours. 
(Ill) Trees of species other than sal when interfering with sal or 
with trees of other species more valuable than themselves 
and adds :— 
“ No sal tree should be cut in improvement fellings unless it 
suppresses or otherwise seriously interferes with more 
promising stems of the same species and is obviously 
so defective that it cannot grow into a good tree over 
2' diameter. The thinning of dense groups of sal poles 
should be of a light description, and should merely allow 
adequate space for the development of the more promis¬ 
ing trees in the group. No group should be thinned 
unless the trees composing them have clean boles. As 
regards the removal of species other than sal the main 
object is to progressively uncover the natural repro¬ 
duction of sal and other valuable species without 
unduly encouraging herbaceous undergrowth.” 
The Revised Working Plan for Jalpaiguri Division 1906 in addition 
to felling rules similar to the above, prescribed that, after an improve¬ 
ment felling, each coupe so dealt with should be cleaned, and weeded 
every year for five years to establish both the sal regeneration already 
on the ground and that which appears in the year after felling. 
In both these Working Plans it was forecasted that the measures 
laid down would result in the successful establishment of ample seedlings. 
There is no mention in either plan of artificial regeneration and at that 
time 1905-06 it was certainly not considered necessary to experiment with 
it. 
2. From this time onwards the advisability of continuing fire protec¬ 
tion was often discussed and in 1910, when it was known that the results 
of the cleanings and weedings had fallen short of expectations, experi¬ 
ments in burning and in artificial regeneration were started. The five- 
year cleanings were finally condemned as a failure in 1914 and the condi¬ 
tion of the forests at that time was fully described by Messrs. Grieve and 
Shebbeare in an article on “ Sal Regeneration in the Duars Forests * ’ 
(Indian Forester, April 1914). 
[ 335 ] 
