A Brief History of Forestry. / In Europe, the United States and Other Countries

by B. E. Fernow

The larger part of the forest area of European Russia is in control of the Crown or State, namely, nearly 278 million acres, or a little less than two-thirds of the whole, and a similar amount in Asia, besides the so-called apanage forests of 14 million acres set aside for the support of the court. Especially the northern forest is in government control, in some governments (Archangel) the entire area; 67% of the domain forest lies in the two governments of Archangel and Wologda.

In the less wooded districts State property, is insignificant. The area under government control in Europe and Asia is estimated in the official report for 1908 at around 957 million acres. This is, however, not the exclusive property of the State; only about 260 million acres are so claimed, the larger balance includes 170 million acres which are to be apportioned to the liberated peasants, 200 million acres in which the government is only part owner, or the ownership is in dispute; and the rest is only temporarily placed under the management or surveillance of the administration. Yet, 60% in Europe and 13% in Asia is exclusive State property. In 1907, the area in Europe under working plans of the Forest Administration, however, was only 48 million acres, 86 million having been examined for working plans. Of the State property in Europe 34% is spruce forest, 30% pine, and 26% mixed conifer forest; altogether 88% of coniferous timber. The Asiatic area is also over 80 per cent. coniferous.

The apanage or crown forests, the yield of which goes toward maintenance of the imperial family, comprise about 16 million acres, or 3.4%. Private forest property to the extent of over 100 million acres (23%) is most developed in the Baltic provinces and along the Vistula. Mining corporations and other institutes own about 7 million acres.

The peasants, who until 1861 were mere serfs and had no ownership of any kind, being supplied with their necessities by the landed proprietors, still largely supply themselves in the northern provinces by the exercise of rights of user from the public domain on designated areas. In the central and southern provinces, farm and forest land, the latter to the extent of nearly 40 million acres, were given to them in communal ownership. As stated above, about 170 million acres classed as government domain still awaits partition and cession to the peasants.

2. Development of Forest Policy.

The first record of attention to the woods as a special property dates from Michael, the founder, and Alexis, the second of the house of Romanoff, the former becoming Czar in 1613, the latter in 1645. He it was who began to introduce Western civilization. He confined himself, however, to regulating property rights, which up to that time had remained somewhat undefined, the forest, as elsewhere, being considered more or less public property. He issued deeds of ownership, or at least granted exclusive rights to the use of forests, somewhat similar as was done in the banforests. Soldiers alone were permitted to help themselves, even in private forests, to the wood they required. Protection against theft and fire was also provided.

The peasants, being serfs, were bound to the glebe, and had, of course, no property rights, being maintained by the bounty of the seigneurs.

Alexis’ successor, the far-seeing Peter the Great, who in his travels in Germany and other European countries had, no doubt, been imbued with ideas of conservatism, inaugurated in the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th century a far-reaching restrictive policy, which had two objects in view, namely economic use of wood, which he had learned to appreciate while playing carpenter in Amsterdam, and preservation of ship timber, which his desire to build up a navy dictated. All forests for 35 miles alongside of rivers were declared in ban, and placed under the supervision of the newly organized Administration of Crown forests. In these banforests, the felling of timbers fit for ship building was forbidden. Minute regulations as to the proper use of wood for the purposes for which it was most fit were prescribed, and the use of the saw instead of the axe was ordered. These rules were to prevail in all forests, with a few exceptions, and penalties were to be exacted for contraventions.

This good beginning experienced a short setback under Catherine I (1725), Peter’s wife, who, influenced by her minister, Menshikoff, abolished the forest administration and the penalties, and reduced the number and size of banforests. But the entire legislation was re-enacted within three years after Catherine’s death (1727) under Anna Ivanovna’s reign, and many new prescriptions for the proper use of wood were added and additional penalties enforced.