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

by B. E. Fernow

Prior to the British occupation, the native rulers, or rajahs, laid claim to a certain proportion of the produce from all cultivators of the soil. They also reserved absolute right to the forests, and to all unseated or waste lands, although usually the people were allowed to supply their needs from these. The English government, by right of conquest, fell heir to these rights as well as to the properties, but, without care in asserting its rights, the unimpeded use of unguarded forest property led to the assertion of rights of user by the people, and such were also sometimes granted by the government. “Joint village” communities in some parts, i.e., settlements which occupy contiguous areas, claimed and occupied large areas of forest and waste as commons, and in general the original property rights of the government became uncertain.

The necessity of bringing order into this question led to various so-called settlements, by which the rights were defined, properties de-limited, and payment in kind changed into cash payments.

After attempts to regulate these matters by local rules, the first general Indian Forest Act, passed in 1865, modified by the Forest Act of 1878, laid down the basis upon which the rights of forest property were to be settled. These acts divide the forests into three classes, namely, those in which the right of the State is absolute; those in which the State has property rights, but which are burdened with prescriptive or granted rights of user; and those which are private property, but on which the State reserves the right to cut certain kinds of trees for government use, Teak, Sandalwood, and in some parts Deodar, these being considered “royal trees.” The forest act being throughout applicable only at the choice and under the construction of the provincial governments, modified acts, applicable to different parts of the Empire, and different in details, were passed from time to time, and many different local rules were issued by the provincial governments, but all agree in fixing one definite policy, namely declaration or demarcation of government forests, after inquiry into all existing rights, and division of the declared government forests into three classes, reserves or permanent state forests, protected forests, and unclassed, the latter two still open to change in ownership, and adjustment in rights of user, etc.

The absolute and relative areas of government property, therefore, are continuously changing. In 1900 the reserve forests comprised 81,400 square miles, or 8.6% of the total territory controlled by the British government; the protected forest 8800 square miles, and the demarcated but unclassified area, 117,000 square miles. These figures had, in 1904, changed to 91,567 for permanent reserves (58 million acres), 9865 for protected, and 131,269 for unclassed, showing the rapid change now taking place in the status of classification.

The name of B. H. Baden-Powell, at one time conservator of the Punjab and Acting Inspector-General of Forests during 1872-4, is closely connected with placing this forest legislation on a sound basis. The object of this legislation was mainly to settle the question of ownership and rights, hence reserved forests are not necessarily set aside for forest purposes like the forest reservations in the United States, although ultimately this will probably be their condition.

Rights of user were under this legislation regulated or commuted. In some parts, even on the reserved forest areas, there are still retained rights to cut taungyas, i.e., to make partial clearings for temporary agricultural use, under the restriction of not destroying teak trees over 18 inches in diameter, and with the right of the cultivators to supply their domestic needs, under obligation to cut out fire traces, burning the brush, and instituting similar protective measures.

The title to the forest property having been secured, its permanent demarcation and a survey of the same were the next steps; the first having gradually been nearly accomplished, the latter being still far in arrears.

The area of private and communal forests is not precisely known, but, including waste land and lands of uncertain conditions, there are at least 500,000 square miles so owned, including those of feudatory rulers within the provinces. Of these, some 500 square miles or more of forest are leased to the government and under its control; and in some cases forest administrations are instituted by the rajahs themselves.

In the Act of 1878, there was a clause calling for protection of private forest property against trespass and encroachment, but this remained a dead letter. By later legislation the government is entitled to exercise control over private forests and lands, if it appears necessary for the public weal, or if the treatment which such forests have received from their owners affect the public welfare or safety injuriously; but in such cases the owner can require the government to expropriate the land in question.