PATROLLING OF THE FORESTS

The patrolling of the forests is confided,

as we have already seen, to special keepers. There are 500 of these for the

State forests and 2,135 for the parish forests. That is to say there is a

keeper to every I,8O5 hectares of State forest and to every 734 hectares of

parish forest.

In spite of the keepers’ vigilance, much

damage is done in malice or by theft. The country people have not yet grasped

the importance of the preservation of forests for rural economy, and the

keepers are not yet well trained for performing their difficult task.

GENERAL CONDITION OF THE FORESTS

All the forests of the Principality are not

as yet classified, still less subdivided and surveyed and their boundaries

marked. All have not as yet been seriously taken in hand.

No distinction has been made between

forests pure and simple and the other possessions of the Bulgarian peasant.

Vineyards are to be found among the forests, and are in their turn divided by

fields and meadows; all these things shade into one another. That is the reason

why our peasants do not, as yet, see any great difference between a meadow and

a forest, a vineyard and a meadow. They pasture their cattle anywhere and

everywhere and at any time, without distinguishing between young forests and

old ones, without even any regard to fresh plantations. This is the way with

most of the peasants, and it results from their notions of rural economy. Hence

come all the difficulties which hinder at every step the work of restoring and

preserving our forests.

On the other hand, the Bulgarian government

makes every effort to stop the devastation of forests and establish a state of

things which shall safeguard the wellbeing of the rural population.

The finest forests of tall timber lie on the

most inaccessible heights of StaraPlanina, Rilo, the Rhodopes, and Sredna Gora.

Such are the beechwoods of Berkovitza, Vratza, Teteven, and indeed those on

most of the northern slopes of StaraPlanina and SrednaGora between the village

of Klis soura (Carlovo) and StaroNovo Selo (Philippopolis).

The forests of the Rilo Monastery are

particularly rich and well preserved. These forests would form the basis of a

very profitable speculation if the necessary funds were forthcoming. An

important Sofia firm (Balabanoff brothers) has purchased the concession for

twenty years, starting from 1902. The Rilo forests are coniferous.

The ash and elm plantations at Longosa,

along the river Kamtschia to the Black Sea, 30 kilometres from Varna, deserve

special mention. Lower down, there are woods of low growth, the timber of which

is particularly hard and good; for instance, the woods of Hasakia at Bourgas,

of Guenichada at Varna, of Balaband£r6 at Autos, and Caramas Kala at Anchialo.

Altogether, the forests of the Principality

are of great promise, thanks to the natural richness of the country, even

though as yet their importance has not been universally realised.

The improvement of our forests demands

enormous sacrifices, but on the other hand a time will come when the revenue

from the forests will play an important part in the State budget. The Bulgarian

Government, fully aware of its duties and its interests, concentrates its

efforts to this end: to make our forests, by the simplest means, in the near

future a source of riches, which are so sorely needed by the young State for

the completion of its organisation.