The oak underwood for bark ( akkermaalshout ) of ten years growth, sells at about 200 fl. the hectare , which makes anannual profit of 20 fl. In Drenthe and Over-Yasel, this kind of underwood after ten years sells for 500 fl. the hectare, whichmakes an annual revenue of over 50 fl.; but in these districts wood is sold dearer than in the Veluwe.
The common woods in the Veluwe are divided into parts, which are more or less numerous and bear various names.
The Gortelscherbosch property is divided into 60 parts called Malen . According to Haasloop Werner, 6,000 trees are felledevery year and divided among the co-proprietors.
The Putterbosch is divided into 53 parts (andeelen), 6 of which belong to the forest itself, regarded as a civil person.
The Spielderbosch contains 44 shares, called hoeven, 14 of which belong to the wood. The Speulderbosch contains 120parts ( deelingen ), 58?belonging to the forest. The Elspeterbosch comprises 54 parts, belonging to 25 co-proprietors; andthe Uddelerheegde 120 parts, owned by 29 persons. The shares belonging to the forest are sold; and the price, less theexpense of replanting, supervision, &c., is divided among the co-proprietors.
The co-proprietors ( maalmannen ), before taking part in the general assembly ( maalspraak ), had to pronounce an oath, theancient formula of which is still preserved in the registers of Gortelschebosch, near Epe. The text of this oath recalls, alike inlangnage and spirit, the ancient traditions of Germany: Den eedt der malen.Ick love en sekere dat ick den bus mit al synankleven en regten en geregtighoden sal holt ende trauwe wesen, syn regten to scutten und bestal vaer te keeren, ende nieten sal nag am vrienden nag am magen versurgen nag arglist nag om leedt dat anse bus mag schadelick wesen.So waerlickhelpe my Gadt!
At Putten they have an old register of the Putterbosch, which begins with the year 1448. It mentions older books which havebeen lost : it is however shewn that this forest had written customs from far back in the middle ages. De Meester, in a bookentitled Aanteekeningen omtrent een par oude veluwsche basschen (Arnhem, 1850), published the deed by which Folkerusgranted to the abbey, of Werden, in 855, conformably to the Salic and Frison laws, the wood ( saltus ) of Uunnilo, the forest( silva ) of Horulo, 25 parts ( scharen ) in the Putterbosch, 60 parts in the wood of Ermelo, and the forests of Burlo, Dalbonlo,Wardlo, Orclo, Legurlo, Ottarloun and Langlo.
The administrative committee of the Putterbosch consists of two holt-rigters , and a gecommitteerde . This committee,nominated by the co-proprietors ( maalmannen ), manages the forest and directs the division of its produce. In the part of theforest destined to be cut, they make as many equal shares as there are co-proprietors, and then distribute them by lot.
The nature of the ownership of these woods has considerably exercised Dutch jurists. If it were merely common undividedproperty; a communia bonorum , the proprietors might demand partition, and put an end to the indivisibility. But they seemrather to belong to that class of civil persons, corpora vel callegia licita , which are governed by their own rules andinstitutions. The supreme court leans to this last opinion. On this ground it is held that the large pasturage, de Hoenweerd ,near Hattem, was not mere undivided property of which partition could be demanded, but was an indivisible universitas . Infact, if we glance back to the spirit of ancient German institutions, we must see that they are favourable to the existence ofsuch indivisible common property, for individual ownership of land is of relatively recent origin. In the neighbourhood of theancient common forests there are many tumuli , covering large urns of clay hardened in the sun, which contain ashes andcarbonized bones.
In Holland, we often come upon evidence that the towns are developed out of the mark; for several of them still possesscommon land, like the town of Thun, in Switzerland, where the drill ground is called the Allmend. The town of Zutphenpossesses a magnificent meadow, called Marsch en Helbergen , 150 hectares in extent, on which 668 cattle were turned forpasture. The town of Genemuiden has lost the greater part of its mark , owing to the encroachment of the Zuider Zee. It hasstill a meadow, de Greente , on which the inhabitants have a right of common pasture for their cattle. Elburg possesses ameadow, het Goar, divided into 612 parts ( andeelen ), and equal to 308 Kaegras (keep for a cow, the Swiss kuhessen ). Thetowns of Genemuiden, Hattem, Deventer and Steenwyck still possess a remnant of the ancient Allmend , in the large pastures( greente ) on which some of the inhabitants, descended from the old families of joint proprietors, are entitled to send acertain number of cows, by virtue of hereditary right, as in the burgh of Lauder in Scotland. It would be easy to collect manyother examples on the spot.
1. In every commune of relatively recent formation there are several marken . The commune of Westerhork contains nine,that of Rolde nine, and that of Beilen twelve, and these twelve marken comprised an area of more than 10,000 hectares.
CHAPTER XXII.
COMMON LANDS IN FRANCE.
In Gaul as well as in Italy, during the Roman period, not only the villages, but also the towns, seem to have possessedcommon lands. Plures ex municipi bus, qui diversa prcedia possidebant, saltum communem, ut jus compascendi haberent,mercati sunt . (Digest, VIII. 5, 20.)
Festus, speaking of the property of the villages (pagi, villae), defines the compascua : ager relictus ad pascendumcommuniter vicaneis .
Isidorus ( Origines xv. 2) gives nearly the same definition: . Ager compascuus dictus, quia divisoribus agrorum relictus estad pascendum communiter vicaneis .
