ITS MANAGEMENT
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there is an enormous number of small pollards of
oak, beech, and hornbeam, many of which should
still be removed. Owing to the fact that the right
of pollarding was vested in the whole of the house-
holders in Loughton, no "spear" trees were
allowed to develop, and I do not pretend that
this is a characteristic which I should altogether
desire to maintain. Here an attempt has been
made to break the monotony of the wood by
clearing considerable patches, which will in time
give us young growth, and which incidentally open
charming views of such wooded valleys as that
known as " Hangboy Slade." I would especially
call attention to what has been done in this way,
below the green ride which leads from Golding's
Hill to Debden Green. In some parts of this
manor, as for instance in the neighbourhood of
Kate's Cellar, the pollards consist almost entirely
of beeches. It should be remembered that these
are much more likely to improve, if given room,
than hornbeams. Thinning operations are still
very urgent in such places.
In some parts of Loughton, Theydon, and
Waltham Manors there have been large clearances,
of long standing, chiefly caused by fires. In many
of these, groves of silvery birches of exquisite
grace are filling the gap. Such an one covers the
northern slope of the valley below the Loughton
Camp. I invite a comparison between it and the
opposite side of the valley which is still covered
with a monotonous growth of pollards. These,
having all been pollarded together, their branches
are of the same length, leading to a smooth un-
broken outline, as in an artificial plantation, and
an absence of shadows.
In the midst of Loughton Manor, but distinct
from it in character, lies Monk Wood. Its charm
is so well known that I need not further describe
it. In 1893 we removed a considerable number
of the ugliest of the pollard beeches, a measure
which elicited a storm of criticism, but which
nevertheless has, in my opinion, greatly improved
the wood by giving more scope to the unpollarded