Political troubles prevented any attempts at improvement until, in 1867, comparative peace and the new régime had arrived, and finally, in 1879, it became possible to pass a reform law, which is the basis of present conditions. A general forest law had been enacted in 1807; this was superseded in 1858 by the adoption of the Austrian law of 1852. But, in 1879, a new law reorganized forest policy and forest service. In that year, the State interests were placed under the administration of the Department of Agriculture with a technical forester at the head (Oberlandforstmeister), assisted by four section chiefs, one in charge of the State forest administration, one for the administration of corporation forests, one for the elaboration of working plans, and one, with the assistance of 20 forest inspectors having supervision of the execution of all forest laws. Otherwise the general features of German administrative methods prevail, except that for purposes of executing the protective forest laws, committees composed of three members chosen from the country officials co-operate with the government service. The law of 1879, modified and intensified in 1898, provides government supervision of the management of corporation and of protection of forests, and prescribes that land unfit for farming, i.e., absolute forest soil (three-quarters of all forest land), no matter by whom owned, is to be reforested within six years after having been stripped, and no new clearings may be made on such soils. Mountain forests, which are classed as protection forests (around one million acres or 5.4% of the forest area so classed), as well as entailed properties, must be managed according to working plans approved by the forest department. The declaration of protective forests was to be made by a commission within five years of the enactment of the law. New planting for protective purposes could also be ordered, and this under certain conditions may be done by the interested, i.e., protected parties, which may associate themselves for this purpose. Violations of this law are liable to be punished by a fine for each acre, imposed annually as long as the offense continues. Two-thirds of the whole forest area is thus more or less under State supervision, and working plans for over 12 million acres have been, or are to be prepared by the government. An area allotment method with a normal forest formula as a check has been mostly employed in this work, which is by no means as yet completed. To promote forest planting several nurseries have been established by the government, from which around 10 million plants are annually distributed free of charge, and subventions for reforestation of wastes are also granted annually. It is interesting to note in this connection that more than 170,000 acres have been planted to Black Locust, which is managed as coppice for vineyard stakes.