The Turks for centuries warred with, had under vassalage or otherwise controlled, and misruled all the Slavish States, as well as Macedonia and Greece--a territory of around 170,000 square miles and 16,000,000 people--until, by the Congress of Berlin (1878), ending the Russo-Turkish war, these States were recognized as independent kingdoms, namely Bulgaria, Servia, Montenegro, Roumelia, and Roumania, while Bosnia-Hercegovina was placed under Austrian administration (see page 155 and 166). With the exception of Roumania, these people are still in the lower stages of civilization, the countries undeveloped, the forest still serves largely for the mast and pasturage, probably less than 24 per cent. of the country being forest covered, mostly with deciduous trees, oak, beech and walnut, etc. Roumania alone has systematically taken advantage of her freedom from Turkish rule in developing a modern civilization, and can also boast the beginning of a forestry system. _Roumelia_, comprising _Macedonia_, _Albania_ and _Thrace_, the Turkish possessions in Europe, with 67,000 square miles and 5,000,000 people, contain large areas of untouched forest (not less than 5,000,000 acres in Macedonia alone[10]) with valuable oak and walnut, which have remained unused owing to their inaccessibility and the undesirability of developing them under Turkish rule. Where accessible, the forest is maltreated or destroyed. [10] Lacretelle, Rapport sur les forêts de la Macédoine, 1893. _Bulgaria_, to which, in 1885, East Roumelia was attached, represents now 38,000 square miles and over 4,000,000 people, independent under a German prince as king since 1879. The forest area[11] of 7.5 million acres (30 per cent. of the land area), mostly deciduous (oak, beech, walnut, etc.), and largely confined to the mountains, is one-half in communal ownership, one-sixth in private hands, mostly small woodlots, and one-third State property; but ownership rights are still much in doubt, and until 1869 the State forests were freely open to the use of all, when some sort or regulation of the cut according to the needs of different communities was attempted. Since within 10 years such rights of user establish ownership, endless litigation has resulted, until in 1883 a law was enacted ordering the stoppage of rights of user, substituting money payment (10 per cent. of value), and another restricting the diameter to which the most valuable export timber, walnut, may be cut. Changes in detail were made in 1897, but political exigencies, absence of an adequate organization, and other undeveloped conditions have largely prevented enforcement of these laws, and rough exploitation continues in spite of the nominal State control. [11] _Forstliche Rundschau_, 1903.