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Hokitika Guardian, 13 September 1921, Page 2

At the same time, "bile or, this lorestry subject, it is only fair l» say that the scientists' conclusions in pare! lo our forest growth strike the lav mind as being very accurale. D

is’ well to have the facts clearly set down, even if they are so obvious. No one who has watch,',l the clearings ol Westland poinp on over several decades can hut remark ell the tael that the felling of the hush area, kills ol! ihe primal forest. Where tile hush is felled fur economic, purposes. sa\ sett I ,' no nt. a burn takes place. Ac, online the locality, so the new

comes up in prolific ,|uanli(y, Ws dense Ilian the original prowili. hut always of a different character. E"i'Os largely prevail as though bent on making the forest floor the scientist speaks of. Hut. where this occurs natural u-

gen,'ration of commercial trees is invarbdd.v painfully slow. The period is for too long for the country to wait for the rejuvenation of the forests by ,his process, and tin* sooner ideas - n lie aspect are dropped the better trom a financial point of view to the country, finding the money for the promotion of such ,7 policy. There will be an agi'eem,ml. "itb the desire to see tdforest.iitation and reafforestation carried on. Experiinelils on waste places r.i.dit well lie attempt,mL and we believe m this natural climate for forest growth, such experiments are more likely to yield profitable returns than the , la-s of experiments re| oft, d to be point on at considerable cost in favored places in the North Island. In most places there is a very useful guide in the shelter I lumps of trees settlers an 1 olliers have planted in the past end f iotual results so niliev.-1. D',' Department, should lie able lo glean information at « verv small <ost. Hut ihe trend of late in guvernm nt <l---l,art in,nts is expenditure and mere expenditure. and till that orgy is pint sanil vin regard to the forest c p ' '' can hardly he expected.

One of the onlloriu'mlisins about the loros!rv policy is that some day b'eie will be a shortage <f timber. Ihe scientific gentleman who expounded on lids fact was more discreet, as to the limit of time involved in the oroeess of cutting out the forests of "Westland. than the Government nffn-ini who onee s et a limit of 20 yearn to the life

of our interests, and the following rear .corrected himself by fixing the limit at 3-. I years. At Christchurch the Speaker said: 'Mhey all knew that New Zealand laced a serious timl,er shortage at some time in the luture.” Now thnl is delightfully vague. but it wns the most definite way Ft could tie put by a man living in this year of grace. 11)21./ In the future, of iM.uisi*, lb* n* will Ik* a •‘ s bort««j_ r ,»* >.ji tmil,ei iii this conn try, but that time will depend oil the real activities of the Forestry Department in dealing with idi’orestatiou and realiorcstation. II the Department is going to waste its ,-ostly time in chasing indefinite data jilj .ut imagiiKTy ri*g*‘n**]'»ti«n ut our i,;i lri \*4 fun’sth wliirli took tliou-nuds ot years to fructify, and if the business of crowing trees is not taken up. Ncu Zealand "ill lace a shortage. Hut we :| ,V persuaded when the present landfill bent of the 1 oristiy pnlie\ changes from (lie illusioimry to the or ietie.il. the safety of New Zealand for the m-xt century or so in regard lo timber supplies will be secure. Surely that period is quite huig enough lor this generation to worry about the rnborn” millions. We would he very happy indeed if we thmight within the next half century the railway would he pushed into the far south el A\estlaixl tapfiing all the timher resources there, and bringing that wonderland into its own by the steady develo|>nient to follow the. opening up of access and expanding settlement. Meantime there .should lie a persistent plea on the part of the people for a sane forestry policy which will give the eaniltry some tangible value for the great expenditure now outpouring to keep up the Forestry Department.