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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5354, 25 May 1878, Page 2

State forestry is a branch of national economy, and touches the collective Interest of communities. In a practical point of view forest cultivation is not immediately so profitable to the individual ini torost as other branches of and thus people remain indifferent to the study of a subject from which , they do not expect any personal and immediate benefit. Still, the maintenance of; ex'tensive areas of forest, has been proved, both by science and experience, to bo-of vital importance-to i the welfare of countrioo at large, an TrelJ an to that-of their

inhabitants individually. Statesmen in this colony have urged the necessity of a State Forest administration, and their efforts have succeeded so far as placing on our Statute Book the-State Forests Act of 1874,-' and certain ’ provision’s in the Land’Act of 1877. The first .Act; perfect as toxthe principle- of forest conservation it establishes, is ; still , defective in the practical measures it prescribes, some of which can be shown to be detrimental .:to <ithe. conservation of the forest. ; However,'■the Act having not yet practically been carried into operation, the important question of the ' ■■dayr-'iA-'4hiß4->-Haß«thfii.tima come'when we should begin to deal practically with " our State forest interests % Wo desire to'work out the question from a i practical point of view only, thatit may be made plain to all whom the interests of the colony concern. After noting, and as we hope refuting, the current objections to the establishment . of, a general ’ administration for the 'State forests, we propose to consider the following points (1.) What may be the present financial, returns from , the (unsold) colonial forests; to what extent the present production might be increased ? How to provide for maintaining the balance between the supply'of and demand for our forest produce ? (2.) What is the Actual area- of our forests, and what annual acreage is required in order to supply the consumption of our present population. Further, what may be the extent of forest required to provide, under, systematic , treatment,- - a regular,aririual amount of produce, without exhausting the estate for ever, as is now being done ? It may.be remarked that confusion of ideas appears to exist not only in regard to the material or mercantile aspects of the question, but in regard also to that other and more important aspect which we call national or general. Some declare that there is abundance of wood for present, and future generations, ignoring the fact that State forests have other uses besides, supplying .wood ; that their .climatic , influence is at least as important'as the ' very considerable revenue they may be made to yield to the State, when properly managed ; and that the increasing destruction of; those forests will bear hardly .even on the present generation, and still more so on that of the future, on account of the inevitable scarcity and dearness of wood, i Others are of opinion that the enterprize of private individuals shoud‘ replace that of the State, ns possessor and manager- of those forests, ignoring the fact, already proved here as well as all over the world, that' individual interest is in direct opposition to the conservation or cultivation, on any large scale, of timber lands.; They also argue from the fact that land being converted from forest into agricultural or pastoral areas will prove more profitable to the. owner-of it, not seeing thatit is dor that very reason that the establishment of State forests is of absolute necessity in order to insure the public welfare’against the tendencies of i individual: interest, which demand 'more speedy returns for labor and capital than those timbered lands can afford. It is in-this light the interest of the nation requires that the Government should be entrusted with the management of national forests, which are a most efficacious natural protection against climatic influences,affecting the health of man,.as well as the interests of agriculture, in the protection, they afford against floods and droughts. There, are persons -who fear that any change in the existing way of working the ‘ forest would injure the industries already involved in it. This, is advocating the interest of a few men in preference to the interest and welfare of the whole population.;’ If this needed further elucidation, it would be easy to prove that ‘ instead of any injury arising from proper measures being carried out,', respecting the management of the public, property,, individual interest would ever share in the general improvement. We have done no more than indicate in this paper our view of the general aspects of the question of conservation-of forests, and will address ourselves on, another occasion, to . the several points hereinbefore specified. ;