DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume IX, Issue 922, 2 March 1881, Page 2

DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER.

The following -letter from Canada, written by a gentleman formerly a resident of this province, refers to a matter of grave importance to the country at large, namely, the wilful destruction of valuable trees and timber— a practice that has been going on for a gTeat numbed of yeats, : and Which it is to be feared has not yet been discontinued. : —

“To ‘ Agricola.’ Sir, — Having read from time to time "articles appearing bter your nom de plume in the columns of the Weekly News, I take the liberty of addressing you, with the hdpe that you will endeavour, in reaching many homes, as you do, to stop the wanton destruction of useful timber and of trees valuable'as honey producers. “As an old resident of Auckland.prpviiace, I know how common a sight it is to see the bleached skeleton forms of what were once stately kauris destroyed, sometimes by accidental fern fires, but too often kindled in mere wanton idleness, in the hearts of the woods. Not many years have elapsed since it was customary fo talk of our' ‘ inexhaustible ’ timber limits, but the fact that timber is now as dear in Albany, N. Y.> as in the seaport towns of Great Britain, and that the Michigan saw-millers have reduced, within the last four years, the size of the saw-log from four to the thousahd feet to 7-L to the thousand effectually dispels any such delusion. As there is no comparison between the two countries, taking the average growth over a large section, every well-wisher to Auckland will desire to see a check put on all wanton waste of what will in New Zealand be especially difficult to replace—that is, her forests. It is a very common practice, and as reprehensible as common, to fire ratas when passing through the woods. As I believe that honey will'yet form a considerable article of export from New Zealand, the wanton destruction of so valuable a honeyproducer as the' rata cannot be too severely condemned. During the last month nearly 3000 barrels of honey reached Great Britain from Chili, while the annual consumption is from 16,000 to 18,000 barrels—a consumption which is steadily and rapidly increasing. A large quantity of Californian honey is now on the way via Cape Horn, reaching England about Christmas, having been bought in California by English and Continental agents. Large quantities are shipped from the Atlantic ports, one firm— Messrs. Thurber, of New York —sending over 180 tons of comb honey in 21b. packages in one season. Surely I have adduced facts enough to show that bee-keeping will become, especially in Auckland North, a most important industry. How foolish then to destroy one of the principal sources of supply, which, bestowed by the bountiful hand of nature, cannot be replaced under hundreds of years, if at all. Districts which once yielded bountiful crops of honey in this country have been impoverished by the destruction of the linden and tulip trees till bee-keeping has ceased to be profitable. Hoping you will excuse this hurried scribble, and that the facts embodied may, in your hands, serve to ‘ point a moral,’ —I am, &c., Henry D. Twohy, Jun., Hamilton Water Works Department, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada (formerly of Mahurangi). December 5, 1880.’—A 1 ". Z. Herald.