a—B

16

tions as do come in, being charged to the State Forests Account, the actual profit, making reasonable allowance for sums so charged but not incurred upon these, would probably raise the net profit for the years named to but little short of 7s. per acre. Eefoebsting Mountains. The reclamation of mountain slopes on the Alps, Pyrenees, and Cevennes, resolved upon as a work of public utility, and in part already accomplished, includes the reforesting of an estimated area of 1,035 square miles, and the treatment of 1,900 linear miles of torrent-beds. Of the total amount, 152 square miles of the forest-lands and 375 miles of torrent-beds had been dealt with by the end of 1885, at a cost of £819,330, the rates varying from £3 2s. to £6 3s. 6d. per acre of surface, and from 2s. to 7s. 6d. per linear yard of torrent-beds. About 883 square miles of the slopes and 1,500 miles of the watercourses therefore still remain to be reclaimed under the scheme, which will consequently involve an expenditure of between £4,500,000 and £5,000,000 sterling. In addition, the State has paid £138,000, or half the cost of treating 212 square miles, on permissive works under the old law, and £12,000 towards pastoral improvements. Forest Staff. The officials include the Director-General of Forests, nine Inspectors-General, thirty-nine Conservators, 245 Inspectors, 234 Assistant Inspectors, 308 Sub-assistant Inspectors (Gardes Generaux), 3,532 Brigadiers, Head Guards, and Guards, the latter forming the subordinate branch of the staff. Salary List. Director-General ... ... ... ... ... ... £800 Inspector-General (three classes) ... ... ... ... £480 to £600 Conservators (four classes) ... ... ... ... ... £320 to £480 Inspectors (four classes) ... . ... ... ... £160 to £240 Assistant Inspectors (three classes) ... ... ... ... £120 to £152 Sub-assistant Inspectors (three classes) ... ... ... £80 to £104 Sub-assistant Inspectors (on probation) ... ... ... £60 The staff is maintained under military organization, and in time of war may be called out by the Minister if required. Such facts as those above noted show that forestry is recognised in European countries as an important factor in the State economy. Having experienced the disastrous effects of letting things, so to say, " go by the board," the leading nations of the Old World vigorously grappled with the subject, and were not content with merely conserving the forests they still possessed, but have spent and are spending millions of money in repairing damages caused by official and private blundering in the past. It will be well, indeed, if the various colonies of Australasia note the importance of the extracts above set forth, which, though brief and necessarily curtailed for this report, are of the utmost significance in their bearing upon our own circumstances, as they relate to forest conservation and culture. Forest Eefoem in Austkalia, Forest reform is urgently required in nearly all parts of Australia, but, though this important subject has for many years attracted very general attention, in only a few of the colonies has practical reform been attempted, and even by these in but a half-hearted and consequently futile manner. South Australia, however, represents an honourable exception to this rule. New South Wales. The mother-colony of New South Wales, it is true, led the van by proclaiming State forests in various districts, but only after several-subsequent years of a do-nothing policy did the Parkes Government, in 1889-90, make an attempt—only spasmodic after all—to inaugurate a Forest Department, and formulate a scheme of conservation suited to the circumstances of the country. About this time Mr. J. B. Brown (who had been Conservator of Forests in South Australia) was appointed Director-General of Forests in New South Wales; but, after contending for two years or more against the opposition of private interests and the blocking tactics of politicians and their constituents, this gentleman's services were dispensed with, and forestry work was allowed to revert to its original condition of chaos. It is somewhat ludicrous, surely, that an attempt at reform commenced with so much eclat and promise as was the case here should have had so lame and impotent a conclusion. New Zealand. New Zealand, in like manner, undertook reform, but failed to maintain even the measure gained, and has since retrograded. As you are aware, a Department of Forestry was inaugurated, and about twenty years ago Captain Campbell Walker was commissioned to inspect and advise upon the condition of the forests. That gentleman embodied the result of his labours in a most valuable report, which was submitted to the Government. This document, however, shared the not uncommon fate of such reports, especially those which deal trenchantly with the subject in hand. It was pigeon-holed, and for a time forgotten, or, it may be, conveniently overlooked by the Government. But Forestry refuses to be dealt with in such childish fashion, and its claims to consideration are sooner or later forced upon the authorities by the rapid disappearance of timber. This was the experience in New Zealand; and some time later Professor Kirk, F.L.S., was appointed the first Conservator. During the few years this gentleman presided over the department he did yeoman service to the cause of forestry, and has left behind him a lasting memorial of his scientific attain-