A NATIONAL FOREST POLICY 



1477 



5. The amount of stnmpage to be agreed upon by the 

 owners and the Coniniission in charge. In case of dis- 

 agreement the two to select a third and his decision to 

 l)e final. 



6. The trees to be considered matured when they 

 liave reached a diameter of 10 or 12 inches on the 

 stump. 



7. Careful surveys and records of all parcels planted 

 shall be filed with the owners and the Commission. 



8. If at any time the owner should wish to discharge 

 the lien he can do so by paying the cost of reforesting 

 jjIus the interest at a nominal rate and agreeing to prac- 

 tice modern methods in his operations. 



If necessary in order to carry out the above the State 

 can be mandatory in reforesting such lands as in its 

 opinion should be reforested. 



It involves the initial expenditure by the State with an 

 absolute sure return to the State when these trees are 

 matured and cut. 



It makes possible a continuous forest which we know 



must be grown in order to obtain the greatest possible 

 results. 



It makes possible the utilization of land unfit for any- 

 thing but the growing of trees. 



It protects the head waters of our streams so neces- 

 sary for a more uniform flow of our rivers. 



It makes the operation profitable to the State. 



It insures a supply of timber necessary for the use and 

 enjoyment of the people. 



It prevents erosion. 



It maintains a higher moisture level in our agricultural 

 lands. 



In view of our rapidly depleting wood supply, the 

 anxiety that is felt in Canada over the fast depletion of 

 her forests, should spur us on to greater efforts to edu- 

 cate the people of the country to the necessity of a prac- 

 tical forestry program. 



What I have said above is in the nature of suggestions 

 from which I hope something practical can be worked out 

 and at once put into operation. 



FOREST RESTORATION IN BELGIUM 



BELGIUM is restoring its forested lands to a normal 

 condition just as fast as intelligent planting and 

 cultivation makes such restoration possible. There 

 is no lack of labor for the work as the enemy so com- 

 pletely denuded the country of mechanical equipment 

 that resumption of industrial activity is unavoidably 

 delayed. 



What is being done in reforestation in Belgium is well 

 described by an English newspaper writer in the Phila- 

 delphia Public Ledger of October 21. He says : 



"The purpose of the visit to Belgium was to inspect 

 the forestry and general reclamation enterprises upon 

 which the government and private land owners were en- 

 gaged, when the war suspended operations, and which 

 will be resumed at the earliest possible moment with 

 unabated vigor and diligence. The tour was made under 

 the guidance of Henri Vendelmans, who was responsible 

 for many such projects in Belgium in pre-war times. 



"In view of the prominent attention that has been given 

 to afforestation in Great Britain and the increasing need 

 for developments, it may be appropriate to give refer- 

 ences, first, to work of this description already accom- 

 plished and in process of completion in the provinces 

 visited. The program began with a tour of the historic 

 forest of Soignes, near Brussels. Those interested in 

 forestry will be familiar with the distinguishing features 

 of this marvelous expanse of stately beeches, firs, oaks, 

 ash and poplars, and it need only be said that the 10,000 

 acres of matured and maturing timber and underwood 

 have survived the ordeal of war without serious damage. 

 The enemy did not spare it when their requirements 

 demanded contributions from its wealth of valuable war 

 material. 



"Ash was taken without stint for the construction of 

 airplanes, and beechnuts would have been gathered for 



the extraction of oil if the staff could have been induced 

 to render such service to the invaders. The comparative 

 immunity of the great forest is due largely to the wisdom 

 and tact of M. Crahay, director of forestry, who, when 

 requested by the Germans to provide them with timber 

 agreed to double the annual normal output if they would 

 consent to the control remaining with him. The advant- 

 age of this arrangement was, and is, that while the con- 

 tribution of 18,000 cubic meters was twice the usual 

 amount, promiscuous cutting was avoided and thus the 

 forest retains its former commanding proportions, to all 

 appearances, unimpaired. 



"While the thousands of acres of pure beech consti- 

 tutes the outstanding feature of the forest and will, in 

 itself, ever be a center of attraction and an education in 

 organized and efficient forestry, there are many other 

 departments equally instructive and suggestive. The 

 system upon which the great crown property is managed 

 is comprehensive enough to allow of wide variety of trees 

 and undergrowth, as well as experimentation in plants, 

 methods of planting and after management. 



"In these matters the Arboretum of Groenendael, un- 

 der the direction of M. Querriere, is exceedingly instruc- 

 tive. The nursery and experimental sections have not 

 fully recovered from the partial suspension caused by the 

 war, but work is again in progress and the various plots 

 are fruitful of useful suggestion and practical demonstra- 

 tion. An indication of the value and activity of the 

 nurseries is furnished by the fact that in the forest of 

 Hertogenwald, east of the Meuse, where great devastation 

 was wrought by the Germans, 250 acres have already 

 been planted with spruce four-year-old plants — from 

 Soignes. 



"Several important discoveries stand to the credit of 

 the wartime researches. For instance, the fungoid pest. 



