FOREST COMJnSSIONER's REPORT. 109 



of the country, — the lay of the land, the nature of the origi- 

 nal o-rowth, its thriftiness and the character of the cut — my 

 companion and I started together our systems of count and- 

 estimate on which was to be based a judgment of the grow- 

 ins capacity of the land. West's purpose in estimating had 

 always been chieti\' to ascertain the amount of merchantable 

 timber on the ground. He counted trees therefore that were 

 of size to cut, setting his limit at the lowest notch, and esti- 

 mated their contents in board feet. His practice, moreover, 

 "was to count over a circle of seven rods radius around him. 

 My idea, on the other hand, was to get at the growing power 

 of the land, and my count stopped with six inch trees only 

 because the smaller sizes could not be taken in with accuracy. 

 My examination of the ground, moreover, was to one side and 

 to the width of a quarter of an acre. Our practice was to 

 count this way for half a mile, distance being determined by 

 count of ste[)s, and then compare notes, talk over what we had 

 seen and pursue on the spot any suggestions received. Then 

 we would travel on further, looking the country over more at 

 liberty, studying the young growth coming up in the gaps, 

 and comparing our observations and experiences in general. 

 During the course of our ten days together I learnt a great 

 deal from Mr. West, and I have always thought that the gen-, 

 eral agreement of our estimates spoke well for the work 

 of both of us. 



As was said earlier, the first ground we got into Amount of 

 was covered with mixed growth cut out ten years f,? cuuta" 

 before, yielding a large cut of spruce. The hard w^oods on 

 the ground, however, had been plenty enough to keep the stuff 

 left from blowing down much. As for the amount of spruce 

 standing, West's count for the first half mile averaged eighteen 

 trees and 1,300 board feet per acre. My count took in thirty- 

 four trees six inches in diameter or over per acre, and set 

 their contents at 525 cubic feet. The stand of all species was 

 set at something like 1,200 cubic feet. 



Passing soon over the ridge into the basin of ^r ^tio^g"^" 

 Lincoln brook, a territory of heavier hard wood ^'"^^'"- 



