Silviculture in Canada 15 



done only by application of silviculture, the art of forest crop 

 production. 



The principal reason for the absence of such forestry practice 

 is probably an economic one. Most of the Reserves are located 

 where, as yet, no market, or only a limited market, exists, and, 

 moreover, the best timber, the marketable portion on most of the 

 Reserves, had been placed in timber limits, which were haggled 

 away before the Reserves were created, hence the administration 

 was financially handicapped at the start. 



In addition, the administrator of the Reserve, if he consulted the 

 technical man, would have found out that to reproduce the forest 

 crop costs money just the same as reproducing the farm crop, and 

 as he is accustomed to deal at any rate only with present-day 

 affairs, he is apt to let the future take care of itself and to confine 

 himself to present-day timber sales of whatever available supplies 

 are at hand. He thinks that if he has made provision against fire 

 danger and for reduction of waste generally, perhaps restricting 

 the cut to a diameter limit, he has done all that can be expected. 

 Surely, these administrative measures are of primary importance 

 and need first consideration but if this were to remain the proper 

 attitude, the Reserves would fail of their object and altogether 

 the prosperity of the country would suffer in the future. 



The forester also takes into consideration the economic condi- 

 tions under which he is to practise his technical art ; he also is shy 

 at avoidable expenditures, but he makes a long range calculation. 

 His business is to provide for the futiu-e and hence he looks into 

 and calculates with the future, and he knows from the experience 

 of other nations that it requires expenditure and apparently dead 

 work in the present to secure results for the future. 



His finance calculation is for the long run ! 



We must not allow ourselves to be deterred by the fact that the 

 forest crop is slow in maturing, that it takes many decades from 

 the seedling to the log tree and not less than 60 to 120 years for a 

 profitable crop to mature. On the contrary, this is the very reason 

 for a timely beginning to start the crop. It is this time element 

 which makes the forestry business unattractive to private enter- 

 prise and furnishes the argument for government to engage in it, 

 the justification for setting aside Forest Reserves and for handling 

 them for the sustained yield under systematic forest management. 



