Ivii 



gay tlioag^h. fjreat l&alg ciiaat aSict 

 cD9inic c&asea, thsj ara saffioieat to tava 

 the ba.Uacd wh.ea eoaditions of cdaiaa- 

 sitiaa are aaproaclied, to cause rala to 

 fall focilly wlere othsrwise it woali bs 

 ja^t missel. This iafliisnes oa cUm&ts 

 theoretically held, has bsaa ope i to 

 diapats ; bafe c»refal obserFaUois at 

 many gtatioas ia Maropo are aow shovia^ 

 a stsady increase oE raiaf all ia prapor* 

 tionas torests ar««ac9aragfd. 



Bat, howev^er, theie iii)ra geieral ia- 

 flieacss may ydt bs opsa to disea3sl9D, 

 th9 iairaeiiatiely local efEsets o! traa 

 plaatin^ sra uadaalable. The fftrtaar 

 koow^s oaly too v?'ell thed^asicitia? ©EEiei 

 of hot dry wiads parchiai; ap his fislds 

 and pastares ; ha kao^i as well th« 

 effect OQ bis stock, aad tbo coaditions of 

 Kis paddocks, ia tha h^tt of samnsr, aad 

 the bleak cold of early apria^. Jadicioas 

 treaplaatirier has baaa foaad ia othar 

 coaatries an eSectaal help ia b?th cases. 



Now, ia coaelasion, I would |.oiat oat 

 once a^aia what woald h» theeSact te 

 Tasraaoia had a policy of tree plaatiag 

 baea parsasd by oar fare£«thars. 

 Firstly, oar waters waald hsve beea con- 

 serrei, aadiastead o£ periods of drought 

 with DO f«ei aad little water, mised with 

 suddea floods, wo should have natural 

 resarvoirti of reteatioa, with coasis^eat 

 brooks, instead of empty creaks. 

 tieaoailj, from tha extsasioa tlis forasts 

 would now have asaumad ia^ttai of 

 haviut; vast erapinttng fdaa, sty like 

 tha Samiltoa district for iastiuca, whara 

 ttia clouds oaly too oftsa coais up from 

 the west, expaad into iavisibilicy over 

 head, to be coideased oacs again when 

 they havdptsssd aw^ay to tha eist, we 

 should k9L7e had coaddasatioa instead 



with a fall of moisture, with all its con- 

 c^mittnt b9neQ.fc3. Aad lastly, iustaad 

 of cow importiae[ aanually £18,000 

 worth of gof t woods wa shoald not oaly 

 produce what wo require, but be Large 

 ezportera into tha bargain. 



Such baiag the case is it not a wiso 

 policf, ia it not a duty to posterity, that 

 if the thiag can be done without a taz on 

 our labors and resonrcss, that we should 

 do what we regret eur anoastors have not 

 dooe for us ? I think there caa be no 

 quastion about it. Only how is it to ba 

 done? If a privite iadividual made up 

 his mind to plaat a hundred acres with 

 £;ood trees ha would fi.ad it too great a 

 burden. The work would have to be 

 iaitiatsd aad partially conducted by the 

 State. The State, np to a point, can 

 produca the youno; trees without appre- 

 ciable espsnsa. Tha State has plenty of 

 land available at New Town, Eisdon, 

 aadelsawhere for all requirements. We 

 bare msn already employed ia similar 

 work. Our Conservator (Mir Penny), 

 our able manager of our Botaoic Gardens 

 (M!r Abbott) and his assistant (Mr 

 Wardeman), who have ample ability for 

 all that would be immediately required, 

 and wa have abuadance of cheap labor. 

 Tha young trees beiag prx)duced in 

 qusutity it would remain for the Dapart- 

 msat Co supply them at a lo^ cost to 

 reliable landholders, who would plant 

 them under suitable supervision, And 

 if this principle of State nurserias and 

 suparvisioQ were ecoaomically carried 

 out tbe department would be self- 

 supporting, aad in a few years the only 

 wonder would be that the foresight cf 

 our public men had not adoptel such a 

 policy sooner. 



