162 TRANSACTIONS OP ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



limitless work, which, if gone into properly, would eventually 

 give real relief to much labour, skilled and otherwise, and chiefly 

 the latter. We have often discussed the question of arboriculture 

 in these columns, and so has our special correspondent who writes 

 on the home-grown trade. Seen from this purely timber-trade 

 point of view, there are difficulties and problems in the way 

 which at first sight might seem to make the scheme scarcely 

 possible. But the adverse critic should bear in mind that 

 conditions here cannot compare with what we find them in the 

 Baltic countries, and in Asia, or in Canada. It has never been 

 suggested that the red fir should be planted, to be sawn into 

 scantlings for the London auction sales. The plain facts are 

 these. There ai'e extensive areas of waste ground here, there, 

 and everywhere. There is Government land, and there are 

 private estates — pure waste, good for absolutely nothing except 

 aflforestation. If then this barren soil were turned into wood- 

 land, be it next year, or 20 or 60 years hence, it would certainly 

 be a step in the direction of national economy. The argument 

 frequently heard that it would take a forest 50 years to grow, 

 does not always apply, for these reasons. Firstly, the soil being 

 barren and unused now would probably be no better within the 

 next 50 years; untouched it will remain, and every day that 

 passes constitutes a loss — be it ever so small — to the country. 

 Secondly, the growing time of 50 years only refers to the first 

 period. Once the crop were raised, it would be renewed from 

 year to year, and probably as soon as in the twenties, become a 

 perpetual source of revenue and employment. It has also been 

 said by men who possibly may not know very much of the subject, 

 that the soil here is vinsuited for commercial arboriculture ; the 

 growth would be too rapid, the texture too loose, the timber too 

 knotty, and so forth. An answer may readily be given. There 

 is no intention of planting forests in the fields and pasture land of 

 England. As to the quality of the timber, it may not be 

 generally known that this improves with the quantity. The 

 garden firs are of the poorest from a timber point of view, the 

 few hundred trees occasionally seen in our ornamental woods and 

 parks are one shade better. But plant hundreds of thousands, 

 and it will be found that the trees will grow straight, the branches 

 will drop off below as they grow in height, and by degrees the 

 texture will become excellent. This can be easily seen in working 

 in Germany, in France, and even in Belgium. 



