50 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
his woods is to be so greatly increased by it, and who is expected 
to welcome the “‘new” forester with open arms—where is he? 
How is it that in a House of Commons, the majority of which 
consists of landowners, any debates on the question of a school of 
forestry, or the recommendations of the select committee, have 
been dismissed in a few words, and with apparent indifference 4 
If anything like unanimity prevailed on this point, surely land- 
owners as a body would have both the will and the power to 
carry through such a comparatively small undertaking. Only 
within the last few weeks, while the Agricultural Land Rating 
Bill was passing through committee, woodlands were excluded 
from the provisions of the Act with but one dissentient voice. 
This does not look as if proprietors were so very anxious regard- 
ing their woods after all, although there are doubtless exceptions 
to this state of indifference. yeryone who read or heard the 
eminently practical address of the esteemed President of the 
Society, Mr Munro Ferguson of Novar, which was delivered at 
last year’s annual meeting, must feel that in him we have a 
friend and powerful ally in the cause of scientific forestry. But 
even that gentleman, in spite of the brilliant example he sets to 
his brother landowners, appears to have little faith in the advance 
of estate forestry nowadays. 
The best means we have of testing the truth of these assertions 
is by the demand which exists for men with the amount of 
technical knowledge supposed to be necessary or desirable. If 
proprietors really wanted their woods managed on sound sylvi- 
cultural principles, there would be a strong inducement held out 
to the practical forester to qualify himself for such work, for in 
men, as in other commodities, the class of article most in demand 
will always rule the market. But, so far as I am able to judge, 
so long as a man has sufficient experience of the practical working 
operations of woods, and has proved himself thoroughly trustworthy 
and capable of managing men, his knowledge of scientific forestry 
is rarely called into question. Of course, it must be admitted 
that it has hitherto been impossible to get men with anything 
but practical experience, and consequently the demands of the 
past afford no criterion of those of the future. But it must also 
be remembered that the average Briton, whatever position he 
may occupy, has not yet adopted the motto, “Practice with 
Science,” with anything like enthusiasm. Science pure and 
simple he has a great respect for, but when he finds anyone who 
