126 REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON FORESTRY. 
business abroad. It may be said that we have no large forests in 
this country under the care of Government in which this course of 
instruction can be given satisfactorily and systematically ; but I do 
not think this argument holds good. There are many extensive 
woodlands which may be visited and examined, but the practical 
part of the training does not necessarily require a great extent of 
forest. I believe, looking to the addition lately made to the area 
possessed by Government in these [Botanic] gardens, that a School 
of Forestry might be established in this very place, where all the 
operations of forestry might be practised and taught, and where 
young men could learn as much as in Germany or France. The 
forests in those countries are not planted, pruned, and tended as 
our woodlands are, but in many cases are self-sown ; and experience 
in them does not necessarily fit a man to superintend all the opera- 
tions of home forestry. Occasional visits to large woodlands, and 
a survey of the operations carried out on a large scale, which have 
been taught here in detail, would of course be required; but I 
maintain that for all practical purposes of home work, perfect train- 
ing might be given here.’ This address was given a few weeks 
before Mr Adam sailed ; he left the manuscript with me, and I had 
it printed.” —“ You would consider that Mr Adam, from the atten- 
tion he had paid to the subject, was very well qualified to express 
an opinion?” ‘He had a large extent of woodland himself, and he 
was President of the Arboricultural Society for some years.” —“ Mr 
Adam in that passage refers to some steps which had been taken in 
Edinburgh with regard to the management of woodlands?” ‘Soon 
after the above meeting the Arboretum was sanctioned by the Town 
Council, and 9000 young trees were planted adjoining the Botanic 
Garden. Since then we have had the Forestry Exhibition, and 
derived therefrom the rudiments of a museum and library ; what 
we want now to make a good beginning is a lectureship, or chair of 
teaching ; without that we cannot go much further.” —“ You have 
been summoned before this Committee at a very short notice, and, 
I am afraid, at some personal inconvenience. I would not, there- 
fore, ask you for any exact expression of opinion as to any precise 
steps to be taken, if you would prefer to defer that to any future 
opportunity?” “TI only came yesterday from St Andrews, at a 
day’s notice.’—‘‘The general sense of your evidence is that the 
establishment of a forest school would, in your opinion, be extremely 
beneficial to our English woodlands?” ‘Yes, to all grades of 
foresters, and to the forests.” 
