I38 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



for afforestation is so great, and when the Government of the 

 country has in contemplation schemes for the establishment of 

 forestry as a national industry, no reasonable objection can be 

 offered to the adoption of a more accurate rule of measurement 

 than that in use. The writer feels, however, that in order to 

 facilitate the universal adoption of such a rule, and thereby 

 ensure its success, a complete and accurate set of tables would 

 have to be compiled, from which the contents of timber can be 

 at least as readily obtained as from the present Hoppus table. 

 Personal experience has also impressed upon the writer the para- 

 mount importance of such a set of tables, and, in order that the 

 difficulty might be bridged, he is at present engaged on the 

 compilation of tables giving the true contents and yield of sawn 

 timber contents from the rules he has advocated. These he in- 

 tends to publish in the near future, in the hope that they may 

 be of value to all connected with forestry and the timber trade 

 generally, and prove one step forward in the placing of forestry 

 on a truly scientific basis. 



20. Forest Tree Seed. 



By Alexander S. MacLarty. 



The main object of this paper is to point out the great 

 importance of growing all forest trees, whether indigenous or 

 exotic, from properly selected seed, and to emphasise the 

 urgent necessity of selecting in a more careful and scientific 

 manner the seeds from which future crops of timber are to be 

 raised. The choosing of suitable trees and localities from 

 which seed is to be obtained is very important work indeed, 

 and this work is termed in this paper Seed Selection. British 

 silviculturists do not pay enough attention to these matters. I 

 do not, however, wish in any way to disparage the useful work 

 done, often under difficult and discouraging conditions, by not 

 a few enthusiastic silviculturists, scientists, and nurserymen. 

 Agriculturists and horticulturists take great pains to ensure that 

 none but the best seeds are used for the raising of their crops. 

 Not only must the seed have good qualities in so far as clean- 

 ness, weight, and germinative power are concerned, but its 

 inheritable qualities, which are unalterable, must also be 

 satisfactory. The result is that many kinds of farm and garden 



