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The Development Act. 

 The Chairman, after referring to the recent Excursion to 

 Lochaber, said that with regard to the Development Act of 

 1909, the Council was strongly of opinion that the interests of 

 forestry would not be likely to receive fair or full consideration 

 from the Development Commissioners unless some body — 

 corresponding more or less to the Board of Agriculture — were 

 created to take charge officially of the interests of forestry. No 

 such body at present existed in this country, and at the request 

 of the Council, he approached the Chancellor of the Exchequer 

 with the request that he would appoint a Board of Forestry at 

 the earliest possible moment, so that the applications to the 

 Development Commission might have the sanction and support, 

 and the advantage also of being weeded out by such a 

 Board. The Chancellor of the Exchequer was reluctant to 

 add to the expenses of Government by creating a new Board, 

 and did not lend a willing ear to the proposal, although 

 prepared to go into the matter further. The Chancellor felt that 

 the fact that one of the Council of the Society, Mr Haldane, 

 and an expert forester, in the person of Mr Wilmot, were among 

 the Development Commissioners was a sufficient guarantee 

 that the interests of forestry would be fully considered, but 

 he (Sir John) did not think the Chancellor quite appreciated 

 the point at which the Council were striving, that, although 

 plenty of applications would reach the Commissioners, it did 

 not follow that any of these applications would bring out the 

 real pressing needs of forestry at this moment. For a good 

 many years the Society had held the belief that two primary 

 steps should be taken. The first was the establishment of a 

 Demonstration xArea somewhere in Scotland — • where there 

 could be a complete School of Forestry in touch with the 

 growing forest, and where the results of experiments could be 

 scientifically accumulated. The second step they thought 

 necessary was that there should be a survey of the ground 

 suitable for aflforestation. It did not follow that either of 

 these matters would come directly before the Development 

 Commissioners, and therefore at the request of the Council 

 he was to press this matter of the appointment of a Board of 

 Forestry again upon the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and he 

 hoped they might have the assistance of the Development 

 Commissioners in putting the case, for he was sure it was the 



