THE AFFORESTATION CONFERENCE. 69 



question that must be faced. While we are dealing with com- 

 paratively small areas, such as those we have been speaking 

 about, the afforestation is comparatively a small one, and does 

 not hurt. any of us, but if carried out to a large extent, the 

 question will be a most important one" {Report, pp. 41, 42). 



Dealing with the same question. Councillor Ogden thought 

 that, for the purpose of loans, afforestation should be deemed 

 to be a sewage or waterwork's question, and should be subject 

 to the same rules. Mr Richard Johnson thought that the 

 Local Government Board should not only give grants, but 

 should also "lend money for a long term, and practically 

 without interest, until the scheme became profit-bearing." This 

 would get over Mr Lees' difficulty. Mr Trevelyan Lee gave 

 it as his opinion that since in other departments, such as 

 education, it was clearly understood that where the local bodies 

 performed a function regarded as national, they should be 

 assisted by the Government, so in respect of afforestation, as 

 the profit would be national rather than local, the Government 

 should bear the expense. 



Another point, emphasised especially by Mr Harmood-Banner, 

 dealt with the question of rates. This speaker, along with some 

 others, brought to notice the check to municipal effort given by 

 the increased rates which are put on as soon as the local 

 authority begins to develop land which has hitherto been waste. 

 Mr Harmood-Banner proposed that municipalities " should be 

 relieved from the payment of rates as regards those particular 

 districts to which afforestation had been applied, as well as 

 regards the sums which had been set aside for the Distress 

 Committee" (p. 23). 



Other points which were emphasised by certain speakers 

 concerned difficulties which municipalities have in acquiring 

 powers to enclose common land for afforestation purposes, and 

 as regards ground game, but these are for the most part minor 

 points, less important as regards the general question of 

 municipal and national work than those named above. 



Forestry and the Unemployed. 



In connection with the above, we may note that on 31st August 



the Times gave some account of the afforestation work carried 



on in Leeds by the unemployed during the past year. According 



to this account, which is based upon the report of the 



