lyo TRANSACTIONS OF ROVAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



young woods begin to require tending, men of a younger 

 generation, who have been brought up in the place, will begin 

 to be available, and the extension will go steadily on until the 

 first crop is ready to cut and your forest population becomes 

 complete. 



Now in this paper 1 have purposely avoided figures, just as 

 I have avoided the technical aspect of the subject, tempting 

 though it is. My object was to concentrate on the broadest 

 aspect of my case ; but you are Aberdonians, and on two points 

 at least will want some evidence beyond my mere statement. 

 You will want to know whether forests do really employ so 

 many people as I say, and you will want to know whether 

 the State is likely to get a good return for the money it invests 

 in afforestation. The only evidence I can, in the nature of the 

 case, advance is drawn from other countries. First, as to 

 employment, let me give you the details of a small German 

 forest in the Spessart. They come to me first-hand from a 

 friend who has recently been a student there. This forest 

 extends to 10,000 acres, and attached to it are about 3000 acres 

 of agricultural land. This area of 13,000 acres would, in the 

 Highlands of Scotland, compose one small deer forest or a 

 couple of fairly large sheep farms. We need not work out the 

 comparison with the deer forest, because there are few, if 

 any, deer forests which could be wholly planted, but let us 

 compare it with sheep farms. As a couple of sheep farms it 

 would support 2 tenants and, at most, 13 shepherds, or 

 15 families in all. Divided among a number of smaller tenants, 

 it might, following our former calculations, support at most 

 some 60 families. In Germany the population is as follows : 

 the permanent staff of the forest consists of a head forester 

 and clerk and 6 forest guards with 10 unskilled workmen ; 

 25 other men find employment all the year round as contractors. 

 There is thus permanent employment for 43 men. In addition 

 to these, 80 woodcutters are employed for about six months, 

 and 70 women and children are employed for about two months 

 on nursery, planting, and other light work. There are also 

 260 men employed in forest industries. The forest with its 

 industries is thus giving constant employment to 303 men 

 besides the 80 men employed for six months and the 70 women 

 and children occasionally employed. The total population of 

 the area affected by the forest is 2500. It is calculated that 



