THE DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION AND FORESTRY. I 5 



approved for purchase, if possible, out of the advance of ^^25,000 

 or ;!^3o,ooo already sanctioned. The Department of Agriculture 

 has submitted a working-plan for the first of the areas acquired. 

 As regards actual afforestation, it is necessary to say frankly 

 that the amount of the Development Fund in relation to the 

 claims upon it does not permit the Commissioners to contemplate 

 afforestation upon any large scale, unless it is possible to draw 

 also upon other funds. Excluding the purchase of land, it may 

 be taken that ^10 per acre is the minimum expenditure usually 

 required before the planting operations begin to produce returns. 

 As the total amount guaranteed to the Development Fund is 

 ^2,900,000 for numerous purposes, of which forestry is only one, 

 it will be clear that the afforestation of even 100,000 acres solely 

 from that Fund is scarcely feasible unless its resources are 

 considerably augmented. In these circumstances, the Com- 

 missioners are compelled to restrict themselves at present to two 

 lines of action. In the first place, they propose to assist the 

 purchase and planting of what may be called experimental and 

 demonstration areas, of perhaps 5000 acres each, in five or six 

 different districts. One main object of this policy is to encourage 

 private landowners to take up timber cultivation. Secondly, 

 they propose, wherever possible, to make loans to local authorities 

 already possessing suitable land, thereby economising the Fund 

 and avoiding the financial strain of purchasing or leasing all 

 land afforested. The Government Department concerned has 

 already put before them proposals leading up to the first of 

 these two measures ; the steps taken on the second line of action 

 are explained immediately below. 



(ii.) Afforestation by Local Authorities. 



During the early part of 19 12 the Commissioners gave con- 

 siderable attention to this subject. The obvious financial and 

 economic advantages of promoting afforestation by local 

 authorities have already been mentioned, and it is unnecessary to 

 make more than a brief reference to the incidental benefits, such 

 as greater purity of water supply and possible provision for periods 

 of unemployment. After obtaining reports on several of the 

 largest of the water-gathering grounds of the country and dis- 

 cussing the whole question with representatives of the Board of 

 Agriculture and Fisheries, the Commissioners issued in July 

 191 2 the following statement: — 



"The Development Commissioners, who for some time past 

 have been in communication with the Government Departments 



