scottish forestry in regard to development fund. 1 47 



Board of Agriculture for Scotland. 



This Board was constituted by the Small Holders (Scotland) 

 Act, 191 1, which came into operation on ist April 1912. It 

 consists of three members, viz. : 



Sir Robert Wright {Chainnan); Mr R. B. Greig ; and Mr John 

 D. Sutherland, Commissioner for Small Holdings and Chairman 

 of the Advisory Committee on Forestry. 



The Board is charged with the general duty of promoting the 

 interests of agriculture, forestry, and other rural industries in 

 Scotland, and has control of the Agriculture (Scotland) Fund 

 before referred to, which is to be applied for the purpose of 

 facilitating the constitution of new landholders' holdings, the 

 enlargement of landholders' holdings, etc., and for the purpose of 

 exercising the other powers and duties conferred on, or transferred 

 to, the Board, in accordance with schemes to be approved of by 

 the Secretary for Scotland. 



After allowing a reasonable interval of time to elapse from 

 the date of the Board's appointment, the Council of the Society 

 urged the Board to create the Department of Forestry in con- 

 nection with the Board which was promised by Lord Pentland 

 while Secretary for Scotland, and to give effect to the report of the 

 Departmental Committee on Scottish Forestry before referred to. 

 A conference afterwards took place between the Board and the 

 Council, when these matters were discussed. The Chairman of 

 the Board pointed out that the Board had no funds available for 

 forestry, as the whole of the fund at their disposal would be 

 required for small holdings. The Board and the Council, he 

 said, must therefore look to the Development Fund for the 

 necessary money. The position of matters was considered by 

 the Council to be very unsatisfactory, and they appealed to the 

 Secretary for Scotland, who, on 7th November last, received the 

 Council, accompanied by Sir Herbert Maxwell, a former president, 

 in the chambers of the Board. 



The President repeated the Council's demand for the promised 

 Department of Forestry in connection with the Board, and asked 

 that it should be provided with a separate grant for forestry 

 purposes only. Sir Herbert Maxwell submitted facts to show 

 that there were large tracts of suitable land purchasable on 

 reasonable terms, and other speakers pointed out that ample 

 experience and a sufficiency of trained men were available to 

 carry out schemes of afforestation, and that such schemes would 



