196 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARHORICUI.TUR AL SOCIKTY. 



agricultural land. On the West Coast, where trees will not grow, 

 we cannot meantime improve the present conditions, but in the 

 Highlands of Scotland, where the configuration of the land is 

 such that the glens are narrow and the amount of agricultural 

 land is extremely limited, if you wish to get a residential popu- 

 lation on the soil there, forestry, and forestry alone, is the best 

 and cheapest way. I will only say a word about this method. 

 Forestry is specially adapted to our Highland glens where most 

 of our land exists, because there it works in with the crops. 

 People are able to get a few weeks' work with early potatoes, 

 and they get the crops in, and they also have the seasonal 

 employment that the shooting and tourists and others afford, so 

 that practically a man getting i8s. or 20s. a week, with a croft as 

 well, is better off, and I contend this in the face of any argument, 

 than the corresponding workman in the town with up to 30s. 

 That is my opinion based not only on personal observation, but 

 also on such well-known books of the Fabian Society as ' 20s. a 

 week,' and books on slumming conditions. I have no hesitation 

 in expressing the opinion that a 20s. croft man is better off than 

 a town man with 30s., as well as being a better inhabitant and a 

 more stalwart representative of the British Isles, Just a word 

 more on the subject of permanency. The employment given by 

 forestry is not artificial employment which alteration in fashion 

 and prices may kill. Every year the woods will require more 

 and more work, and at the producing stage you can eventually 

 get down your number of men to two or possibly three regularly 

 employed per 100 acres. I ask you to consider this point, and 

 each one in his own position to endeavour to thrust this on our 

 politicians, so that we may have some chance of pushing forward 

 a policy on the broad lines of which I believe every man here is 

 united. There is just one objection which I know does rank 

 heavily with politicians of a certain class. That is the idea that 

 the landlord will be benefited. Now, that is enough in certain 

 ranks to banish the idea, whether the subject is good or bad. 

 May I put these two arguments before you, which I think are 

 almost final. One is, that the poor landlord at best will only 

 receive the result of the work at the end of thirty years, when 

 most of us will be dead, and then, if he received it in thirty 

 years' time, surely you could obtain such Parliamentary powers 

 that you could tie up advances in such a way that the landlord 

 does not make undue profit. If you have a profit in thirty years. 



