212 TKANSACTIONS OF ROVAI, SCOTTISH AKHORICULTURAL SOCIKTV. 



name and its motto, and that its chief concern was then no 

 longer arboriculture, still less the haphazard sticking in of trees, 

 but the formation of woods In the ten years that have passed, 

 the Society has continued to grow in stature. Its horizon has 

 widened, and now we are no longer content with the care of 

 such woods as we have, but we are chiefly concerned with 

 obtaining for silviculture in Scotland that recognition and 

 position which it holds in nearly every civilised country in the 

 world. I will not go over the domestic history of the Society 

 in recent years. That is only too well known to most of us, 

 particularly to those who had the misfortune of listening to the 

 history of the Society which was poured into the more or less 

 sympathetic ears of the Secretary of Scotland, not very long 

 ago. Out of consideration for them, if for nothing else, I 

 would say no more on that subject, but, so far as external events 

 go, the past ten years have been a period of hope and, I am 

 afraid I must add, of disappointment. The one single real 

 benefit we have to chronicle is the removal from growing timber 

 of that taxation for death duties purposes which never should 

 have been imposed upon it. During that time, there has been 

 the creation of the Board of Agriculture for Scotland, with an 

 official for forestry purposes, the creation of the Development 

 Commission, with special funds for the encouragement of 

 agricultural industry, and a special Committee for forestry, 

 and the acquisition by the Crown of 12,000 acres in Argyllshire 

 for afforestation, also the appointment of an Advisory Committee 

 by the Board of Agriculture, on which Scottish silviculture was 

 well represented by members of this Society who had the fullest 

 trust of the Society. All these things led us to suppose that 

 better times were at hand. It is difficult, however, to see that 

 we have derived much benefit from these changes. Ten years 

 ago, the necessity for a demonstration area was already recognised 

 in the Committee. The Advisory Committee of the Board of 

 Agriculture, which I mentioned just now, reported some time 

 since, I think it is getting on for two years, that a suitable 

 area had been found. It was afterwards announced 

 to us that money for the purchase of this area would 

 be included in the estimates. Since that time months 

 have passed, the purchase has not been completed, and 

 we understand the option given on the property has been 

 allowed to lapse. If we turn to the ground acquired for aflforesta- 



