74 



Canadian Forestry Journalj May 1913. 



a single group often setting as many as 

 3,000 plants a day. 



The Forestry students took a hand at all 

 these methods, some of them realizing for 

 the first time the full significance of the 

 curse of Cain. 



The necessity for reforesting in this 

 locality was clearly seen in a ten mile tramp 

 they took, headed by Dr. Fernow, through 

 the surrounding country. Such land as was 

 still being farmed, bore but scanty crops. 

 In the lee of the snake or stump fences the 

 sand was drifted like snow, and from one 

 point, over a square mile of practically bare 

 sand could be seen heaped in dunes or dug 

 into hollows by the wind. 



That the sand was unfitted for farm crops 

 was very clearly seen. That it w^as capable 

 of producing splendid forests was as clearly 

 indicated, both by the vigorous growth of 

 the young plantations, and by a stem 

 analysis of the old stumps of the original 

 stand of white pine and chestnut which 

 frequently showed the remarkable diameter 

 growth of an inch per year. . Walnut and 

 butternut are indigenous in this region, as 

 are also many trees such as the black gum 

 tulip tree (yellow poplar) and chestnut 

 which are exotics in other parts of Canada. 



The students were the guests of the On- 

 tario Government, though it is doubtful if 

 they really earned their board for it was 

 the good old fashioned country fare such 

 as one reads about, but seldom enjoys. It 

 may have been for this reason that they 

 were none too keen to return to the city 

 after their five day visit, but it is more 

 likely that the prospect of renewed exam- 

 inations was the chief reason for this 

 reluctance. 



AN EARLY CONSERVATIONIST. 



Sir Richard Scott's Work as Commissioner 

 of Crown Lands. 



In the many fine things that were 

 said of the late Sir Richard Scott who 

 passed away at his home in Ottawa 

 on April 23 in his eighty-ninth year, 

 there was but little note of what he 

 did for forest conservation. Sir Rich- 

 ard was so long in public life that 

 people are apt to think of him only 

 as Dominion Cabinet Minister and 

 Senator and to overlook the fact that 

 many years ago, in fact in the early 

 days of Confederation, he was Com- 

 missioner of Crown Lands for On- 

 tario. One of the biographical notices 

 of the deceased parliamentary leader 

 thus refers to this feature of his work. 



'On taking office as Commissioner 



of Crown Lands for Ontario Sir 

 Richard formulated a policy in re- 

 gard to timber licenses which allayed 

 the fears of the lumbermen that their 

 operating regulations were to be ruth- 

 lessly changed. 



'He was afterwards asked to take 

 up the matter with the Quebec Gov- 

 ernment, did so and submitted a ser- 

 ies of suggestions which were adopted 

 with but few modifications. This was 

 not the only service Sir Richard per- 

 formed for the lumber trade, how- 

 ever. Some years before this the ruin- 

 ous policy of allowing squatters to 

 locate on lands chiefly valuable for 

 the pine and not suitable for settle- 

 ment had been in operation. Against 

 this he warred by every means in his 

 power and was the first to draw pub- 

 lic attention to the supreme import- 

 ance of the conservation of the great 

 national asset, Canada's timber re- 

 sources. Had his suggestions been 

 adopted in time it would have meant 

 the inheritance of immense wealth for 

 the present generation. ' 



WHAT'S DOING IN THE 

 ROCKIES. 



Interesting Development in the Work of 

 the Dominion Forestry Branch. 



Number One, Volume One of The 

 Rocky Mountain Review, the quarter- 

 ly publication issued by the staff of 

 the Rocky Mountains Forest Reserve 

 comes smilingly forward in a happily- 

 chosen green cover. Inside the cover 

 are twenty mimeographed pages of 

 the snappiest kind of news and sug- 

 gestions. The Review marks a new 

 stage of development in forest admin- 

 istration in Canada. A few years ago 

 the Rocky Mountain Reserve was a 

 vision, a 'hope of foresters and for- 

 estry enthusiasts. Now there is a 

 finely organized territory under an in- 

 spector, five Forest Reserve Supervis- 

 ors and twenty-four rangers. Fur- 

 ther, through the Review, they keep 

 in touch with one another and with 

 the progress in other parts of the 

 country. 



