CANADIAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION 77 



other day, in an address), we are considering some method by which this timber may 

 be available for the manufacture of hardwood products and products made from timber 

 other than pine. We hope before long to have some regulations prepared that will meet 

 with the approval of the House and the country. 



.Now as to hemlock extract and the introduction of a plant, I do not know whether 

 I understood Mr. Bertram's idea or not, but the notion I got was that he thought per- 

 haps in some way Government assistance could be given to some plant as an experi- 

 ment to introduce it in some hemlock area and see how it would work out. Whether 

 the government ought to be at the expense of doing this is a question. However, I 

 would be open to any suggestions that would be in the public interest. I visited 

 British Columbia last summer, where I met two of the ministers of the Crown, one of 

 whom had charge of the timber of the province. I discussed their situation 

 with them very closely, and also visited and looked over some timber areas. Now, it 

 is quite true that the ground rent per acre is higher than here, but as has already been 

 said, the charge of fifty cents dues we would consider a mere nothing, as the dues 

 for pine at our last sale in Ontario were fixed at two dollars per thousand. Then wo 

 have the bonus, amounting to very large sums, which they do not get at all. 



It is suggested if the ground rent were increased lumbermen would abandon their 

 limits earlier than they do, and there would be less difficulty between the lumbermen 

 and the settler, and this is a proper question for consideration. But, strange to say, 

 the British Columbia timber areas I visited were not suitable for settlement, so the 

 Government could not have had settlement in mind when they imposed the higher 

 ground rent. I am only too glad to obtain suggestions from this Association or any 

 member thereof, from lumbermen or settlers, in order that, with a general collection 

 of information and suggestions, we may from time to time improve our regulations, 

 and so act that we will be up-to-date in every way that will advance the interest of the 

 settler, the lumberman, and the people of the province generally. 



Mr. BERTRAM. When I spoke of that hemlock matter it was not with any inten- 

 tion of asking the Government to take it up. I only spoke of it as being a question 

 tha,t 1 was concerned about myself, having a considerable quantity of hemlock on hand 

 that 1 could not possibly use, and I am exceedingly glad, sir, to have an expression of 

 opinion from Mr. Davis, and the statement that he has the disposition of hardwood now 

 under consideration by his department. Whether the departments should sell it 

 to lumbermen along with pine, or in some other way, I am not prepared to say, in that 

 we will be assisted by discussion, but I am very glad to find that Mr. Roth supported 

 me in the contention that if it was pine you wanted to grow you had to utilize in 

 some way the other conifers that were growing upon the area. And now that his 

 attention has been called to it, I think it is one of the benefits that our Forestry 

 Association will confer upon the general public that this has been brought to the 

 Commissioner's attention, and I am very glad to think that he will now give consider- 

 ation, not only to the spruce and hemlock alone, but to the hardwoods as well. 



' SETTLERS' FIRES IN QUEBEC. 



Mr. JOLY DE LOTBINIERE. I would like to say a few words about fires and fire pro- 

 tection. I \\aa in that portion of Quebec west of the Saguenay river, where there is 



