42 



servators, and (3) Assistant Conservators. On this basis the following revised 

 grading of the Administrative staff is proposed : 



Year of SOFT ice. 



Bank and Salary. 



1st 3rd. 

 4th. 

 5th. 



6th. 

 7th. 

 8th. 

 9tli. 

 10th. 



llth. 

 13th. 

 13th. 

 14th. 

 15tb. 

 16th and over. 



ASSISTANT CONSERVATORS : 



400 on probation for 3 years. 

 425. 

 450. 



DEPUTY CONSERVATORS : 



500\ 



525 



550 I Grade II. 



575 I 



600,; 



Efficiency Bar. 



650 

 700 

 750 

 800 

 850 

 900 



Grade I. 



CONSERVATOR : 



1,200. 



In view of the fact that the great majority of the officers now in the 

 Administrative branch only started their service in 1920, the effect of such a 

 re-organization will scarcely be felt for some years to come, by which time the 

 financial position of the Forest Department will in all probability be in a more 

 satisfactory condition than it is at present. 



The present seniority list of the Administrative staff is in a very abnormal 

 condition, consisting as it does of two officers approaching the end of their 

 service, one of nearly 8 years' service, and six with less than 2 years' service 

 at the end of 1921. This calls for the reinforcement of the staff in the direc- 

 tion of obtaining the services of an officer of some experience. Such an 

 arrangement, however, should be strictly subject to the condition that no 

 injustice is done to the existing staff. An officer of some years' service 

 brought on to the graded list should therefore, for purposes of promotion to 

 Conservator, rank junior to any officer appointed before the War : his 

 appointment could not affect the promotion of any officer appointed in 1920 

 or subsequently, as none of these officers could reasonably expect promotion to 

 Conservator for a good many years. A senior officer appointed in this way 

 should have had special experience of working plans operations, since it is in 

 this important branch of work that the officers of the Colony are most lacking 

 in experience. An officer of the required experience could probably be 

 obtained on a salary of 600-50-900; careful selection would be necessary, 

 and it is doubtful if any officer other than one who has served some years in 

 the Indian Forest Service, would have the requisite qualifications. Although 

 such an officer would be employed primarily on organizing and carrying out 

 working plans operations, he would, owing to his experience, afford useful 

 assistance in other branches of work. 



54. DUTIES OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE BRANCH. Hitherto the work of 

 the Forest Department has been too much centralized in the Conservator of 



