Atistralia. 375 



municipalities in addition government aid is extended 

 to the extent of half the cost of planting. 



The seven Australian colonies are very variously 

 situated regarding timber supplies, three of them, 

 Queensland, Western and South Australia being poorly 

 wooded, the others more or less heavily forested, 

 especially Tasmania with 65 percent, and New Zealand 

 with 31 percent. Generally speaking the forest areas 

 are confined to the coast in narrower and wider belts, 

 the interior being forestless or with scrubby growth. 

 This portion is large enough to reduce the total forest 

 percent to less than 6.5. The mountains and hill 

 ranges facing the Eastern, Southern and Western 

 coasts are especially heavily wooded with magnificent 

 Eucalypts, Jarrah and Karri, while the Kauri pine is 

 the most valuable tree in New Zealand. 



The one successful attempt at a forest policy was 

 made by the almost forestless colony of South Australia, 

 which in 1882 reserved its scanty forest area of 217,000 

 acres and started to plant, (now 13,000 acres planted), 

 employing a Conservator and six Foresters. 



In the other colonies at various times unsuccessful 

 beginnings were made, and there exist in Queensland, 

 New South Wales, and Victoria so-called Forest 

 Branches or departments, but mostly without power or 

 equipment, and no intelligent conception of forest 

 policy seems practically to exist. 



In Queensland, since 1897, the Governor in Council 

 may reserve forest lands and regulate the cutting by 

 diameter limit. One and a half million acres have 

 been reserved, but no staff for administration exists. 



