1909-10 DEPARTMENT OF LANDS, FOEESTS AND MINES. ix 



in laige plants and mills should not have their investments wiped out, it was neces- 

 sary to give them an opportunity to acquire timber at public sales in the ordinary 

 way. The only permits now existing are on the Transcontinental Railway, where 

 if the railway was to be built contractors had to be permitted to cut ties, etc. 



During the past year very serious forest fires occurred in the territory west of 

 Lake Superior, and a very considerable area was burnt over. A good deal of this 

 Territory had been lumbered over under authority of permit in years gone by, 

 and the small quantity of timber remaining was not of a first quality, being rough 

 and scattered. It was, however, important to get for the Province the money 

 value of it. Immediately on receipt of information that fires had occurred rangers 

 were put on to examine and estimate the territory, and surveyors were sent to 

 define the berths so they might be offered for sale. The territory to be sold was 

 cut up into very small berths so as to give the widest possible competition by allow- 

 ing the small oy^erator to come in. The damaged timber was sold by the thousand 

 feet board measure. The timber being damaged and scattered, the prices were not 

 as high as they would have been for green timber, and the licensees having large 

 quantities of their own timber damaged which they had to take care of, the com- 

 petition was not as keen as it otherwise would have been, but, having regard to all 

 the circumstances, the sale was satisfactory. 



During the past winter the cutting of timber damaged by fire in the Mississaga 

 Forest Reserve was proceeded with under the supervision of a carefully selected 

 staff of rangers and scalers appointed by the Department, w^hose count and measure- 

 ments were final foi revenue purposes. The considerable prices to be paid for this 

 timber made it necessary that very close measurements should be made, and that 

 the cutting should be carried on in an economical manner as respects the character 

 and size of the trees to be cut, as well as making allowances for timber damaged 

 by fire, and the other defects usually found in timber. In order to prevent dis- 

 putes the cullers were required to put on the end of the log, in black chalk, the 

 contents they allowed, so that the lumberman might see that he was getting a fair 

 measurement, and the Crown ranger, whose business it was to check up the measure- 

 ments of the cullers, might do so with readiness and thoroughness. Although there 

 were differences of opinion between the operators and the Government scalers, they 

 were not serious and the accounts were based on the measurements of the Depart- 

 ment's officers. This system of measurement and supervision of cutting is now 

 applied to all sales made by the thousand feet board measure system. It was 

 estimated that the output for 1909-10 would be 100,000,000 feet in excess of the 

 previous year. As a matter of fact, the output of Pine was about 142,000,000 in 

 excess of 1908-09. The estimate for the present winter of 1910-11 is that there 

 will be an increased output of about $50,000,000 feet B.M. 



Fire Ranging. 



During the past year an important departure was made in respect to fire 

 jianging on licensed territory. The stumpage value of timber had greatly increased, 

 but this increase had inured to the benefit of the timber licensees. The 

 time seemed to have arrived when the licensees should bear the whole cost of 

 ihe fire-ranging and protection of their timber. In considering the question of 

 increasing timber dues and ground rent, the matter of the cost of fire-ranging came 

 up, and it was understood and agreed to that the whole expense, except as regards 

 printing literature, copies of the Fire Act, diaries, etc., should be borne by the 

 licensees; therefore, this year, the timber licensees have borne the entire cost of 



