Canadian Forestry Conventiou. 5 



made to replace the timber that is taken away from what we call 

 the limit under that policy. In Germany and France, I under- 

 stand, it is the accepted policy ^ a policy that has been followed for 

 generations, that, when a tree is removed in any way to replace 

 it by the planting of another tree (applause). I am not prepared 

 to say that such drastic conditions should be imposed upon the 

 lumbermen,— though I am not prepared to say, on the other 

 hand, that a plan of this kind should not be taken under advice. 

 At all events, I submit to this Convention that we ought to do 

 something more than we are doing at the present time (hear, 

 hear). It is not fair to the country — it is not fair to us who are 

 living and still less is it fair to the generations to come after us 

 — that we should allow the destruction of the forest to go on 

 year by year by the cutting down of the trees and make no effort 

 whatever to replace what is thus taken away. The trees are a 

 crop like any other growth. True, they are a crop of slow 

 growth, but that is the only difference between trees and any 

 other crop. In this, as in every case, when a crop is taken off, 

 steps should be taken to replace it at once with another. I said 

 a moment ago that I was not prepared to say that when the 

 lumberman, in the course of his work takes away, say, 300,000 

 trees in a year he should at once plant 300,000 trees. But I do 

 ask this Convention to consider what should be done in that 

 matter. One thing might be asked, whether of the lumbermen 

 or of the State that, where trees are taken away, trees should 

 be seeded, so that we may have a crop coming on all the time. 

 It is a fact which we face with some degree of sadness, even to 

 mourning, that Canada, in a few years, will be devoid, absolutely 

 devoid, of the beautiful pine forests which at one time were its 

 pride. We can calculate the number of years — and the number 

 is not very great, when there will not be another tree of the 

 original forest to be cut upon the limits of the Canadian lumber- 

 men. But, trees have grown and trees ought to grow again. 

 There is an impression which I have heard expressed on more 

 than one occasion, that it is useless to look for another crop of 

 pine trees — that when you have removed the crop we found 

 here, the growth of many years, the new crop of trees will be 

 spreading and of no merchantable value. But I am told that 

 there is a way whereby a new crop of trees can be grown. The 

 growth should be started as soon as the original trees have been 

 removed from the soil. A few years ago I was discussing this 

 subject with a lumberman of great authority, a man known to 

 some of you, the late John Bertram, a man most eminent in his 

 profession and of the highest capabilities in many directions. 

 He told me that, on his limits on Georgian Bay, he had a young 

 crop of pine when he had started a few years before. The explana- 

 tion he gave me was this — and I am glad to give here the in- 

 formation he imparted to me so as to gain the opinions of those 



