THE UNR'ERSITY BILL 



One of the most important bills passed by the Ontario 

 Legislature at its last session was the L'niversity BiU. Last 

 October a Royal Commission on the L'niversity of Toronto was 

 appointed and after a thorough investigation of the needs of 

 the L^niversity a report was issued in time for the Government 

 to act while Parliament was in session. The members of the 

 Commission were Messrs. J. W. FlaveUe (Chairman), Goldwin 

 Smith. W. R- Meredith, B. E. Walker. H. J. Cody, D. Bruce 

 Macdonald and A. H. U. Colquhoun (Secretary). The work of 

 the Commission was so satisfactory that all but one of its re- 

 commendations were adopted by the government and embodied 

 in the University Bill. This recommendation referred to an 

 endowment in land. The Commission wrote: "'By the settle- 

 ment of the Provincial boundary we have obtained control of 

 what is called New Ontario. It does not. therefore, seem un- 

 reasonable to express the hope that out of this enormous area 

 at least a million acres will be set aside for the University and 

 University College." 



In introducing the L'niversity Bill, Premier Whitney said 

 r h ?T the matter of land endowment was reserved for further 

 consideration, and that inasmuch as the Gover nm ent had re- 

 cently been getting back some lands from the railways, it might 

 be that thev would have some lands for the University. He 

 further said' that he thought the Government was not prepared 

 to deal with the matter at the present session or words to that 

 effect. 



The importance of such an endowment is so great that in 

 our opinion the future of Forestry in Canada depends in no small 

 degree ufon the decision that is finally come to by the Ontario 

 Government. We publish elsewhere the recommendations of 

 the Commission relative to instruction in forestr\-. These re- 

 commendations were adopted by the (jovemment and a school 

 of Forestry will be established in connection with the L^niversity. 



Instruction in forestrv must be practical and experimental 

 as well as theoretical. There must be forest lands upon which 

 cutting may be begun at once in order that the earliest students 

 may receive all the benefits to be derived from a course in for- 

 estry, and there must be other lands upon which experiments 

 running over long periods of years may be made. These lands 

 shotild comprise large areas in different parts of the pro%-ince 

 so that in addition to serving their main purpose they would 

 prove an object lesson to lumbermen and others holding timber 

 lands in their vicinitv. If the recommendation of the Commis- 



