Canadian Forestry Journal, December, 1918 



1989 



I 



efficiency in personnel and organi- 

 zation. The old days of unsystem- 

 atic patrol were now intolerable. 

 As the tabulating of timber los- 

 ses became more and more accur- 

 ate, people were beginning to see 

 the money-saving qualities of tim- 

 ber guarding. Mr. Wilson showed 

 that Nova Scotia offered a relatively 

 easy proposition in fire protection, 

 but that fact did not release the Pro- 

 vince from its responsibility for adopt- 

 ing the only adequate protective 

 scheme that experience had yet un- 

 covered. 



The Coal Companies' Side 



Mr. J. W. Revere, of the Dominion 

 Coal Company, gave many facts 

 concerning the troubles of the coal 

 companies in getting a pit prop 

 supplv. The present output of 3,- 

 500,000 tons required 1,200,000 pieces 

 of pit props annually. Mr. A. M. 

 Seele^', of the Nova Scotia Steel and 

 Coal Company strongly reinforced 

 Mr. Revere's warning. 



Mr. Clyde Leavitt, Chief Forester 

 of the Commission of Conservation, 

 said that if the non-agricultural lands 

 of Nova Scotia were not now growing 

 timber, the wealth producing possi- 

 oilities of the province were greatly 

 reduced. The chief problem facing 

 the province was to grow a new crop 

 on its forest areas. The manage- 

 ment of timber resources could not 

 be left to chance. All other pro- 

 vinces owning forest properties found 

 a carefully organized Forest Service 

 essential; the need was no less in Nova 

 Scotia. Fire protection would have 

 to be organized if a new growth was to 

 come up. While recognizing the fin- 

 ancial limitations of the Provincial 

 Treasury and the marked difference 

 between New Brunswick with hand- 

 some Crown Lands revenues and 

 Nova Scotia with very meagre Crown 

 Lands income, Mr. Leavitt did not 

 see how the latter province could pro- 

 fitably postpone remedial action when 

 every provincial activity was suffer- 

 ing and was bound to suffer more 

 from neglect of a basic resource. Mr. 

 Leavitt summoned many convincing 

 arguments for the engaging of a 

 Provincial Forester and mentioned 



the especially valuable consequences 

 of co-oj ^''^tion of such an officer 

 with the Board of Railway Commis- 

 sioners in lessening failway fires. 



A Ground Plan Now Ready. 



Mr. Whitman brought out the 

 point that Nova Scotia, like New 

 Brunswick, has a Forest Survey 

 (made by Dr. Fernow and party m 

 1909-10) which would be a ground 

 plan for the Provincial Forester's 

 organization. 



Mr. McL. Robertson, representing 

 the Davison Lumber and Manufac- 

 turing Company, spoke strongly in 

 favor of having a Forester who could 

 organize fire protection and assist 

 all woodland owners in increasing 

 the production of timber. 



A vote of thanks was passed to 

 Hon. Mr. Daniels for his courtesies 

 to the Conference. 



It is essential to point out that the 

 campaigns hitherto carried on by the 

 Canadian Forestry Association to 

 promote pubhc interest in protection 

 of Nova Scotia's forests will be con- 

 tinued even more vigorously than 

 before. The main effort is now to 

 band together all lumbermen, pulp 

 mill owners, shipbuilders, fishing com- 

 panies, coal mine operators, and others 

 with a direct or indirect interest in 

 local timber supplies to supply an 

 answer to the Government's query: 

 "Where will the revenues come from 

 for the support of a Provincial For- 

 ester?" 



Not only must this point be ans- 

 wered, but the influence of the 

 Special Committee will be so brought 

 to bear upon the members of the 

 legislature and the cabinet as to 

 make further postponement of action 

 inexpedient. 



4. 



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