AMONG THE PINES AND FIRS 231 



have done remarkably well, and are very profit- 

 able to grow. As an instance, a portion of a 

 plantation was recently cut hand-smooth, and 

 consisted of about 220 matured trees per acre, 

 which realised as many pounds. The original 

 number was about 2700, and from the time that 

 the poles were large enough to use for cutting 

 through the centre for rails, &c., this plantation 

 has always yielded its annual quota to the estate 

 account. The age of the trees is known to be 

 about seventy years, one man having been found 

 who assisted in planting the original stock.' 



This plantation was apparently formed at about 

 4 feet by 4 feet. Remunerative indeed as these 

 results are, it seems almost certain that, even 

 though the first outlay would have been greater 

 if the plants had been put at 3 feet by 3 feet, 

 or 4840 per acre, thinned sparingly from time 

 to time during their most vigorous period of 

 growth in height, and then more freely thinned 

 and underplanted when their long boles were fully 

 developed, the monetary returns would have been 

 even more satisfactory. The returns from thin- 

 ning would have been earlier and more frequent, 

 and the mature crop would have been larger and 



