26 POSITION OF AFFORESTATION QUESTION 



All that appears to be wanted is a plan of campaign 

 and a favourable hearing from Government. It is 

 not demanded here that additional work should be 

 piled upon already overworked and harassed officials. 

 It cannot be the desire of any one to add any extra 

 burden to the heavy ones already being shouldered by 

 the Government. Rather the reverse. But at the 

 present time it becomes a duty of each one of us to do 

 all in our power in the interests of national economy 

 and thrift. The termination of the war is an indefinite 

 period. Meantime there are large areas of land in this 

 country which can be better utilised in the national 

 interest, given the inauguration of a suitable scheme. 

 Trees take a long time to grow : even the shortest ro- 

 tation for a tree crop is approximately half of the pro- 

 verbial *' three score and ten years." Therefore each 

 year which elapses without a commencement being 

 made in remedying the deplorable state of affairs is a 

 waste of national resources which can easily be ex- 

 pressed in pounds, shillings, and pence. There are men 

 in this country perfectly acquainted, by knowledge, 

 training, and experience, with such work, who would be 

 quite capable of organising a scheme of this nature and 

 of seeing that the nation got a full return for the 

 capital sum laid out. 



Is it too much to expect that the coimtry will 

 realise the economic importance of getting these 

 millions of derelict acres under a profitable crop, and 

 insist on the job being put through ? 



