NEW BRUNSWICK FORESTRY CONVENTION 21 ; 



great lakes and the very light annual precipitation in the plains of the interior 

 of the continent where summer droughts are constantly feared and where 

 irrigation is frequently necessary to plant growth. 



The precipitation is greater on mountains than on the low lying land in 

 the vicinity. This land elevated high above the surrounding country inter- 

 cepts the air currents fully surcharged with vapor which at these cooler 

 heights is about at the point of condensation and the result is that a very 

 large amount of moisture is deposited there where gravity again resumes Jits 

 functions to convey the w ? ater back again to its home in the sea. 



In these operations so far, that is, in the evaporation, conveyance l^of 

 vapor and precipitation in liquid form, it is evident that man has, and can 

 have, no part whatever, but once the water starts on its downward course 

 from these elevations, then his actions may affect the rapidity of its course, 

 and it must be confessed that all too frequently his interference here has 

 been prejudicial rather than beneficial. 



Purpose and design are characteristic of every operation of nature even 

 though we sometimes fail to comprehend them. 



Consider, for a moment, the object in view in all these elaborate opera- 

 tions. Evidently one purpose at least was to supply the great valleys lying 

 between the mountains and the sea with an even and perpetual supply of 

 water without which both animal and vegetable life could not exist. But it 

 is evident that the elaborate operations we have noticed, the evaporation of 

 water into vapor, the transport of the latter to the inland regions, with the 

 condensation and precipitation at those high elevations, would fail to fulfil 

 the evident design if there were no barriers to prevent the rapid and 

 tumultuous escape of the water from those heights, and in order to accom- 

 plish this and thus prevent disastrous torrents at one time and drought at 

 another we have a network in the forests that in a natural state when not 

 destroyed always grow on the mountain sides, forming a natural reservoir, 

 of which the artificial reservoirs for the water supply in our towns and cities 

 are in a sense but poor imitations. 



From what has been said it will be noticed that we have several distinct 

 divisions, so to speak, in this work. First, evaporation ; second, the trans- 

 port of vapour ; third, condensation ; fourth, precipitation ; and lastly, 

 dissipation. By the last term we mean the disposal of the water after 

 condensation, and there are two ways that this may iake place, namely, 



