NEW BRUNSWICK FORESTRY CONVENTION 125 



questions of this kind. It is all very well to say that we have black spruce 

 that will re-afforest itself, but improvements can be made, and I am strongly 

 of the opinion that it would be well for this Province to look into the matter 

 of re-afforestation. 



MR. W. H. McMILLAN You speak of taking out the top log down 

 to five or six inches, and you say there is no scale below 11 inches. How 

 are we going to survey those small trees ? 



MR. ROBINSON There is a conventional scale in use at the present 

 time ; or perhaps a man could make up his own scale. At the time the Act 

 was passed it was not contemplated to cut anything smaller than 11 inches; 

 but conditions have changed, and the conventional scale has been in use not 

 only in St. John, but in other parts of the Province. 



PREMIER TWEEDIE I may say the Government have this matter 

 under consideration. We have recognised for some time that the Act would 

 have to be amended. It is a little difficult to do ; but the Surveyor-Gener- 

 al's attention was directed to it a year ago, and among other improvements 

 we will have a new scale prepared that will meet the requirements. 



HON. J. P. BURCHILL I would like to ask if land once burned 

 over will reproduce spruce if spruce trees are planted on it, will they 



grow ? 



MR. JAMES BEVERIDGE^l might say that Mr. Miller, of Nova 

 Scotia, to whom Mr. Robinson referred, has actually planted three thousand 

 acres of this Norway spruce. 



MR. JAMES HARRIGAN As a general thing 'land that has been 

 burned over produces a different growth. We will say that where spruce 

 and hemlock has first grown the second growth is white birch and poplar. 

 That is my experience in travelling over the country, and in the section 

 where I live. It might be possible that spruce could be grown by planting, 

 but leavino- it to itself it grows lumber that is not of much value at the pres- 



o 



ent time. 



MR. CHARLES E. FISH My observation in that regard is that when 

 the green forest is burned and very heavy ash left on the ground the potash 

 is so strong that the seeds are destroyed, and do not grow. As the potash 

 dilutes and fertilizes the grounds the first seeds that come in, which are the 



