76 



to say the exigencies of the present are often an overwhelming superior argu- 

 ment as against the needs of the future. It takes, indeed, a high degree of 

 f arseeing statesmanship to so manage the affairs of the present that the future 

 shall not suffer, and its needs be taken care of. Especially in a govern- 

 ment which is built on popularity, on direct support by the present day masses, 

 the politician, be he ever so f arseeing is bound to let the present day consid- 

 erations weigh the most. 



Hence it is but natural that Canadian governments like other govern- 

 ments which had to deal with newly developing countries, in the face of 

 plenty have allowed the present generation to use the resources of the country 

 wastefully and without regard to the future, overlooking the providential 

 function of government. 



Hitherto the governments have looked upon the forest either as an inex- 

 haustible resource like air and water, or else as an exhaustible, but non- 

 restorable resource, like the mines. They have pulled the house to pieces 

 and sold the brick instead of keeping it in repair and securing the rents by 

 proper management. 



During the last 40 years alone over 1,000 million dollars worth of these 

 "brick" have been torn out of the building and sent out of the country in 

 exports, mostly of raw material, and, in addition, the domestic requirements 

 of a population of say four million people in the average have been supplied, 

 which may be estimated, outside of fuel wood, at not less than 1,000 million 

 dollars in value.* During the same period less than 100 million dollars 

 (probably not 80 million) have been collected by the governments in dues, 

 ground rents, leases, and otherwise for the use of their forest properties, by 

 so much reducing, to be sure, the need of other taxation, but also by the 

 manner of collecting these taxes the destruction of the resources from which 

 they are collected. For the Eastern Provinces at least the life of the golden 

 goose that has enriched the country and built its homes and industries, is 

 doomed in the near future. 



The governments undoubtedly acted in good faith and believed that they 

 were doing the best for the country by encouraging the opening up and the 

 utilization of the vast timber wealth; moreover, they acted in the belief 

 that this wealth was inexhaustible, and that, therefore, for a long future no 

 concern need be had as to a conservative management. 



They did not realize that while the woodland was extensive, the saw 

 timber was quite limited; they did not realize how rapid the growth of the 

 world and of the requirements of modern industrial development would be, 

 and how slow the growth of trees. 



It needs to be driven home to every Canadian that in spite of foolish 

 assertions to the contrary and exceptional cases observed on single indivi- 

 duals, the growth of trees in the forest in our northern climate in the East, 

 and on the thin or rocky soils, which are the eventual heritage of the forester 

 it takes in the average not less than 100 years to make a 12 inch tree, and 



*Taking the Census of 1891 as a fair average for the period, we find the population 

 was 4,833,000, the consumption of all forest products totalled $80,000.000, or $16.00 

 and 296 cubic feet per head, of which seventy per cent, was accredited to home con- 

 sumption. Deducting the exports of that year with 25,000,000 from the total 

 value accredited to other than firewood, leaves $33,000,000 worth of sizeable material 

 for home consumption, or about $7.00 per capita, leading to above estimate. 



