CANADIAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. 39 



pose giving very much more attention to the subject than they have done in 

 the past. A nd, so, it seems to me, Mr. President, we may congratulate our- 

 selves upon the fact that a great deal of progress has been made during the 

 last ten years. Remember that ten years ago there was absolutely no inter- 

 est in this subject by the press and no interest on the part of the public. 



My friend, the Chairman, has said to-day that I have lately been 

 appointed to the position of Chairman of the Commission appointed under 

 an Act of Parliament with reference to the conservation of our natural re- 

 sources. That Commission, let me say, is not an executive or administra- 

 tive body. All our power consists of investigating and giving good advice, 

 which, if it seems wise to the governments, legislatures and other bodies, 

 they will follow; and if we give advice they do not think wise, no doubt they 

 will not follow it. And so, therefore, we shall strive to be careful and 

 thorough in our investigations and painstaking in our conclusions. In so 

 far as this Commission and the Forestry Association are connected, I may 

 say that the Forestry Committee of the Commission is presided over by my 

 friend, the Chairman (Senator Edwards) . He is the Chairman of the Com- 

 mittee and being the President of this Association also, it may be reason- 

 ably expected the two bodies will be able to get along pretty well, and that 

 at least their presiding officers wil not quarrel. (Laughter). Our relations 

 will be of the character of coroperation, and so far as there being any dan- 

 ger that the Commission of Conservation will take the place of the Forestry 

 Association, or minimize its work in any way, I desire to say such is not 

 the case by any means. The very contrary is true. It is our duty to 

 encourage and assist this Association so far as possible, to assist any person 

 who is doing anything to promote the service of scientific forestry and the 

 conservation of the forests in any part of Canada. So, therefore, the idea 

 which has been entertained by some members of this Association that their 

 work would not be so important in the future as it had been in the past, is 

 not one with which I can agree. On the contrary we desire to see this Asso- 

 ciation flourish and prosper and go on with its work to the fullest possible 

 extent. 



I am going to say a few words to you on several branches of the subject 

 which seem to me to be important, and I am going to take the time of this 

 large and representative audience for the purpose of emphasizing a few 

 points which I think require to be emphasized, and in respect of which we 

 want the support of the public. As I said before, we only act in an advisory 

 capacity. The Forestry Association is in precisely the same position. And 

 when we ask for the enactment of an important measure we must be backed 

 up by public opinion or our advice will have no weight whatever. In the 

 first place, what I want to do is to ask you to consider for just a moment 

 what you have been told so often before, what you have tried so often to 

 remedy, what you are so fully conscious of yourselves, and that is the abso- 

 lutely indefensible destruction of the forests of Canada by fire. That has 

 been talked about for a few years past, and naturally it has become a 

 hackneyed subject. There has been something done in the way of institut- 

 ing a better system of forest rangers in regard to the protection of mer- 

 chantable timber. But there are vast areas of land which are capable of 

 producing timber, but which are constantly being burned over by the fires 



