40 CANADIAN FOEESTET ASSOCIATION. 



set by railway engines, and what might become a valuable asset is thus 

 destroyed. If you ask me as to whether that destruction is as bad now as 

 in former years, my observation is to the effect that it never was so bad, at 

 least not for ten or fifteen years past, as it has been during the past season. 

 I am speaking for the Province of Ontario and Western Provinces not 

 being fully acquainted with the facts in regard to your Province. 1 hat : is 

 undoubtedly true so far as Ontario and the West are concerned. I he de- 

 struction of the forest lands by fire was perhaps greater during the past 

 summer and fall than it has been for a considerable number of years past. 

 So far as the destruction of forests by fire in New Brunswick is concerned, 

 your Surveyor-General, Mr. Grimmer, when he joined our new work of 

 Conservation, pointed out the great destruction that had taken place along 

 the line of the Intercolonial Railway of Canada, and we took up that sub- 

 ject at our meeting of the Conservation Commission and passed a resolution 

 upon it. After the Commission had adjourned, I took occasion to have an 

 enquiry made from responsible officials of the Intercolonial Railway, in 

 order that we might hear both sides and learn the facts as they appeared to 

 the railroad. They corroborated Surveyor-General Grimmer's statement 

 in every respect, and stated the destruction by fire, especially in New Bruns- 

 wick, from engines on the Intercolonial Railway was simply appalling; there 

 could not be any excuse for it. So far as that is concerned, we are face to 

 face with these two questions. In the first place, we have destruction by 

 fire from the engines of railways that are chartered railways, like the Ca- 

 nadian Pacific Railway, the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, and the Cana- 

 dian Northern Railway, and then railways owned by the Government. We 

 propose to ask Parliament for legislation which w r ill place a heavy penalty 

 upon railways if they allow fire to break from their right-of-way and de- 

 stroy property. And we shall have to adopt some method of dealing with 

 the Intercolonial Railway. That is of a different character, because it 

 would not be a desirable thing to fine the Minister of Railways. The 

 money would be simply taken from one pocket and put into another. We 

 cannot indict the Minister of Railways for what happens upon the Inter- 

 colonial Railway. But we can, I think, convince the Department of Rail- 

 ways and the Government generally that there is no reason why the Inter- 

 colonial Railway should stand in any different position from that of any 

 other railway in respect to the destruction of the forests by fire, and that 

 such measures as can be taken must be taken for the purpose of preventing 

 the destruction. Upon this question we ask your support and the support 

 the members from the Province of New Brunswick. (Hear, hear.) 



There has been some dispute of late, especially in the press of the 

 United States as to whether we people who were talking about forestry 

 were not altogether mistaken. Those of you who followed the late dis- 

 cussion in the United States will know that Gifford Pinchot, Chief Forester, 

 s removed from office by President Taft, and immediately following 

 on came a good many evidently inspired protests from some quarters 

 e purpose of discrediting the movement asking for more attention 

 :stry. The articles were written for the purpose of showing, when 

 .'ho were enthusiastic in regard to Forestry proposed Schemes 

 e purpose of preserving soil fertility and regulating the stream flow, 



