jQg CANADIAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. 



I thank you most heartily for the vote of thanks you have given us. ( Ap- 

 plause.) 



Mr. Irvin C. Williams, of Pennsylvania; Mr. W. R. Brown, of New 

 Hampshire, and Mr. Charles E. Oak, replied to the vote of thanks to the 

 delegates from the United States. 



THE CHAIRMAN CONCLUDES. 



THE CHAIRMAN (HoN. SENATOR EDWARDS) : As yice-President of 

 the Association and Chairman of the Convention, I desire to say a few 

 words before it closes. I have attended many Conventions of the Canadian 

 Forestry Association in the years of its existence, and I think I am safe in 

 saying I never attended such a successful meeting as this one. (Hear, 

 hear.) I may say in all frankness that I came down here at a very great 

 inconvenience to myself; busy man as I am it is exceedingly difficult for me 

 to get away for two or three days to attend a meeting of this kind at such 

 distance, but I feel repaid many times over for having come. (Hear. 

 he.ar. ) It was a pleasure, indeed, to meet such a gathering of intelligent and 

 capable men as we have present on this occasion. I think it is also gratify- 

 ing to the Association that we have with us gentlemen from the United 

 States. In the discussions that have taken place here I am perfectly sure 

 these gentlemen will go away feeling that in anything that has been said 

 there is no unfriendliness on the part of Canadians toward the people of 

 the great Republic. The only feeling that exists is that the people of Can- 

 ada shall legislate in their affairs and deal with their property as they 

 think is in the best interests of Canada. If mistakes should be made they 

 will not be made in an unfriendly spirit toward the American people. The 

 people of Canada entertain nothing but the best feeling toward them. The 

 development of that great country means also the development of Canada, 

 because as they succeed and expand, so, relatively, will we. It is true that 

 for many years they progressed much more rapidly than Canada, but for 

 some years past Canada has been making great strides, and the time will 

 come when we will be much more active competitors than we are to-day. It 

 is competition and rivalry that sharpens a people and builds up a nation, 

 and we are fortunate in having to the south of us as energetic and great a 

 people as the people of that great Republic. (Applause.) 



While we entertain these views in regard to the United States, we can- 

 not shut our eyes to the fact that in their great development they have most 

 rapidly used up many of the natural resources of their country. We had an 

 illustration of that yesterday in what Hon. Mr. Sifton said about their tim- 

 ber. I, myself, attended the Convention that was held after the first gath- 

 ering of Governors at Washington. I heard there the statements made by 

 the Governors of the various States as to their natural resources, and it was 

 stated as their belief that the timber supply of that country would not last 

 more than twenty years. Mr. Sifton put it at thirty years. We are not in a 

 much better position, relative to population, than are the people of the 



