Canadian Forestry Journal, April, igi6. 



467 



timber for industrial purposes. In 

 1912, timber was scarce in France; 

 lumber for the amount of 192 millions 

 ■of francs has been imported in that 

 year. 



"The scarcity of timber for con- 

 structional purposes is not limited to 

 France ; it constitutes a real univer- 

 sal crisis. The forest reserves on 

 the face of the earth are being- rap- 

 idly exhausted, especially the timber 

 from the caducous species. The 

 manufacture of wood pulp has con- 

 sumed entire forests in America,, as 

 well as in Europe." 



Mr. Marin then considers the best 

 methods to resort to in estimating 

 the damages done to the forests and 

 in their reforestation. "The pro- 

 prietor will have to remove the fall- 

 en trunks, the injured trees, etc. ; the 

 soil will then be levelled, and local 

 rangers" houses determined. This 

 "being done, he will proceed with the 

 primordial work, i.e., the re-sowing 

 •of young trees in order to reconsti- 

 tute the forest, without neglecting 

 the natural disposition of trees, ac- 

 •cording to the number of years re- 

 quired by each species for their full 

 growth, and the purpose for which 

 they are intended. Timber from 

 twenty to twenty-five years old can 

 "be used for fuel ; from fifty to sixty 

 years, for use in the interior of 

 -mines ; from eighty to one hundred 

 years, for the production of lumber, 

 and about 150 years old for indus- 

 trial purposes. In the latter-named, 

 there are the oak, the ash, the beech 

 •and like species. This work accom- 

 plished by the proprietor will be but 

 the preliminaries of the task entrust- 

 ■ed to Time, and which years alone 

 -can perform. It is the work of 

 several centuries." 



Estimating Damages. 

 Referring once more to the dam- 

 ages to which this war has subjected 

 • he forests of France, the writer does 

 not lose sight of the fact that the de- 

 vastation is still going on as violent- 

 ly as ever, and that it is impossible 

 to foresee all the efforts which will 



be required of the nation. But 

 France must be interested now in 

 this great problem in order to be 

 ready to proceed, when the time 

 comes, with as least delay as possible 

 to the reconstruction of her fores- 

 trial resources. ''All delay in the 

 rebuilding of this heritage," he says, 

 "would spell losses impossible to es- 

 timate to thousands of people 

 living on the forests." 



"In conclusion. I could not do bet- 

 ter than to quote the following para 

 graph from one of Bernard Palis- 

 sy's most interesting works : 



"When I consider the value of the 

 least branch and shrub, I am aston- 

 ished at the great ignorance of men 

 of to-day who seem to train them- 

 selves to pillaging, hewing and mu- 

 tilating the magnificent forests which 

 their predecessors have so carefullv 

 preserved. I would not mind their 

 devastating them if they would af- 

 terwards rebuild them, but they do 

 not worry in any way of the time 

 to come and of the great loss they 

 will have caused to the coming gen- 

 erations." 



"These words were written in 

 1580," adds Mr. Marin; "they are 

 worth consideration, because they 

 have never ceased to be of the deep- 

 est actuality." 



PUBLIC LECTURES. 



Public ilhistrated lectures have 

 been given by the Secretary during 

 the past few weeks at McGill Uni- 

 versity, Montreal ; Grand Mere, P. 

 Q. ; Cardinal : Sault Ste. Marie ; 

 Hamilton ; wdth further dates ar- 

 ranged for Marmora, Ont. : Mon- 

 treal. Ottawa, Toronto. The plan 

 has been followed of giving a lec- 

 ture at High Schools or Technical 

 Schools in the afternoon preceding 

 the evening lecture. 



