Canadian Forestry Journal. May. Ipl6. 



543 



Government Railways and Proper 

 ^ ^^ Patrol ^ 



In the following extracts from 

 Hansard, readers of the Journal will 

 recognize the difficulties facing the 

 limit holders of Quebec Province in 

 securing that co-operation from the 

 Government railways which is free- 

 ly accorded by the private-owned 

 systems. The strange anomaly of 

 Government-owned roads balking 

 the cause of forest protection in a 

 region where their future freights 

 will depend almost entirely on the 

 products of the forest is difficult for 

 the average reader to comprehend. 

 Hon. Jacques Bureau brought up the 

 question of maintaining a proper 

 patrol on the lines of the Transcon- 

 tinental through the limits included 

 in the St. Maurice Forest Protective 

 Association, and the sharing of the 

 expense by the Dominion Govern- 

 ment. 



[Extract from "Hansard" for April 5, 

 1916. (Page 2699.)] 



"Mr. Bureau: 



There is another matter that I de- 

 sire to bring to the attention of the 

 minister in connection with that 

 part of the Transcontinental rail- 

 way. The St. Maurice lumbermen 

 have formed an association known 

 as the St. Maurice Forest Protec- 

 tive Association, which has for its 

 object the preventing of forest fires. 

 They have built telephone lines and 

 towers ; they have fire-rangers, and 

 they do all in their power to pro- 

 tect the forests in that region from 

 fire. I understand that they have 

 been corresponding with the Min- 

 ister of Railways, and that they have 

 never been able to get any satisfac- 

 tion, some of their letters remain- 

 ing unanswered. The correspon- 

 dence had the object of requesting 

 the Department of Railways to co- 



operate with the lumbermen in pro- 

 tecting the forests by keeping the 

 right of way of the Transcontinental 

 clean and by taking such action as 

 might be necessary for the protec- 

 tion of the forests. I should like to 

 know if it is the intention of the act- 

 ing minister to defer action in this 

 matter until the minister returns, or 

 if instructions are to be given with a 

 view to arriving at an understanding 

 between the Government and the St. 

 Maurice Forest Protective Associa- 

 tion is the matter of protecting their 

 limits from fires started by the 

 Transcontinental railway? 



Government Road to Blame. 



'T understand from the secretary 

 of the association that in the St. 

 Maurice region last year the great- 

 est cause of loss was fires set by the 

 Transcontinental. I do not think it 

 is right that the Government should 

 not pay its share to help along this 

 association in its work of protecting 

 the forests. If the railway does not 

 haul timber in that part of its line 

 I do not know what it will haul, as 

 it is a mountainous region where 

 there are no other products. 



"Mr. Reid (Acting Minister of 

 Railways and Canals) : The case of 

 the St. Maurice Fire Protective As- 

 sociation has been brought before 

 me. This association have limits 

 along the line of the railway, and it 

 is their custom to maintain a large 

 staff of employees to protect their 

 forests from fire. They receive 

 some assistance from the Quebec 

 Government. They want us to con- 

 tribute $3,500 or $4,000 per annum 

 towards the protection of their lim- 

 its. I have not gone into the matter 

 fully, but the thought that cmae 

 into my mind is that between Win- 



