864 



Canadian Forestry Journal, December, ipi6 



Fire Protection First. 



"The following- improvements are 

 obvious : 



"First, a good system of fire protec- 

 tion for the province outside of the St. 

 Maurice and Lower Ottawa valleys. In 

 these two sections co-operative Fire 

 Protective Associations are in exis- 

 tence which practically eliminated the 

 fire hazard, showing what can be done- 

 In other sections the Government 

 should force the limit holders to pro- 

 perly protect their holdings ; this can 

 be done at small expense, one-quarter 

 of one per cent, per acre per annum. In 

 order to do this the Government must 

 have properly qualified men to act as 

 inspectors and must have enough of 

 them, and it must protect the areas 

 which are not yet under license. Un- 

 der the Hon. Mr. Jules Allard, Minis- 

 ter of Lands and Forests, great pro- 

 gress has been made, and he has shown 

 the greatest desire to properly protect 

 and administer the great public domain 

 under his charge. His Department 

 has been one of the most important in 

 producing revenue, and sufficient 

 money has not been allowed him to pro- 

 perly take care of his Department. In 

 order to safeguard the future revenue, 

 more money must be spent annually 

 now. 



Change Fixed Diameter. 



"The present law which compels cut- 

 ting to a fixed diameter limit should be 

 repealed and the cutting should be done 

 directly under the inspection of pro- 

 perly trained and qualified inspectors 

 who should be competent to designate 

 the trees to be cut. This of course 

 would mean a large increase in current 

 expenses, but as it must come sooner 

 or later it is better to spend the money 

 before the damage is irreparable. 



"Logging should be cornmenced 

 much earlier in the season and should 

 be finished by the time the snow comes 

 permanently. Camjis should be built 

 out nf birch and po])lar. 



"Some system of brush disposal 

 should be compulsory, both in the in- 

 terest of fire protection and the good 

 of the forest. 



"Burnt areas which are not restock- 

 ing fully should be planted up ancf 

 everything possible should be done to 



make it i)ossible and advantageous for 

 limit holders to replace the trees cut 

 by planting. 



"The Laurentide Company, Ltd., the 

 Pejepscot Paper Co.. and the Riordon 

 Paper Co., Ltd., have begun to plant, 

 and have shown that it is feasible. 



"The work of logging and other 

 woods operations should be done by 

 men who have been trained properly in 

 these operations. This work is a sort 

 of engineering, demanding technical 

 knowledge and good judgment, and is 

 too often left to men who are totally 

 ignorant and incompetent. Few oper- 

 ators have any idea of what is going 

 on in the woods, and as long as they 

 have cheap logs delivered to them, are 

 satisfied to leave matters as they are- 

 It takes a long while to grow timber or 

 to repair the. damage done by careless 

 handling, and we are too prone to 

 leave the problems of supplying raw 

 material for the future to the men of 

 that day, forgetting that it is we who 

 must lay the foundation." 



Quebec Forest Revenue. 



According to the report of the Que- 

 bec Lands and Forests Department 

 just issued, the total revenue for the 

 year was $1,807,259. Receipts from 

 sales and areas amount to the sum of 

 $75,703.59, while the sale of Crown 

 lands, hydraulic powers, etc., produced 

 the sum of $28,353.81, with expenses 

 for the service amounting to $2,219.50. 

 Revenue from woods and forests 

 amounted to $1,683,682.23, as follows: 

 Ground rent, $352,380.26; stumpage 

 dues, $1,221,683.82; penalties and fines, 

 $24,255.17; accrued interest, %Z2i- 

 826.85; transfers, $10,720; premiums, 

 $40,816.13. An area of 339.725 acres 

 was subdivided during the year, and 

 103,658 acres reverted to the Crown. 

 There is at the disposal of the Govern- 

 ment at present 7,465,637 acres. 



A Large Enlistment. 



Since the outbreak of the war no less 

 than one hundred and eighty men em- 

 ploved in the plants of the Provincial 

 Paper Mills Co. have enlisted for over- 

 seas. This number constitutes about 

 thirty per cent, of the working forces 

 of the company, which is a splendid re- 

 cord. 



