NATURE 



569 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE 



The Progress of State Afforestation .... 369 

 The Green Flash at Sunset. By Sir Arthur Schuster, 



For. Sec. R.S 370 



Village Communities. By H. J. F 371 



Climbing Palms and the Sago Palms. By A. W. H. 372 



The Control of Electric Power. By A. R. . . 373 

 A Modern Text-book of Chemistry. By Prof. H. B. 



Baker, F.R.S 374 



Our Bookshelf • 374 



Letters to ihe Editor : — 



Capillarity. — Wilson Taylor ..... 377 



The Influence of Science. -Rev. A. L. Cortie, S.J. 378 

 The Production of a Standard Source of Sound. — 



Capt. E. T. Paris 37S 



Occurrence of the Rare Whale, Mesoplodon Layardi, 

 on the Tasmanian Coast. — Prof. T. Thomson 



Flynn .... . 379 



Atoms and Electrons. — Robert N. Pease . . 379 



The Freshwater Winkle. —A. E. Hodge . . 380 

 The Effect of a Lead Salt on Lepidopterous Larvae. — 



Dr. F. C. Garrett and Hilda Garrett. . . 3S0 



The Pigeon Tick. — A. G. Lowndes . . . 3S0 

 The Theory of Numbers. By Prof. G. H. Hardy. 



M.A.. F.R.S 3S1 



The Organisation of Research. By Principal J. C. 

 Irvine, C.B.E., D.Sc. LL.D., F.R.S. . . .385 



The Total Solar Eclipse of September 21. By Dr. 



A. C. D. Crommelin 3S9 



The Deflection of Light in a Gravitational Field. By 



Herbert Dingle 389 



The British Association at Hull. Summaries of 



Addresses of Presidents of Sections . . . 391 



Current Topics and Events ...... 393 



Our Astronomical Column 395 



Research Items 396 



Einstein's Theories 39S 



Educational Work of the Ministry of Agriculture . 39S 



University and Educational Intelligence . . . 399 



Calendar of Industrial Pioneers 400 



Societies and Academies 400 



Official Publications Received ..... 400 



Editorial and Publishing Offices : 



MACMILLAN 6- CO., LTD., 

 ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON. W.C.2. 



Advertisements and business letters should be 



addressed to the Publishers. 



Editorial communications to the Editor. 



Telegraphic Address : PHUS1S, LONDON. 

 Telephone Number : GERRARD 8830. 

 NO. 2759. VOL. I IO] 



The Progress of State Afforestation. 



THE Geddes Committee recommended the abolition 

 of the Forestry Commission, and the discon- 

 tinuance of the scheme of State afforestation that was 

 sanctioned by Parliament in 1919. Fortunately these 

 drastic measures were not adopted by the Government. 

 The Treasury, however, has now restricted the Com- 

 missioners' operations, by reducing considerably t bi- 

 annual instalment from the forestry fund, which had 

 been fixed at 350,000/. In consequence, the forestry 

 staff has been greatly reduced, all purchase of land for 

 the purpose of afforestation is suspended, and planting 

 operations are greatly curtailed. It is discouraging 

 to be aware of these facts, while reading the second 

 annual report l of the Forestry Commissioners, which 

 is a record of continuous progress till the end of 

 September 192 1. 



The report shows unexpected case in the acquisition 

 of suitable land for planting trees. In order to reduce 

 current expenditure to a minimum, the policy has been 

 pursued of leasing as much and buying as little land as 

 possible. In September 1921 the Commissioners were 

 actually in possession of 68,489 acres of " plantable 

 land," of which two-thirds had been leased at a rent 

 of about 25. per acre, and one-third purchased at the 

 low price of iZ. Ss. per acre. The afforestation of cheap 

 land like this adds materially to the real wealth of the 

 country, as the timber produced will be much more 

 valuable than the poor grass, rushes, bracken, furze, 

 and heather which now cover the ground. 



Afforestation also provides a ready means of giving 

 work to the unemployed during seasons of bad trade. 

 In November last, 250,000/. was allotted to forestry 

 from the Unemployment Fund; and in spite, of the 

 difficulty of organising and in many cases improvising 

 forestry operations with unskilled labour, more than 

 4000 men were set to work. Landowners and corpora- 

 tions were induced to plant, by small grants which 

 were unencumbered by any condition except that 

 unemployed labour should be utilised. As a result 

 about 11,000 acres were planted on private estates, and 

 preparation was made for the planting of a further 

 11,500 acres in subsequent years, a notable addition 

 to the woodland area of Great Britain. 



The actual work of afforestation on the lands acquired 

 by the Commissioners was restricted in the first year 

 by the lack of young trees ; but 7794 acres had been 

 planted by the end of the second season. Large 

 quantities of tree-seeds were imported and extensive 

 nurseries established at convenient centres, the latter 

 covering in September 192 1 an area of 607 acres and 

 carrying a stock of in million seedlings and 33 million 



1 Second Annual Report of the Forestry Commissioners: Year ending 

 Sept. 30, 1921. (London : H.M. Stationery Office, 1922.) is. net. 



