the rays of son eannot penetrate, 'ibis 

 latter point is one of Tital importance in 

 forestry. To gain the best results the 

 soil must be prorerly protected against 

 loss of moislure by evaporation, not only 

 for the purpose of eonservine the water 

 but also to best permit those processes of 

 dfcay to take place that rapidly decom- 

 pose the fallen leaves into humus or 

 vegetable soil. OurEucaljpts and Acacias 

 are peculiarly ill-suited for this very 

 rrason to produce the best fore-t results. 

 The erect or pendant leaves remain edge 

 on to the sun and sffLri a minimum of 

 shade, consequently in a pretty 

 dense Australian forest the sua 

 still penetrates through to the 

 soil drying it up, and the scanty fol'age 

 that does fall is seldom turned to 

 bnmus at &\l. Ceitainly in manj parts 

 the soil is further protected by shrubs 

 and herbs, but these are but a sorry 

 recompense for a true canopy. In most 

 parts in old countries it has been found 

 best to intermix rapid growing fir trees 

 with broad-leaved trees that shed their 

 foLage every winter. This in a loig 

 series of years yields the best returns, 

 but is hardly suitable for us for two 

 reasons : We have abufidance of native 

 woods as useful ss the wocds prodeced 

 by these trees ; and the excessive time 

 they require to come to maturity— often 

 many generations. We r* quire forests 

 supplying a class of wood fdr which we 

 have a great demand and that will yield 

 a harvest within the shortest reasonable 

 time. This is only to be attained by 

 cultivating forests of pine trees. 8ueh a 

 forest would probably commence to 

 return wood to the cultivator at 20 

 years. 



From then for the next 40 years or 

 more according to circumstances the 

 forest wculd yield a constant supply. If, 

 for example, our fathers about the out- 

 break of the gold diggings in Victoria 

 had cansistently planted forest areas with 

 good species we should now not only be 

 supplying our own wants to the extant of 

 nearly £18,000 per annum, but would 

 • also be in fi position to supply the whole 

 of the much greater demand rf Australia. 

 There have been two objsc ions raised to 

 the policy of forest plantation in Tas 

 -Biatiia. borne think though our climate 



generally would be favorable that the 

 prolonged droughts might militate against 

 the success. Experience shows this to 

 be quite erroneous. Eeeantly we went 

 through one of the severest tests and the 

 cultivated imported trees, though not 

 always growing ia the most suitable 

 situations atd never under the most 

 favorable coBditions, came well through 

 it, so well that th^re would evidently be 

 no fear of the severest drought doing real 

 harm to forest plantations. Bat a much 

 graver danger exists from bush fires 

 end if copses were planted in and 

 about bush land, doubtless the 

 loss from this source would occasionally 

 be great. But it is not ia bush lands 

 where there is the greatest demmi for 

 forests I they would yield their best 

 results in the more cultivated parts. If 

 a farmer planted a paddock of wheat in 

 close proximity to scrub land he would 

 know quite well the danger he was run- 

 ning from firt But how many farmers 

 in Tasmania whan sowin3 grain tend tj 

 desist from a fear of this danger. Like- 

 wise where forests would be most useful 

 interspersed in your widely-cleared and 

 open area, would thej be running a great 

 risk of destruction ? Hardly more so 

 than a field of grain. But this subject 

 ef planting far timber prcdaction has 

 all the one great objection. In these 

 days when land is not entailed the cost 

 of production comes out of the pocket of 

 the immediate possessor. But who will 

 reap tbe benefit ? Even if one is pretty 

 sure that fais will fall to the lot of ona's 

 children the harvest is too remote. 

 Though the care and attention of tbe 

 young plantation ia slight, still it is work 

 without visible return. To calculate that 

 the trees we plant with much care and 

 expense to-day will return practically 

 nothing for twenty years, is quite 

 enoufeh to depress the sympathy of any 

 practical man. But fortunately tbe 

 growth of forest areas is not productive 

 of timber alone; indeed, the growth of 

 timber may be left on one side as quite a 

 secondary considsration. The principal 

 interest to the people of Tasmania is that 

 forest areas are big conservers of water. 

 Ihe rainfall of Tasmania is not as small 

 as it is often supposed. Gur rainfall is 

 B'. mewhere ab.ut that of the eastern 



