1 8 2 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



exacting one of her inflexible penalties. The reckless destruction of forests 

 has developed such an increase of insect life in some of the States as to render 

 the production of human food more and more precarious. Late accounts 

 inform us that large areas have been devastated by swarms of grasshoppers, 

 whilst in other districts the vast increase of the Colorado beetle has rendered 

 the cultivation of the potato almost impossible. Indeed serious fears are 

 entertained that unless some remedy can be found the cultivation of the potato 

 will, from this cause, before long disappear from large tracts of America. This 

 result will be mainly due to the denudation of the natural forest lands, and to 

 the neglect to create forests on the vast prairies of the North American 

 continent. The chief allies of man against the enormous increase of insect life 

 are undoubtedly birds. Without forests birds cannot exist in sufficient 

 numbers to render efficient aid in controlling this undue increase of the 

 insectivorous tribes. It ought not to be forgotten that birds, more than any 

 other agency, have been and are the great distributors of seeds and the chief 

 planters of forests. 



The attention of the Austral Colonies has not been directed to the con- 



servation and creation of forests one moment too soon. The singular paucity 



of varieties of plants of economic value, of animals and birds in these 

 colonies has led to the formation of those very useful institutions — the 

 Acclimatisation Societies. It is not too much to expect that these organisa- 

 tions by wise, systematic, and well-directed operations will help to arrest the 

 reckless destruction of forests as well as aid in creating new ones, and thus 

 prevent the deterioration of our excellent climates, and by the introduction of 

 insectivorous birds, will enable agricultural operations to be carried on with 

 fairer prospects of success, Mr. Vogel, the Premier of this Colony, by his 

 Forests Bill, has undertaken a truly national work, and is on that account 

 entitled to the warmest thanks of every well-wisher to the present and future 

 welfare of this and the adjacent colonies. 



To me forest culture in this colony has long been of deep interest. In 

 18G8 I pointed out to the leading Waikato settlers that their treeless and 



fern-covered plains would, as the fern disappeared, be subject to rapid evapor- 

 ation, to untimely frosts, to droughts and floods, to the great increase of 



insect life, to the serious injury of their climate, as well as to the losses 



incidental to the scarcity of timber, unless steps were taken to form planta- 

 tions. "With the view of practically giving effect to my advice I at that 

 time widely distributed amongst them large quantities of valuable seeds of the 

 Coniferae, and I have not failed to carry out practically my opinions by 

 planting to a moderate extent on my own estates at Matamata. 



I propose in this paper to treat the subject of forestry under two divi- 

 sions 



