JANUARY 21 



to conflagration, but such is not the case with plantations 

 of hard wood — oak, ash, and the like — especially in a 

 climate like ours, which is always humid while the trees 

 are in their winter repose. And as regards gales, it 

 must be observed that much of the havoc wrought from 

 time to time by exceptional storms is owing partly to our 

 practice of planting narrow belts and isolated clumps and 

 partly to the insane degree to which thinning is usually 

 carried. Trees that have been encouraged to spread 

 exaggerated branches, and to carry heads out of all 

 proportion to their height will succumb to a storm that 

 may be lifted harmlessly over a solid block of well-ordered 

 woodland. The force of a gale is greatly aggravated in 

 effect upon the belt and clump system of plantation, A 

 thousand continuous acres of woodland will suffer far less 

 from storm than 1000 acres scattered over an estate of 

 10,000 acres. 



Yet another consideration. It is upon trees that 

 have arrived at or have passed commercial maturity 

 that storms tell with most disastrous effect. Where such 

 trees are preserved for scenic or ornamental effect, they 

 must take their chance ; but it is part of the system of 

 economic forestry that trees shall not be suffered to stand 

 after the annual increase of their cubic contents shows a 

 falling off. 



Let me illustrate this point from a page in my private 

 record of folly. My first election to Parliament in 1880 

 was a costly affair ; Sir Henry James had not then passed 

 his Act restricting candidates' expenses in proportion to 

 constituencies. A thousand pounds of ready cash would 

 have been a welcome contribution to paying the bill, and 

 that is just about the sum which I was told I could get 



