Annual Report on Forest Administration in the 
Straits Settlements for the Year 1904. 
CHAPTER I. 
Extension and Constitution of Reserved Forests. 
I. Alteration in Area. 
1. The only alterations occurred in Malacca where 52 acres were excluded from 
the Bukit Bruang Reserve and an area of 2,468 acres taken up as a reserve at Nyalas. 
This area contains a good deal of secondary growth. 
An area statement of all reserves is given in Form 1 of Appendix to this report. 
2. This table shews the proportion of reserves to the total area of each Settlement, 
the percentage being 
I0'3 as against io 1 14 
in 1903. 
Colony. 
Area of 
Settlement. 
Square Miles 
1 
1 
1 Area of 
Reserved 
Imres t. 
Square Miles. 
Area of 
Unreserved 
Forest. 
Proportion 
of Reserve 
to whole 
Area. 
Singapore ... 
1 
to 
O 
1 
r 9'4 
9-41 
Pen an 0- and Province 
O 
Wellesley 
1 
395 I 
2 5'5 | 
6*4 
Bindings 
♦ 
265 
36O 
136 
Malacca 
« V » 
659 
77’4 
... 
1 17 
1 
1 
1,525 
158*4 
• • • 
10*27 
3. I regret that so far no steps have been taken to enable the Government to 
legally constitute these areas as reserved forests. These so-called reserves are merely 
portions of Crown land marked out and for the present set aside to be dealt with by 
the Forest Department. Instructions were issued by Government during, the year, 
however, to the effect that no felling of trees inside a “Reserve” maybe permitted 
without the permission of the Conservator of Forests. 
II. Reserve Proposals. 
4. 'There is nothing to record under this head, no more reserves are at present 
required, except Mangrove. 
III. Demarcation and Repairs to Boundaries of Reserves. 
5. In Singapore boundaries were kept clear by the Forest Staff. 
In Penang 69 miles of boundaries were gone over and cleared at a cost of 1329.75, 
averaging $4.77 per mile. In Province Wellesley 14 miles only were cleared for $ 160.60 
at the comparatively high figure 1 11.42 per mile. This is owing to the difficulty of 
getting coolies in such outlying places as Tassek Glugor and Bukit Panchor, who 
refuse to work for the same pay as the coolies in Penang. In opening the boundaries 
of Bukit Langkap in the Province, an encroachment by a Chinese squatter was discover- 
ed, who had planted up about one acre with Taoioca. As both the boundary of this 
reserve as well as the boundary of Bukit Gua Ipoh was ill-defined, the services of a 
surveyor were applied for and granted, and the work was proceeding at the close ol the 
year. The squatter was evicted, prosecuted, and fined §25. In the Bindings there are 
60 miles of artificial boundaries, the remainder consisting of Government roads and 
bridle paths, the Sea Coast and river banks. 
