quickly, for the present is the critical time. For as yet, the real difficulty is not any very serious inroad upon the forest as a whole, seeing that above one-third of the total area of the province is still richly wooded; but only the denudation of those districts which are well provided with easy facilities for communication. But when we reflect that this breathing-spell will be utilized-indeed, to some extent has been-in improving or creating, the means of transportation to and from those remoter sections which, for lack of them yet remain practically untouched; the question assumes a grave aspect at once —a seriousness which, after all, is perhaps latent in this vague popular uneasiness on our topic. This feeling is, in that case, assuredly germane to that instinctive sense of the coming event always distinguishable among the masses on the eve of all broad and radical changes, be they commercial, social, or political.

ident at a glance, has been split from trunks of respectable size; and is it not equally patent that the very varieties which are most sought for fuel, also produce the best timber? In a land where coal is so cheap and so good, this is a condition of things which is simply intolerable.

More than any other single particular. the new rage for "extract of hemlock-bark" needs regulating. This species of fir is most ignorantly and mischievously set down in the popular mind as worthless. "Hemlock is no good," is the universal persuasion,

"it is a mere cumberer of the ground,— it is an unlooked-for good fortune that even the bark is fit for something;" and to it they go, felling right and left, taking only the bark and leaving the timber to rot! It is not even utilized for fuel, to any noteworthy extent. This precious economy the writer has but once seen paralleled. In certain districts of the largest of the Phillipine Islands where wild cattle are abundant, the natives slaughter the "cariboo" for the hides onlyleaving the beef to perish. It is not advisable to place any restrictions upon the supply of hemlock-bark indeed; but something should be done that would lead to a utilization of the wood. What increases the absurdity, is the fact that ever since 1863, British Lloyds', proverbially cautious in conceding the merits of British North American material, as that society has ever been-has been extending a "character, 'A 1,' for four years, to ships built of this much despised wood. And the Cape Colonies, (to which Nature has denied forests, and even trees of respectable size, and durability when wrought,-their sparse clusters of wit teboom and spekeboom attaining an average There is the question of wood fuel. growth of less than thirty feet, yielding a der the most economic management it de- timber almost valueless from its softness stroys fine young trees which should be al- and inability to retain "fastening, ") posilowed to grow into heavy timber; here, tively suffer from the want of just such lumhowever, it destroys the latter as well. Who ber-at once cheap and highly durable—as does not see everywhere, and every day, the wasted hemlock logs might be sawed piles of cord-wood, much of which, it is ev-into; and for which they would pay with

For then the war of extermination will be renewed and waged with redoubled vigour. It is only the outworks that are now levelled; but in this finishing campaign our dendrokopti will attack the citadel. Then we shall enter upon a period of "unprecedented activity." We shall treble our tonnage, quadruple our lumber exports, quintuple our manufacture of "essence" of hemlock-bark --and then, collapse! Nor is the time probably so remote that many can enjoy the selfish consolation of saying "After us the deluge." Some good measures looking to an immediate establishment of forest conservance ought to be adopted forthwith. The condition of Nova Scotia, as described, is also, in posse, that of her sister provinces.

Un

The question of questions, however, is that of railways. Perhaps all other agencies combined do not more rapidly dissipate the forest resources of a nation than they do. Until railways were introduced into India, all other demands upon her forests were borne unconsciously. Yet these included at once the domestic supply of her dense population, ship-building upon a large scale and steady, heavy exportation. That was in 1854. Railway extension, held in check by the mutiny, did not begin until 1861; and in '62 we saw the government partially awake to the necessity of establishing a conservation. Prompt measures then would have obviated the necessity of stringent and unpopular enactments in '65, and subsequently; and, it may be, by this time, have removed the difficulty.

their fine wool, skins, pure wines, raisins, and railroads have gone through the land, devasother dried fruits, etc., etc. tating the timber right and left in the vicinage of the track. There was no more regard to the future, than if there was no future. The proprietors of the intersected lands were lamentably deficient in the intelligence needed for the proper appreciation and care for this species of property. Hitherto it had been looked upon as an encumbrance-no second railway, it was argued, could ever be constructed near that already in hand; consequently the most was to be made of an opportunity never to be repeated. No regular Department of Woods and Forests existing, the timber question was the concern of nobody in particular, and the owners themselves would undoubtedly have looked upon any effort to rescue their own property from their own destroying axes, as an interference of the most unwarrantable kind. Down went the trees, all "along the whole line”—wherever they stood most convenient-wherever they stood in the way of others more particularly wanted-in any and every stage of growth-at seasons when felling is equivalent to extirpation, or otherwise, as occasion might decide, and with no regard whatever to the chances of renewal. It is certainly sufficiently perceptible that if this stolid and unthinking recklessness prevails a few years longer, we shall be unable to build either ships, railroads, or dwellings without deriving every splinter of material from foreign sources. On the other hand, it is equally obvious, that, with the needful care, there will be abundance for all, as long as an abundance will be required.

In Nova Scotia, where coal is so abundant and accessible, the locomotives still consume much wood. How, then, will it be along the more extended lines of Canadian railway? Judging from the rate of movement of the Intercolonial, it will probably be some time before that, and others projected, reach their maximum of consumption of fuel; but whenever they do, the question of what proportion of it must be of wood, will become vitally important particularly when we keep in mind that the experience of American roads proves that an average of about thirty-five acres of woodland are necessary to supply one mile of railway. Besides, fuel is not the only feature of the question. The mode of supplying the needful timber is, if possible, more absurd and thriftless than in the cases already specified. The people who undertake this work observe but one rule of conduct namely to deliver at as little expense as possible, the beams, sleepers, bridge-stringers, or other material engaged for, in order to clear the widest practicable margin of present profit. Consequently our

To attempt to show how forest conservation should be established, would carry this paper far beyond its limits. But it may not be amiss to summarize the principal difficulties with which such legislation must grapple:

1st. The proprietors of the woodlands, (as a class,) have no adequate conception of the prospective value of this species of property: nor the wish to take care of it. 2nd.

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All the broad tracts that have been stripped wasteful devastators upon the public lands, (referring only to those not intended for fuel, etc., etc. 5th.-Influence of railways. tillage, which are the great majority,) are There are also certain reforms in ship-buildleft without any effort to encourage a sec-ing, which-if carried out would lessen maond growth. 3rd.—There is a general use of terially the demand of that branch of ininsufficiently seasoned materials—especially dustry. The class of vessels known as in house building. In an extreme climate like ours, we may remark, this is a particularly mischievous practice, since such stuff does not last half the time it should, and, therefore calls for correspondingly frequent renewal. Perhaps, the exportation of green, and partly-seasoned timber, and deals might be worth some consideration also; though possibly this objection is in a large measure neutralized by the more careful management and economization of the consumers. 4th. Fires, free axes, and the incursions of our

composite" could be most advantageously substituted for the present wooden product of our ship-yards-in every respect being cheaper, considered with reference to their superior classification, as well as better, and forming the natural and easy stage of transition to the production of iron tonnage. Such a substitution would at once cut down the shipwrights' demand on our rapidly di minishing woodlands, by at least four-sevenths.

W

HEN John and I were married-of a speech when she presented them, and course we had a quite a number of presents from our various friends, and equally, of course, those of the least value were made the most fuss about.

Old Mrs. Stingyton, for instance, who gave us a set of doyleys, which she said she had knitted herself; although I am quite sure she bought them at some cheap sale; made quite

really made me feel as if I had received a silver tea-service at the very least; while dear old Mr. Harty sent a lovely little epergne, with just a few lines of congratulation.

But of all our presents that which Uncle Robert sent was by far the most beautiful. It was a bracelet made of tiger claws,

polished till they looked like clear amber, and joined together by such tiny delicate gold chains-which looked more like cobwebs than goldsmiths' work, and could only have been produced by the supple fingers of an eastern jeweller.

Uncle Robert has lived many years in India, and has made heaps of money; but he isn't a bit like the old Indian one reads about in novels. They are always yellow and cross, and seem to live upon nothing but curry and hot pickles, and have a native servant whom they ill-treat dreadfully; but Uncle is quite rosy and stout, and has such a hearty jolly laugh, and says he would rather be waited upon by our little table-maid, Jessy, than by all the kitmaghars in the East Indies. Indeed I confess that Jessy is very brisk and attentive at table; although I must say she is much too pretty for a servant, and rather too fond of ribands, and I think I should rather have a plainer table-maid; but then the plain ones are generally cross and disobliging; and, indeed, to tell the truth, Uncle Robert has so often complimented me on being above the weakness of most young wives, who, he says, always pick out ugly servants, that I am rather afraid to change.

John, who is looking over my shoulder, says I am getting "discursive," as most ladies do who attempt to tell a story-but that is all nonsense—and I am sure it is necessary to have the full particulars in order to understand a thing properly. Well, as I was saying, Uncle Robert's bracelet was as lovely a thing as ever was seen, and as I knew that he had been a great sportsman in the East, of course I was very anxious to learn all about his fight with the tiger to whom the claws originally belonged; so I said to him one evening after dinner: "Now, Uncle, it will give additional value to your lovely bracelet if you will tell me the full particulars of how you killed the tiger-in fact I am determined to know all about it." "Well, my dear," replied Uncle, "if you

have made up your mind to that—the best thing I can do, for the sake of my own peace and quietness, is to tell you at once.”—And this is what he told me:

*

*

Some eight or nine years ago I joined a large sporting party in the North-West Provinces of India. Our principal object was, of course, big game," by which an Indian sportsman understands tigers, elephants, and such like; but we were not at all particular and shot anything that came in our way with laudable impartiality.

We had made a pretty fair bag of small game, but had been singularly unfortunate as regards the larger animals, and although we had news of several tigers in the neighbourhood we had not succeeded in even getting a shot at one. We were encamped on the skirts of the jungle, at the foot of the lower range of the Himalayas ; having received information that a famous man-eating tiger had carried off several villagers during the past week, and had been tracked to his lair not far from where we had pitched our tents.

Our shikarees, or native hunters, had started off to procure exact information as to the whereabouts of the animal, and we were awaiting their return before proceeding to surround him.

I was sitting under the verandah of my tent smoking a last cheroot, and listening to the subdued chatter and laughter of our native servants, as they squatted round their fire some little distance off, and passed their hubble-bubbles-as their rude pipes are called

from hand to hand. The moon was at her full-shining as she only shines in the tropics-and pouring down a flood of radıance by which I could with ease have read the smallest print of a newspaper. The croak of the frogs and the chirp of the innu merable crickets was incessant, while from the distant jungle came at intervals the long unearthly howl of the jackal.

I was just about retiring for the night when I observed the tall figure of a man