13

I.

THE PASSING OF THE BUSH.

THE object of these papers on the
disappearance of our forests
and the necessity for replacing
them is not so much to supply
information as to rouse public interest
in a matter of vast national imporance.
which hitherto has attracted far too
little notice here, and which involves
most serious danger and irreparable loss
to our country if it is any longer ig-
nored. Generally speaking, the Passing
of the Bush has been regarded by most
people who have thought about the mat-
ter in one of two alternative ways, ac-
cording to the temperament of the think-
er. The sensitive anhd aesthetically-
minded folk have thought of the bush
mostly has a highly picturesque asset
among our manifold scenic attractions,
and they have deplored its disappearance
chiefly because it means the destruc-
tion of natural beauty, whcih can never
be restored. On the other hand, the
practical, hard-headed men of the world,
whose attention has been called to the
subject, have considered the vanishing
of our forests chiefly from the standpoint
of our timber supply; and theyr regret
the approaching extinction of the kauri
and other indigenous trees mostly be-
cause it will mean higher prices and
heavier cost of production in the build-
ing trade and other associated industries.
No doubt these views are all important
enough in their way; but there are other
aspects of the case, which, to my mind,
demand far more urgent consideration.
It does not seem to be generally appreciat-
ed that the destruction of our forests
means a great deal more to us all than
the loss of timber or the vanishing of
picturesque scenic effects. And it is be-
cause too little attention has hitherto
been paid here to the effects of the
wholescale destruction of our bush on
the climate, the soil, and the fertility
and reproductive power of the country
that I desire to impress upon my read-
ers with the utmost possible emphasis,
the magniture of the evils cause by
deforestation.

WORDS OF WARNING.

I have suggested above that that the most
important effects of the destruction o
bush or forest are those bearing upon the
climate, soil, and fertility of the country.
There is nothing oringinal in this state-
ment. It may be found in any ordinary
geography; but the trouble is that we
seldom apply generalisations of this
kind to our own cae. Yet, so far as
New Zealand is concerned, the evils to
which I am referring, were long ago
officially and authoritatively recognised.
There lies befroe me a copy of a paper
on "The Climatic and Financial Aspects
of Forst Conservancy as applicable to
New Zealand," read befroe the N.Z. In-
stitute at Wellington in 1877. The
paper was written by Captain Campbell-
Walker, then Conservator of State For-
sts for the Colony, and it shows in
every page that the dangers resulting
from the indiscriminate destruction of
the bush were even thrity years ago
clearly realised and vigorously impress-
ed upon the minds of our legislators and
administrators.

Captain Campbell-Walker deals first
with the effects of timber felling on clim-
ate, and he finds "a host of evidence
tending to prove that the general de-
struction of forests has rendered climate
more trying, less equable, and devoid of
sufficient moisture; in short, has caused