Note.

At the Ordinary Meeting of the Waitemata County Council, on 8th January last, a circular letter from the Hon. John Ballance, Commissioner of State Forests, was read, requesting the Chairman of the Council to allow himself to be nominated a Conservator of Forests for the County. A copy of "The New Zealand State Forests' Act, 1885," was enclosed for the information of the Council. As the circular and Act dealt with a matter of special importance to this County, and as several members of the Council were largely interested in the particular industry affected by the Act, it was decided to postpone discussion on the subject till the next meeting, in order that members might make themselves more familiar with the new law. During the debate which ensued, at the meeting on the 5th February, Councillor Monk, J.P., moved the following resolutions on the subject:—

1.	That, in the opinion of this Council, the forest regulations as yet introduced by the Government are inadequate, and not practically adapted to the requirements of this Province.
2.	That this Council, in responding to the expression of the Government circular now before it, is of opinion that the New Zealand State Forests' Act of last session sets up a mere semblance of administration, utterly incapable of accomplishing any satisfactory results in retarding forest waste through fires that are becoming increasingly prevalent year after year.
3.	That while the Council has this belief with regard to existing forest laws, it desires to convey to the Government a hearty sympathy with the principle, that our forests should receive more effort to protect them than is now given.
4.	That, having this important object in view, this Council respect fully urges upon the Government the extreme necessity of providing during the coming session an exhaustive but page 4 practical system of forestry laws, having provisions so varied as to suit the special needs of the different Provinces where forests exist. In doing this, it has the impression that such a code would have been supplied long since, had the Government only been fully aware of the very great value of forest operations to the industrial economy of this Colony, and the enormous, yet comparatively unheeded loss that is being annually inflicted upon this Province through fires that are commonly of wilful origin.

In support of the resolutions, Mr. Monk read the following important statement, which, with his consent, the Council resolved to publish in pamphlet form for circulation amongst members of the Legislature and the local bodies in the Auckland Provincial District. Mr. Monk has had the experience of a lifetime amongst the forests of the Auckland district, and is thoroughly conversant with the conditions of growth of the different species of trees. He has also, as every Auckland citizen knows, had large interests committed to his care for many years past in connection with our timber industry. He is, in fact, a specialist, and a very enthusiastic one, on this subject. In the present paper Mr. Monk does not enter into the question of replanting, but it is understood that he possesses definite ideas and a large amount of information on this part of the subject, which it is hoped he will shortly be able to give to the public.