THE FILM AND FORESTRY.
The Federal Department of Agriculture has enlisted the " movie " as an aid to its timber conservation campaign. Precept and practice are effectively dramatized in a film which is to be shown to farmers and landowners throughout the country. The " story " is built up around the activities of an owner of woodland who knows how to take care of it, and appropriate contrasts are drawn between competent forestry methods, leading at once to wise conservation and profitable returns, and the ruinous practices of people who treat their woodlands simply as hunting grounds or sources of firewood. The first step in wise forestry is illustrated by demonstrations of methods whereby the owner may survey his woodland and make a reliable estimate of what kinds of timber he has and what quantity. Then the selection and marking of trees suitable for cutting are demonstrated ; those trees which should not be cut are pointed out, and instruction is given in treating overmature, crooked, diseased and spread- ing trees and so on. Suggestions for advertising and marketing the timber are also conveyed. Altogether the film is very well done, and it should be a valuable medium for inculcating a better knowledge of its subject.
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