CO129-334 - Governor Nathan - 1906 [5-7] — Page 390

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tion of felling in the circumstances fully explained in the

correspondence transmitted in my despatch No.242 of the 5th

October, 1905.

5.

The scheme of New Territory Forestry licence

is, so far as can yet be judged, working well. It has been

found advisable to issue licences to villages, wherever

possible, rather than to individuals, and considerable

areas in the neighbourhood of villages have been taken up

on behalf of the village communities.

6.

Experiments continue to be made with cotton

and sisal hemp in the New Territory. As reported in my

despatch No.3 of the 6th. January last the results obtained

with cotton were for various reasons very unsatisfactory.

With regard to the sisal hemp the Superintendent reports

that the progress of the plants is normal but that their

growth is not sufficiently advanced to enable an estimate

to be made of their commercial value.

7.

It would seem from the report by Professor

Dunstan forwarded in Your Lordship's despatch No.55 of the

21st. March last that tea, as grown and prepared in the New

Territory, is not a marketable commodity. I have instructed

the Superintendent to procure tea seeds from India and

Ceylon for the purpose of making further experiments.

8.

In February last a show of flowers, fruit

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