Sessional_Paper_1903 — Page 289

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28. Grass Fires.-A very large number of fires occurred during the year and 22,607 trees were destroyed. The great destruction of trees was attributable, no doubt, to the very dry state of vegetation in general, prevailing during the early months of the year. Of the 49 fires recorded, including one near Cheung Sha Wan, New Territory, no less than 39 were reported in January, February, March and April, and thèse were the means of destroying 21,486 trees. The other 10 occurred in September, October and November and, as vegetation was much less dry at that time than in the early months of the year, only 1,211 trees were killed. Further statistics are given in Appendix D.

29. The Police Department rendered great assistance in extinguishing these fires and the several officers concerned deserve great thanks for their timely help, without which many more trees would have been destroyed.

30. Thinning of Plantations.—This branch of Forestry was almost at a stand- still for the first four months of the year when work in other directions was being actively prosecuted. May, June, July and August were exceptionally wet which rendered the work of felling exceedingly difficult. Only 8,124 were felled and these were sold for $232.44. Statistics are given in Appendix E.

31. Fire Barriers.-About 33 miles of old barriers were cleared and about one mile of new ones made.

32. Protective Service. The number of trees reported as illicitly cut was 752. 33. The Forest Guards had 41 cases before the Magistrate and convictions were obtained in 39 cases.

34. Banian Trees. In 1901 the large Ficus retusa trees on the west side of Robinson Road, between Elgin and Austin Roads, Kowloon, were lowered, as the Public Works Department proposed to do away with the bank and make a foot-path on that side of the road. In all 29 trees were successfully transplanted.

FORESTRY IN THE NEW TERRITORY,

35. Tre: Planting.-The number of trees planted amounted to 31,746, the majority of which were the ordinary pine tree. Most of these were planted along the Taipo Road and a few at Pingshan. Included in the total are 2,781 camphor trees planted along the Taipo Road, and 112 Castilloa elusticu planted below the same road, between the fourth and fifth mile-stones.

36. Tree Seeds sown.-Pine tree seeds were sown broadcast in the catchment area of the new reservoir, which includes the hills between the sixth and seventh mile- stones. A sufficient quantity of seed was sown to produce 46,800 trees but, as in the case of Hongkong, very few of the seeds have produced trees.

37. 24,200 sites were sown to replace the failures of the previous year. Sta- tistics are given in Apendix G.

38. Camphor Trees. The Superintendent made experiments in sowing cam- phor tree seeds in pots and planting the young trees out in the middle of the summer when about five months old, with the hope of finding out a cheaper method of rearing this particular tree than had been practised hitherto,

39. The seeds germinated successfully, and the young trees were about 6 inches high when planted out, some in prepared trenches and others in pits, but they have made very little progress since, and do not give much promise of success.

40. There is ample evidence that camphor trees will grow in the New Territory from the fine specimens to be seen at different places over there. There are some noble looking trees at Ho Sheung Hung; seven, which I measured at 3 or 4 feet from the ground, had the following circumferences and were about 75 feet high

20 feet 7 inches. 15 feet 9 inches.

13 feet 3 inches.

11 feet 4 inches.

8 feet 6 inches.

6 feet 8 inches.

These trees the villagers designated "small pine-trees and brushwood" and endea- voured, fruitlessly I am glad to say, to obtain permission to cut them down.

41. Fire Burriers.-About 4 miles of old barriers, 15 feet wide, were cleared to protect the young trees on both sides of the Taipo Road.