, 1874-06-17

WAS avnrassed. On receiving the Report from
tho Commission it was however seen, that the
members did not agree on a certain plan, ana
the Report divided itself into two separate Re
ports. Three of the members expressed a
general assent to the draft with certain m0dl-
fcations, but they already stated that the
clause of the draft relating to the protection
and planting of trees along the roads would
meet a resistance from the majority of the
planters they at the same time added a re-
commentator to appoint a person with a fixed
salary to perform the services required. The
Report from the other four members com.
menced by saying, that having had frequent
opportunities of aScertaining the feeling of the
taxpayers, they had come to the conclusion,
that the Ordinance as proposed would cause an
outburst of Indignation, and with regard to
the appointment of a salaried person, that if
there we're one thing more than another clamOr-
red against in this island, it was that Of %increaS-
ing the staff Of officials. The most important
part of their own proposal was then, that no
one but the owner himself should have a right
of cutting wood and burning coal on the land,
that a delegation of that right to the other
parties should be punishable, and that as a
condition for exercising it himself, he should
be subject to a tax of 2 Gents, if the property
was a stock estate, and of 6 Gents, if it was a
sugar estate, on every acre Of his land. Now
this was an interference with the right Of pri
vate property far beyond any thing, which had
caused his scrupleS, aud as for the hearty CO.
operation and readiness to some sacrifice in
order to obtain What had been looked upon rs
a great and general advantage, it turned out,
that the small matter Of 10 feet of land on
each side Of the public road, a rule which had
been established many years ago and which to
a great extent is in practice to this day. would
not only meet with general resistance on the
part of the planters, but cause an outburSt of
Indignation. Under these circumstances it is not
to be expected, that any legislative measure
in the contemplated direction would be sue
%oessful.
If however a sum as proposed by the honor
able mover were placed at the disposal of the
Presidency, under certain precautionary mea-
suros of control, such for instance, the torma-
ton of a Society, he the President would be
most happy in assisting any measure that held
out prospect of success.
4th Member for Cbristiansted's Country
District T. FarycLyJ suggested that the Gov
eminent might buy land in East End and plant
trees here.
The Presidents view was, that trees protect
the moisture OF >he place, but do not attract or
call down rain-cIoudS. If the land in East
End were even planted with trees, that would
scarcely be of any benefit to the other parts of
the Island.
3rd Member for Frederiksted's Country Dis
triot (LahneD perfectly agreed with the NOV
er of the amendment that this very important
matter should be brought from being matter
of loose gallery talk, before the Council for dis
%cussion, so that every Member might have an
opportunity Of stating his opinion. He would
most strongly recommend that no time be lost
in introducing a Draft of Ordinance to protect
trees this is, to bis mind, the chief thing to
be done. Planters have no dislike to plant
trees and to protect them but how is this pos
Sible when depredations on such trees pass I'M
punished by the law, or are so very slightly
punished that it becomes a matter of no con-
Germ ? He, for one, has always taken a lively
part in planting trees on his properties but it
has happened that he has found some of his
best plants destroyed he traced the ~perpetra-
tor, and complained him to the Policemaster
the person was punished with "a hours impri-
sonment, the Policemaster said the offence
could not be treated otherwise than as petty
theft. Other proprietors have also had their
trees destroyed and have made complaints, but
had similar results there is no law to pro-
tect the proprietor. To his mind then, the
principal point is to have a Law ~affording that
protection which every body in the community