For shelter for farm stock, for improving the agricultural value of the lower lying lands, and for the part they play in clothing and ornamenting our bare commons and hillsides, their value can hardly be over-estimated. Twenty-five years ago I formed a plantation on a spur of the Snowdon range of hills, in Wales, where the fierce, long-continued and hard-hitting blasts were of almost constant occurrence, and the amount of shelter and warmth it now affords to the farm stock and lower lying lands would hardly be credited. Previous to the formation of this particular plantation, at altitudes varying up to 600 ft., the adjoining lands were quite incapable of cultivation, but now crops are gradually creeping up the hillsides, while the farm stock find the much-needed shelter and warmth that they were formerly denied. So great has been the benefit of this wood both to man and beast that the farmer on whose land it was planted speaks of it as “a Godsend.” Other similar cases in Wales might be mentioned, as for instance the plantations on the Gwydyr and Penrhyn Estates, and also those near Abergele, where the judicious planting up of rocky and almost worthless land has converted dreary and inhospitable districts into the most fashionable and expensive residential property. In many parts of Scotland, particularly Perth, Inverness and Aberdeenshire, equally good results have been obtained by judicious tree planting. Another notable advantage gained by the planting of trees lies in the provision of profitable work for the unemployed. As a special chapter is devoted to this important subject, it need only be mentioned here. It should not be overlooked that excellent results have followed in the wake of planting bog lands in Ireland. In 1862 my father formed several plantations there, a full account of which will be found in the _Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland_ for 1873. I examined these woods and was agreeably surprised at the height which the trees had attained, the cubic contents of the timber, and the price realized. Incidentally, it might be noticed that the ground previously to planting was a dreary, heath-clad waste, only suitable for snipe-shooting and the production of turf for fuel. Many other instances of the numerous advantages to be derived from a well-organized system of tree planting could be cited, not the least important being the greater facilities that would be afforded for disposing of the timber. In many outlying districts all over the country far removed from road and rail, it is difficult to get rid of the small amount of timber that is periodically cut down, but were larger quantities handled and a continuity of supply forthcoming, I feel certain that timber merchants would be prompted to make special transit arrangements. More than once I have been asked by Irish landowners to recommend buyers of good larch and oak timber, but, after