H.—34,

MINISTER'S STATEMENT. In a few months New Zealand will be celebrating in a fitting manner the hundredth anniversary of her foundation. The central feature of these celebrations will be the Centennial Exhibition, in which the rapid industrial and social progress of the Dominion during the past hundred years will be brought under review. Many factors have contributed to this progress, but an outstanding place must be given to the application of scientific knowledge. The past century has witnessed the beginning of what will go down in history as the scientific era —an era in which scientific knowledge has come to be studied not only for its own sake, but is deliberately directed towards increasing the quantity and variety of goods for man's sustenance, recreation, and enjoyment. New Zealand has benefited very greatly in the past, and will continue to benefit in the future, from the wealth of scientific knowledge accumulated in the older countries of the world. But there will always be problems peculiar to our own country, and we must be prepared to take steps to solve them by our own efforts. Twelve years ago, the Department which is now under my charge, was established for this very purpose. This step was in line with the policy already established in Great Britain, Australia, and Canada, which was designed to bring the advantages of science more directly to the aid of industry, and to promote the public welfare through the direct participation of the State in organized research. In that comparatively short period many important problems have been attacked and brought to solution, and a research organization and scientific personnel have been built up of which we have just cause to be proud. The story of this Department and the results achieved have been written in a special bulletin produced by my direction under the title of " Scientific and Industrial Research 1927-38." This Bulletin presents in a convincing way the substantial contributions that organized scientific research has made towards the industrial progress of the Dominion, at a cost which is a, very small fraction of the value of our annual production. Our future prosperity, as in the past, is bound up with the soil and its products. But soil fertility is not inexhaustible, and : practical experience shows that declining fertility brings with it deterioration of the vegetative cover, leading to erosion of the soil itself and general deterioration in the quality of the land. Every country in the world is experiencing the evil effects of uncontrolled soil erosion,' and New Zealand has its own problems of this kind. Two prominent scientific bodies in New Zealand, the Royal Society of New Zealand and the Royal Agricultural Society, drew my attention to the problem of soil erosion in New Zealand, and at the same time suggested that steps be taken to investigate the position. I accordingly set up an expert technical committee to investigate and report on the incidence and seriousness of soil erosion, and to make recommendations regarding preventive measures. The Committee's report has disclosed that the position is sufficiently serious to warrant steps being taken to prevent irremediable damage to our farming lands through uncontrolled erosion. The remedy lies in the maintenance of a stable vegetative cover, in which grassland, forest, and scrubland are in their proper balance. The attainment of this ideal, however, involves difficult economic, administrative, and social problems, which will need to be very carefully weighed and considered in order to decide what line of action in regard to preventive measures is practicable under existing conditions. A new research activity which is of considerable importance to th<j Government and to the country as a whole was initiated during the year, and is concerned with the protection of timber from the depredations of boring insects and fungi. The losses resulting from damage to wooden buildings by these pests are very heavy, and warrant an organized scheme of research for the purpose of discovering the most effective preventive measures. A number of Government Departments & have combined to institute such a scheme of research which is to be put into effective operation during the coming year. The discovery of serious damage by the white ant has created an additional problem for urgent investigation.

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