in 1926, finlayson became the minister of lands and forests in the government of howard ferguson, which he would continue to hold until 1934. prior to his appointment, ernest h. finlayson (his half-brother and the head of the dominion forest service since 1925) gave him an intensive crash-course in silviculture, which "resulted in... [minister finlayson]... stepping into the job with, perhaps, a greater knowledge of the principles of forestry than has probably been the case with any other non-technical man who has occupied a cabinet post." in 1927, finlayson declared to the legislature: