drawers from the dump -- or, at the other end of the scale, inherits granny's four-poster, and bids on that wonderful escritoire at auction, is helping the cause of conservation.

These are perhaps surprising, but basically common sense examples of re-cycling, one of the important themes that Keep Bermuda Beautiful (KBB) is highlighting during this 25th anniversary year of Earth Day.

KBB's Mr. Hugh Davidson is urging the Bermuda public to do its bit in cutting down on the world's shrinking natural commodities by choosing well designed furniture of as good a quality as possible (timber, leather and upholstery materials).

"Or, people could do far worse than look for previously owned items in good condition. Many pieces of furniture deserve a better fate than a trip to the dump!'' As Mr. Davidson points out, until the days of mass-produced furniture, Bermudians would place orders for hand-made furniture as and when they could afford it.

The recycling of tree products in the form of furniture certainly provides an enduring example of positive action -- and one that Bermuda has pursued ever since the first permanent settlers arrived here from England in 1612.

In fact, hundreds of years before "conservation'' became a buzz word, 17th century Bermuda was dismayed to realise that its most valuable building material, cedar, was already in danger of extinction. The situation had worsened dramatically when great tracts of woodland were burned in a futile effort to rid the Island of rats. The export of cedar to lucrative overseas markets was banned forthwith.

Mr. Davidson, who is KBB's delegate to the Council of the National Trust, is also Chairman of the Trust's Museums Committee and is responsible for maintaining their extensive collection of furniture, much of which was manufactured by local craftsmen.

"As these pieces testify, a well-made, hand-made piece of furniture is an investment in the future, because it will survive for a very long time, and from this point of view, represents an economic use of diminishing raw materials.'' He is quick to point out, however, that this form of recycling is not confined to the rather rarefied world of antique furniture.

Second-hand, or used furniture is also a flourishing business and, from the conservation point of view, one that should be encouraged.

"I think a trip to the dump would open many people's eyes to the rather extravagant approach to the waste of tree products, namely furniture,'' he says. "A certain amount of the furniture that now goes to Tynes Bay is pulled and re-used by interested parties, or recycled by some dealers. That percentage is small, but people are always on the look-out for nice things, and occasionally, things do turn up!'' Noting that we live in an increasingly throw-away society, Mr. Davidson says that some companies (and individuals) dispose of perfectly good furniture after as short a period as five years.

"Some people like to have a change, so they throw out the old and buy new. I understand that in some businesses, because of expenses and taxes, there is a certain advantage to clearing a complete building every five years! This modern philosophy doesn't just apply to wood, of course. It also applies to other raw materials, metals and so on, office desks and cabinets, or wrought iron work.'' The second-hand furniture business arose partly for economic reasons, he goes on, but not entirely.

"Hand-made things have a warmth and individuality that cannot be compared with the sterility of much of our modern, mass-produced things.'' There are some outstanding examples of recycled furniture in Mr. Davidson's antique shop. Some pieces, still in perfect condition, back date as far as the 1700s.

"We have to remember, of course, that most of this kind of furniture was not cheap to start with, and would have been specially commissioned. The majority of things in here have sat, probably in the same family home, for generations.'' He admits his interest -- and subsequent career -- came about initially, for economic reasons.

"I got into the antique, or recycled furniture trade over 20 years ago, when I was looking for affordable, hand-made items for my own home. I started with a collection of very ordinary, inexpensive things, because that was all I could afford at the time. Over the years, I have upgraded the collection.'' He emphasises, however, that he is not just interested in old furniture, but anything that is well made and well designed. An example reposes in his own office -- a wooden recliner, from a French product range, intended for the garden, but beautifully designed and, although factory-made, well constructed in durable burbinga wood from Africa.

Mr. Davidson says there is an increasing trend toward modern furniture manufactured from wood that is grown expressly for that purpose.

"This is better than constantly raiding the diminishing hardwood forests.'' Domestic furniture is no longer routinely made for the local market but Mr.

Davidson points out that until comparatively recently, Bermudian carpenters used to make all of the Island's kitchen cabinets.

"Now everyone imports them. Even 20 years ago, businesses such as Village Crafts would have been hired to do all the woodwork in a new house.'' Fortunately, however, the ancient craft of carpentry and cabinet making in the more specialised market is still alive and well in Bermuda.

"People like David Mitchell and the group at Woodart, Fred Philips, Andre Hubbard, and Jeremy Johnson at Village Crafts, are all highly skilled and may be said to be producing tomorrow's antiques today.'' They join the long line of master craftsmen who have elevated furniture-making to an art.

Today, existing examples of beautifully made furniture forms an important part of Bermuda's heritage.

"We should not forget, either, that this tradition also applies to silver. We have had many fine silversmiths who have created uniquely beautiful, Bermudian work. And they did this from silver that was re-cast on a regular basis, so that's another example of re-cycling.'' Looking to the past From Page 17 Mr. Davidson would like to see more locals visiting the National Trust properties where houses such as Verdmont, Camden, and Tucker House are furnished with genuine period pieces, much of it manufactured by Bermudians.

"Most of the older carpenters who are still working were probably apprenticed at Dockyard, which had a very good training scheme for Bermudians,'' he says.

"My feeling is that a lot of this beautiful, really old furniture was made by slave artisans. I believe that black people played a major part in producing this outstanding work which has endured for centuries. I've not found any documentation to back this up, but it would be an interesting area to research, because this is something which I feel black Bermudians should be very proud of.'' KBB is one of the five main environmental organisations (the others are the Biological Station, the Zoological Society, the Audubon society and the National Trust) who are pooling their talents in this year-long, world-wide celebration. With the Silver Anniversary itself on April 22, the overall environmental message is that "Every day is, or should be, Earth Day.'' Committee member Mrs. Kay Latter says that one of the aims is to emphasise the positive, rather than the negative aspects of environmental issues.

"All of the five organisations are already doing very valuable work in this connection. Now we need to get the message out to the general public that everyone can help.'' Bermuda, which will feature the environment for Heritage Month in May, is joining with countries around the world to celebrate a quarter-century of environmental awareness.

PRACTICAL PAST -- Mr. Hugh Davidson, surrounded by antiques, some of which date back to the 17th century. He is pictured by two small tables which are examples of local cedar carpentry of the 1950s. His hand is resting on a miniature chest of drawers, circa 1800, made of English mahogany, and to the left is a gentleman's dressing case, dating from the mid-19th century.