40 Ji FORESTRY IN BRITISH BURMA. [April, 



cutting creepers and freeing Teak saplings from overgrowth in the 

 Teak taungya plantations was carried on at an expenditure of from 

 one to two rupees per acre. 



Departmental operations have embraced as heretofore girdling, 

 opening-up of streams for the floating of timber, extraction of timber 

 from the forests, and the collection of drift and waif timber. The 

 girdling work was satisfactorily executed, except in the East Salween 

 division, and resulted in about 1,000 Teak trees being killed in 

 reserved forest, and about 1,500 in forests outside the reserves, 

 besides 3,000 trees of other kinds. The blasting work was success- 

 fully carried on in the Upper Tavoy Eiver and its tributary, upwards 

 of six rocky obstructions being removed. The. timber operations of 

 the year by Government contractors resulted in an out-turn from the 

 Government forests of 14,000 tons of Teak timber and 4,000 tons of 

 other kinds of wood. This was a considerable increase on the previous 

 year's out-turn of Teak, the high prices ruling at Moulmein enabling 

 the departmental contractors to bring out large quantities of pieces 

 and logs of second-class timber. The cost of extraction of wood other 

 than Teak varied between six and twenty-nine rupees per ton. In 

 the South Tenasserim division the rates paid for extraction of light and 

 heavy kinds varied only from five to six rupees per ton. These latter 

 low rates on heavy woods are explained by the fact that the people on 

 the Tavoy River and elsewhere, have long been accustomed to the 

 floating of heavy woods. The bamboos used in rafting are also easily 

 procured near the rivers, and likewise find a ready sale afterwards. 



From the forests in the Salween division a few broad-gauge and 

 narrow-gauge Pyingado sleepers, and from Tavoy nearly 11,000 

 Pyingado sleepers, chiefly for narrow-gauge railways, were turned 

 out. The prices obtainable for sleepers at Calcutta do not leave 

 much of a margin for profit ; but it is desirable, nevertheless, to 

 ■continue the work, and so be in a position to expand operations to 

 meet local or other demands as they arise. In the Aturan division 

 thirty-seven tons of Padauk planks were prepared for the Fatehgurh 

 •Gun Carriage Factory, but on delivery at Moulmein proved to be too 

 full of defects to admit of being despatched. From this division 

 three boat-hulls of Thingan wood were also received at the Moulmein 

 depot. 



During the year, sea-drift and river-drift timber amounted to 6,000 

 logs, or 5,000 tons of Teak timber. 



Produce removed from the forests in this circle comprises — 



(1.) Teak timber extracted by leaseholders. 



(2.) Teak timber disposed of in the forests. 



(3.) Other kinds of timber from the leased forests. 



(4.) Timber other than Teak sold in the forests. 



