HARDWOOD RECORD 



19 



Australia 4,4TU,000 



New Zealand 900,000 



New Guin.a 805,000 



Borneo 660.000 



Hawaii 1S6,000 



Solomon Islands 150 oOO 



Fiji Islands l^oioOO 



New Cak'donia 82,000 



Uill>ert Ishuuls 35,0C0 



'fonsa Islands 21,000 



Marsball Islands 1:1.000 



Society Islands ; 111,000 



'J"am 9^000 



Total .51,112,000 



FOKEST ReSOL'KCES 



A wide field must be covered before the forest resources of the 

 thousands of islands in the Pacific and Indian oceans can be ade- 

 quately understood. It is not necessary to go very thoroughly into 

 the matter at present. Reports from time to time on the Philippine 

 forests have been published in American lumber trade papers, and 

 those resources are fairly well known, or, at any rate, persons who 

 are interested have the means of investigating. That part of the 

 Pacific field will not be discussed here. The islands belong to the 

 United States. 



The largest land area is Australia. It is an interesting country 

 from the standpoint of its timber. It possesses a larger number of 

 kinds of trees than are found in the United States, but nearly half 

 of all belong to two genera, acacia and eucalyptus. In the United 

 States we have fifty-two kinds of oak, and we consider that quite an 

 assortment for one genus; but Australia has three times that many 

 species of eucalyptus. Some of these are enormous trees, with trunks 

 said to exceed heights of 400 feet; but recent investigations have 

 cast serious doubt on such claims. Nobody is able to tell where 

 the trees of that size are to be found. There is no question that 

 large eucalyptus trees grow in Australia, and some of them yield val- 

 uable timber for certain purposes, but as general lumber, eucalyptus 

 has so many more faults than virtues that its usefulness is limited. 



The number of species of acacias is twice that of eucalyptus. The 

 acacia is a sort of locust tree. The Australian aggregation is a pretty 

 bad lot. Half of the species are only shrubs and brambles that straggle 

 over the hills, and are worthless even for firewood. A few of the 

 better acacias are cut into lumber for local use. 



Of the hundreds of Australian trees listed by botanists, scarcely a 

 dozen kinds appear to be really valuable as a source of lumber, though, 

 of course, some use is made of many more. Australia sent a timber 

 exhibit to the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, and it is presumed that 

 the best was included. Aside from the eucalyptus, mentioned above, 

 the following woods appear to be the only ones of much value in 

 that collection, which is still in Chicago. 



Xegrolioad beech (Fitfjuy cmtninf/liamii) has a grain somewhat like 

 raaliogan.v, but more lik;? primavera, Tlie tree is a broadleaf evergreen of 

 large size. Trunks are sometimes eight feet in diameter and 200 feet high. 

 The wood is valuable for general carpentry, for doors, furniture, and 

 machine cogs. 



Rog onion <.r .\uslralian rosewood (DiisoTylum jraxeranum) has a beau- 

 tiful color, fine grain, and is hard and strong, but no account has been 

 found of any use for it. 



Red bean or Australian tulii>\vood (Dusorylum muelleri) resembles 

 mahogany, and is used lor furniture and shipbuilding. Trees Ave feet in 

 diameter and eight.v feet high are reported. 



.Vustralian ash (Flindersia austrftlis) is an ash in name onl.v. It Iar\s 

 the characteristic ash rings of growth. It is used as timbers in railway 

 construction, and likewise ns staves. 



White beech (Gmelinn Icuhardlii) is valuable for porch flooring an<1 

 boat decks. The largest trees are four feet iu diameter and 150 feet tall. 



Australian pine (Auricaria citituiiiffhamii) has a grain not unlike that 

 of the Norway or red pine of the Lake States. Its chief use is as ship- 

 timber — planking, decks, and spars. When Douglas fir is exported to 

 Australia it will probably find this pine a competitor. It is subject to 

 quick decay. 



Red cedar fCedrata auatralis) Is a cabinet wood which closely resembles 

 the Spanish cedar of which cigar bo.Kes are made in this country. 



t'ypress pine (Callitris calcaiata) is much used for shipbuilding and 

 other purposes. This wood is heavier than our white oak, is of a brown 

 color, and splits so easily that small pieces can scarcely be nailed. 



There are several so-called oaks in Australia, used for furniture and 

 cooperage. 



'I'eak ( FUndci'sm boitneltiana) is nearly as heavy as ebony, is pale 

 yellow, and is used for interior house linish. 



Oldest op Eakth 



The lumber exporter who trades with Australia is dealing with an 

 ancient i)roblem. Geologically speaking, the forests of the vast 

 island are the oldest in the world. They belong to an age long ago 

 dead in other parts of the earth. Both plants and animals look 

 strangely out of date. A superficial examination of the vegetation 

 of Australia conveys the impression that it is meager. It is not 

 inclined to be conspicuous. In most cases, it makes little show. The 

 trees bear thin canopies of leaves, and the general habit is for the 

 leaves to present their edges, instead of their broad sides, to the 

 sky and earth, thus appearing smaller than they are. In fact, they 

 are often hardly visible. 



NotwithstaudLng their aspect of scantiness, there are 12,250 botan- 

 ical forms in Australia, and 7,550 of them are foimd nowhere else in 

 the world. There are 950 species of trees that attain a height of 

 thirty feet. (The United States has 510.) Yet that enormous number 

 provides comparatively little timber, because most of the trees are 

 stunted, scrawny, and withered, starved for water, and scorched by 

 wind. The vegetation seems to have survived from the Cretaceous 

 age, that period of the past known as the "dry age of geology," 

 a million or more years ago. Australia appears to have been cut 

 off from the rest of the world during an immense period of time, 

 and its plant and animal life stood still during all these ages. The 

 Torres strait, separating Australia from New Guinea, is less than 

 three hundred miles wide; yet the two shores of that strait look like 

 parts of two different worlds. 



It should not be assumed that all parts of Australia are ancient 

 and fossilized. There are fertile valleys and progressive regions, 

 where nature is not a stranger to luxury. Yet, there are vast deserts 

 and semi deserts. 



Other Islands 



The forests of the other islands of Oceania var_v with soil, climate, 

 anil latitude. The Malay islands contain 9,000 flowering plants, rang- 

 ing in size from grass to trees. The timlier resources of some of 

 the islands are extensive. Exporters of lumber to those regions must 

 meet competition, provided mills are in operation there. If not 

 now in operation, they will be in the future, wherever situable timber 

 grows. Many islands with hot, wet climates produce multitudes of 

 vines and soft stems, but not so much valuable timber as a super- 

 ficial survey might indicate. 



Exports of Lumber 



The principal exports of lumber from the United States to Oceania 

 iu 1913 were Douglas fir and California redwood; of the former 

 209,644,000 feet, and of the latter 47,368,000 feet, in a total of all 

 kinds amounting to 269,506,000 feet. Details of these exports are 

 shown as follows: 



Douglas fir Kedwond 



Australia 187,530,000 ft. 46,730.000 ft. 



-New Zealand 9,535.000 ft. 26S.00O ft. 



French Islands 5,904,000 ft. 308,000 ft. 



Brilish Islands 5,097,000 ft. 8,000 ft. 



(Jerman Islands 1,560,000 ft. 45,000 ft. 



Dutch Islands 2,000 ft 



Total 209,644,000 ft. 47,368.000 ft. 



The white pine exported from the United States to the eastern 

 islands was principally what is known as California white pine. This 

 is the western yellow pine, though it passes under another name. 

 The figures for pine and oak follow: 



White pine Oak 



Australia 1,460,000 ft. 1.606,000 ft. 



New Zealand 1 lO.OOO ft. 274,000 ft. 



French Islands 40,000 ft. 5.000 ft. 



Total 1,619,000 ft. 1,885,000 ft. 



Australia bought 6,260,000 feet of yellow pine and New Zealand 

 76,000. Australia took 494,000 feet of spruce and 861,000 feet of 

 other lumber; French islands 104,000 of spruce and 19,000 of other; 

 New Zealand 76,000 feet of other lumber. 



Other Exports 

 The export of forest products other than lumber from the United 



