HARDWOOD RECORD 



17 



they may be so designated, over extensive tracts, are less than ten 

 feet high. A cactus, known as prickly pear, was carried from the 

 United States to South Africa many years ago and has spread over 

 thousands of square miles, often rendering travel across country well 

 nigh impossible. The same cactus from the United States has 

 gained an alarming foothold in northern Africa. 



A few patches of original forest contain trees of good size. One 

 of these is known as the Knysna forest. It is more famous for the 

 lions in it than for its timber. When South Africa was first settled 

 by Europeans lions roamed the country in enormous numbers and the 

 farmers had to wage incessant war against them. The beasts even 

 broke into the stables and ran through the gardens by day as well 

 as by night. But they are all cleared out of South Africa now, 

 except a small remnant which has taken refuge in the Knysna forest. 

 The South Africans have planted timber which has grown well. 

 Oaks planted near Cape Town by the early Dutch settlers are now 

 of great size. Eucalyptus from Australia has been widely planted 

 and grows rapidly. The pines of Europe, the stone, cluster and 

 Jerusalem pines, also thrive. The success attending these efforts 

 warrants the belief that much of the country will ultimately be 

 reclothed with timber. It is thought that original forests once 

 covered much of South Africa, but were destroyed by centuries of 

 forest fires which the Hottentots, Kaffirs and other nations purposely 

 set to provide pasturage for their roaming herds of cattle. 



There is no lack of kinds of trees still in the country, though 

 most are stunted and small. James Bryce coUected leaves of fifty- 

 four species and when their identity was worked out at the Kew 

 gardens in England it was found that eleven of them were new to 

 science. That was in 1900 and shows how little had been the 

 work done by botanists in South Africa up to that time. 

 West Africa 

 From this region comes what is known in commerce as African 

 mahogany. There are several species, but it is doubtful if any one 

 of them is true mahogany, though they are valuable and take the 

 place of mahogany, ^nd from the lumberman's standpoint it is not 

 important what the botanical names may be. 



The region which is here designated as West Africa follows the 

 coast from the Portuguese possessions to the western end of the 

 Sahara desert at the Senegal river. The distance, following the 

 indentations of the shore line, is about 2,500 miles, but only 1,600 

 in an air line. The strip of forest varies from fifty to one hundred 

 and fifty miles in width. Numerous timber trees, besides mahogany, 

 abound, though the botanical classification has not been well worked 

 ■out. Many of the timbers are of great value and others appear 

 to be valuable, though tests by actual trial have not been made. 



There is little doubt that this is the most valuable timber region 

 of Africa. One of its most promising features is that the climate 

 is so damp that forest fires will not burn, consequently the forest 

 will survive. It is hard to destroy a forest by lumbering alone. 



America is now sending little lumber to that part of Africa, 

 but an increase in the trade is probable. It is not likely that we 

 can compete with the woods which grow in West Africa for purposes 

 for which they are suitable, but they are all hardwoods. As that 

 country develops there will be demand for structural timber and it 

 win naturally come from the United States. The people of that 

 part of Africa wiU not build railroad trestles, warehouses and 

 fences of mahogany. They will sell their mahogany at a high price 

 and buy cheaper and better woods from us for those purposes. 

 That will not be the only instance where people sell one kind of 

 •wood and buy another. The Mexicans sell us mahogany and take 

 their pay in yellow pine and Douglas fir. The Africans of the west 

 coast will doubtless do the same. 



Back of the timber belt along the coast lie hundreds of thou- 

 sands of square miles of grass lands which now contain few people, 

 and they are not in the market for our lumber, but the possibUities 

 for an increase in our lumber trade with that region are good. 

 The Dark Forest 

 The extensive wooded region explored by Henry M. Stanley on the 

 -tributaries of the Kongo river, and called by him the Dark Forest, 

 4ias an area of 321,000 square miles, according to Stanley's figures. 



He traveled 1,070 miles through the forest, and the second volume 

 of his work, ' ' In Darkest Africa, ' ' contains between fifty and sixty 

 pages descriptive of the region. The forest is about as large as 

 Texas and Louisiana combined. It lies on both sides of the equator 

 and is drained by tributaries of the Kongo river. 



That immense wooded tract has been the subject of much inter- 

 esting discussion. Some suppose that in the future it wUl figure 

 largely in the world's lumber supply. It may do so, though it is 

 somewhat doubtful. 



Unfortunately, the three-score pages of description by Stanley 

 gives little information that can be turned to account in estimating 

 how much merchantable timber is on the tract. Stanley did not 

 see things from a lumberman 's eyes. He gives no figures to enable 

 one to estimate how much lumber might be cut, and says very little 

 about the quality of the wood. He gives no botanical names and the 

 common names which he supplies mean very little to a lumberman. 

 The trees range in height from twenty to 180 feet and in diameter 

 from six inches to four feet. That is about all he says regarding 

 size, and furnishes no information as to the relative numbers of 

 large and small trees. He speaks of endless tangles of vines and 

 creepers, loading the trees from their crowns to the ground, and of 

 impenetrable jungles of vegetation near the ground, through which 

 it is necessary to cut paths with hatchets. From this it may be 

 inferred that lumbering operations would be expensive and dis- 

 agreeable. 



The heat is oppressive, rains fall in torrents, lightning is terrific, 

 wind storms are fierce and insects are worse than the plagues of 

 Egjpt. If the traveler does not keep moving he is bit by myriads 

 of ants, and if he moves the wasps sting him. Stanley says that 

 trunks of trees that fall are speedily devoured by insects. A per- 

 son can hold his ear to a log and hear the hum and buzz of insects 

 that are eating the wood. The forest is filled with snakes, apes 

 and other vermin that are undesirable associates. 



These details are interesting but they give little information con- 

 cerning the probable competition that may be expected from that 

 quarter when the American exporter sends forest products to the 

 west coast of Africa. There was, of course, no market for Amer- 

 ican lumber in that region in Stanley 's time, and except on the imme- 

 diate coast there is none yet. Considerable changes are taking 

 place and greater changes may be expected to follow. The Dark 

 Forest is now included in the Kongo Free State, a country of 

 900,000 square miles and 30,000,000 people. It is the most populous 

 country of Africa and its agricultural possibilities are great, when 

 railroads have opened it to the world. The Cape to Cairo railroad 

 follows near its eastern frontier for 500 mQes, and when railroads 

 or canals have been built around the falls of the Kongo that river 

 will afford an outlet to the Atlantic ocean. However, that is yet 

 in the future. 



Area op Popctlation 

 In a campaign for increasing trade, it is of importance to know 

 the area and population of the various countries, colonies and pro- 

 tectorates of Africa. With regard to population the figures are 

 often estimates, but the areas are more definite. Even these are not 

 always enclosed by fixed borders, for political geography in Africa 

 is not on a firm basis. The war now in progress will probably 

 still further disturb boundaries. 



Country Square miles Population 



French possessions 3,75G,7C0 31,002.000 



British possessions 2,832,055 49,462,000 



German possessions 908.000 5,720,000 



Turkish possessions 900,000 11,800,000 



Kongo Free State 900,000 30,000,000 



Portuguese possessions 795,270 7,589,000 



Italian possessions 643,000 1,850,000 



Abyssinia 400.000 3,800,000 



Morocco 220,000 5,000,000 



Spanish possessions 83,800 519,000 



Liberia 45,000 2,000,000 



Total 11,585,485 149,042,000 



The above figures do not include changes due to the war recently 

 concluded between Italy and Turkey. The Italian possessions should 

 be largely increased and those of Turkey correspondingly decreased. 



