()70 JOURNAL OF FORKSTRV 



depends upon internal peace. A strong organization of volunteers was 

 established after the revolution to prevent any repetition of the expe- 

 riences of 1918, and so far they have been able to maintain order. 



Among the principal assets of the country are the enormous stocks 

 of lumber and timber and other wood products manufactured and 

 stored during the war. It was estimated at the time the armistice was 

 signed that at least 3,500,000,000 feet of lumber, valued at approx- 

 imately 850,000,000 to 900,000,000 Finnish marks ($164,000,000 to 

 $174,000,000 par value), were stored in Finland. 



Transportation facilities in Finland are good. The country possesses 

 about 2,485 miles of railroad, 90 per cent of which is Government- 

 owned. The railroads do not play such an important part in the lum- 

 ber industry in Finland as is the case in other countries. Several of 

 the large rivers have been navigable by a system of sluiced canals, and 

 there are other canals connecting one river system with another. Canals 

 connect some of the large interior lakes with the Baltic, so that steamers 

 can go up the rivers and lakes for hundreds of miles into the interior. 



These canals offer important facilities for the transportation of saw- 

 logs and lumber. 



With the exception of the regions in the extreme north, practically 

 the whole country is covered with forests, consisting mainly of pine, 

 spruce, and birch. There are, however, certain regions near the west- 

 ern coast that are barren. The larger part of Finland is located within 

 the north Baltic coniferous region. In the northern sections of the 

 country birch forests are predominant, and in the extreme southwestern 

 parts some oak forests are found. This southwestern forest region 

 belongs to the central European oak region. Part of southern Finland 

 is within the south Baltic coniferous region. Finland has very few 

 national resources besides forests. 



It was not until the middle of the last century that the great value of 

 the forests was realized. At this time the sawmill industry started 

 on a large scale and the foundation for the lumber, pulp, and paper 

 export trade was laid. Since that time the forests have increased in 

 value each year. Prior to the middle of the last century practically 

 the only wood products exported were sawlogs, wood tar, and firewood. 



The great importance of the forests is shown by the fact that the 

 export of lumber, timber, pulp, paper, and other wood products 

 amounted to $58,000,000 in 1913, or approximately 74 per cent of the 

 value of the total exports of Finland. 



