88 REPORT — 1851. 



hitherto the only one to which Moulmein owes its daily increasing prosperity, 

 the preservation of teak forests should be the principal care of government." 

 The following observations are extracted from a paper by Mr. O'Riley, in 

 a recent number of the ' Journal of the Indian Archipelago:' — "At the 

 head of the vegetable productions of spontaneous growth of these provinces, 

 the Teak of its extensive forests holds the most prominent place ; forming as 

 it does, the only staple article of commerce that has as yet undergone any 

 degree of development, and upon which the interests of the port of Moulmein 

 have arisen and steadily progressed to their present scale of importance. 



" Many obstacles oppose themselves to the attainment of an accurate 

 knowledge of the actual resources of the teak localities; the most important, 

 and the only insuperable one, being the excessive unhcalthiness of the forests, 

 which possess an atmosphere loaded with malaria, and fraught with fever to 

 all persons unused to its bsuieful influence. Since the demand for teak- 

 timber for the home market has been created, it will be apparent from the 

 following statement of the exports from 1840 to IS-tS, that the quantity to 

 be obtained is fully equal to the demand for it ; and this is more evident from 

 the circumstance of there being at the present time a stock of rough logs 

 equal to 15,000 tons of converted timber, which has not yet passed the 

 general department, the absence of a demand preventing the holders from 

 paying the duty upon it. 



Exports of teak-timber for the years from 1840 to 1848 inclusive. 



1840 4-,952 tons. 



1841 6,399 „ 



1842 11,487 „ 



J843 10,528 „■ 



1844 14,245 „ 



1845 13,360 „ 



1846 16,798 „ 



1847 11>250 „ 



1848 18,000 „ 



To which may be added 3415 tons appropriated to ship and house building, 

 and other purposes, giving a value at the rate of 40 rupees per ton of Company's 

 rupees 869,800 as an annual amount derivable from this commercial staple of 

 Moulmein.* * * * For the due encouragement of the timber trades in the first 

 instance it was deemed advisable to grant licenses to cut teak within certain 

 ill-defined limits to parties connected with the trade of the place, which teak, 

 on its arrival from the forests, was subjected to a certain rate of duty. 



" For the preservation of the forests, certain terms were demanded by 

 Government from the holders of licenses, to the effect that trees below a 

 standard size were to be left, and for each full-sized tree felled, a stated 

 immber of young trees were to be planted, the latter from experiment 

 having been found to be impracticable. With so frail a tenure, it might 

 have been anticipated that the holders of such licenses, perhaps without any 

 large amount of cajutal available for forest purposes, would endeavour to 

 realize the largest possible amount of benefit at the least possible outlay, with- 

 out reference to tlie ultimate productions of the forests ; hence the system of 

 sub-letting supervened, as being the most congenial means to the end ; and 

 the result of such measure has been the working of the forests by Burmese, 

 who receive an advance on a contract to pay to the holder of the cutting- 

 license the half of the timber on its arrival in Moulmein. To the same cause 

 must be assigned the reckless destruction of property, which has become a 

 system in the extraction of the timber from these forests. Many of the trees 



