BIOLOGICAL UTILISATION OF SOIL. 113 



of her climate and agriculture, she must pi'eserve great stretches 

 of forests. 



Sweden and Canada alone constitute a safe reserve. But the 

 disastrous forest-fires which occur in Canada, and the development 

 of the pulp industry, arouse a certain degree of uneasiness with 

 regard to the forests of these countries. As to China, Egypt, 

 South Africa, the Argentine Republic, and Australia, they are all 

 timber-importing countries. 



In short, the demand for timber keeps on increasing. Its price 

 rises in proportion. The supply seems to have reached nearly its 

 maximum under the actual conditions. Over-production is not 

 possible without dooming the forests to destruction. 



We are advancing towards a timber famine. " In western and 

 southern Europe there is not a single country where one could 

 not find thousands and even millions of hectares of uncultivated 

 lands, the agricultural utilisation of which has ceased to be 

 profitable. All these lands ought to be reforested. The states 

 ought to lavish encouragement not only by exemption from taxes 

 but also by free gifts of seeds and seedlings, and by putting their 

 stafl" of experienced foresters at the disposition of the owners for 

 their guidance. They should not hesitate to acquire part of these 

 areas themselves. And for the taking of these measures there is 

 not a moment to be lost. Forest production cannot be impro- 

 vised. It requires a century and a half to grow timber fit to be 

 sawn. And the timber famine will perhaps become acute before 

 fifty years " (Melard). 



Now, could we not apply these authoritative words to Scotland? 

 Is thei'e not here a sure source of regeneration for all the country 

 that lies to the north of the Highland border ? We shall try to 

 prove that this is the case. With this end in view, let us 

 examine first the physical conditions of Scotland in comparison 

 with those of similar regions, such as Scandinavia, Finland 

 included. From the fact that both are placed on the north- 

 western coast of Europe, in the same position with regard to the 

 atmospheric and marine currents, there results a great similarity 

 of climate in Scotland and in Scandinavia. Let us say at once, 

 that if the climatic features are homologous, the temperature is 

 milder in the former. Its lower latitude is the chief cause of 

 this. We must add, further, that Scotland feels more directly 

 the influence of the warm current of the Gulf Stream and of the 

 westerly winds. 



VOL. XVII. PART I. H 



