164 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



the world is constantly increasing, while the woodland resources 

 are limited. In certain countries these are entirely exhausted, 

 and nothing is being done to form fresh stores. And besides that, 

 it takes at least one hundred years to grow a large tree ; so it is 

 easy to understand that, as the supply decreases, the value of 

 timber must increase. Despite the depression in our trade, the 

 law of supply and demand has produced its effect, and made the 

 price of large timber rise ; and this accounts for the increase in 

 the income from the State forests, in which timber forms a con- 

 siderable part of the annual falls. But the situation is quite 

 different as concerning the private proprietors who only grow 

 small wood. 



" In France we really grow more small wood than we need. 

 Formerly our woodlands supplied all the requirements of metal 

 factories and for domestic purposes. Firewood and charcoal 

 could easily be disposed of. But changes in metallurgy, in the 

 means of heating, and in the more general use of coal, petroleum, 

 alcohol, etc., have very much reduced the demand for those 

 forest products and the prices obtainable for them. 



" To improve this outlook, not only in the interest of the State, 

 but also of the Communes owning about 5,000,000 acres, and 

 of the private proprietors owning about 15,000,000 acres of 

 woodlands, the remedy consists in changing the method of 

 utilisation. One must stop growing small stuff that does not 

 now sell, in order to follow the market and grow wood such as 

 trade requires, e.g., pit-wood, fire-wood, etc. To do this one must 

 give up short rotations, and raise the age of the falls of wood. 

 One should store up more saplings of timber-trees among the 

 coppice, so that they may grow into the timber which will be 

 needed more and more as time rolls on. 



" The Department of Woods and Waters has adopted this 

 poHcy, to try and show the owners of woodlands that their best 

 interests lie in this direction; and it is now especially anxious to 

 convince the municipalities whose woodlands are entrusted to it, 

 and to show itself really careful of the interests committed to its 

 charge." 



Bearing on the above, it may be remarked that of the smaller 

 wood about 360,000 tons weight of pit-wood and poles are annually 

 exported from France; and, as M. Melard remarks in an article 

 on Customs' Duties on Timber, England is France's best customer, 

 taking six-sevenths of the pit-wood and props exported. 



