OUR TIMBER SUPPLIES FROM ABROAD, 353 
XXVI. Our Timber Supplies from Abroad. By A. T. WILLtIAMson, 
Kew Terrace, Edinburgh. 
This subject is of the greatest interest and importance, not only 
to those immediately associated with the production and consump- 
tion of timber, but to every member of the community. There is 
very great difficulty in arriving at the exact value of the wood 
imported into this country, but, on a fairly accurate calculation, 
it may be set down at £20,000,000 annually. The returns 
periodically issued by the Board of Trade afford an idea of the 
number of loads, and the figures given in this paper show the vast 
and far-reaching influence which timber has upon our national 
industries. There is no doubt that trade in timber is largely 
influenced by the condition of other trades; but, at the same time, 
it has to be borne in mind that our timber supplies have a very 
important influence on other trades. It is often supposed that 
for many purposes wood cannot be superseded by any other 
material, but this is entirely erroneous. It is in a large degree 
dependent upon the facilities by which timber can be supplied 
whether or not the same proportion shall be consumed. In many 
branches of industry timber finds a keen competitor in iron, in 
some instances in brick, and occasionally in stone. In these cases 
the ultimate consideration with the consumer is the question of 
cost. That the use of timber has enormously increased is clearly 
seen by the figures that follow; and this expansion is largely due 
to the ingenuity of those associated with timber production, in 
introducing such inventions and facilities as enables it to success- 
fully compete in price with other materials. The credit of 
producing this result is to be shared alike by the forester, the 
timber merchant, and the timber manufacturer. The timber 
merchant, it may be said, is merely the distributor, and has little 
influence in guiding either the production or consumption. This 
may be true as regards the merchant in other commodities, but, as 
will be seen in the following remarks, the merchant in timber has 
had a very great influence in the development of the trade. 
In the year 1890 the total imports from foreign countries and 
the colonies amounted to 7,056,688 loads. This was made up of 
2,278,374 loads of hewn or rough log timber, and 4,778,314 loads 
of sawn and manufactured wood. These figures show the large 
proportion that is brought in a prepared and partially prepared 
