TIMBER RESEARCH WORK. I05 



12. Timber Research Work at the Cambridge 

 School of Forestry. 



At the beginning of last year, a temporary grant of ^500 for 

 two years from the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries was 

 made to the Cambridge Forestry School, to enable research work 

 in British timber to be instituted. Mr Russell Burdon and Mr 

 A. P. Long were appointed by the Cambridge Forestry Committee 

 to be Investigator and Assistant Investigator respectively, and 

 the following scheme of work, which we have taken from the 

 Annual Report of the School, just received, was drawn up : — 



1. A comparative study of home-grown pine and spruce 



with imported timber of the same classes, with the 

 object of ascertaining to what extent British-grown 

 timber of these genera is capable of substitution for 

 the foreign. 



2. Inquiries as to the capabilities of home-grown timber for 



use as pit-props, railway sleepers, paving blocks, 

 telegraph poles, building timber, etc. 



3. Special studies as to the utilisation of elm, maple, poplar 



and chestnut with a view to the possible extension 

 of the use of these timbers. 



4. A survey of the wood-using industries of the Eastern 



counties, paying special attention to the kinds, qualities 

 and sizes of timber required. 



Two interim Progress Reports, and a Bulletin on Scots pine 

 woods at Woburn, Bedfordshire, have already been published, 

 and a perusal of these shows that work is being energetically 

 organised in regard to the first two items on the above scheme. 

 An inquiry into the production and utilisation of pine timber has 

 been commenced, and Messrs Burdon and Long are at work on 

 the collection of specimens from various districts in the United 

 Kingdom. The method of collecting is to select pine woods 

 where the trees have been grown under proper silvicultural 

 conditions, and then, after measuring up a sample plot, to fell 

 one or two trees which represent the mean. In this way they 

 obtain average trees according to measurement. 



The specimens of pine timber to be seen at every forestry 

 show are of course specially selected, and are no guide as to 

 the general run of the timber from that particular district. The 



