THE FOREST RESOURCES OF THE WORLD. 11 



51,708 cords, of which only 17,563 cords were beech wood. The 

 price of beech firewood during these two periods was $8.76 and $8.01 

 per cord, respectively, and of soft woods during the same periods was 

 $5.33 and $7.23 per cord, respectively. This decrease in the con- 

 sumption of firewood and beech wood was due to increase in the 

 consumption of coal and to the fact that beech in the fifties was 

 rarely used for anything but firewood ; therefore, the best beech trees 

 were consumed for this purpose. Now beech finds many uses, and 

 is in great demand in the manufacture of furniture and other products; 

 only the poorest grades are now cut for firewood. 



Of the 23,996,266 acres of forest, 20,390,867 acres are managed as 

 high forest, and 3,605,399 acres as coppice and composite forest. 



PRESENT STAND AND ANNUAL GROWTH. 



The average yearly growth of all the Austrian forests is given as 

 1,041,234,000 cubic feet, or 42.4 cubic feet per acre. Timber forms 

 45 per cent of this annual growth. The forests under different man- 

 agement produce different amounts. High forests produce 42.4 cubic 

 feet per acre, of which 45 per cent is timber; composite forests (cop- 

 pice with standards), 35.3 cubic feet per acre, of which 20 per cent 

 is timber; and coppice, 32.5 cubic feet per acre, of which only 11 per 

 cent is timber. The least growth is in Dalmatia, where of the total 

 forest area only 7.4 per cent is high forest; and the same is true of 

 Gorowitz and Istria, the other sea provinces. In the Tyrol Mountains 

 the forest is scattered and the annual growth is not large, mainly 

 because large areas are devoted to grazing. The total annual 

 growth in the state forests has been estimated lately at 96,767,000 

 cubic feet. This, divided by the present area of state forests (which 

 is 2,573,100 acres), gives 37.5 cubic feet per acre. There are, of 

 course, districts where the annual growth in the state forests is as 

 high as 70 cubic feet per acre. 



ANNUAL CUT. 



According to the latest figures, the annual cut in the Austrian 

 forests varies from 1,413,000,000 to 1,580,000,000 cubic feet of 

 wood, which amounts to from 60 to 67 cubic feet per acre. Since 

 the average growth per acre is estimated at 42.4 cubic feet, this 

 indicates that the forests are being overcut. 



HOME CONSUMPTION. 



In order to determine the home consumption of Austria, the exports 

 must be deducted from the total cut. Since, however, the export 

 figures are not given for Austria proper, but for Austria-Hungary as 

 a whole, only the home consumption of the entire Empire can be 

 calculated, and this will be given under the discussion of the forest 

 resources of Hungary. 



The consumption of wood grows every year not for firewood, as 

 previously, but in such forms as ties for railroads and timber for the 

 construction of railroad stations and cars. The consumption for 

 railroads alone is estimated to be over 35,000,000 cubic feet each year. 

 The paper and pulp factories now demand constantly increasing 

 amounts of timber. 



