NATIONAL AFFORESTATION 



timber entered largely into their construction ; 

 indeed, samples of charred wood from the 

 Great Fire that I have been privileged to 

 examine were all of oak or chestnut, and of 

 very excellent quality. London in those days 

 was, however, well situated for obtaining 

 supplies of native timber, and as the nearer 

 forests became exhausted the builder went 

 further and further afield for his oak and elm 

 much of which was obtained from the Sussex 

 and Surrey woodlands. There are still several 

 interesting remains of oak and chestnut 

 timber that were used in the construction of 

 thirteenth and fourteenth century buildings; 

 but many have been pulled down during the 

 past century, some of which would include the 

 wooden galleries of the " Four Swans " in 

 Bishopsgate Street, the Tower of London and 

 Peter Pindar's house, which were some of the 

 finest examples of early woodwork. Then the 

 roof of Westminster Hall is acknowledged to 

 be the most perfect wooden structure in the 

 world, the oak of which was obtained from 

 the Surrey woodlands during the reign of 

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