4 History of Forests and Forestry. 



for the needs of our civilization, or, if not, for how 

 long a time it will suffice. We can only make very 

 broad statements as to questions of wood supply, 

 and very broad inferences from them as argument 

 for the need of a closer study of forest conditions and 

 of the practice of forestry: 



1. Practically, the northern temperate zone alone 

 produces the kinds of wood which enter most largely 

 into our economy, namely the soft conifers and the 

 medium hard woods; most of the woods of the tropics 

 are very hard, fit primarily for ornamental use and 

 hence less necessary. Possibly a change in the methods 

 of the use of wood may also change the relative 

 economic values, but at present the vast forests of 

 the tropical countries are of relatively little import- 

 ance in the discussion of wood supply for the world. 



2. The productive forest area, of the temperate 

 zone, in which the industrial nations are located, 

 has continuously decreased. We shall not be far 

 from wrong in stating this area liberally, to be at 

 present around 2,500 million acres,* namely in Europe, 

 800 million acres; in Asia, 800 million acres; in North 

 America, 900 million acres. How much of this 

 acreage contains available virgin timber, how much 

 is merely potential forest, how much growing crop, 

 it is impossible to state. 



3. The civilized wood consuming population of 

 this territory is about 500 million, hence the per 

 capita acreage is still 5 acres. Taking the European 

 countries which now have to import all or part of 

 their consumption (excess over exports), we find 



* The total forest area of the world is supposed to be 3,800 million acres. 



