2 THE DEVELOPMENT OF BRITISH FORESTRY 



' scrub or brush ' forest. In this particular form, species, 

 which under favourable conditions grow into tall and 

 bulky timber trees, assume a shrubby or stunted habit, 

 and while performing a definite and useful function in 

 the economy of nature, fail to acquire that size and value 

 which are usually regarded as their natural characters. 

 Poor or swampy soils, rocky surfaces, land exposed to 

 strong sea winds, cold air currents, and climates with 

 low summer temperatures or rainfalls, usually possess 

 a large proportion of their forest areas in the form 

 of scrub, and from a purely economic point of view, such 

 forest must be distinguished from the more normal 

 type, which produces timber and other products of con- 

 siderable commercial value. 



The above facts force one to the conclusion that the 

 total forest area, whether of the world in general, or of a 

 country or nation in particular, is of less importance as a 

 national asset than the surface covered with productive 

 forest, and taking a more or less important part in the poli- 

 tical economy of a nation or civilisation generally. This 

 productive timber forest may possess a commercial value, 

 or it may not. In thinly populated countries, a large area 

 of timber forest may yield an excessive supply of wood, 

 which reduces its market value to the mere cost of 

 exploitation or marketing. Under such conditions, which 

 prevailed within the last hundred years or so in North 

 America, Russia, Sweden, etc., a large forest area can only 

 be considered an advantage when its timber can be 

 marketed outside the country, and there exchanged for 

 commodities of greater use and value to the community. 

 The possibility of obtaining a profitable outside market 

 depends very largely upon a comparative scarcity elsewhere, 

 and facilities for cheap transit to a consuming centre. 

 Timber being produced so abundantly under perfectly 

 natural conditions throughout the greater part of the 



