REQUIREMENTS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM 35 



in the British Isles is a somewhat risky speculation, unless 

 a high protective tariff on imported pulp is to be im- 

 posed in the future. 



Dealing with Scandinavia, enormous stocks of coniferous 

 timber are reported by various authorities. According 

 to Sundbarg,^ the total forest area of Sweden extends 

 to 52,000,000 acres, of which 12,000,000 acres consist 

 of Crown parks (State forests), while 6,000,000 acres are 

 either held by the State, or leased to saw-mills, mines, 

 public bodies, etc. Vast areas are held by hundreds and 

 parishes, and these forests are also under State control, 

 and the proceeds from sales of timber are devoted to the 

 support of schools, churches, public works, and other 

 purposes. Since 1903 Forest Conservation Boards have 

 controlled the private forests, and the expenses of these 

 boards are covered by export duties on round or unmanu- 

 factured timber, amounting to about one penny per cubic 

 metre. The Norrbotten LaAv prohibits the felling of trees 

 in Northern Sweden having a diameter of less than 8| 

 inches at 15 feet from the ground. Between 1875 and 

 1900 about 600,000 acres of forest land were purchased 

 by the Swedish government, and this work is still going 

 on at a rapid rate. 



But the most reliable evidence regarding the forest 

 resources of Sweden is that of Dr. Metzger, Professor of 

 Forestry at the Forest Academy at Munden, who visited 

 Sweden in 1909, and whose impressions are given in the 

 Allgemeine Forst. und Jagd Zeitung for January 1910. 



Amongst many interesting facts regarding the forests 

 of Sweden, Dr. Metzger states that Norrbotten, the most 

 northerly district or province, and the most important 

 from a timber-producing point of view, possesses a popu- 

 lation equal to one person per square kilometre. This 

 province has about 75 per cent, of its total area under 



^ Sweden: Its Ptoplt and its Industry. 



