THE GAMBIA 21 



agreeable odour, is hard and heavy, weighing 45| lb. per cubic foot. 

 It turned and polished well, sawed very easily, but was difficult to 

 plane; planing left a smooth, bright surface. 



Mahogany {Khaya Senegalensis) may be looked upon as inferior 

 baywood, the wood light in colour, of poor figure, hard to plane, but 

 when planed leaves the surface bright and woolly in alternate bands ; 

 very cross grained, sawed and turned easily. Weight, 41 1 lb. per 

 cubic foot. Should be very useful locally, but probably not of sufficient 

 value for much export trade. 



Even in this comparatively small colony a certain amount of 

 forest land should be pi-eserved, more especially that which is 

 unsuitable for agriculture. In every country there is always some 

 poor or rocky land which is not favourable to the growing of 

 agricultural crops. 



The oil palm is another useful tree, which yields the well-known 

 palm oil and kernels; however, here the oil is required locally for 

 alimentary purposes, and therefore only the palm kernels are 

 exported. 



The following shows the exports for five years : 



Year. Tons. £ s. d. 



1910 467 



1911 443 



1912 445 



1913 545 



1914 4941- 



5,640 



4,756 



6,518 



9,026 



7,814 17 11 



It will be noticed that the very high prices ruling for part of 1913 

 and the beginning of 1914 had the effect of causing increased exports 

 to be made. 



Here, as in the case of other products, planting could be under- 

 taken with advantage, as the yield of kernels and oil is good ; even if 

 the increased amount of oil produced was sold locally, the increased 

 output of kernels would find a market in England, where they are 

 needed. 



It is a tree which allows cultivation of field crops to be made 

 between the oil palms for several years before the palms become 

 too big and shut out the light necessary for field crops. In the 

 drier climate of the Gambia a planting distance of probably 16 feet 

 would be sufficient to ensure a good yield, and yet give sufficient 

 distance between the trees to allow room for them even when 

 mature. 



If an Agricultural or Forest Department, which at present does 

 not exist in the Gambia, could not supply young seedlings or nuts 

 for planting, one of the trading firms could secure them from one 

 of the other West Coast Protectorates. Of course, in many cases, 



