(32 THE WORK OF THE FOREST DEPARTMENT IN INDIA. 



wood alcohol since the passage of the denatured alcohol act, overproduc- 

 tion and low prices for acetate of lime and a constantly decreasing prem- 

 ium for charcoal pig-iron, the outlook for the industry has not been 

 brilliant for the past few years." 



It seems somewhat premature to think of wood distillation in 

 India when countries like the United States of America, which 

 is so much better placed in respect to markets, experience 

 difficulties in disposing of the products. 



Destructive distillation on a commercial scale necessitates 

 the supply of timber in considerable quantities. The wood 

 must be of little value for other purposes, while, as has already 

 been stated, hard-woods are preferable to soft-woods for the 

 preparation of acetic acid, wood alcohol, etc. In India, these 

 conditions are not ordinarily fulfilled in the more accessible 

 localities, where there is usually a fair demand for wood. In 

 the Kumaun hills, however, there is a large supply of chir tim- 

 ber, Pinus longifolia, which owing to twisted fibre is useless for 

 sleepers or constructional timber and which it may be possible 

 to utilize for the production of Stockholm tar. 



If the question of starting destructive distillation of wood 

 in India should at any time take practical shape the mangrove 

 forests of Arakan and the Tavoy and Mergui coastal areas of 

 Burma are examples of tracts capable of furnishing very large 

 supplies of wood, more especially if it is found possible to pro- 

 duce a satisfactory tannin extract from mangrove bark. 



Of other species of timber which might be found to meet the 

 necessary requirements are the oaks of the Himalayas, certain 

 hard-woods of the evergreen forests of Assam, such as Cyno- 

 metra polyandra, or again various species found in the forests 

 er.ther of Burma or of the West Coast. 



9. Financial Results. 



The steady growth of forest revenue, expenditure and 

 surplus during the past 50 years is shown in the following 



