ASH 59 



rough and heavy as it was, since the foreign pitwood 

 market was failing them. A remarkable feature of this 

 home trade has been the demand for ash. In England 

 five to six times the amount of ash (numbers of trees) 

 has been sold in the past year than in any previous year 

 and the price has risen from is. 6d. to 3s. (and even as 

 high as 4s.) per cubic foot for the trees standing in situ. 



The wood of this tree has been largely used by the 

 naval and miHtary authorities for all sorts of transport 

 appliances. In the Lake district and elsewhere the 

 wood has been fashioned in the local saw mills into 

 handles for entrenching tools and grenades. 



In the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries Report 

 *' On the Supplies of Home-Grown Pitwood " above 

 referred to, which was issued on November 30, 1914, 

 the following extract indicates the position of affairs 

 in this connection in this country at that date based 

 on a careful estimate made by the Board's officers : 



" Assuming the volume of ' extraordinary ' fellings *' 

 ("emergency fellings" would perhaps have been a better 

 term ) "to be the same per acre in Scotland as in 

 England (and it is probably considerably greater) 

 there would be approximately 1,600,000 tons of pit- 

 wood ; possibly 2,500,000 tons would be a better 

 estimate. If the volume of the * extraordinary ' 

 fellings for England and Wales, viz. 3,410,000, be added 

 to this amount, a total of nearly 6,000,000 tons is 

 reached, and it is a fair assumption that the addition 

 of supplies from Ireland would give a total equal to 

 one and a half years' total consumption for the 

 collieries. It would appear, therefore, that the position, 

 while it requires rational handling, is by no means 

 disconcerting." 



