THE SOURCES OF IMPORTED TIMBER. 



69 



It is of special interest to know whence the imported timber 

 came. The appended statement exhibits the average amoiont of un- 

 manufactured timber imported annually during the years 1909 — 

 1913. From that statement and a similar one for the year 1899 

 prepared by the author and published in the Journal of the Society 

 of Arts, of March 1st, 1901, the following conclusions can be 

 drawn : — 



(1) Of the imports, 12 per cent, came from British possessions 



and 88 per cent, from foreign countries, the corresponding 

 figures for 1899 being 22 and 78 per cent. 



(2) Coniferous timber imported during the years 1909 — 1913 



occupied 95 per cent., and hardwoods 5 per cent. 



(3) The three main centres of supply are Northern Europe, 



South-western Europe, and North America. 

 Russia, Sweden and Norway are the most important countries in 

 Northern Europe ; they sent 6,666,000 loads, of which 6,640,000 

 were coniferous timber, including about 2 miUion loads of pit- 

 wood. There has, however, been an important change since the 

 year 1899, which the following figures will illustrate : — 



The imports from Norway and Sweden have fallen off by more 

 than a million loads, while those from Russia have been more than 

 doubled, thus covering not only the decrease from Sweden and 

 Norway, but also that from Canada. 



France, Portugal and Spain have sent 1,229,000 loads of pit- 

 wood, which came mainly from maritime pine forests ; they were 

 absorbed by the South Wales coalfields. 



The United States of America sent 788,000 loads, of which 

 527,000 were conifers and the rest various kinds of hardwoods. 

 The imports from Canada amounted to 1,055,000 loads, of which 

 1,035,000 were conifers and the balance hardwoods. Some years 

 ago the greater part of the timber exported by Canada came to 

 the United Kingdom and the rest went chiefly to the United 



