TIMBER PRODUCTION 59 
or even perhaps wrest this trade from the hands of 
foreign competitors ¢ 
Our supineness in respect to this aspect has lost us 
industries in the past which the foreigner has been 
quick to acquire. Where is the industry in crude 
naphtha and oven charcoal which formerly flourished in 
the North?’ Or again, what are we doing to protect 
the industry in split chestnut fencing against unscrupu- 
lous foreign competition? I venture to think that in 
the future, we shall not deem it sufficient that the foreign 
substitute be cheaper unless that lower price is an 
expression of real ability in production, that more than 
compensates for the transference of labour and wealth 
to a foreign land. 
The subject of afforestation naturally leads to the 
question: What trees is it profitable to plant at the 
present time ¢ Generally speaking, we may take it that 
the cost of planting, of fencing, and of the young trees 
themselves, ranges from about £5 to £8 per acre, accord- 
ing to the method of planting which the soil and situa- 
tion admit of. Now if we content ourselves with 
requiring a return of 4 per cent. on the capital expendi- 
ture, this will at the end of 120 years, the normal rota- 
tion period for oak, amount at 4 per cent. compound 
interest to about £890. In addition, there will be an 
expenditure of some 2s. per acre a year over and above 
the rental value of the sporting rights. This, together 
with the cost of planting, will represent a debt at the end 
of the 120 years of about £1160. 
On a moderate soil a properly planted crop should 
yield about £260, together with a sum of about £500 
for the capitalised value of the thinnings at the end of 
