12 TIMBER 
together with a slight account of the trade as carried 
on in Great Britain, while the remarks have been 
general, a more particular application has been directed 
to the coniferous section, or what is known as soft woods, 
and it may perhaps be convenient, in this preliminary 
chapter, to give a brief sketch of the history of two or 
three of the principal woods which hold an outstanding 
position in another section of the timber trade, namely, 
the hardwood branch. These, used in the manufac- 
ture of furniture, in boat and shipbuilding, in railway 
wagon and carriage construction, and in innumerable 
other industries, form. an important part in timber 
commerce. The expansion in the import and con- 
sumption was perhaps not so rapid at first as in that 
of the coniferous woods, but during the last thirty or 
forty years, with fresh sources from which supplies 
are continually arriving, the import has been an 
increasingly progressive one and consumption has 
extended as the wealth and prosperity of the country 
have increased. 
In reference to oak, which has perhaps held up to the 
present time the most important position compared 
with other timbers which are classed as hardwoods, 
the early history of the native-grown species, its ex- 
tensive use in early days, and, notwithstanding the 
efforts of the State, its gradual depletion have previously 
been noted. The first sources from which was obtained 
other wood to augment our failing supply were some 
districts in the Baltic, Dantzig being probably the 
first port to send wood. Later, exports were received 
from Stettin and Memel, and at a near period Russian 
shipments from Riga and also from Odessa in the 
Black Sea began to find their way to the markets. 
Towards 1861 American oak was first shipped to 
England, that from Maryland and supplies shipped 
