22 TIMBER 
been noted, largely and densely afforested; and, 
although the consumption during the nineteenth 
century was exceedingly heavy, Norway and Sweden 
are the only two which show signs of exhaustion. 
Russia has however supplied increasing quantities, and 
the boundless expanse of this country, densely wooded 
and in many cases with virgin forests that still await 
the woodman’s axe, warrants the be ief that no shortage 
of this description of timber will occur for many years 
to come. There are, however, authorities who warn 
us that a limit of time for the producing capacities of 
this great country can be approximately fixed, and 
that the supply, while at present abundant, is by 
no means so large as is generally supposed. A drain 
on these timber resources, additional to those made by 
the United Kingdom, comes from France, Holland,. 
Belgium, Germany and other European countries, 
and also from many British Colonies—Australia, Cape 
Colony and others. The botanical name of the tree 
from which this commonly known wood is obtained 
is Pinus Sylvesiris ; and it is, as stated, identical with 
the Scotch fir. Grown however in dense forests it 
is straighter and cleaner in growth than those usually 
found in Scotland, the trees, grown in such close prox- 
imity, attaining a height of between 100 and 150 ft., 
frequently without a single branch from the base up 
to about 80 ft. or more. 
The amount exported in the log or balks, as it first 
came to Great Britain, is at the present time exceed- 
ingly small—trivial—in comparison with that shipped in 
a converted state. Planks, deals, battens and boards, 
ranging from 4 in. thick and from 11 in. wide down 
to small sizes such as }in.x 1} in. or similar dimen- 
sions suitable for slating and other purposes, are exported 
in enormous quantities from the various ports, besides 
