OUTLOOK FOR FUTURE SUPPLIES OF TIMBER 143 
Turning to the Western hemisphere, attempts are 
being made in British Guiana to preserve some of 
the valuable woods of that country, and probabiy the 
timbers of the French possession in, the same locality 
are efficiently looked after. Nothing, however, is heard 
of any attempt being made to control the outputs of 
other States and possessions in Central America, beyond 
some little regulation in regard to the cutting of | 
Mahogany in British Honduras. 
The treatment of the forest wealth of the United States 
is one long example of prodigal waste. Practically 
covered with virgin forests at the onset, the country 
has, by reckless exploitation and the cutting of every 
stick that was marketable, been rapidly brought to a 
position where her remaining resources can be fairly 
well gauged. No serious attempts at preserving her 
forest wealth have been made, present commercial gain 
being her first consideration ; and already she has to im- 
port from other sources continually increasing supplies 
to meet her native demands. 
The Canadian Dominions, with a boundless expanse 
of forest land, also appear improvident of their wealth. 
No great amount of replanting or conservation is made, 
and already districts near to ports of shipment are 
denuded. The shipment of over £10,000,000 worth 
of timber annually, which is said to be the value of the 
Canadian export, cannot be extracted without having 
a pronounced effect, and already, great as are her 
resources, there are warning voices heard. Moreover, 
another cause of the exhaustion of these forests is to be 
taken into account, the forest fires that so frequently 
occur being held responsible for an enormous waste 
of timber, the value, perhaps largely exaggerated, 
being reported as equal to the amount of the annual 
export. 
