AREA UNDER PLANTATIONS 173 



which probably teak is the most important, to continue 

 to arrive in our ports ; provided always ships are 

 available to carry them. The match producers in this 

 country will not be sorry to secure the half milUon 

 of money paid for iinports of this article to these shores. 

 Sweden, Norway, and the Netherlands could, how- 

 ever, 'maintain or increase their supply with a safe 

 North Sea passage maintained for them.' 



The area under woodlands and plantations in these 

 islands is roughly about 3,030,000 acres, as follows : 

 England, 1,666,000 ; Scotland, 879,000 ; Ireland, 

 303,000 ; Wales, 182,000. With the favourable con- 

 ditions of soil and climate of this country these three 

 million odd acres should give an average annual 

 growth or increment of 60-70 cubic feet of timber per 

 acre, instead of about 10 cubic feet, which is, roughly, 

 the actual present average production per acre. Fifty 

 cubic feet is the estimated average annual growth in 

 Germany. As has been said above, the United King- 

 dom buys nearly half of the timber exported from 

 all countries, and the prices ruling in British markets 

 affect the world. It has been shown that at least 

 one-half of the 1913 imports of conifer logs and sawn 

 and planed coniferous timber are at present closed to 

 these islands, and to all appearances are hkely to 

 remain so for a considerable period of time. Also 

 about three-fourths of the pitwood iinports (coming 

 from Russia and France) are lost to us. The supply, 



1 This article was written in September 1914. It is perhaps of 

 some interest when the position of affairs a year and a half later is 

 taken into account. 



