EXPORTS OF TIMBER 211 



factures (Group V.) rose from £107,767 in January to 

 £239,512 in December. This group includes furniture 

 and cabinet ware, house frames and fittings, chip boxes, 

 woodware and wood turnery. The import of some of 

 these articles has been now prohibited, a step which 

 might preferably have been undertaken a year ago. 

 Lastly, Group VI. (Wood Pulp, etc.) exhibits a rise in 

 price of from £s'g per ton to £6 8 per ton in December, 

 the amounts imported showing an increase (62,583 

 tons @ £373,989 as compared with 92,603 tons @ 

 £636,610 in December). 



Our exports of timber, etc., materials during the 

 past year exhibit decreases as compared with 1913. 

 They consisted of wood and timber (rough hewn, 

 sawn, planed) and wood manufactures, including furni- 

 ture. In the first group there is a drop on the year 

 from 47,363 loads @ £340,745 in 1913 to 28,260 loads @ 

 £198,322 for 1915. In Group II. the price reaUsed for 

 wood manufactures fell from £2,041,640 in 1913 to 

 £1,041,755, a decrease of exactly a miUion pounds 

 steriing. These figures can only be accepted on the 

 supposition that the export of this class of materials is 

 now almost confined to Government war necessities, 

 the export of all others having been stopped owing to 

 want of tonnage. If this explanation is incorrect it 

 would appear that Government timber exports, sleepers, 

 posts for wire entanglements, etc., are not shown in 

 the Board of Trade Returns. That enormous quanti- 

 ties of these materials are being used in the war areas 

 we know. We are also aware that we are intimately 

 concerned in their supply — probably to a greater 

 extent now than during 1915. 



