80 THIRD REPORT ON FOREST OPERATIONS 



(2.) Suitable woods, at a distance from the station, to be se- 

 lected and marked out in lots of moderate size ; and a number 

 of these lots, amply sufficient for a year's supply, to be put up to 

 auction annually. The contractor to be permitted to clear the 

 ground entirely within his lot or lots, with the exception of such 

 trees as may be marked by the. Conservancy. Department previ- 

 ously to the sale. 



(3.) The cleared lots to be planted, as required, by the Con- 

 servancy Department. 



(4.) No private felling of any kind, or for any person, to be 

 allowed in woods or on land belonging to Government. 



23. Teak. — Teak scantling of large size is becoming more and 

 more scarce all along the west coast. The fact is, in Malabar, 

 first-class logs are not easily procurable. This dearth has led to 

 the employment of other indigenous woods, which previously 

 were in little or no demand. In the railway department, much 

 as teak is valued, it is. found to be too expensive* for many 



* To show how much the supply has diminished, and the price risen,' I 

 give an extract from Milburn's Oriental Commerce, 1813, vol. i., p. 328 : — 



" In the year 1799, 10,000 teak trees were brought down Beypur River. 

 This was the produce of several years ; but it was estimated, that from 2000 

 to 3000 trees may be annually procured. 



" Teak timber, of an ordinary quality for ship-building, sells at 9 or 10 

 rupees a candy, which measures 15| English cubical feet ; the foot, there- 

 fore, costs from Is. 6d. to 2s. Choice timber sells as high as Es. 16 a 

 candy, or Is. lOd. a cubical foot. Bombay is generally supplied with teak 

 plank from this part of the coast. The Company usually contract for what 

 they require, and the resident at Cochin frequently has the contract. The 

 following are the prices at which the Bombay Government was supplied in 

 1800 :— 



1st sort, 40 to 50 ft. long. 14 to 16 in. square. Es. 14 to 16 per candy. 

 2d do. 35 to 40 do. 12 to 14 do. 10 to 12 do. do." 



3d do. 22 to 35 do. 12 to 14 do. 9 to 10 do. do. 



Plank from 1 to 5 borels thick, ... Es. 30 per 100 guz. 



" This was of the first quality, the plank of the usual length, and free from 

 rents. Notwithstanding the coast of Malabar may be considered the 

 storehouse for Bombay, yet the demand for teak timber has so much in- 

 creased, that within three or four years large quantities have been imported 

 from Eangoon." 



