PREFACE 
WHILE going round inspecting timber areas being worked by European 
firms in Nigeria, I have often been asked for a book with illustrations 
showing the different kinds of trees which might be felled, and also 
giving some account of the trees themselves, as well as the main work 
of the Forest Department. It is with the idea of trying to supply 
this want that I have mainly compiled this work, in the hope that, 
however imperfect it may be, the various timber getters and users 
in Nigeria may find it useful. 
I have not attempted to give accurate descriptions of the trees, 
as this has already been done by Mr. Foster in his work Notes on Nigerian 
Trees and Plants, and I would refer readers to that volume, and to 
the botanical works, such as Useful Plants of Nigeria, issued under 
the authority of the Director of Kew Gardens, and the Flora of Tropical 
Africa, by Oliver ; but only refer to some specific feature of the trees 
that are most common or useful, by which they can be recognized 
by an ordinary observer without botanical knowledge. 
I wish to acknowledge with thanks the assistance given to me by 
the Central and Southern Secretaries for permission to use the annual 
Forest Report from the year 1906 onwards. 
I wish also to express my thanks to the Under-Secretary of State 
for the Colonies for permission to use my Reports on the Forests of 
Sierra Leone and the Afforestation of Togo. 
To Mr. H. N. Thompson, the Chief Conservator of Forests of 
Nigeria, I am indebted for much useful information obtained from 
his Report on the Gold Coast Forests. 
To Mr. R. E. Dennett, Deputy Chief Conservator of Forests, 
who has given me much help and advice in compiling this work, and 
more especially for reading through the proofs, I tender my grateful 
thanks. 
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