WOOD SUPPLY OF SWITZERLAND, ITALY, ETC. 99 



of Hungary 26-6 per cent., of the entire areas of tlie two countries. 

 Beech, Spruce, Silver Fir, and Larch are the prevalent species, and 

 the bulk of the timber is consumed, for building purposes or fuel, 

 at home. Hungary has also some large forests of excellent Oak. 



Switzerland. —From the 1,900,000 acres of the forests of Switzer- 

 land it is estimated that over 89 million cubic feet of timber are 

 cut annually, but, in addition to considerable clearing, the demands 

 of a growing population for building purposes, and the use of much 

 wood as fuel, there has been considerable waste, as, for instance, 

 in cutting young trees for fencing, so that the total cut has been 

 estimated as in excess of the yield, and the export has accordingly 

 dechned. Spruce, Silver Fir, and Pine are the predominant 

 species. 



Italy. — Italy exports a certain amount of Oak of various quahties, 

 but of ill- ascertained origin. The best, the Tuscan, Neapohtan, 

 and Sicihan, would seem to be Quercus Eohur, Q. Msculus, and 

 Q, pyrendtca. Modena, Roman, and Sardinian Oak and Adriatic 

 Oak {Q. Cerris) are inferior. The country is, however, deficient in 

 timber, from the point of view both of cHmate and of demand. 

 While with our moist climate we can manage with a far smaller 

 proportion of forest, the countries bordering on the Mediterranean 

 all suffer from the removal of their forests. Centuries ago the Karsb 

 region of Southern Austria was covered with magnificent Oak 

 forests and furnished piles and shipbuilding timber to Venice in 

 her palmy days. It was said that a squirrel could travel for miles 

 along the Istrian coast from tree to tree. Reckless feUing by the 

 Venetians led to the washing away of the surface soil, imtil the 

 country for twenty miles north of Trieste was reduced to bare rock. 

 Forty years ago the Austrian Government began a costly system of 

 reajfforestation. 



Asia. — ^Turning from Europe to Asia, we find undoubtedly a 

 large supply of Larch [Ldrix sihirica), Pine, Spruce (Picea cepha- 

 lonica), Birch, and other species in Siberia ; but, unless the Amoor 

 can, to some extent, play the part of the St. Lawrence, the difficulty 

 of transport will be insuperable. Neither China, the interior of 

 which probably suffers much from the effects of disafforesting, nor 

 Japan, holds out any prospect of any large export either of common 

 or of choice woods, whilst, except perhaps in the remote future to 

 western North America, cost of freight would put the former class 

 of timber out of the question. 



In Japan, where forest conservancy dates from the third century 

 A.I)., half the area of the country, or about 47,000,000 acres, are 

 stated to be forest, yielding more than 120 species of valuable 

 timbers, of which the Nikko Silver Fir [Abies homoUpis S. and Z.) 



7—2 



