754 



Forestry in Finland. 



[march, 



It can also be floated through several Finnish lakes and rivers 

 to the Murman coast on Russian territory. This experiment by 

 the Finnish Government to open the forests in the " High North ' r 

 will certainly be of great interest to saw mill owners. Swedish 

 and Norwegian companies are already making inquiries with 

 regard to the time of sale, yet it is improbable that Finnish 

 speculators will avail themselves of this fact, as no Finnish firm 

 at present carries on any timber export from the Arctic Sea,, 

 though Swedish, Norwegian and Russian exporters have great 

 experience in floating and exporting timber from that northerly 

 region. 



At a meeting of saw mill owners in 1903 the chairman stated 

 that he had received accounts from 86 mills, with a production 

 of over 300,000 standards. The quantity remaining unshipped,, 

 although sold, was 90,579 standards, against 91,331 standards in 

 1902. 



At the meeting in 1902 it was agreed that less timber should 

 be felled, but it is feared that this agreement has not been 

 strictly followed by some companies. This has caused some 

 discontent amongst the Swedish producers, but for next winter 

 they have made a binding agreement for a further reduction of 

 10 per cent, in the number of trees to be felled. 



At this meeting the props and paper-wood question was also 

 discussed. The opinion is general that all export duty on forest 

 products should be abolished, but, if that be impossible, that the 

 duty on props and paper-wood should be the same as for larger 

 timber and sawn goods. The felling of the small kind of timber 

 threatens to destroy forests and to be a great national loss, and 

 it is feared that this destruction will go on for years, because 

 Austria-Hungary, by putting a high duty on these articles, has 

 compelled the Germans to fill their requirements of pulp and 

 paper-wood from the northern countries. 



The export of props and paper-wood to Belgium and France 

 makes it impossible for the Finnish paper industry to export 

 paper to those countries, as they import the raw material duty 

 free, but charge duty on the finished article when imported. 



[Foreign Office Report, Annuxl Series, No. 3,278.] 



