RESEARCH WORK INTO FOREST PRODUCTS. 
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data from one laboratory are not comparable with those from the others, 
and much of the work done thus loses its value. The same conditions 
apply to such timber testing as has been done in Australia, and one of 
the first tasks of a Forest Products Laboratory in this country would be 
to standardize all such work, and thus obtain data that will be of the 
greatest value to our timber export trade. Plenty of evidence is obtain- 
able to show the harm done to the reputation of our timbers, due to a 
lack of such information, - 
In Norway, in spite of its large forest areas, nothing has been done 
in the direction of research with the idea of preventing waste, and 
probably that country will be faced with a grave situation in regard to 
its forests before this is done. It is a pity that it usually needs such a | 
_ crisis to sufficiently awaken public feeling to a sense of what is proper. 
In France a great deal of work has been done, but it has been very 
sporadic. The paper school of the University of Grenoble has done a 
great deal for this particular industry. Incidentally, at this school an . 
investigation into the possible utilization of Australian Eucalypts for 
paper making was carried out: Immature trees of H. Globulus were 
used, and it is very interesting to note: that. the results obtained were 
very favorable, and the experts there believe that the immature 
Eucalypts offer a good material for the establishment of a paper 
industry in Australia. 
Turpentine investigations and some timber testing work have also 
been carried out successfully. The lack of a central laboratory to 
co-ordinate the work is, however, very marked; such scattered work 
has its value, but it leaves an enormous field untouched, and moreover 
necessitates a good deal of unnecessary overlap. 
The Government of India long ago recognised the value of forest 
research, and established at Dehra Dun a splendid Forest Research — 
Institute. The range of the work carried out here is greater than that 
in any other institution of its kind, and includes sylviculture and such 
branches of forestry. Attached to the Institute are two forestry schools 
for training forest rangers and provincial forest officers. So valuable 
have been the results that the Institute is now to be removed from the 
school, and is to devote its whole time to research. The buildings and 
equipment are to be enlarged and a: larger staff engaged. A sum of 
£500,000 is being spent on this development, and several officers of the 
Institute have been sent abroad to gain experience of other places, to 
purchase equipment, and to obtain a staff for the new branches to be 
-developed. The Institute has kept in touch with industries by means of 
liaison officers, and there is in consequence the closest co-operation. A 
splendid development has been the establishment of a Forest Utilization 
Circle at Bareilly under a special conservator. This Circle takes the 
results of the laboratory investigations and converts them to factory 
scale experiments. When these are successfully worked out the results 
ure available for any industry. The turpentine factories have been a 
huge financial success, and to demonstrate the possibilities on a large 
scale the Government is now erecting a spacious factory, costing 
£120,000. Another result has been the establishment of a.. bobbin 
making industry to supply the Calcutta mills. Much research by the 
Institute preceded the development of this industry, which is now, assured 
of success. 
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