THE TEAK TRADE While it is true that by far the largest volume of the teak wood produced is used in India and Burma, Ceylon, and the East, nearly all of the best quality is exported to other parts of the world, the demand from all countries having been on a continually increasing scale. Nearly all the produce of the forests of Travan core, Cochin, Madras Presidency, Coorg, Mysore, Bombay, Berar, and the Central Provinces is so consumed, although small supplies from Travancore and the Madras and Bombay Presidencies have continued almost annually to find their way to Europe. The actual output from Burma, shipped from Rangoon and Moulmein, far exceeds anything which is produced from any other source, the volume for 1926 being 550,000 loads. Next in volume is that pro duced in Siam and shipped from Bangkok: certain quantities have been regularly shipped from Java and Saigon, but of late the export from Java has been much restricted on account of the Dutch Government regulations.
The timber brought to the Burma ports is derived:—(i) from the forests in the British coast provinces, Pegu and Tenasserim; (2) from the forests in the former kingdom of Burma, floated to Rangoon down the Sittang and Irrawaddy rivers; (3) from the forests in the Shan States formerly tributary to Burma, from the Karenni country, and from western Siam, whence it is floated to Moulmein by the Salwin river.
In British India, including Burma, a large portion of the teak producing tracts have since 1856 been placed under conservancy management with the object of preventing overcutting and main taining a permanent and gradually increasing supply. Similar measures have been taken in Siam and in the teak-producing native States in the peninsula. The teak plantations in Java had come into bearing by 1908, and while it was expected at that time that teak might be produced from the Philippine islands, this expectation has not been fulfilled. (X.; A. L. H.)