The Guardian AND EVENING STAR, With which is incorporated “ The West Coast Times.” WEDNESDAY, MAY 25th., 1921 THE TIMBER TRADE.

Hokitika Guardian, 25 May 1921, Page 2

The Guardian AND EVENING STAR, With which is incorporated “ The West Coast Times.” WEDNESDAY, MAY 25th., 1921 THE TIMBER TRADE.

Mention has been made this week of the arrival of the timber slump in this locality, and from all accounts it is not likely to pass very soon. Foreign timber is coming into Australia and New Zealand at a price which the local product cannot compete with, at the present cost of production. So while the timber yards elsewhere are 'tilling up with a cheaper imported article, the producing mills here promise to become idle for want of orders. The pinch is more noticeable in the North Island where Government (despite the recent official denial) has now started relief work in tree planting on the sand dunes at Himitangi. Apropos of the subject in mind to-day, we have just been reading a press report of a lecture on / the ‘‘Closer Utilisation of our New Zealand Forest Resources” which was delivered by Mr A. R. Entrienn, Engineer in Forest Products, of the .State Forest Service, liefore the Technological Section of the Wellington Philosophical Society. This suggests that the timber trade can be turned into a more scientific groove than the average sawmiller, worried about labor and orders, would stop to think about. Also it suggests that under our new forestry policy of the making of appointments for folk with titles more or less impressive there is no end yet in sight—despite the empty treasury and the enormous growth of departmental expenditure, which has produced the “staggering” degree tt pf taxation, ns Mr Ma ssey himself dubbed the burden, put upon the people. The lecturer referred to had points of interest at the present juncture affecting the timber trade. The duty of lxith the sawmiller and consumer in the national policy of forest conservation was advocated, and as if to give point to that, the consumer at the moment is a minus quantity, and conservation is ensured at the present just because there is a. lack of orders! This stagnation should thus meet the wishes of the forestry policy—ensuring greater longevity to the forests. Then the lecturer proceeded in the following platitudinous strain: The consumer was urged to use timber of a quality which would meet his actual requirements and no more; to use more short and odd lengths, and in the case of those woods-using industries (such as the furniture trade) to procure their very small timber, called dimension stock from the sawmiller, who could manufacture it from material which would otherwise be wasted. The usual practice of buying the best bulk material from the sawmiller and then again cutting it into small dimension stock was to be dis-

couraged, added Mr Entrican. These sort of directions take one’s breath away. They are very much akin to the directions hinted at to the sawmiller, that trees only of a certain growth may be taken, and in felling those he must preserve all the minor trees at peril of his license. The cost in either case to carry out what Is proposed, will add enormously to the production. Imagine a furniture maker going round the

mills seeking short, and odd lengths, and picking up odd pieces of timb-' r. Then* gathering it up, and taking it to his factory, to work up piece by piece. What is going to he the added cost to tlie article offered to the public ? It seems to us that there is a great deal of make believe about the initiation of this expensive policy in New Zealand. A new army of officials seem to be going and coming, and it must take- a tremendous amount of money to keep the Department going. What is the country getting in return? Assuming that a certain amount of conservation results, at what price to the country will the trilling saving he effected. The fanciful ideas put forward such as we have quoted above, show that the trend of the forestry policy is. going to be as costly as the initiation of the service foreshadowed. It is going to he more difficult and expensive thau ever to get timber yet here on the West Coast for hundreds of miles we have thousands of millions of feet awaiting facilities for development, not hindrances.