TIMBER TRADE

Hokitika Guardian, 15 February 1928, Page 4

TIMBER TRADE

NEW AUSTRALIAN TARIFF AUCKLAND, Feb. 13. Timber interests in New Zealand, particularly those concerned with the export of rimu, arc, in the opinion of Mr J. Butler, formerly manager in Auckland of the Kauri Timber Company, and now general manager ol the company at its head office in Melbourne, likely to benefit materially by the new timber tariff of Australia. ilr Butler, who arrived by the Aorangi last evening on a business visit said that generally speaking the prospective future of the Australian timber industry appeared in a better light than for some considerable time past, while it was expected that imports from New Zealand would be (stimulated by the operation of the new Federal tariff. The tariff provided for a lowering of the duty on New Zealand woods and would militate against the importation of Baltic and Oregon timbers. Although the altered tariff had yet to pass the Federal Upper House it was generally expected that it would be ratified. Partieudarlv. said Mr Butler, would New Zealand rimu interests benefit, for rimu would largely replace Baltic flooring and lining. White pine was largely used in Australia for lhe manufacture of hotter boxes and he did not think that the market for it in the Commonwealth was likely to materially expand this season on account of the drought conditions. Except in Queensland hotter production had contracted with a correspondingly smaller demand for butter lxtx wood.

It is generally assumed that kauri is peculiar to New Zealand. It will be news to many to know that there is at least one island in the Solomons wooded with it, and that the stately jiine is not unknown on the Queensland coast, although in the latter situation it is not a millnble proposition. Referring to this last evening Mr Butler said that on Vanikoro Island the forest covering some of),000 acres, contained a large amount of kauri, which, although used for most of the purposes commonly associated with this timber, was not the equal of the New Zealand product.