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Poverty Bay Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1277, 17 February 1883, Page 3

Th* mambm of th* building tradii (says I th* Au*kls*d "Htrald") ere complaining ' that th* high rates of timber, artificially kept up, is leading to a cessation of building operations. It appear* that the prices obtained for the shipments of timber from New Zealand to Australia have led to the renewal of the shipments of Baltic timber there, Which is driving the New Zealand timber out of the Australian market. The exportation of New Zealand timber, therefore, having largely diminished, has led to a large increase of the domestic supply of this article, but so far, the builders say, without any appreciable towering of prices. Owners of city allotments will not build houses upon them at the present rates of timber, add are, it seent*> suspending operations until sneh time as it oomee down to a figure whieh will give them, as well a* mill-owners, a reasonable return on invested capital.

At th* Brst business meeting el th* shareholder* of the Mercury Bay Sawmill Company, held at Auckland on the 12th instant— Captain McKentie in the ehair—a dividend at the rat* of 10 per cent, per annum for the six month* ending th* 31et of Dee., was declared. The preepeets of the Company were shown to be very good. Messrs J. M. Clark and A. Ewen were re-*l*cted directors. A few day* ago forty young draught mares were shipped from Lyttelton to Victoria. During the last six or eight months between twenty and thirty thousand pounds worth of th* best of the Canterbury horses have left th* colony for Sydney and other outside markets.