The Southland Times. FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 1873.

Southland Times, Issue 1687, 10 January 1873, Page 2

The Southland Times. FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 1873.

The increasing importance of the timber trade of the Southland district has 'of late attracted considerable attention. The area of timber land of superior quality within easy distance of the port is very large, and by far the greater portion of that land still remain* untouched by the axe. r We are therefore entitled to assume that.considerable as has been the progress lately made in the development of this particular branch of our local resources, it is nothing as yet to what may be expected, even within the next tew years, under ordinarily favorable circumstances and conditions. From the fact that nearly all the timber in the district is still the property of the Crown, and accordingly can only be utilised with the sanction of the Land Board, and in accordance with the regulations pre scribed by that authority, it will at once be seen that the nature of these regulations is a subject of the highest interest, not only to those directly connected with the timber trade, but to the community at large. By wise and liberal provisions I a now promising and growing industry may be fostered until it becom s a source of general prosperity ; or, on the other hand, by ill-considered restrictions, it may be prematurely dwarfed, and the enterprise and capital, which would otherwise haye fouud employment in the district, be forced to seek elsewhere for a field of operation. The timber regulations until lately in force, and under which our present timber trade may be said to have grown up, were repealed by the Board some time ago ; and since then « new set of regulations has been adopted and brought into operation, although it is understood that they may yet undergo some further modifications. Tne first part of these regulation* relates to hand sawyers, woodcutters, Ac. Liceuses are granted for this class of work at th« rate of ten shillings per month, or £5 per annum. The license is charged for each person employed, whether in felling, cutting, sawing, splitting, or drawing timber. Settlers cutting timber for use on the homestead, but not for sale, pay a license of £2 per annum, such cuttiug being done by servants bona fide in their employment. The second part of the regulations refers to the license fees to be Mid by the owners of sawmills. No license for oue sawmill is to be granted over more than 400 acres. This quantity of timber is supposed to be sufficient for four years' work, and is to be charged at the rate of 25s per acre, one hundred acres being paid for each .yeir .*' But iv event of one hundred acres being insufficient for a year's cuttiug, the licensee may enter on a second huudred acres as soon as be has finished the first, on condition of paying the license tee. Ihe rent is paid quarterly in advance. The lievernment reserves thY right ot resuming possession of each 100 acres iv three mouths after t^^expiry of the license. Licenses are to terminate on gift Decem-

her in each year, but may: be renewed from year-to-year Before the renewal of a license, the licensee must produua ..*. certificate from a rtfnger or other person duly authorised by ' the Board to the effect that h© has removed by burning or otherwise the tops of all the trees felled ' daring the past year, as well as all piles of combustible material (chips, we suppose) produced by the felling of timber, and also that no saplings not required for the work of the mill hare been injured. If these conditions hare not been complied with, or it any other wrongful act has been done by the lessee, the Board may appoint a valuator to assess the amount of damage so arising, and withhold the license until satisfaction is made for such damage, and the expence of assessing the same. The provision for burning the tops of felled trees is of course intended to diminish the danger of extensive damage from fires in dry weather, which undoubtedly arises from the present practice of leaving the branches on the ground. The same condition is repeated in the " General Regulations," which form the third and concluding portion of the document, with the addendum that the branches are not to be burned when the forest is no dry that the fire will be likely to spread beyonJ control. la so far as this provision is calculated to prevent unnecessary destruction of public pro pertv, the intention with which it is framed is doubtleas praiseworthy. The difficulty, or rather the impossibility, of enforcing it, in the ca«e at least of ordinary licensees, must be obvious to every one, and it may be questioned whether, even if it could be enforced, the attendant expense would not act as a prohibitory tax on timber cutting of every description. However desirable it may be to keep the forests free from the danger of fire, we fear this regulation will be found utterly impracticable, and we think the Board will do well to reconsider and rescind it without delay. The regulation which forbids the un* necessary destruction of timber or saplings is unobjectionable in point of principle, but it i* evident that it will be so difficult to enforce it impartially in practice that it is likely to become a dead letter, and might under some circumstances be made use of by an unscrupulous ranger as a very serious engine of annoyance. The powers indeed which the regulations confer on the ranger appear to be very extensive, and might easily be abused. With regard to the limitation of the license for a single sawmill to 400 acres, we confess that we are unable to see any good reason for the restriction. It is evident that even if that amount of timber be sufficient for the largest mills at present in the district (which ia what we do not presume to decide) mills still larger may yet be erected, or might be if encouragement were given, for which such an amount would not be enough. If it is decided to allow sufficient timber for four years' work, why not permit the sawmiller him self to judge of the amount required, so long at be it willing to prove the bona fide character of his application by paying the acreage rate ? As to this rate, 25 < per acre, we express no opinion for the present. The amount certainly would not come to much per 100 feet of sawn timber, calculating on the average product of fair bush land. The sawmillers, however, are said to be of opinion that it is too high, and if they can ahow good grounds for that view, the rate ought of course to be reduced. The public is doubtless entitled to expect some revenue from the timber lands, and they should not be sacrificed ; but the true policy, for the interest of all, is so to frame the regulations as to encourage, instead of to discourage, the important and growing timber trade. The indirect benefits to be derived from the prosperity «f this industry will far surpass the extra revenue which may be obtained from a high scale of license fees. Trivial or vexatious regulations, even though intended to protect public property, act at a discourage* ment to enterprise, and so do more harm than good in the end. The Regulations appear to us to be as yet somewhat crude, and to require further consideration. This we doubt not the Board will be prepared to give, and in doing so we trust that the members will bear in mind that while part of their duty is to preserve the public estate, another and equally important function they have to perform is to afford the utmost facility and encouragement for the development of the timber industry, which is to a great extent dependent on the wise and liberal exercise of their powers.

An adjourned meeting of those interested in preparing a programme for the Invercargill , autumn race meeting will be held this day at 4 o'clock, at the Southland Clv » Hotel. — ' m