H._24

48

Mr. D. Goldie (Auckland) moved, " That Messrs. L. J. Bagnall, V. B. Trapp, and J. Butler, be appointed as a committee to draw up a report to be submitted to the Government." —Agreed.* Mr. Trapp (Auckland): Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, at the start of this meeting there seemed to be a little bit of misunderstanding. I asked Mr. Seddon that Mr. Bagnall should be president of this Conference, and myself to take the position of vice-president. I think, really, that the way Mr. Bagnall has carried out the duties is such that it ought to be his position as president, and, of course, I should like the position of vice-president. Now, as regards this Conference, I think it will do an immense amount of good, and it has done good in many ways. It has shown to the Government that the builders and sawmillers are not people to go to them and ask them to help them in everything, The fact is, all we want is to give the sawmillers and merchants a chance of carrying out their business without so-called experts getting the ear of the Government, and asking them to pass a law which, if it were passed, would mean an immense loss, and half of us would have to shut down. I think, for my own company, we could not carry on if all these laws were passed. We are told that the laws are absolutely going to' be framed; and yet neither of these would-be experts can tell us the reason why they have asked the Government to pass these laws. You will find a man come into your bush and say he is going to take part of this bush and give you 3d. royalty— that is, he may say kauri-trees are worth 3d. a hundred—you may as well close down. We must ask the Government not to pass any laws that are retrospective, and will injure and take our timbers from us. With us (the Kauri Timber Company) it means ruination, and also to the timber trade. We have to thank Mr. Seddon very much for bringing us here ; and I think this Conference will do an immense amount of good. I have gained a great deal of information during these five days which will be of great value to me in the future. This Conference will show the Government that the timber industry is the soundest one they have got, and the only industry that has not come to them with their cap in hand to help them in every mortal thing. I move that a vote of thanks be tendered to the Premier for calling the Conference together.—Carried unanimously. Mr. D. Goldie (Auckland) moved, " That the thanks of this meeting be conveyed to the Premier for his forethought in appointing so able and courteous an officer as Mr. A. M. Smith to assist us in making this Conference the success it has been." Mr. Lightband (Nelson) said he had great pleasure in seconding the motion, and he thought this Conference must have entailed an enormous amount of work on the part of Mr. A. M. Smith. He was sure that he had undertaken it willingly, and also that he had done his utmost to aid the Conference, and he (Mr. Lightband) thought that this vote should be no mere formal vote. —Carried unanimously. Mr. A. M. Smith, in reply, said : Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, I beg to thank you very much indeed for the kind words you have expressed towards myself. It was a very great pleasure to me that Mr. Seddon called this Conference together because, during the two years I have been in the Industries and Commerce Department, I have felt that those interested hi the timber trade were all pulling different ways, and that something was necessary to be done to effect a change for the better. lam confident that a great deal of good will be achieved through this Conference, and I am quite sure that, if this is so, no one will be better pleased than the Premier. Mr. J. Butler (Westland) moved, " That a vote of thanks be passed to Mr. G. S. Perrin for his attendance, and the information he had given to the Conference." Mr. W. Morris (Westland), in seconding the motion, said it was gratifying to have a gentleman of Mr. Perrin's experience amongst them, and he was only sorry that that gentleman could not have been with them sooner. The Chairman : Gentlemen, I think the best way to put the motion would be "That the Victorian and Tasmanian Governments be thanked for representing this Conference through Mr. G. S. Perrin."—Carried unanimously. Mr. Perrin (Victoria): Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, lam sure it gives me very great pleasure indeed to attend this Conference. I only regret that the notice given me was so short. It was on Friday week that a cable came through our Premier, who sent it on to the Minister of Lands, under whose department I am, and it was sent on to me late at night. I left on the following Tuesday by the " Waihora." This being the first boat to leave, I lost no time in coming over here. My chief difficulty was in not knowing exactly what the Conference was about, or what the conditions were, or what you wanted to know from me. I was somewhat in the dark. There were many things I would have liked to have brought over in connection with my work in Victoria, which, I think, would be of great use to your Government, but, perhaps, not so much of use to you as sawmillers. I think the question for the Government to do, as far as I am concerned, is more to decide upon the system of forestry which they intend to carry out, and there, I think, I can be of use to them. It is more on the forest aspect of the question that I can advise the Government later on. At present I know so little about New Zealand that I feel I am rather at a loss amongst you all, and I hope that in the few days I have at my disposal in New Zealand I shall be able to see some of your forests. I may say we have many methods of working in Victoria which, no doubt, would be of use to you, and when I see your work at the mills, perhaps I shall recognise the same system in vogue here as there. I can only express my extreme thankfulness at being selected to represent this honourable position. The Tasmanian Premier at the last moment cabled to our Government and asked me to act for them. I got the telegram ten minutes before I left Sydney, so that there was no time to do anything or to make arrangements, or to bring other papers which might have been of use to you here. I have on the table first of all a report on the woods and forests of Tasmania, which I am leaving with your secretary. I was for two years and a half Conservator of Forests in Tasmania, and I prepared, at the request of the Government, a report upon the systematic conservation of the woods and forests of Tasmania ; and, to a very large extent, I would recommend your Government to follow some-

* Owing to Mr. Butler having to leave for the West Coast, it was arranged that Mr. Bagnall should draw up the report.