THE TIMBER TRADE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 252, 17 July 1908, Page 7

THE TIMBER TRADE.

TAXATION AND PRICES. AMERICAN COMPETITION. STATEMENT. BY AN AUCKLAND SAW- ; MILLER. (BV TELEGRAPH,—6JECIAL CORBESroNDENT). 'Auckland, July '16. The. American sawmillei; has at the pro. sent moment many- important advantages over his New Zealand- rival, including cheaper freight, cheaper cheaper logs, and no repressive taxation. One, of the biggest 'sawmillers in.' Auckland explained the position to. a "Herald" reporter ■: " The high price we have to pay for labour is to begin with;" he said, " a considerable disadvantage. The American has, a large supply of inexpensive coloured labour, and has no additional cost to bear in the way of 1 accident, liability, etc,' - Then we 'are labduring under the incubus of the heavy' rates charged by the Government for' royalty on timber cut audi land-tax. upon the growing timber. In addition there is a clause in one of the recent Acts which ■ compels the mil] owner not only to pay incomo tax upon the profits mad.o from his business, but also upon the timber cut down by him and used in v making that, profit.. For instance, if a sswmiller has made' a profit of,' say, £5000 in any one year, and has in making that profit • used -timber which hast cost him £200Q in royalty, . then he is ■ required, strange as - it may seem, for; taxing purposes to add that £2000.t0. the profit actually made, and. pay •!' ■ income tax upon the wholo. Then in audition to all this ho is taxed by the local body upon tho value of the standing timber, and in addition has to pay considerable sums, for using tho roads, tho traffic being looked upon an extraordinary one, and therefore liable tj a special charge. ' u Tho result is that New Zealand timbers had become so costly that sawmjllers have turned their attention, to other centres, and are how obtaining timber bettor than much of the 'timber used for building purposes in New Zealand ' at a very much smaller price. It may appear curious, but it is true, that.it is cheaper timber: from America, a distance of oUOO miles, and place it, say, on the wharf?r ,F e > than rail it r say,' 100 miles on tho New /-calami Railways. The cost of freight from America is a little over 2s. 6d. per 100 toot, while tho Now Zealand Railways would only carry it 60 odd miles for that moaiey. An import duty, of 2s. per 100 feet-, is charged on the American.timber, but this only brings up -the price of Oregon pine to about 7s. per 100 feet, just about tho price of Kauri logs, and much less than that of Kauri planks, Tho timber merchant does not care whether ho sells Oregon or -New Zealand timber. It is all one to him, so long as he :aivmako a profit; but it is a very serious matter for tho men in New Zealand who are sngaged as bush hands and mill men, for it trill mean that many of them will lose their employment'. In tho meantime, until ,tho men mako up their minds as 1 to ivnnt thoy'want, the Government willprobab- ■ -Y: be 111 a quandary as. to what to ! do. Wo have had a deputation urging tho Government; U) ■ remove tho duty, altogether, as ;he price of New . Zealand timber was almost prohibitive. _ Later still wo have had yet mother urging an increased duty with a view out foreign timbers, A medley )f contradictory wishes.' What the Govern-nent-will do, -I- for- one-cannot irediot. That they aro deeply concerned in jhis matter thero can be no doubt? For, if mistake not, tho Prime Minister declared n his financial statement that he had. found iut that the working man preferred selecting ns own allotment; and having a house built or himself, and that ho intended to humour mn in this matter to tho tune of lending » i 500,000 this year. One would naturally liink that iunder these circumstances ho, too, rould like to keep the price of timber .down, mt wo, shall see._ But one thing is conclutyely proved^.viz., that if working men' lamour for high wages, and the Government ind local /bopies pile on tho taxation so that ixtreme prices must bo charged, they must other countries to pour in their maorials to-tho.working man of New Zealand,"