TIMBER COMMISSION.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 502, 8 May 1909, Page 3

TIMBER COMMISSION.

AUCKLAND EVIDENCE. tor. TELXGKAPH—PEEEB ABSOCIATIOKJ Auckland, May 7. The Timber Commission oommenoed taking Auckland evidenoe this morning. . R. Phelan, representing the Timber Workers' Union of 1800 members, said' 63 mills in the Auckland district produced' _ over 212 million superficial feet of-' timber yearly. -There were 2655 men. employed in mills, exclusive of buehmen. Ho estimated the amount of standing timber in this district in millions of suwsrficial feet, as follows:— Kauri; 375 millions; rimu, 993 millions; kahikatea, 642 millions; tobara, 100 millions; matai, 810 millions; miscellaneous, 131 millions. Deducting the year's output, the estimated total was 4841 million superficial feet, equal to about nineteen years' 'supply. Thoro was . a slump in the industry, but kauri was not affected. He; did' not believe it possible to conserve the kauri forests. Land was more valuable than the timber oh it. An' export duty on kauri would kill the oountry mills. Royalties and freights Should be uniform in New Zealand. In the past ten years the cost' of milling timber increased by 25 to 35 per cent. He believed in a State sawmill and the regulation of the price of timber by a Parliamentary committee. . ' Theophilus De.Sohryver, representing the Imperial Export Company of Canada, said formerly Oregon pine'was. sold hero at 70s. ner thouand feet. The'freight was 255., so that the price realised was 455. At that price it paid, but exporters were not satisfied. They wanted more, and so the prioe' had gone up to 13 dollars, which was 545. to 555. ; The freight now was 355., so thai the pricp now landed- here waß about-90s. . ,Ho did not think that at that price trade would increase. The wages paid m America wore: Loggers (bushmen), 16s. 8d; per > day hook f fenders,'2os. lOd. per day; donkey engineers, £15 12s. Gd. per month; sawyers, 20s. lOd. per l day ; ordinary hands, : 10s.. 6d. aliens, _7s. 4d. per day, Wages would rise this year. He had sold Oregon at prices up to 1055., and for certain purposes they, would always have to import it. To Mr. Mander: Largo areas/were bought! in America at comparatively very cheap rates. -It, oost more- bo send acaTgofrom Auckland to Dunedin than from Vancouver; ;to Auckland; ■ New Zealand timber was admitted free in' Canada. If business men herewere awako they would send a .mtm to croato a market for kauri and rimu. To Mr. Field: New Zealand woods weto more brittle^than' Canadian:'' Woods.. • Tho bearing strain of Oregon was greater than that of kauri. There has boob no', dumping here. Prioes had fallen bccauso holders wanted to realise, but they had : never -fallen sufficiently to make'a loss. • William Johns, builder, said - that -rimucould be sold a lot cheaper than it was in Auckland, only that a ring , existed .which was keoping-the prioe, -.of rimu up for ttio. •sake of kanri. Ho thought from-the builders' point of view, it-was one:of the grandest things that had ever happened-, when theygot Oregon into .this'country. George Stephens, staircase-maker, advocated the importation., of-timber. . .