FOREIGN TIMBER.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 16 October 1924, Page 3

FOREIGN TIMBER.

MR F. C. WADE’S PROTEST. "/THE “RUSH JOB” EXCUSEf ; LONDON, Aug. 7. Mr F. C. Wade, Agent-General for British" Columbia., continues to make his protests against the usd of foreign timber in the British Empire Exhibition buildings. It will be remembered that the matter came up again for discussion owing to some 50,000 feet of /Baltib/timlfer being Txsed for the scenery “h the Empire pageant. “‘‘On April 2, 1924,” Mr Wade ; writes in a letter to The Times, “I' learned that the huge Royal .enclosure in-the Stadium was being constructed of- foreign timber—pitch, pine from the United States of America. On lodging a vigorous protest against this viola- 1 tion of the declared Tiolicy of the exhibition authorities, of the Government,; and of the agreement between The* -Dominions and exhibition authoriwas first furnished, with a statemeht' from the exhibition, authorities admitting the truth of the complaint, biit“replying that Empire timber was unobtainable,. not big enough, and not strong enough. These grounds proving absurd and untenable, refuge Vae taken, in the Tush job’ excuse, which seems to have become almost a formula. As the plans of the Royal en'closure had been approved on March 27, narly a month was to elapse before it would be required for the opening of the exhibition, which purely allowed ample time to look for Empire timber. The final excuse given was that the responsible authorities were familiar with U.S. pitch pine only, and! knew nothing about Douglas fir. “Similarly with regard to the timber recently used by Mr Lunn and the, pageant authorities in the stadium. On May 9, learning that it was the intention of the pageant authorities to use foreign timber in connection with the stadium scenery, I wrote to all the High Commissioners of the Dominions asking them to ‘take vigorous measures to prevent it.’ On July 14, on being informed that 50,000 ft of Baltic timber was being delivered to the stadium for scenery purposes, I wrote not only to the Right Hon. J. H. Thomas, Sir Travers Clarke, and, General Sir William (Eurse, but to Mr Lunn himself, placing the facts before them, and receiving a courteous reply from Sir William Furse in part as follows: ‘ln reply to your letter of the ,14th hist., may I say that I brought the complaint you made before the executive sub-committee this morning, and it was unanimously agreed that I should in reply express our united regret that it was found impossible, owing to the stress of the time factor, to make such careful arrangements as we should have wished when writing out the contract for the scenery for the ■ pageant in the stadium to ensure that only Imoerial timber was used.’

( “The only comment I care to make ““that - ‘the stress of the time factor’ has always been found to operate against Empire and in favour of foreign timber. It cannot take an hour longer to order Empire timber than it does to order ■ foreign timber. What is the reason? Mr Lunn’s letter, though interesting and most courteous In every way, does not explain.”