EXPORT OF TIMBER.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10359, 14 May 1895, Page 5

EXPORT OF TIMBER.

'i(Per Usrrab Press | Association*.)

Wellington, May 13,

The Industries department telegraphed to the, Ag4'n.-general for informotion as to the sizes thi-.t timber should be cut lor furniture purposes;, and received a reply :—" Furniture flitches, ;U-iu thick; as wide and long as possible. "YD idth very important. Figured honeysuckle isivery much wanted."

(Feo'-u Oor Own Correspondent.) London, March 29. i Mr Freyberg tells me that New Zealand i timber is by no means quiet, that, oa the ion- ' trary, it is making more and more stir in the London znarhet. "There is a splendid demand for New Zes.land wood just now," he said to me, a few hours ago, "if it can be placed on the market at £6 per load, but it is useless sending it for paving purposes at a higher price, because then it will compete with jarrah, which already ha 3 made goocl its looting iv the market, and holds the market at £G 12s 6d." "It will take time." continued Mr Freyberg, " for New Zealand wood to get well into the market, but if it could be sold now at £6 per load, it would make a .market for itself, and get into the raiining at once. And it must come by sailing vessels, so as to save cost of carriage. It is too Jsponsive to bring it by steamer, but if conveyed by sailing ship and sold here at £6, tbere would be a large profit for the New Zealand sawmillers." "Now, to show you what might tie done," Mr Freyberg proceeded to say," ."let mt; tell you that one short street in the London suburbs is being laid with jarrah paving. This will take 6000 load** at £6 12s 6d, bo the wood alone will cost £39,756. If that street could bave been laid instead with New Zealand wood it would have meant a' clear profit of £6000 to the New Zealand sawmillers." '' "And that is not all that has to be said," added tho New Zealand expert. " I inspected those jarrah blocks, and found them short length by a sixteenth of an inch, duo to . waste in the cut of the saw, which was hot allowed! tor, though the blocks should have been sin long each. Now this means a loss -to the paving authorities of the year's ihrear in the wood, arid of timber to ■ the aggregate value of £419 17s 6d. If, however, New Zealand adopts my proposed standard oj: 'dimension!!, including a length of 6ft .--i-ia, we can cut 15 sin blacks out of each length, allowing l£in for 15 saw cuts. If the timber is supplied in New Zealand at 10s per 100 ft, anel the expense of freight 5s 6d, landing Is, and sale expenses 9J be added, making 17a 3d per IOCIft in all, that would give 2s 9d per IGOlt profit to the sawmiUer in New Zealand, selling it svt £1 per 100, equal to £6 per load." "We ought to secure the market," concluded Mr Freybsrg. " Look at the jarrah timber, in 1887 ifc had to be given away, no one would touch it, and now it sells at £6 12s 6d per load, and has to be contracted for eight months beforehand to ensure a supply, so great is the demand." These should be some ■ useful hints for your timber owners anil sawmillers. Oh, by-the-bye, I itss to tell you that timber for paving ought to bo sent Home wet."