THE TIMBER INDUSTRY IN SOUTHLAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 2631, 17 September 1902, Page 56

THE TIMBER INDUSTRY IN SOUTHLAND.

(Br Abthttb A. Paape.)

The dense bush which but a few years *Igo was at our very doors is, through the Unremitting toil of the bushworkers, getting further and further away from the centres of population. To see these burly men of muscle, stripped almost to the waist, manipulating fche axe and saw— their broad chests, tanned, einewy arms, and big, bony bodies—cannot but give the onlooker the impression of great strength and endurance. Some cynics imagine that the felling of bush requires little or no skill, but is merely a , Mechanical operation. This is a very erJroneous idea, for a bushman must be a 'man of brains, quick to think and act, for Iwhen a bush area is taken up it is he /who erects the mill, lays the tram, and does fother "work which has from time to time fin-ought forth the praise of skilled engineers. It is the kushman's work to see jthat the tram is laid properly, so that every jteee of any value is taken out, and to do (this properly requires years of training. The royalty which is paid the Government for the bush is not on the sawn output, but on the standing timber. Some few years ago the order was reversed, with ithe result that the bush was hastily gone over, and only the very best of the timber /taken. However, under the present regulations this state of things has changed, with "the result that there are various mills at ..work in areas which have been gone /through several times, known to those in *he industry as "old workings." Hence it will be seen that it is the duty of the Jbushman to take out all available timber, and to enable this to be done he must be a skilled worker. If not, he will put the .tram in the wrong direction, likewise the tracks, the result being that the bush becomes blocked up with tops and means 'double the amount of work. The bushman must also be skilled in the use of tools, for if his saw and axe are not sharpened as they should be double .*he amount of work is required.

Let us take a brief glance at the starting of a mill, situated in one of the most .picturesque spots in the colony. I refer ,io that section of the Longwood Ranges, eituated on the Pourakino River, about eeven miles from Riverton. Some few years ago the firm known to-day as Messrs ,Trail Bros, and Smythes began operations as Bawmillers in the place referred to. Leav*ing*the railway bridge at Riverton in the steamboat used for the purpose of conveyang t the sawn timber from the mill to the tjetty, we start the seven-rni'e run up the 'Pourakino River, which has from time to ,/time been so highly spoken of by tourists ..who have availed themselves of the '■opportunity of viewing it and the surrounding country. As we steam on, the river widens, until it is about two miles and a-half across, and we get a view 'of Riverton, which, without a doubt, is one of the beauty spots of the colony. The /train, as it passes over the bridge and up 4he. steep incline, bound for Orepuki, with ithe swift-running river below and the homes on the hill, with their freshly-painted '.nouses andi lovely gardens, while still farther in the background the South River,ton Range, covered with dense bush and Bcrub, presents a view which cannot be- surpassed for grandeur. On the boat steams. At every turn the eye is charmed with the countless number of attractions. About two miles from the starting point the river narrows down — so narrow does it appeal* that one wonders if it is possible to get through such a small opening ; but soon our ■wondering ceases, for the boat is already in the narrows. With the gigantic boulders that stud the entrance on either side, one cannot help imagining that they are the silent sentinels that guard the entrance. On either side the entrance is covered with dense scrub, principally manuka. On for about half a mile through this narrow passage, and we come to the open again. The river widens, and another beautiful picture is .presented to view, for on the one hand as .the dense bush, while here and there on its fringe a settler's house may be seen, with ithe clearing which recalls the work and toil our forefathers did, the forerunners of many of the well-laid-out towns and cities we have to-day. On the other side may be seen stacks of hay, with the threshing mills at work extracting the oats for .which Southland is so famous.

A month ago and the crop was wafted to and fro in the breeze, but now the harvest is over and the cattle are turned on the stubble. The river begins to narrow down -again, and as the boat nears the sides anglers may be seen plying their lines for the trout which teem in the river. At a turn a bridge is right in front and appears to bar our progress, but the driver sees by kis mark that the tide is sufficiently low. Steam is shut off, and, with the aid of Ihe fireman, the funnel is lowered, and with a little patience and manoeuvring the boat is soon underneath. The funnel is raised again, then full steam ahead. At last we enter the birch bush, which tells us that the Longwcod Ranges are not far away : the, flax undergrowth and the birch trees, with their white branches and dark green leaves, the winding in and out of the river, and the birds that fly to and fro. At last, in a turn in the river, the jetty comes in view, and in a few minutes the boat is firmly secured, the provisions for the camp art landed, and we wend our way up the bill to the mill.

The duty of the bushman in erecting his (dill is to find the handiest place not only t-o the bush, but to where the sawn timber has to be sent. There are a hundred-and-one other matter- of equal importance to be considered, but space will not permit.

The lot of the bushman is not a very pr-" ble one ; certainly not in this, the most in bush in the world. For eight

js in the year it is in a more or less „.L.an state, which means that a .great dea-1

of time is lost when the weather is exceptionally wet. On an average the bush worker loses about 30 working days in the year apart from holidays, and as he is paid by the day his wage is reduced considerably. His wage averages for the 12 months about 7s 6d per day, out of which he provides his own food, which in the bush is far dearer than in the towns.

The number of sawmills in Southland is about 60, and the number of men employed total about 650, averaging 1.361,000 ft. Invercargill, one of the finest built towns in New Zealand, with a population of about 10,000, is the centre of the sawmilling industry. Some few years ago other mills but a mile distant were started, but owing to the incessant toil of the axemen to which I previously referred there are few mills now within a radius of 17 miles. Between that and 40 miles are where the majority of the bush mills are situated, the major portion being in the Seaward Bush and the Colac Bay-Orepuki districts, situated on the Longwood Range ; but the new railway which is opening up from Orepuki to the Waiau, and also the continuation of the Waimahaka-Seaward Bush line, will tap valuable and extensive bush country.

The sawmilling is conducted on altogether different lines in the Auckland district to what it is in Southland. In Auckland the timber is chopped down and sawn into lengths ; the logs are drawn to the rivers, where they are braced together, forming a boom or raft, whioh is then floated to the mills, situated in centres away from the bush.

In Southland, however, it is altogether different. The bush is cut up into areas ; for every 800 acres a mill must be erected. After the area is surveyed the practical and engineering skill of the bushman is brought into play. The bush must be thoroughly gone over and studied, and the best site to erect the mill and huts chosen. This requires a great deal more consideration than one would think, for one area may lie at the back of another, through which a tram must be laid. Another point that must be considered is getting the mill as near and in the best position for laying tram«. <=o that the whole of the sawmilling timber can be secured and the sawn timber easily transported to the nearest railway. (To be continued )