8o PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS SECTION C. 



having regard to the experience gained during the war "' was not 

 surprising. 



This Sub-Committee has now reported. One of the con- 

 clusions arrived at was that " the war has disclosed no demand 

 which could ncit have been satisfied by timber grown in this 

 country." In other words, Britain's neglect of forestry cost the 

 country £37,000,000, and seriously impaired her war efficiency. 

 Another conclusion was : " Forests are a national necessity ; the 

 country must have them, even though (they yield less than the 

 current rate of interest on the capital invested. The whole sum 

 involved is less than half the direct loss incurred during the years 

 1915-1916 through dependence on imported timber." 



I have thus referred to the position in Great Britain for the 

 lesson seems wholesome, and one which this country, being in 

 much the same position as Great Britain, can assimilate with 

 advantage, especially when it is remembered that our timber 

 has to come a distance of 6,000 miles, whereas Great Britain ha.> 

 practically at its doors in Norway, Sweden, and France large 

 supplies to draw on. 



The lack of an adequate timber supply has not been felt 

 as acutely in the Union as in Great Britain, but there can be no 

 doubt that the industrial expansion and general development of 

 the country has been seriously handicapped by it. 



Before the outbreak of war the following were the prices 

 of pine timber per cubic foot ; 



Deals, 2s. 3d.; flooring, lis.; ceiling, los. 6d. To-day they 

 are: Deals, 9s. yd.; flooring, 24s. yd.; ceiling, 27s. 



Under the circumstances, it is not to be wondered that no 

 building is being done which can possibly be avoided. The popu- 

 lation is, however, increasing, and consequently the demand for 

 houses is increasing. Rents have risen accordingly, and thus 

 timber shortage has had a considerable influence on the increased 

 cost of living. 



To take other examples: In 1914 sleepers for railway pur- 

 poses cost 6s. 2d. each. To-day the Administration has to pay 

 9s. to los. Wood is required for the marketing and distribution 

 of many articles produced m the country, such as fruit, cheese, 

 jams, soap, candles, boots, dynamite, etc. The cost of the wood 

 is reflected in the price of the articles, and so all through the 

 community has to pay higher prices owing to the absence of 

 an adequate South African timber supply. The Union is only 

 on the threshold of its agricultural and industrial development, 

 and in proportion as that expands so will the need for timber 

 expand, for experience shows that increased consumption of 

 timber goes hand in hand with the progress of a country. In 

 1910 Germany had over 54,000 square miles of forest, and yet 

 imported 27 per cent, of her consumption ; France had 37,000 

 square miles, and imported 6 per cent. The shortage oif timber 

 is felt now, but under similar circumstances in 50 or 100 years' 

 time it would be felt still more. Though one sincerely hopes 

 that war will not again recur, it is a possibility ; and, as the 

 countries on which we now depend for wood may be involved^ 



