542 Forestry Quarterly 



unknown causes, 28.8 per cent. It will thus be seen that the 

 carelessness of tramps and settlers constitutes a very serious 

 source of fire danger along railways, these two elements combined 

 accounting for nearly one fourth of the total nimiber of fires 

 reported. 



The Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Foreign and 

 Domestic Commerce, and Forest Service propose to cooperate 

 in studying eventual markets for lumber in Europe after the 

 war, following in this the example of Canada, whose Timber 

 Trade Commissioner, Mr. H. R. McMillan, is shortly expected 

 home from China, having made the circuit of the world. 



Just to give an idea of how Mr. MacMillan, as Commissioner 

 of the Dominion Department of Commerce, handles his work, 

 and to show what is involved in estabhshing markets, we print 

 verbatim the summary of his report on African trade as given in 

 Markets Bulletin No. 11, of the British Colvmibia Forest Branch: 



There is a constant market in South Africa for three of the 

 important forest products of Eastern Canada, red deals, box-shooks 

 and doors. The raw material for these manufactiu*es is cheaper in 

 Canada than in either the United States or Sweden, the two cotm- 

 tries at present doing the biilk of the trade. It is only a question of 

 organizing the manufacture on a competitive basis and seeking the 

 business. 



That there is any Douglas fir sold in South Africa is due entirely 

 to the initiative of the South African merchants in seeking it, not 

 to any selling efforts on the part of the producers of Douglas fir, 

 who have committed here, as elsewhere, the fatal error of con- 

 sidering that their selling responsibilities have ended when they 

 have finished competing with one another for the privilege of sup- 

 plying limiber to a commission house. South Africa is a country 

 importing $6,000,000 worth of timber a year. Douglas fir came 

 into this market a new commodity a quarter of a century ago, 

 unknown to purchasers, builders, architects, engineers, or mer- 

 chants. As with all new commodities, there were prejudices against 

 it. No one, not even the dealers were interested in it. Douglas 

 fir maniifacturers, the only persons interested, were 13,000 miles 

 away and had no direct representatives. 



The result was just as might be expected. Instances have been 

 quoted showing the unreasonable, almost incredible, prejudices 

 existing against the timber. These prejudices which differ in every 

 part of the country have risen through ignorance of the timber. 

 A cargo of flooring is affected by dry-rot. No one is in the country 

 to take the question up at once and Douglas fir flooring is tabooed. 



