landowners' co-operative forestry society. 235 



discuss the details of their valuations, and to modify them if on 

 investigation they are found to be inaccurate. The Society is 

 fortunate in having the services of a forester whose knowledge 

 and experience enable them to draw up valuations which will 

 stand the test of criticism. As an illustration of the accuracy 

 with which it is possible to value standing trees, it may be 

 mentioned that out of the eight principal lots sold since the 

 beginning of 1913 the combined valuations amounted to .^9817, 

 and the actual accepted offers amounted to ^10,007, a difference 

 of only two per cent. The total amount of these offers do not 

 appear in the accounts, because in many cases the price is 

 payable by future instalments. 



An important feature in connection with sale by valuation is 

 that by this means the market for manufactured timber is 

 strengthened. The best class of merchant is always ready and 

 willing to give fair value for standing timber, because he will 

 not offer for anything which he cannot dispose of to the consumer 

 at a profit. There exists, however, another class of merchant 

 whose trade connections are more limited. Such a man can only 

 afford to buy if he can buy below the market price, and he uses 

 his advantage for the purpose of underselling the legitimate 

 trader. His own profit may be less than the legitimate trader 

 wopld have made if he had bought for the full market price, or 

 he may even lose on the transaction, but the harm he does to 

 the market is greater than any loss he may suffer himself, for 

 not only does the proprietor get an inadequate price for his 

 produce, but the legitimate trader is handicapped owing to the 

 market being flooded with cheap timber. Thus the paradox is 

 explained that if standing timber were never sold below its value, 

 the timber merchant would benefit as well as the proprietor. 

 The remedy lies in the hands of the proprietors rather than in 

 that of the merchants, for the latter cannot be expected to " buy 

 in " lots which they do not require merely to prevent their being 

 thrown upon the market at bargain prices, but proprietors can 

 very easily ascertain the value of what they have to offer, and 

 can refuse to sell below that value. The system of advertising 

 timber for sale and accepting the highest offer is founded on the 

 fallacy that the highest offer must necessarily be the true market 

 value ; in actual fact it may not be more than half the market 

 value, and it will pay a proprietor to wait for a year or even 

 more if the result produces a substantial improvement in the 



