

COMPARISON OF MODES OF SALE. 467 



work he effects must decrease both in quantity and quality, 

 and he loses all interest in the well-being of the forest. The 

 rich wood-merchant who undertakes to fell and convert the 

 trees on a felling-area usually pays high wages, as his 

 interest is bound-up with careful conversion, etc. That he 

 considers this expense in the price he pays for the trees 

 cannot be denied. In such cases, evidently the general 

 welfare is secured better by selling the wood standing than by 

 converting it departmentally, the balance falling the other 

 way for the forest-owner. An example has been cited here 

 merely to show that there are many factors affecting the 

 question in any special case. 



Sale by sealed tender should be employed for standing 

 trees, or in sales by detail, for large lots of converted wood ; 

 it is especially suitable when only a few rich wood-merchants 

 compete. It also serves as a remedy against coalition of 

 buyers when trade is slack, and finally, in selling assortments 

 for which there are no local purchasers, for instance, hop- 

 poles, osiers, etc. 



Whenever only a few large dealers are present at a sale, 

 they can agree easily to keep down prices. By calling for 

 sealed tenders the forest-owner may invite competition from 

 distant purchasers in order to paralyse the coalition of local 

 traders ; this remedy may, however, prove to be of a tem- 

 porary nature only. 



(c) Sale by Private Contract. The sale of wood by private 

 contract is employed when the demand is slack. Often there 

 may be only one or a few purchasers, it is then preferable 

 not to auction the produce, but to deal directly with the pur- 

 chasers ; thus the best price possible will be obtained, which 

 would not result from selling to the highest bidder when 

 competition is so restricted. In this case also, the lots should 

 be large, and the purchasers men of means. Sometimes the 

 whole produce of devastated forest-areas are thus sold ; some- 

 times an entire assortment round billets, charcoal- wood for 

 smelting-furnaces, large quantities of railway-sleepers, tele- 

 graph-posts, merchantable timber, etc. ; sometimes large lots 

 of converted wood, for which at an auction the bids were too 

 far below the proper prices. 



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