29 



account that East African timbers have so frequently been compared 

 adversely with imported timbers. In the case of woods such as cedar and 

 podocarpus all that is required is correct stacking, after conversion, in an 

 airy place protected from sun and rain. For boards and scantlings of no 

 great thickness a period of 6 to 12 months should ordinarily suffice for the 

 purpose of air season ing. At only a few of the sawmills visited was there 

 any attempt at correct slacking. In too many instances boards and scant- 

 lings, after conversion, were thrown out in heaps in the mill yard, there to 

 lie exposed to sun and rain until the majority of them had become warped 

 or split. The loss thus occasioned must far outweigh any expense which 

 would be incurred on correct stacking and seasoning, while the damage done 

 to the reputation of local timbers must be considerable. 



There are conditions in the leases and licenses providing for the pre- 

 vention of waste in logging, and after allowing reasonable time for the 

 organization of labour and other preliminaries the remedy for wasteful log- 

 ging lies in enforcing these conditions. Defective handling of timber could 

 be taken into consideration when the question of renewing leases and licences 

 is dealt with, for there is sufficient competition to warrant Government in 

 refusing concessions to parties who have proved their inefficiency. 



30. METHODS OF EXTRACTION AND TRANSPORT. Most of the timber 

 extraction is carried out with the aid of oxen, a method which might with 

 advantage be superseded by mechanical means of extraction where conditions 

 are favourable. One large firm, in installing a skidding machine under 

 expert supervision, has made an important advance which may lead to great 

 developments in the methods of extracting timber in Kenya Colony, particu- 

 larly where large quantities of timber have to be handled. The camphor 

 forests, most of which are situated on narrow ridges and spurs separated by 

 steep gorges, present considerable difficulty, which is increased by the fact 

 that much of the timber is of very large size. Sliding downhill is out of the 

 question, since the bottoms of the gorges have unusually steep sides, and the 

 cost of constructing roads along the bottom of the gorges would be prohibi- 

 tive. Probably, the solution will lie in dragging uphill by means of movable 

 ground skidders and extracting along the tops of the ridges. Kenya Colony 

 is particularly badly off for means of transporting timber. The unsuit- 

 ability of the 'Tana River for the floating of timber to the coast, owing to a 

 long succession of rapids, and the general absence of floating streams leading 

 in the direction of markets, are severe obstacles to cheap timber transport in 

 the Colony. The future development of the less accessible forests will 

 depend largely on railway extensions, but at the best, railways are an expen- 

 sive means of transporting timber compared with waterways. 



31. ASSESSMENT OF ROYALTY. It has been represented in certain 

 quarters that trie royalties charged on timber from Government forests are 

 too high, and that they are in a large measure accountable for the high price 

 of local timber. Such particulars as I have been able to obtain regarding the 

 costs of working lead me to the conclusion that this is not the case, and that 

 the Government royalty bears only a small ratio to the total working costs. 

 The question, however, will settle itself if payment on a standardized royalty 

 basis is abolished except for petty purchases or in special cases, and if the 

 rates charged in the case of future timber concessions are based on tenders 

 subject to a reserve price. This procedure, it is understood, is already con- 

 templated and is to be recommended. 



Under the system generally in force at present royalties (per cubic ft.) 

 are levied on the'results of measurements of standing trees made at the time 

 of marking the trees for felling. Such measurements, besides taking up much 

 of the time of the marking officer, can at the best give only rough estimates, 



