STUMPAGE PRICES 



305 



in making the comparison it must be borne in mind that no one can pre- 

 dict what the future conditions will be, and whether changes in building 

 methods will materially modify the demand for lumber, wood products, 

 and timber. Then, too, what will be our cost of production and carrying 

 charges? It is most surprising to find French communes prior to 1912 

 selling good saw timber in the Pyrenees at 67 cents per thousand board feet, 



Army use. According to the French Forest Service the correct commercial prices in 

 March, 1919, were as follows: 



a Exchange at 5.45 francs to $1. 



These prices are excessive and are due to an acute shortage and to speculation, but 

 in 1920 were still higher. 



The approximate prices asked by the American E. F. on the liquidation of its stocks 

 in France are as given in the table below. The main reasons for these comparative 

 low prices, in the face of a large demand and acute shortage, were because of (1) need 

 for quick sale, (2) difficulty of transportation, and (3) faulty manufacture as judged 

 by French standards. 



a Exchange at 5.45 francs to $1. 



In the final settlement these prices were reduced 10 to 20 per cent (or more for fuel), 

 but even as they stand they are low even for very large wholesale operations. Until 

 the market becomes stabilized by steady imports the prices will vary, owing to short- 

 age of supply and to speculation. In France the stumpage price represents a larger 

 proportion (often one-third to one-half) of the final market price than it does in the 

 United States. 



See also " Private Forestry in France," page 320, for additional data on stumpage prices. 



