160 REPORT OF THE No. 3 



be tlie preferable, but I have had experience of it lately that induces 

 me to form a very unfavorable opinion; where it has been put into green 

 walls it has universally decayed. The soft or yellow pine timber (white 

 pine) which has not apparently so good a character, when exposed to the 

 air lasts very well; enclosed it is subject to rot. The pitch-pine timber, 

 but which comes from the United States, as, indeed, does the red pine, is 

 subject to decay from dry rot, if enclosed, and that very rapidly." 



Many other expressions of opinion to the same effect could be quoted 

 from the testimony taken during this investigation, showing how general 

 at that time was the prejudice against American timber, on the ground of 

 its supposed liability to decay more rapidly than the product of Northern 

 Europe. Despite this general impression as to the inferiority of Canadian 

 timber, the volume of importation, as the figures above quoted show, con- 

 tinued to increase enormously, its cheapness, as compared with the heavily 

 taxed import from the Baltic region, being a strong incentive to its use. 

 When once accorded fair trial, experience quickly proved its merits, and 

 enquiry demonstrated that the notion of its unfitness for building purposes, 

 owing ta its special liability to dry rot, was partly due to incidental and 

 preventable causes and partly to the fact that inferior grades of the colonial 

 product had been taken as the standard of comparison with the best of the 

 European timber. These points were clearly brought out in the lengthy 

 and exhaustive investigation held by a Select Committee of the Imperial 

 House of Commons in 1835, when the tone of the testimony given was much 

 more favorable to British-American timber than that recorded fifteen years 

 previously. 



Baltic vts. Canadian. 



One of the principal witnesses of the investigation of 1835 was Joseph 

 R. Hume of the Board of Trade, who stated that a good deal of very cheap 

 and inferior timber came in from the colonies, which was brought over by 

 "seeking ships," and sold at very low prices. The high protective duty on 

 the Baltic timber kept out the lower and cheaper grades, as it would not 

 pay them to import them, and consequently the British consumer was only 

 acquainted with the better qualities of European timber. A few extracts 

 from the evidence of John Miller, ship-owner and timber importer of Live- 

 pool, given on this occasion, will illustrate the change of opinion in Bri- 

 tain as to the qualities of Canadian pine. 



Q. "Is it not the price of different articles which governs the consump- 

 tion of the consumer.^ 



A. Not so much as the quality of the article. 



Q. Do you mean to say that there would not be a different balance 

 between the two articles [Colonial and Baltic timber], supposing there was 

 no difference in the duties? 



A. I mean to say that, for a particular description of American pine, 

 1 could get 3d. to 4d. a foot more than for any Baltic, but that is but a 

 small proportion of the import. 



Q. For certain purposes, even though there were no duty on either tim- 

 ber, you think that certain better descriptions of American timber would 

 continue to be imported? 



A. I know it for a fact. I know that now for the very timber of which 

 I speak, as received in very small quantities, I can get a higher price than 

 T can for any Baltic. 



Q. When you spoke of a change of taste rather inclining in favor of 

 the North American timber, did you not speak rather with reference to 



