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AMERICAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. 



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province, will oppose, because of its 

 advantage in low freights on Minnesota 

 lumber. After the arguments of the 

 delegation had been presented, Premier 

 Laurier intimated that before coming to 

 a decision in the matter officially, the 

 government would afford a hearing to the 

 interests representing the opposite side 

 of the case. 



Legislation Pending. 



Minnesota. The "Staples Bill," H. 

 H. 529, prohibiting the removal of either 

 timber or mineral from the State lands 

 before the taxes have been paid. 



State Auditor Dunn, in a statement, 

 says: "It has been a common practice 

 with corporations and individuals owning 

 thousands of acres of timber lands in the 

 northern part of this State to allow the 

 taxes to accumulate for years, and then 

 go before the county authorities and make 

 a settlement which involves heavy loss to 

 the counties. In many cases the taxes 

 are not paid at all. It requires five years 

 for the State to acquire a perfect title 

 under tax foreclosure proceedings, and in 

 that time the land has been rendered 

 -worthless by stripping it of timber." 



The auditor also calls attention to a 

 statement of a member of the State board 

 of equalization, before that body last fall, 

 when it was proposed to increase the 

 assessment upon the iron properties in 

 St Louis County. The member in ques- 

 tion advised the board that it would do 

 well to leave the assessment of St. Louis 

 County real estate as it was returned by 

 the count}- board, for if any increase was 

 made, the owners of producing mining 

 lands would refuse to pay their taxes, 

 and before the property thus delinquent 

 could be brought into the absolute pos- 

 session of the State all ore would be 

 removed from it, and the State and county 

 would receive no taxes whatever. 



Under the law as it now stands, Au- 

 ditor Dunn says that many owners of 

 Pine lands bulldoze the officers of the 

 smaller counties into accepting whatever 

 taxes they see fit to pay. They tell the 

 officers plainly that if they do not accept 

 the amounts offered they will cut all the 



timber from the lands and pay nothing. 

 Not all lumbermen do this, but the au- 

 ditor says he has personal knowledge of 

 the fact that many of them do. 



Many large tracts are owned by non- 

 residents, who have no interest whatever 

 in the State save for the Pine they hold 

 on these lands, and they are willing 

 to resort to any subterfuge to avoid the 

 payment of the taxes. 



A Scarcity of Timber and Its 

 Hindrance. 



The art of carpentry, as understood in 

 this country, can hardly be said to exist 

 in Persia, the greatest efforts in this de- 

 partment being there confined to the 

 construction of flat roofs of inconsider- 

 able span ; and this might be expected 

 from the circumstance of timber being 

 there exceedingly scarce. 



For farming roofs a sort of Poplar is 

 generally employed, but for other pur- 

 poses Oak, Chestnut, Plane, and other 

 kinds of hardwood are used. Hard tim- 

 ber, as sold in bazaars, is all of small 

 scantling, as it has to be brought from 

 the forests on the backs of mules or 

 camels. 



In accordance with the invariable cus- 

 tom of all Eastern artisans, the carpen- 

 ter sits upon the ground while at work. 

 Instead of a bench, a strong stake is 

 driven down before him, leaving about 

 ten inches above ground, and upon this 

 he rests his work and keeps it steady 

 with his feet. The facility with which 

 the work is executed in this position has 

 always been a matter of surprise to 

 European workmen. In the royal arsen- 

 als English tools are used, and a better 

 system of working has been introduced 

 under the superintendence of British 

 officers, but in the native workshops the 

 workmen are still to be seen squatting 

 on the ground ; and, being used to this 

 position from infancy, and their tools 

 being formed to work with more efficiency 

 when used in this way, any alteration is 

 scarcely to be expected. Their princi- 

 pal tools are the frame saw, adze, planes, 

 hammers, nails, and a few smaller tools. 

 Sotithern L umberman. 



