68 Canadian Forestry Journal. 



The ground, as is natural by its low elevation about the sea up to 

 200 feet, and with it a very thick layer of forest humus, is very soft, 

 or other means of transport would be adopted. Then too, the 

 trees are so isolated that a tramline or light railroad would not 

 pay. In the near future, the Indian buffalo, or the indigenous 

 elephant, it is to be hoped, will be harnessed and thus draw the 

 3,4,5, and even 6 ton logs. During a day (6 a.m. to 5 p.m.) a gang 

 of natives manage to bring in up to 5 logs grov/n a distance of 

 a mile to a mile and a half, very slow work to be sure. These are 

 gradually collected at the waterside to be stamped before being 

 put into the water. In the fourth picture we have such a scene, 

 though the quantity of logs is by no means typical, as there are 

 few there, compared to some shipping points where hundreds 

 collect in a month. From this place they are sent down in 

 small rafts of 5 or 10 logs, about 80 miles, where they can be 

 made up into large rafts to go down to Koko Town, or Benin 

 River, where the steam.ers pick them up before starting back on 

 their 5,000 mile track to Great Britain. 



It goes without saying that all this is very expensive, and 

 works out at roughly 2 cents a foot, board measure, which is, 

 of course, very high, even for Africa with its undeveloped roads. 

 It shews again the great part which transport plays in the timber 

 and logging industry. The freight from the West Coast to 

 England at $6 a ton (recently reduced from $8 and $7 to this 

 figure) is about the same as from similar distances from India, 

 Siam or other countries, for the same class of material. Never- 

 theless, it amounts to roughly a cent a foot. Therefore, at a 

 market price of, say 6 cents a foot, board measure, (an average 

 rate for 1904) transport from the forest makes up half that. 

 Government dues of all kinds, recently fixed at nearly $14 per ton, 

 works out at 0.6 cts. per foot on average material, and at the 

 price quoted form 1-10 of the cost, which is by no means high, 

 compared to Algeria, India, Ceylon and Java. The price of the 

 timber at 6 cts. a foot, c.i.f. Liverpool, is low, and the above rates 

 become very favorable at a price of 12 cts. per foot, such as 

 was obtained during 1902 and 1903. 



November, 1905. 



We are glad to see that the British Columbia government has 

 made an appropriation, though only $5,000., for fighting forest 

 fires during the ensuing year. For an adeqtiate system of fire 

 protection at least ten times that amount would be required, but 

 as the value of the forests become more'fully appreciated we may 

 expect the provincial governments to make larger appropriations 

 for their -nrotection. 



