146 



Canadian Forestry Journal. 



there can, of course, be but one honest 

 position. 



The people have a right to demand 

 that the timber be honestly paid for; 

 that the forests be used decently and 

 not be devastated and destroyed; that 

 the growing material be given a chance 

 and that the land continue to produce. 

 In fact it is a moral duty that the present 

 generation make these demands in the 

 interest of the country and the children 

 to come. 



Keeping these conditions in mind a 

 few changes may well be suggested : 



(1) Refuse any extension of time or 

 life of license for the present. 



(2) Modify the rental, make it a 

 variable one, and suit the rental to 

 actual conditions of the hmit. The 

 rental was originally intended to be a 

 preventive and a spur. It should pre- 

 vent "dog in the manger" business and 

 stimulate active development. Retain 

 this form of rental. But in remote 

 districts, where it is practically impos- 

 sible and undesirable to do anything 

 with the timber under present con- 

 ditions, make the rental an easy one. 

 On the other hand, for other limits, 

 where an income is had or can and 

 should be had by fishing, hunting, re- 

 sort business, or where the logging 

 should be started and develo]:)ment 

 stimulated, raise the rental. Once log- 

 ging development is well started the 

 object for this rental falls away and it 

 may well be reduced to a minimum. 

 Ten dollars per section for remote limits 

 and up to $.300 for those well in position 

 and in need of development. Such a 

 plan is just as feasible as ordinary as- 

 sessment of property. Probably 95 per 

 cent, of all property is assessed on very 

 superficial knowledge and investiga- 

 tion. Let the same suffice in this case 

 and give the holder a chance for an 

 honest hearing before competent inen. 

 In all cases hold the rental low and 

 never allow it to become a club which 

 drives the axeman on to work and to 

 cut timber prematurely. 



(3) Modify the stumpage dues or 

 royalty. Mr. A. has a lot of timber. 

 He gets $12.00 per thousand feet, board 

 measure, for his logs, and it costs him 

 $6.00 to log and deliver them. The 

 real stumpage value of this particular 

 tract at present is $6 00 per thousand 

 feet. 



Mr. B. has a limit. He gets $10.00 

 per thousand feet for his logs, and it 

 costs him $7.00 to log. His timber has a 

 stumpage value of only $3.00 per thous- 

 and feet. 



Is it reasonable and good business 

 that A. should pay only SO cents when 

 B. has to pay the same fee? Make the 

 royalty a certain part, say, 25 per cent., 

 of the real stumpage value of the logs, 

 as indicated by the above examples. 

 Then Mr. B. pays 7 5 cents and Mr. A. 

 pays $1.50 per thousand feet. More- 

 over, if Mr. A. has a market for the 

 poorer quality of logs and can only 

 make 50 cents per thousand feet, he 

 would still log this stuff and save it, 

 for his fees would only be 12 5^ cents 

 on such stuff. 



This system might still be safe- 

 guarded by a certain minimum price on 

 a certain quality of logs as criterion. 

 Thus it might be specified that the fee 

 cannot be less than 50 cents on logs 

 of a certain kind and size and quality. 

 In any case the province would retain 

 the right to say what is market price 

 and would not be dependent entirely 

 on a recital of the interested man. 



(4) Put into every license the require- 

 ment that the forest property be used 

 in a reasonable way and one which shall 

 insure to the real owners — the people — 

 the safe continuance of the growing 

 forest. But do not try and prescribe 

 and give detail rules how this should be 

 done. The so-called "selection" system, 

 the use of a "diameter limit," etc., are 

 all very well, but it would be the sheerest 

 nonsense if one would try to prescribe 

 the same treatment for a body of 

 yellow pine or lodgepole in the Kootenay 

 country as is prescribed for a body of 

 Douglas fir (red fir), cedar, spruce and 

 hemlock on the Coast. In fact, the 

 forest is complex, and, even on the 

 same limit, one would want to vary the 

 methods. On the other hand, good 

 sense and good will are quite sufficient 

 (if properly backed up by supervision) 

 to prevent devastation and destruction 

 and to guide any good timberman (and 

 they are all experienced and knowing 

 men) in so removing his timber and in 

 so cleaning up that the yovtng trees are 

 allowed to live and grow. This may be 

 a bit crude at first, but if a proper 

 penalty is prescribed and, what is better 

 still, if it is applied, the forest will soon 



