Canadian Forcslrii Journal. Scpfcmhcr, l^hS 



18()7 



A Small Town in the Wood Business 



Perth, Ontario, Sells Hardwood, Delivered, 

 at Eight Dollars a Cord and Makes a Profit. 



How an Ontario miinicipalily, not 

 afraid to tackle fuel dii'ficiilties alonu 

 new lines, has brought to the doors of 

 its citizens 1900 cords of wood this 

 year, at a cost of $8 per cord for 

 hardwood and S6 for softwood, and 

 made a thousand dollars proht for the 

 municipal treasury is told in the 

 following letter from Mr. J. T. Con- 

 way, Chairman of the Fuel Commit- 

 tee of Perth, Ontario. Surely this 

 highly successful enterprise by a 

 live town government could be re- 

 peated again and again wherever 

 woodlots are within easy reach. 



"In reply to enquiry of July 10th. 

 re how the Perth enterprise in wood 

 fuel was worked out I would say 

 that we were very successful. In 

 fact we came out nearly one thou- 

 sand dollars ahead, when we only want- 

 ed to come out even. 



We first bought ten acres of hard- 

 wood bush about three or four miles 

 from Perth for five hundred dollars. 

 When cut we had forty-five cords to 

 the acre. Then we bought one hun- 

 dred acres for twelve hundred dollars, 

 in mixed wood, and we will have 

 about two thousand cords off it. 



We engaged a foreman and had the 

 men driven out to the bush every 

 morning, as many objected to staying 

 in the bush. For hardwood we paid 

 for cutting S2.50 per cord and for 

 soft wood S2.00, and the men made 

 good money. We paid a foreman 

 $4.00 per day and expenses, but we 

 found that we could get along with- 

 out him by paying $1.25 to the best 

 man amongst the choppers to meas- 

 ure up the wood when cut and alot 

 the work to the men. We put up in 

 the bush a large tent with a stove and 

 benches for the men to use when 

 eating their dinner. Also an emery 

 stone for them to use to sharpen 

 their axes. 



We paid $2.00 per cord for drawing. 

 The teams made two trips each, with 



a cord and a half i)cr trip, whicli 

 made $(i.0() per dav for drawing. 



The Chief of Police of Perth tof)k 

 the orders and had it delivered at 

 $8.00 per cord for hardwood and 

 .$6.00 for soft wood, with a limit of 

 two loads to each party. 



After sleighing was done the men 

 continued cutting and now we have 

 over four hundred cords of dry wood 

 in the bush. 



We have delivered altogether about 

 fifteen hundred cords of wood from 

 what we have brought in by train and 

 from the bush, and the people of 

 town have never been without fuel. 



The great secret in keeping 

 down the price of wood is in buying 

 a bush near town. It is worth 

 twice the price when a team can make 

 two trips per day. 



BUSH FIRES KILL HONEY CROP 



The honey crop of the lower Fraser 

 ^^alley will be one of the smallest 

 on record, according to an apiarist at 

 Cloverdale, B.C. Dry weather and 

 smoke from the bush lires is given as 

 the cause. 



One of the largest producers in the 

 Fraser Valley, who usually gathers 

 around 200 pounds of honey per 

 colony, says that the crop has ended 

 so far as he is concerned. 



An effective way of carrying a hose reel for a 

 fire fighting pump. Used by the Ontario Forestry 

 Branch at Cochrane, Ontario. 



