24 THE CUB A REVIEW 



business were induced to enter the lumber import trade. At that time, on account of wai 

 conditions, generally only a certain percentage of orders placed with American exporter; 

 could be filled. Cuban importers got into the habit of ordering each time more lumbei 

 than they needed. A great many exporters in the United States accepted these orden 

 without being fully protected by formal contracts, and as war-time restrictions were 

 removed they shipped the total quantity ordered by the Cuban importers. When thf 

 crisis came it was an easy matter for many Cuban importers to find fault with the execution 

 of the orders, pleading tardy delivery, discrepancy in quality, shortage in measurements 

 etc., and mere trifles were often made the pretext for refusing whole shipments. In thi? 

 way it is reported that about a year ago more than 12,000,000 feet of rejected lumber was 

 on hand in the port of Habana. This lumber was then stored at great expense for the 

 shipper's account. Unfortunately, the Cuban laws protect the debtor to a greater extent 

 than do the laws in the United States, and owing to this fact it has been considered useless 

 to proceed against such importers. On the other hand, the American exporters must be 

 blamed for having sold to undesirable customers, often without investigating their standing, 

 and usually without any formal contract. 



Lumber Shipped on Consignment 

 Immediately after the armistice large quantities of American lumber were shipped to 

 Cuba on consignment. This method may at times net a profit, but it is a very unsafe 

 practice and resulted in millions of dollars of losses to American exporters when the crisis 

 occurred. The close proximity of the Cuban market to America's export ports in the South 

 and the excellent means of transportation in carload lots do not warrant the shipment of 

 lumber on consignment, and it is believed that this practice will largely be discontinued 

 when normal conditions are restored and when the Cuban trade is in the hands of Americans 

 who thoroughly understand Cuban market conditions. 



Branding of Lumber — Cuban Customs Duties 

 Several of America's most progressive exporters have in the past branded their lumber, 



and at times both the name of the American exporter and the Cuban importer are included 



in the brand. Cuban lumbermen comment favorably upon this practice, which no doubt 



will create a greater demand for the branded products. 



The rates on lumber imported into Cuba are given in the table which follows. It will 



be noted that special rates are granted to the United States. The general rates apply to 



products from Canada. 



Rates on Cuban lumber imports. 



Rate of Duty 

 Tariff Rate to 



No. Article General United States 



Per i,ooo Per i,ooo 



165 Staves $0.80 $0.64 



166 Ordinary wood: 



(a) Boards, deals, rafters, beams, and timber 



for shipbuilding, including rafters and Per cubic meter. Per cubic meter. 

 boards for house construction .50 .40 



{b) Planed or dovetailed, for boxes and floor- 

 ing: broom handles, and cases used for 

 importing goods, including planed 



rafters and boards for houses (gross Per loo kilos. Per loo kilos. 



weight) .20 .16 



167 Cabinet woods: 



(a) Lumber or logs (gross weight) 1.50 1.20 



(b) Sawed in veneers 2.1875 1.75 



168 Coopers' wares: 



(a) Fitted together (gross weight) .8125 .65 



(b) In shooks, also hoops and heading (gross 



weight) .36 .288 



343 Common pine wood, not dressed, including 



yellow pine, longleaf pine, white pine, and 



Norway pine Free Free 



Note. — Cubic meter-423.77 board feet. 



I 



