STUMPAGE PRICES 



305 



in making the comparison it must be borne in mind that no one can pre- 

 dict what the future conditions will be, and whether changes in building 

 methods will materially modify the demand for lumber, wood products, 

 and timber. Then, too, what will be our cost of production and carrying 

 charges? It is most surprising to find French communes prior to 1912 

 selUng good saw timber in the Pyrenees at 67 cents per thousand board feet, 



Army use. According to the French Forest Service the correct commercial prices in 

 March, 1919, were as follows: 



" Exchange at 5.45 francs to $1. 



These prices are excessive and are due to an acute shortage and to speculation, but 

 in 1920 were still higher. 



The approximate prices asked by the American E. F. on the liquidation of its stocks 

 in France are as given in the table below. The main reasons for these comparative 

 low prices, in the face of a large demand and acute shortage, were because of (1) need 

 for quick sale, (2) difficulty of transportation, and (3) faulty manufacture as judged 

 by French standards. 



Product 



Unit 



Price at 



railroad, 



francs per 



unit 



Approximate equivalent 



dollars " per thousand 



board feet 



Hardwood logs 



Spruce and fir logs, poles, and 



piles 



Spruce and fir boards 



Pine logs 



Pine lumber 



Pine props 



Standard-gauge hardwood ties.. 

 Standard-gauge softwood ties. . . 



Hardwood fuel 



Softwood fuel 



Cubic meter. 



Cubic meter. 

 Cubic meter. 

 Cubic meter. 

 Cubic meter. 

 Linear meter 



Each 



Each 



Stere 



Stere 



82 



75 



160 



55 



130 



0.90 



10.40 



6.50 



25 



15 



52J 



70 

 35 

 57 

 0.049 per linear foot 

 57 

 36 



16 per cord 

 10 per cord 



" Exchange at 5.45 francs to $1. 



In the final settlement these prices were reduced 10 to 20 per cent (or more for fuel), 

 but even as they stand they are low even for very large wholesale operations. Until 

 the market becomes stabilized by steady imports the prices will vary, owing to short- 

 age of supply and to speculation. In France the stumpage price represents a larger 

 proportion (often one-third to one-half) of the final market price than it does in the 

 United States. 



See also " Private Forestry in France,'' page 320, for additional data on stumpage prices. 



