THE TIMBER COMMISSION

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2524, 10 June 1909, Page 2

THE TIMBER COMMISSION

CUMBROUS, EXPENSIVE, IN-

EFFECTIVE.

(By one who saw it working.)

I have sat for long and weary hours on a hard seat in the upper room of the Dominion museum, and I have wondered anew at the persistency of politicians and the uicifcj’ of wisdom with which the world in general and these islands in particular are governed. In, other words I have been attending some of the sittings of the Timber Commission. “Any more witnesses? Anyone desiring to give evidence?” It is the clear voice of Secretary Jourdain. A man of general average appearance separates himself from the group of listeners and prospective witnesses, walks to the head of the long table which is surrounded by His Majesty’s twelve trusty and well-beloved investigators, receives tho “Book” from Mr. Jourdain, and is sworn. THE INAUDIBLE CHAIRMAN. Then he coined very close to the Chairman, and leans over him. He lias to, lean over, because the Chairman—“Uang Tam Duncan”—has assumed almost a reclining attitude, with his feet away under the middle of the table and his head on the back of his chair. The posture does not lend itself to deep-lunged and far-carrying speech, and “Tam,” who was always prone to mumble, now speaks almost in a whisper. The witness leans a little closer and replies. He is probably telling Mr. j Duncan his name and occupation, and we cannot understand why these details should be treated as confidential!! Mr. Hanan, M.P., seated midways down the table, comes to the rescue —“Would the witness speak a little louder, please? We can’t hear.” Then Secretary Jourdain’s bell-like tones break into the stillness—“ William Higginson, builder and contractor, Wellington.” At this the three newspaper reporters, who .are seated a few feet away from the Commissioners’ table lose that strained expression which has made me feel sorry for them, and begin to write very rapidly. It is now possible, with an effort, to hear the Chairman as he asks the “witness” if he has any statement to make before questions arc put to him by the Commissioners.

The same little performance, with only minor variations, is gone through with every witness. We who listen, sitting on tho hard seats (they get very hard as the afternoon wears on) know it by heart. From this stage of the dialogue onwards there are greater variations—but along certain well established lines. The witness is almost certainly either a sawmiller, a sawmill hand, a timber merchant, or a builder, and he speaks accordingly. Be his name Higgins, Wiggins, Stiggins, or ’iggins, his voice is the voice of 0.13. Rimii. of sawdust, or of Oregon joists. When we have heard his occupation we know) what he is going to say. If those press reporters were not the most conscientious of mortals, they would sleep, or remember press: lg appointments in other parts of the city. The official reporter pencils away automatically, while his thoughts wander on happier paths. \The Chairman sometimes nods. ' REPEAT ORDERS. If the witness is a sawmiller he tells of mills closed, or working short time, and he wants a prohibitive duty on Oregon pine. If he is a sawmill hand, he tells the same story with emjihasis on unemployment, avid draws, the same moral. If lie is. a timber merchant he 'says Oregon pine is necessary, and lie repels Mr. Barber’s insinuations about trusts and combines. If he is a builder 'he must have Oregon pine for long joists, and he has certain complaints to make about the merchants and the millers. To every witness of the same class are put the same questions, and the same replies are given. There are, as I have said, variations, and these are what every commissioner works for, lives for, and wastes his country’s time and money for. When he gets one that suits him lie treasures it up for the edification or discomfiture of succeeding witnesses. Some bits of evidence keep on reappearing in this way, “While we wer© at Grey mouth,” says a Commissioner, “Mr. So and So told us such and such a think, and I would have you know* that he is a highly respected citizen and has reached an advanced age; in fact, he is trembling on the verged of the grave, and can have no motive for deception; and he made this statement in the most solemn manner. Now! do you believe it? That is the kind of thing that swells the official report, and the country has to pay for it. I can vouch for it that if the proceedings are reported verbatim, as appears to be the case, the statement of the ancient citizen or Greymouth (or somewhere else) will appear kt least four times. And how many more times has it been repeated (when I was not there to hear it) to different witnesses, in different towns, and reported; and how much time and paper and typewriter ink and printers ink and wear and tear of machinery and materials have been wasted upon it from first to last is a question which one Commissioner is advised to ask himself whenever' he feels particularly sure about the debt of gratitude which his country owes him. * THE COMMISSIONERS IN TURN. To go back to our witnesses. The Commissioners take him in turn in the order of their places at,the long table. First, Mr. W.'H. Field, M.P.. m Ins pleasant manner, tries to get bun to sav nice things about rimu and put a slight upon intruding Oregon. If the witness isn’t obliging, Mr. Field doesn’t spend much'time with him. then Mr. H. P. Barber persecutes him on the matter of homes for the workers, and makes it very clear, in his own opinion, whatever tho witness may think, is that Oregon, duty free, is required . for the said homes. Mr. Hamm, M.P. for Invercargill, comes next, and if Mr, Barber has not told the witness how many, feet of Oregon were imported last year, and how many feet of timber were-cut in this country, Mr. Hanan will tell us. There is absolutely no escape from these figuies,

and nothing but my native perversi has enabled me to forget them.' M Hanan uses them effectively, and if tl witness owns or works at a sawmi he gets a bad time at the hands of tl member for Invercargill. Mr. Jenning M.P., is the next inquisitor. He to •me wl'tnov. that he was not canvassii: lor King Country sawmills. Perha] the statement was not wholly unnece sary. THE BLESSEDNESS OF GIVING Mr. W. B. Loyland, who cuts an sells kauri up Auckland way, believi it is more blessed to give infonjiatic than to receive it. ' He is the lecture of the Commission. He gives the wi ness a series of pleasant and informa ive addresses on various aspects of tl timber and timber-building industrie It is to bo supposed that in his copy < the document by virtue of which lie eii at the table, the word “enquire” 100 l ’ike ““instruct.” Sometimes he begii for form’s sake. “Arc you aware tlu —?” or “Would it surprise you t know—?”but after that, the question .~o obscured by the mass of informatio that the witness cannot see it, and fc answer merely gapes at Mr, Lcylauc and just looks as intelligent as he car and says nothing. A great deal of M Leyland’s information is taken hoi ' the evidence of previous witnesses. J is going into the big book of tho cff cial report, again and again and .;«■ again, nobody knows how many time; Mr Samuel Clarke, builder, of Aucl; land, questions drily and sometime protractedly, and always from th builder’s point of view.. Mr Morris, sawmiller, of the Wes I Coast, then contends vigorously wit the witness, or co-operates h.eartil with him as the case may be. in uphold ing the merits of rimu. Mr Morris i burly, gruff voiced, and not innoceu of irascibility. The Chairman some times has to wake up sufficiently t keep the peace between him and th witness. PERSISTENT MR, ELL. Mr Ell, M.P., has one question v hie he boasts of having put to witncsse everywhere. He does not care whetl: er they are competent to answer it o not. “Do you not think,” he, asks “that 9,400 acres is a ridiculously sma area for Government to plant wit trees for the purpose of replacing th native bush which is rapidly disax pearing?” The witness generady sut “Yes.” There are more members of Pai liament, Messrs Arnold, Stall vo.til's and blander interrogate the witness but they are comparatively merciful me and do not as a rule take up so tr • o time as most of tho others. Then th Chairman murmurs a few questions, an Mr .Field and one or two other Con missioners, who have already had tho innings try to get a few hints of tli evidence over again in forms ncr acceptable to' themselves. A ll d trci when the Commission has spmit nbeii three hours over one witness and ha heard little or nothing that it did nc know before, the unhappy man i s a lowed to go. Such is the Conirmssio at “work.” OF WHAT USE. For this sort of thing twelve men eight of whom are M.P.’s, are gettin a good round sum of money, and tiler are also the expenses ol transportm them and their staff all over the Dc minion, and producing a big fat boo of evidence .-which nobody.will read. 11l Commission collected a lot of informs tion, but most of what is valuable i: it could have been obtained with muc less fuss and expenditure by the officei of the Lands and Forestry Depart ment-s. The reail object of the existentof the Commission was to help the Gov eminent decide whether the duty o: Oregon pine shall be increased, abolish ed, or left alone. And they have tha question just where they found it. ro all the evidence has convinced each o these public-spirited* and open-minde* investigators that the views he held a the beginning were the only right ones The Government will know what Mr Morris and Mr. Barber think about tin duty on Oregon pine. It knew bet op the Commission was appointed. It i stated that a pamphlet on methods o milling without destroying the buslia subject not dealt with by the Com mission—i? being prepared by a depart mental officer. This pamphlet is vei likely to be just as valuable tc the country as the labors of the om mission. As I remarked before v ill how little wisdom New Zealand is Gov eined. —“The Citizen.”