Demand For Pacific
p. 64 · Read in the full issue
Timber
AS part of the extraordinary interest now being displayed in the timber resources of the various Pacific Islands, it is noted that a sawmill has recently been established on tiny Lord Howe, 400 miles north east of Sydney.
Many people will deplore this attack upon the Lord Howe forests; but Lord Howe, under war conditions, is getting no tourist traffic (its staple industry) and something had to be done to make the place self-supporting. The sawmill is believed to be one of the answers.
Practically all trading concerns con nected with New Guinea are showing increased interest in New Guinea timbers, and there is a wide, growing demand for the so-called New Guinea walnut, whose native name is “Laup”. There appears to be nothing to prevent a rapid develop ment of this timber industry, to meet the demands of the Australian market, except the Australian regulation requir ing that the timber shall be imported to Australia in logs, a procedure which involves so much loss in freights, etc., that it is almost impossible to make the business profitable. The idea, of course, is to protect the Australian sawmilling industry—but, like so many similar ideas, it is being carried too far.