Page:1898 NB Magazine.djvu/333
received; if so, and he should succeed, another contract for us would be of little advantage as he hath raised the price of provi sion and man and ox labour—oxen at 7s. 6d. per pair per day, and men in proportion. We can't believe he will be allowed to proceed in getting any more than to fulfil his contract. We should be glad to have an order to get out the sticks which we have cut over and above our contract, as Mr Peabody is of opinion they may be got out much cheaper in summer than in winter and may be ready to ship in the fall. The sooner we know if we can have another contract the better as we may be preparing to carry on the Business to advantage. Indian Corn we believe will be 10s, per bushel this Spring on the River: we were told the day we left Maugerville that Davidson had given that price."
At this time nearly all the supplies required for the Flour Colonel masting business commanded high prices. retailed at Halifax at $11 per bbl., and the freight to Fort Howe was $1.50 addditional per bbl. Pork sold at Halifax at $25 per bbl. and upwards. Francklin was able to secure a bargain occasionally by attendance at the auctions of the cargoes of the prizes brought into Halifax by the British cruisers. A certain amount of produce also could be purchased on the St. John river, but at higher than ordinary rates for the double reason that there was now a larger population to provide for—men coming from Windsor, Cumberland and Passamaquoddy to engage in the masting business—and at the same time fewer persons left to engage in the cultivation of the land.
Men and oxen were almost as much in demand in summer as in winter. The spirit of speculation was introduced into the country and the improvement and cultivation of farms retarded.[1]
The pines of our primeval forests were evidently of magnificent proportions. Samuel Peabody, writing to Hazen & White, casually mentions cutting a yard 110 feet in length and 26 inches in diameter, and a mast of 38 inches in diameter, with other yards and masts of
- ↑ Peter Fisher, in 1825, points out the evils resulting from the prodigal way in which the timber business was conducted. He says, "In this country there is so article that can in any degree furnish exports equal to the pine, which is manufactured in the simplest manner and get to market with but little trouble." He enters a strong plea for the preservation of our forests, (See Sketches of New Brunswick, pp. 66, 71.)