§ 43. Sir A. M. SAMUELasked the First Commissioner of Works whether he will confer with the Imperial Institute Committee on timber and arrange that suitable Empire hardwood of a decorative type shall in future be used for the furniture and fittings of the interiors of public buildings put up by his Department, and that the origin of the wood shall where possible be indicated on the articles made in order to inform the public and the building trades?
§ The FIRST COMMISSIONER of WORKS (Mr. Ormsby-Gore)My Department has been in touch not only with the Imperial Institute but with all bodies concerned with the encouragement of the use of Empire timber, and contracts are let to firms offering such timber so long as the prices are within the usual preferences accorded under present policy, and every endeavour will be made to secure suitable home and Empire timbers for our purposes. I should be reluctant to adopt the suggestion in the last part of the question, as the addition of labels would in many cases be detrimental to the appearance of furniture and fittings.
§ Sir A. M. SAMUELMay I ask my right hon. Friend two questions: Has he assured himself that we could get an adequate and continuous supply if the orders were given? Further, does he realise that the public do not know that any woods other than mahogany, walnut and oak are available and that it is necessary to bring these other decorative Empire grown woods to their knowledge?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREI agree that the woods my hon. Friend has mentioned are those that are chiefly used. I think that practically the whole of the contracts for furniture placed by my Department specify that the mahogany and the walnut are to be Empire woods; of oak we have not a sufficient supply of the right quality. As to other more or less fancy 1433 woods, efforts are made to popularise them, but until furniture generally is made of those new woods it is difficult to prescribe that they shall be used.