16,891. You mean the six-oared boat of about 21 or 22 feet keel?-Yes. I have seen one at least of those dimensions.
16,892. Do you build boats of that kind yourself?-No. Our boats are much superior to the boats there.
16,893. Can you say at what price you could build a of 22 feet keel in the style of the Shetland boat?-I could hardly say.
16,894. What do you get for a boat of that size, such as you are in the habit of building?-£22, 10s. That is just for the shell of the boat, with the ironwork attached to it. The men have the masts, sails, and oars to supply on their own responsibility.
16,895. How much would the mast and ropes and other fittings cost, including the sail?-I don't know what quantity of ropes they would require, but with the yawls which are used in fishing in the Firth of Forth, it generally costs about £1, 10s. to fit them with mast and oars, and the necessary spar, without the sail. The sail, I think, would cost about £4.
16,896. You have seen a Shetland boat: have you any idea whether such a boat as is used there would cost more or less than a boat such as you have been speaking of?-The Shetland boats of the same size would not be half the value of our boats here.
16,897. Why?-Because the timber is inferior, and they are lighter. I might have 24 timbers in a side, when they would only have 10 or 12.
16,898. Are your boats built in the same style as the Shetland boats? Are they clinker-built?-Yes; but I don't suppose they use the same materials. I think it is Norwegian timber they use; and if that is so, the cost of them would be considerably less.
16,899. About how much less would it be?-I cannot calculate that exactly, because wages there are less than they are here.
16,900. What would be the difference in the cost of the timber? Would it be so much as one half?-No. Larch is about 14s. per 100 feet of planking, and the timber they use would be from 8s. to 10s.