Chapter XXXII Prices of Contract or Piecework
The following prices may be taken as approximating to those paid generally throughout the country previous to the war.
It may be well to remember, however, that in districts where unusually high or low wages are paid, so in proportion will be the contract prices for the various classes of work.
| BARKING OAK: | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Barking | oak | per ton | 21 | 0 | | | |
| Loading | bark on wagons | ″ | 3 | 0 | | | |
| Barking | oak per ton of bark | | 30 | 0 | | | |
| Chopping | bark | ″ | 8 | 0 | to | 10 | 0 |
| COPPICEWOOD: |
| Cutting | out hurdle rods | per score | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | hurdle stakes | per dozen | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | rake stems | ″ | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | spade stems | ″ | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | spick gads | ″ | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | dahlia stakes | ″ | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | rose stakes | per two dozen | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | besom handles | ″ | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | kidney-bean stakes | 50 in bundle | 0 | 2 |
| ″ | pea stakes | per bundle | 0 | 1 |
| ″ | birchwood for besoms | ″ | 0 | 1 |
| DRAINING: | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Pipe | draining, | mains, 4 ft. 3 in. deep, | |
| | 4 in. or 6 in. pipes | per chain | 3 | 0 | to | 3 | 6 |
| ″ | ″ | small, 4 ft. deep, 1½ in. | |
| | to 3 in. pipes | ″ | 2 | 0 | ″ | 2 | 9 |
| ″ | ″ | small, 4 ft. deep, 1½ in. pipes | ″ | 1 | 9 | ″ | 2 | 6 |
| Ditches, | open, | 36 in. wide at top, 30 in. deep, | |
| | and 9 in. wide at bottom | per chain | 3 | 0 | to | 4 | 0 |
| Scouring out ditto | ″ | 0 | 9 | ″ | 1 | 0 |
| Small open | ditches, | 15 in. to 18 in.wide at top, | |
| | 12 in. to 15 in. deep, and 9 in. | |
| | wide at bottom | ″ | 1 | 6 | ″ | 2 | 6 |
| Scouring out ditto | ″ | 0 | 6 | ″ | 0 | 9 |
| FAGGOT-MAKING: | s. | d. |
| Making | faggots | per 100 | 4 | 6 |
| ″ | oven faggots | ″ | 3 | 0 |
| ″ | faggots for fire-lighting | ″ | 1 | 3 |
| Cutting | bands for tying faggots | ″ | 0 | 4 |
| FELLING AND STUBBING TIMBER: | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Felling | oak timber | per ton | of 40 ft. | 3 | 0 | |
| ″ | other hardwoods | ″ | ″ | 2 | 6 | |
| ″ | pinewood | ″ | ″ | 1 | 6 | to | 1 | 9 |
| Stubbing | out timber | ″ | ″ | 3 | 6 | ″ | 4 | 0 |
| Cutting | underwood from 12 to 15 years’ growth | per acre | 9 | 6 | ″ | 12 | 0 |
| FENCING: | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Setting | out and | mortising | 4-holed | posts | per score | 4 | 0 | |
| ″ | ″ | ″ | 3-holed | ″ | ″ | 3 | 0 | |
| ″ | ″ | ″ | 2-holed | ″ | ″ | 2 | 6 | |
| ″ | ″ | ″ | 1-holed | ″ | ″ | 2 | 0 | |
| ″ | and cleaving rails | | | ″ | 0 | 10 | |
| ″ | ″ | ″ | stakes | | ″ | 0 | 6 | |
| ″ | ″ | ″ | long poles | | ″ | 0 | 6 | |
| ″ | ″ | ″ | short poles | | ″ | 0 | 4 | |
| Hanging field-gates | each | 4 | 0 | to | 5 | 0 |
| Fixing stile | ″ | 2 | 0 | |
| Preparing posts, rails and pails for tree guards | per set | 0 | 9 | |
| Fixing ditto | ″ | 2 | 0 | |
| Six-wire fence larch posts and creosoted | per chain | 35 | 0 | to | 40 | 0 |
| Fixing same | ″ | 4 | 6 | ″ | 5 | 0 |
| FIREWOOD: | | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Splitting | firewood | | per cord | 4 | 0 | to | 6 | 0 |
| ″ | ″ | for charcoal | ″ | 2 | 6 | ″ | 3 | 0 |
| Cutting and stacking | cordwood | ″ | 2 | 0 | ″ | 3 | 0 |
| Burning | charcoal | per bushel | of 20 lbs. | | | | 0 | 2 |
| Loading and spreading soil | per load | 0 | 5 | ″ | 0 | 6 |
| GATE-MAKING: | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Field gate, oak | 5-bar | | 17 | 0 |
| Posts | per pair | | 23 | 0 |
| Iron fastening and ironwork complete | | | 5 | 9 |
| ″ Fixing | | | 4 | 6 |
| Making 5-bar oak gate | | 2 | 6 |
| ″ half gate | | 1 | 9 |
| ″ rough wickets | | 2 | 0 |
| ″ wrought wickets | | 3 | 0 |
| Sawing hardwood | per 100 ft. | 3 | 6 | to | 4 | 0 |
| ″ | softwood | ″ ″ | 2 | 6 | ″ | 3 | 0 |
| HEDGING: | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Trimming hedges, ordinary size | per chain | 0 | 9 | to | 1 | 6 |
| Making bank for quick hedge, |
| digging ditch and planting quick | ″ | 7 | 6 | ″ | 10 | 6 |
| ″ | hedge, without bank or ditch, trenching | |
| ground, preparing bed and planting | ″ | 3 | 0 | ″ | 4 | 0 |
| Cleaning young hedges | ″ | 0 | 8 | ″ | 0 | 9 |
| Laying hedge and scouring out ditch | ″ | 2 | 0 | ″ | 3 | 0 |
| HURDLE-MAKING: | s. | d. | | s. | d. |
| Making | hurdles | per dozen | 3 | 6 | to | 4 | 0 |
| ″ | cattle hurdles (wattle) | ″ | 5 | 0 | ″ | 6 | 0 |
| ″ | Welsh hurdles, for sheep | ″ | 4 | 0 | ″ | 5 | 0 |
| PITTING: |
| Digging | out clay | per yard | | 0 | 6 |
| ″ | holes for tree planting, 15 in. |
| in diameter and 15 in. deep | per 100 | 1 | 6 | to | 2 | 6 |
| Inserting plants | ″ | 0 | 6 | ″ | 1 | 0 |
| Notch planting | ″ | 2 | 0 | ″ | 3 | 0 |
| PREPARING ROAD MATERIAL: |
| Quarrying stones | per yard | 0 | 10 | to | 1 | 3 |
| Breaking stones for roads | ″ | 0 | 8 | ″ | 1 | 0 |