Abstract
In the late 19th century and early 20th century, the forest-based industry and the wood-processing industry made great progress in Bukovina, relying on valuable forestry and efficient administration, on a wide development of railways and of narrow-gauge railways (forest railways) and on the existence of several floatable water courses, either natural or hydrotechnical constructions. Alongside Bistriţa River, Prut River constituted an important method of timber transportation, being used by the timber rafts that came down on tributary Ceremuş and for the trade of raw or sawn timber with Romania or Russia. The volume of floating on Prut River outside the boundaries of Bukovina depended on several factors, among which the quantum of custom duties had a prominent place. Divergent trade interests of forest owners, supported by timber traders and representatives of wood-manufacturing industry, explode in the petitions addressed to the leading forums and in journalistic controversy, providing a veridical depiction of the economic life in Bukovina of late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Keywords: floating, Prut, customs duties, Novoseliţa, export.
Cuvinte-cheie: plutărit, Prut, taxe vamale, Novoseliţa, export.