Grand Rapids morning telegram., 1885-02-16
TIE LUMBER BUSINESS.
A REVIEW OF LAST YEARS WORK.
The Total Cut Greater Than that OF
1888 10y Nearly Halt Million
Feet uture Prospects.

CmcAoo. February l4.-The Northeastern
LuRbesmaa publishes an extensive review
of the pine lumber product of the North
west for 1854. The following is a sum
mary:
The district west of Chicago, including
the Duluth district. ST. Croix River, Chip
pewa River. Chicago. ST. Paul & Minneapolis
Railway lumber line, Mississippi River,
Mime @,ta mills, Wisconsin Valley division
of the Chicago. Milwaukee q 81. Paul Rail-
way. Wisconsin Central. Milwaukee, Lake
Shore & Western. Wolf River and Wisconsin
mills, a total of &, AS, ,c46.757 feet.
Chicago district, including Green Bay,
Cheboygan, Manistee, Ludington. White
Lake, MuSkegon. Grand Haven and Spring
Lake and miscellaneous mills, total of
2,327 ,1I0. ll2 feet
Railroad and interior mills. incluaing the
Chicago & West Michigan Railway, Grand
Rapids & Indiana Detroit, Lansing & North
ern, Flint 4 Pere Marquette, Mackinac di-
vision of the Michigan Central and miscel-
laneous Michigan mills, total OF 7a3,0S2,
722 feet.
Saginaw District. including the Saginaw
Valley and Lake Huron shore, a total Of L.
459. .S33, t63 feet.
Lake Erie pOiuts, 1l tttt.
Making grand total of s,070.5E,O5a feet,
against 1924, rs, $50 in lSs3 aud 1862, ,l50.-
7ia A,le62.
se~zY "a SHINGLES
Shay - product for the same period:
District west of Chicago, 1875, 100; Chicago
district, 1.a35,050; railroads. and interior
mills, 1882 Saginaw district, 3i9. ,50O
grand total ,543, SIG 600. against 1854, 7J6, :
639 in 1888 and 4,09i, ,277 ,G5S in 1882.
COMPARISON.
From this it will be seen that the grand
total of the lumber cut of 1884 exceeds that
of 1883 by nearly half a billion feet. or about
IA much as Chicago and its suburbs consume
in the entire year. This gain is about
equally contributed from Lake Michigan TO
ST. Paul.
GAINS AND DECREASES IN DISTRICTS.
The district west of Chicago has made q
gain of 3l4 .3l5,000 feet: Chic ago district a
gain of PIG, 700 200, and interior mills of
Michigan decrease of 100, $685. 600: Saginaw
district an increase of 1881 .0OO The
manufacturing sections of the field made
the principal gain.
In the district west of Chicago and the
Mississippi river, the mills sawed l2i, ,232. 900
feet more lumber than In 1888; Duluth dis
Lake Michigan, East Shore, Huron
Shore and Saginaw Valley were quite
evenly distributed. The decrease was not
large anywhere, however, showing that the
larger mills were run to about their full
capacity, regardless of the fact their lumber
was constantly accommodating in excess of the
demand. 1t appears To have been the deter
mination of the mill owners in general 10
make a full stock of lumber, in spite of the
resolution of the Lumber Manufacturers
Association of the Northwest that all should
shut down October i.
FUTURE PRODUCTION.
The Lumbermdn adds: 'It is possible that
the production will be maintained at about
last years output, perhaps little less, for
several years to come. as ii was for years
succeeding the panic of 1873. Certain II L.
that if the ratio of Increase characteristic of
the past ak years is TO be continued. our pine
supply will disappear faster than we are now
calculating, for such prodigious volume Of
production means a degree of wasteful
slaughter and constant overlooking OF the
market. The wiser course would be a slower,
more careful and economical procedure.
In this connection il is shown thtt there
are seventy six logging railroads in Wiscon-
sin and Michigan, with n total mileage of
COZ, employing ITO locomotives and 2,0la
cars.