The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1890-07-25
INCREASING VALUE OF PINE
LANDS.

" value of the pine forests of II
South. The writer very just
observes, as we of Mississippi
can testify, hat our pin
n forests r attracting more a
tention at the present time tina
ever before; that many of tn
: "leading lumbermen in the North
: west are quietly purchasing all tn,
: pine lands they al possibly get,
with the view to moving South il
the near future; that the South
ern lumberman ear scarcely supply
the immense demand, and il
every instance are increasing the
capacity of their mills, and that
"new mills are being established
daily along the routes of the new
railroads, and the lumber bust
ness of the South is assuming ri
gantic proportions" What all this
means to the Southern owners of
pine lands is clearly stated by
Colonel Pinckney as follows F.:
Every few people, even at the South,
realize the enormous value of our pine
forests, and thousands of acres are COB.
bled mp by Northern syndicates at the
pdltry price of two or three dollars an
acre. 1t is folly to sell at such prices,
for, at the present rate of stumpage. in a
few years the white pine forests will have
almost entirely disappeared, and then
yellow pine lumber will sell for even
better prices than it is now bringing,
and virgin forest lands will triple in
value. Dirie has often sounded this warn
ing before in its lumber department, but
] do not think it can be too often repeat
ed. 1t might be said that the South holds
the reserve supply of tho cOuntry's lum-
Der, and as new railroads are being con-
staltly constructed, new pine lands are
developed for the lumber business. and
they are worth from ten to twenty dol
lars an acre. 1t is estimated that there
are 2l2, 937 100000 feet of yellow pine
lumber standing in the South to-day. At
a valuation of ten dollars a thousand
feet, the total value of this forest wealth
reaches the startling amount of S 129,
100000"
In support of his assertion that
the market value of these lands
will speedily be enhanced three
fold at least, Col Pinckney cites
statistics of the lumber business
in some of the Northwestern
States, whose capitalists and lum-
bermen are now buying up South
ern forests so greedily. In 1860
the entire lumber product of Wis
consin, Michigan and Minnesota
was 10000 900 feet. In 1889 it
reached the enormous figures of
$500, 1000, feet, or more than
five times the product of 1860.
The result OF this increase, saws
Col. Pinckney, "has been to adj ,
vance the pine lands in those
States from $1.25-the price paid
IN 1S6O-tO an average value of ,
and in some instances to SIS .
per acre. This means an average
yalue of 81 a thousand feet oflum-
Der In the trees" Land owners :
n Mississippi who have sold their {
'lne timber at from $1.25 to 81 or l
D an acre can readily estimate =
these figures what their v
ands were really worth, and I'M ii
erstand as readily why well in g
'rmed prospectors from the h
orthwestern States have been N
illing to buy at such prices, and j.
re still hunting for more bar
aims on the same terms. &C
1t is estimated that there are -
ot more than 145,OOO,O 900 feet of
Imber standing in the lake re- if
on at present, and even at the
tie of the cutting which was
'ached in 1889, it is seen that the
.pply in that quarter will be 9v
holly exhausted in fifteen years. 20
view of these conditions Col. +.
nckney asks, what must be the Nj
lue of Southern forests then or
d answers the question by say N.
2: -
less than ten years it may be safe
predicted that virgin pine forests in
South, now selling at from s. to 50 an lat
9, Will bring from SIS to $50. No bet toe
investment can be made than to put on
IN yellow pine lands. and it rs II
to see our pine forests passing into &c
hands Of men from other sections,
D obtain our b~irhnght tor a mess Of No
age. Tho man who sells his forests -