Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1894-06-16
PAPER PRODUCTION.
he Enormous Quantity Turned
 Out Daily by American Mills.
In 9'his Industry the United st.5tes Dis fances All Other Countries-RemarH- able Development During the,
 Last Decade.

It is a curious and rather startling
 fact that next to the articles enter-
 ing into food and clothing paper is the
 most universally used commodity in tho world. 1t would be an almost i'm possible task to find in any civilized community Q person or business con cern that does not to a greater or less degree make use of paper in some of its various forms. Some philosopher has said that the civilization and prpsperity of a country may be ineasured by it's consumption of paper. If this is as fair an index as seems upon reflection to be reason able, says the Philadelphia Times, statistics prove the United States to have distaneed all the ether nations of the world in the race of true develop ment. Perhaps no line of business has had more remarkable growth in the United States the past ten years than the paper-making industry. This is true in all branches, but especially so in the line of book and news print pa- pers. The American people are na- tion of readers, and the rapidly de- creRsing prices of books and newspa- pers have greatly increased the con sumption of paper in these two lines. Che or 2seents will purchase mass of reading matter in the form of our great dailies, consisting of from eight to six teen pages, while F to % cents will purchase handsomely bound and at trac ctive books of standard and popular anthors. The daily output of news print paper in the United States is abont 200 to 1,500 tons. Just think of 125 or 150 carloads of newspapers mentally devoured each day in this conntry! The production of news print is larger than any other grade. That Of book paper is probably as much as is900 tons and of writing 450 tons each daily.
 Y will be interesting here to quote sone of the figures of the paper in aistry in the United States as com piled by the Paper Trade Journal. The gross daily capacity of the paper mills. of tAe United States in operation dur ing ls92-3 for all kinds and grades of paper was estimated at about 10000 tens Of this amount nearly : 500 tons teHresented news print and book pa per, 1,so0 toms wrapping paper. s5o tons straw board 450 tons Vri5ing paper and almost 2 loo tons of the various ether lzinds and efaaes. 4he states which rank first ip the production of paper are New York, Maine, Massachusetts, asIseonsln, Pennsylvania, Ohio &5 Hi nois. From these seven states come nearly three=foarths of the entire pa per supply ef the country. By far the greater l..r5 Of t.ls vast output is con sn7ned in the United States, the grea test papl asiHg country in the world h foreign markets. however, American paper is gaining firm foot Ing The greatest consumption of printing paper isin the Sunday editions Of the metropolitan daifies. which often require from 60 to 100 tons for a single issue. With the rapidly increasing output prices have as rapidly declined, until to-day q grade of news print pa per worth twenty-five years ago 13 cents or Il cents per pound is now sold at 213 cents to cents-a decline In price unequaled in the history of any other industry This enormous de- crease in the cost of paper is due es- peeially to Che introduction of wood as paper stock. To-day 1t is the principal material used in the manufacture of paper for all but the highest grades of book and writing. News print and not only ordinary but even very attractive snalities of book paper are made en- tirely of wood. Another means con ducive to this phenomenal reduction of cost has been the improvement in methods of making wood pulp The perfection and greater efficiency at tained in paper-mal1ing machinery, rendering much larger production easily possible in given time, have added materially in this downward frend of nrice