The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1894-10-19
NUMBER 35.
LUMBER INTERESTS in NO PEl,L.


ttMbEH MIkkENIS IN No PERIL.
Mobile Register.
No other paper in the country has
done more to make it appear that free
lumber meant immediate and ever
lasting damage to the country's lum-
Der interests, than the Northwestern
Lumbcrman, published at Chicago.
Like papers devoted to some special
class of manufacture, the mention OF
"frce trade" was sufficient to throw il
into a bad cascof conniption ats. 70
its credit, it is to be said, the North
western Lumberman has recently sent
a staff correspondent through Canada
to make an investigation of the sub
ject. The result Of the tour OF Mr..
John K, Williams, the staff cores
pondent, Is just what the advocates of
free lumber expected such journey
would produce. He has discovered
that the Canadian lumbermen were
not only not waiting with knife in
hand to rush into the markets Of the
United States to slash prices into
shreds, but also that they soon dis
covered that they could not do so il
they so desired.
Mr.. Williams has found further
that under Canadian laws, regulating
the cutting of pine timber, together
with other necessary expenditures,
the current cost of virgin stumpage
ranges from $3.50 to SO a thousand
feet. This, on an acreage which will
cut 5000 feet, means stumpage cost
of $3.50 to SIS an acre. In addition
to this he learned that the cost of
production was slightly, if any, less
than it is in the white pine producing
States of the Northwest.
With these very important facts in
hand the influence upon prices de-
pends upon the extent and product
iveness of Canadian pine forests and
the cost of transportation to market.
These influences are practically the
same whether under protection or
free trade We say practically, be.
cause under heavy pressure to get
] to United States markets, competi-
tion might have bearing on freight
charges; but this condition would
depend entirely upon the fact whether
or not the production OF Canadian
lumber is capable of being increased
to dangerous magnitude for an in
definite period, and that free trade
would accelerate this production.
After viewing the subject in it's
every phase, Mr.. Williams states his
conclusion briefly but forcibly when
he says: "We have all been Oyeresti-
mating the Importance Of Canadian
lumber as a source of competition"
Again he says: "There is nothing in
the present situation SO far as yet
Investigated to warrant any serious
disturbance of lumber values any,
where in the United States"
These facts were patent to those
who had taken the trouble to illvesti-
gate for themselves uninfuenced by
what they considered their personal
interests; and we must conclude that
the bulk OF the Canadian product will
be sent to the markets of the Eastern
States as it has been done before
under the highest protection which
this country has ever placed on lum-
Der.
| For the year ending June, 1893,
under the Mckinley law, Ontario and
Quebec exported to the United States
100000 feet of lumber out of q
total production of 1,056, ,00O, 900 feet.
The last named amount looks enor-
nous, but as big as it is, it is about
one-half OF the amount often handled
by Chicago alone. There appears to
be little reason to fear that the ex-
ports Of lumber will be materially in
creased. Mr. Williams says: "It is
the opinion of the best informed Of
Canadian millmen, in which l fully
concur, that the new mills to be es-
tablished as direct result of tariff
legislation, will be few and far be-
tween"
The conclusion of Mr.. Williams as
to the buncombe declarations COM
monty INDUCED as to peril threatening
the lumber industry Of the United
States, and his conclusions In general,
force the Northwestern Lumberman
to editorially take very conservative
view Of the situation. Commenting
on the letter Of Mr.. Williams the
paper says:
"The correspondence also discloses
with reassuring particularly that the
cost of production IN Canada is only
slightly, II any, less than the North
western States. 1t is also made
clearly apparent that the few new
plants contemplated will largely be
merely substitutes for mills disman-
tied on account Of denudation in the
Northwest, and thus cut little figure
as means Of actually increasing the
supply of the past.
'"rhe correspondence under review
should have distinctly wholesome
bearing upon the situation, viewed
from either side Of the boundary and
we are assured that 1t will be pronted
by accordingly to the extent, at least,
that no disturbance Of Eastern mar
kets shall ensue by reason Of any pre-
vious misapprehension upon the sub
|