The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1895-09-05
THE NORTHWEST LUMBER TRADE.

Many man coming here from the
East miscalcuiates the chances of making
fortune. He sees the wonderful forests
the beautiful locations for mill sites, he
knows what white pine is selling for in the
East, he knows what lumber can be made
for, he figures the freights and counts
the profit which in his calculations some
times rolls up into the hundreds and
thousands very fast. Figures cannot lie,
he says and his calculating is seconded
by the real estate man, who is trying to
sell him the timber land, and perhaps
get chance from him to plat town
and sell house lots from the same tract.
OF course figures do not lie, but If you
don't get all the figures in you don't get
the whole truth. Let me state a few
facts to be added to what you have al
ready CLEANED. There is plenty of lumber
here to take the place of white pine, but
the people East believe in white pine,
and 1t is and will be for many years
their first, choice, without regard as to
whether it is best or not. Great mis-
takes have been made in the manner OF
putting Pacific coast lumber into the
Eastern market in the fact that little
consideration has been given the wishes
of the eastern buyers in regard to how
they wanted the stock worked. The peo-
pie, with few exceptions, who have been
getting out lumber for the Eastern mar
ket know little or nothing about the
condition of things East, or the require
ments of the Eastern dealers. This has
had the effect to give a-decided setback
to the business. This is not the worst
OF it; the bad work is stiN going on, and
cheap dealers and cheap mill men are
t-fc nd oh
statesmen, who have not the first idea
of how an order should be filled. This
state of affairs has made the Eastern
dealer tired and suspicious, and unless
he has happened to get hold of a respon-
sible mill man or dealer from this Sec
ton he is inclined to let Pacific coast
lumber drop until such time as he Is
obliged to force demand for 1t. All this
works against the man who Is starting
a mill business on the Pacific coast. One
firm that know which has leased little
mil through its salesman, sold 10 cars
of mixed lumber and shingles within a
few weeks, and / will gamble that GU
per cent of these orders will never be
filed, and there will be a kick on 70 per
cent of those that are filled, and just
one at that. Taking orders on a false
representation is not the way to build
up a successful eastern business, but IL
is a sure way to make trouble even for
the firms which are able to ship good
stock well manufactured. All of these
things have to be contended with by the
new shipper as well as the fact that there
are mills already butt which will more
than furnish the lumber and shingles
needed in the East for the next five
years. Many of these mills are poorly
constructed, with machinery not suitable
to the business and that poorly arranged
in the mill; but they manage to do some
business and If they cannot get the stock
out as well as some of the better mills
it wifi be sold for less money, and the
cheap mill man with his cheap lumber
" III have a tendency to keep down the
price of lumber, so that the man with
an up-todate mill is only keeping the
mill running for the benefit OF his work.
men and hanging on until such time
as the timber shall get into fewer hands,
when they may possibly stand a chance
of swapping dollar for a dollar ana
ten cents. Now is the time to buy tim
ber hand, and the quicker the timber is
in few hands the better for all
concerned. Correspondence of B. F.
Cobb to Northwestern Lumberman.