The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-05
NAVAL STORES.

I
NAVAL STORES.
An unsatisfactory year has closed with
the prices of spirits, and all the grades
of resins save the commons. at such a low
point that profit to the producer seems out
of the question. Dissatisfaction with the
existing conditions, conditions that are
| entirely due to the vastly increased pro-
duction of the past four years, has grown
steadily and has found partial voice in a
| convention of producers at which it has
| been determined to hold the cut of new
boxes the next season down to one-third
of what it was during the last cutting
period About one-half of the operators
were present or represented at this meet
/ ing, and it is quite probable that enough
| of the others will unite with them to in
| sure some material reduction in the next
| crop of turpentine and fine resins. Unless
| there is such a radical reduction as would
be brought about by the limited cut re-
| ferred to, the prices that those products
of the south would bring next year would
unquestionably be much lower than the
lowest of this year. Especially would this
|
which have been on the verge of being alb
| solutely unsaleable at times during the
year under review. With the large stocks
| of them abroad and at home, another del
uge of new stuff next year would place 1t
beyond the power of factors to dispose of
them even at prices that would seem al
most equivalent to giving them away. The
proposed reduction in the cut of new
boxes would most directly affect the sup
ply of pales and of spirits and would go to
the root of the cause of existing low
| prices.
The meetink of operators was the cul-
mination of an emphatic and continuous
lesson on the law of supply and demand.
If he ever doubted it before. the average
| operator has certainly no ground after the
past years experience, not to believe that
| a supply that is much greater than the
| demand, will inevitably work out lower
prices. He need not have studied the
science of political economy to appreciate
that fact. With the supply and the
prices of the past few years before him
he would need no college professor or
| learned disputant TO teach him that when
there are two gallons of spirits or two
| barrels of window glass rosin on the mar
ket and the requirements of consumption
call for but one that the purchaser has
the advantageous position and will Sc
cure what he needs at low cost. BY unity
of action the operators can profit by this
| knowledge if they will. The outlook now
| is that for the first time in the history
of the industry hearty cooperation has
| been secured and that factors and oper-
atOrs will stand together for the common
| good. A reduction such as has been de
| cided upon would mean about 20 per cent
| n he is < inn cd
and that should be sufficient to place
| prices upon a paying basis for 1SY7-9S, al
| least. For the remainder of the present
crop year QS96-9O though, no fnateria
Improvement can be looked for. Will
the biggest crop on record to be mar
keted, with general business conditions
unsettled, and with a considerable supply
of upper grades of rosins carried ovel
from the previous year, there is no reason
to expect any betterment as to prices
The operators will doubtless for the pres
ent have to make the most out of the
bad situation into which they have thrown
| themselves. No blame can attach to an!
one save those in the industry. Column
after column of warning has been given
Statistics have been showered upon all
Facts have been dealt out with liberia
hand. But, in the face of them all, pro
duction has been pushed to an extreme
and the unpleasant results must be borne
| Consequences are said to be ptiless. L
is unfortunately true that the naval stores
producers are just now finding them so.
| Spirits Turpentine.-The course of the
year as to spirits is a tale that is easily
told. 1t is story of falling prices. Open.
ing in last September at 251s cents pei
gallon, the year under review closed or
Aug. 81 with the official quotation at 221,
cents. The highest price of the year was
30 cents in January, when there were but
small receipts to be marketed and the
lowest for the year, as we'll as the lowest
on record, was % cents on the first day
of August. The difference between these
two quotations does not adequately rep.
resent the range of prices. The 30-cent
quotation was merely an incident Lower
values was the rule. During the eigh
months of heaviest receipts, the period
when the great bulk of the crop is mar.
keted, the fluctuations of prices was re-
stricted between 1854 and % cents. The
highest point reached by spirits during
the year, 80 cents, was probably the low
est highest price on record for any year
In 1S94-95 the highest price was IS cents
in 1884 il was 31h cents; in 1928 it was
35 cents: and in 1912 it was Al cents. The
lowest price of 1S94-95 was % cents; of 1893
"a it was 241a cents; of 1929 1t was Q
cents; and of 1912 it was 25lk cents II
no other year previous TO 1885 had there
been such low range of prices. The bull
of sales from Sept. /, 1895, to August 81
1895, was made below 251a cents. When II
is borne In mind that for the last foul
months nearly all sales were at or below
"a cents, and that in those four months
about $4,000 casks of spirits were receiv
ed al Savannah alone, IL is at once evident
that the fears of the producers as to the
immediate future, are well grounded. witt
the crop of 1861 as at present mar
keted about $4,000 casks aheaC
OF that of 1856 to the same date, and The
weekly receipts showing no disposition t
fail behind, it is quite probable that tn,
review g the end of the crop year (Marci
81, 1890 will show an average price of sal,
as low as 23i5 cents.
Rosin-As in the case of spirits turpen
tine, the rosin business during the pas
year was very unsatisfactory and unproh
table The increased cut of new boxes
Of course, brought an increase of pal,
roslns on the market The producers over
looked the fact that at the end of tn,
previous year there was a large stock o.
pales on hand, and the price steadily de
clining. The enormous quantity of pale.
manufactured during the past year great
~ increased the supply. and as there was