The Western news. [volume] (Stevensville, Mont.) 1890-1977, 1900-01-10
THERE ARE MILLIONS IN IT.
The Demand for Lumber Constantly
Increasing and II II Be.
coming Scarce.
BITTER ROOT LOGGING CAMPS,
Admirably Equlpped-Progress Being
Made-The 1nlmitable Lumber
Jack-ls Socially lnclined-Ot
Characteristics.

Few people realize the magnitude Of
the lumber industry in Western Mon
taua. Just now it is probably at it's
zenith. Within few years it must
decline for the reason that the forests
are fast falling before the keen edge
of the all-devouring axe. The mines
OF the state are fast reaching cavern
Gus depths and the demand for mining
timber is constantly and enormously
increasing. A thousand years hence
huge deposits of coal will likely be ex-
humed from whence these timbers are
now being entombed. and Butte will
be transformed from the greatest cop
per camp on earth to the greatest coat
camp.
Timber is timber nowadays and a.
the years pass it must of necessity be-
Come more and more valuable. Mar
Gus Daily was first among the capital
lists of the state to discern this and will
be one of the chief beneiciaries. Con-
Lumberman of recent date says:
perhaps the biggest lumber manu-.
facturer in the world is Marcus Daily,
of Montana. In 1898, i'll the mills con-
trolled by him, there was manufactnr-
ed one hundred and eighty millions
feet of lumber. He now employs, in
logging and numbering, seventeen
hundred men. During the past year
he has invested two million dollars in
lumber and timber. His output for
1899 doubtless exceeded two hundred
million feet"
The Anaconda company's principal
saw mill plants are in Hamilton. at
Bonner and St. Regis. These mills
are the largest and best equipped be-
tween St. Paul and the coast. The
big mill here is q model aud has often
been described in the press and most
of our local readers have visited it
while in operation. But few have Wis.,
tied the woods. The Western News
reporter and friend few days ago
spent few hours in the upper valley
camps and we will attempt to give In
idea of what is going on.
| Very few, indeed, have visited the.
primary scene of action and have be.
held the man behind the peevy, cross-
cut saw and four-horse team at work.
IN THE WOODS.
The Anaconda company's loggiur
camps this season are located about
eight miles south of Hamilton, in the
woods west of Camas prairie. Here,
in the center of a tract of timber two
and one-quarter miles wide and eight
miles long, owned by the company,
located two of the best equipped camps
ever built in the Bitter Root. These
camps were each designed to accom-
modate a crew of so men and 80 horses
and consist of office, cook house, bunk
house, stables, granaries, blacksmith
built of unhewn logs. Two spurs from
the railway run along the east edge
of the forest and at intervals are land.
ings where the logs are decked ready
to be loaded on the cars and delivered
upon the carriages in the big mill.
Over 1,0oo, 900 feet of logs are already
decked at the landings and the expec-
tation is that by March 1st, when the
big mill starts up, 100000 feet will
be ready to load on the cars. Much,
however, depends upon the weather.
With good sleighing double the num-
ber OF logs can be moved with one.half
the labor. Hence the pious lumber.
jack is praying for snow.
Back from the landings the lofty
pines are being moved down as if by
l a scythe. Nothing is left standing, for
> every tree that will measure over six
inches in diameter is converted into
lumber. Good well-kept roads, smooth
as boulevards, radiate in many direc.
tions and over these mammoth loads
, are trucked by great four horse teams.
The nearby logs were "go-deviled''
> and skidded. A "go-devil' is sim'
pie v shaped drag. upon which logs
are manipulated and is not at all de-
! nioniacal in appearance. The loge
3 farther back on the steep ,nountair
8 side at present are shot down on trucks
!, stecred by well.trained teams which il
turn are dexterously guided by dare
devil drivers, and which is very SLOW
and dangerous method. The intention
is to deliver these logs through shutea
in future, and one of which, three
quarters of a mile long, is already i
operation and works like charm.
It is conservatively estimated thai
this tract of timber contains not lesl
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