Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-03-17
MAINE BIRCH.
Crowding Spruce in Value and In
portance.
Increase In Demand for Wooden Novelties Is
the Cause.

able as those on which spruce is
grown" said one of the most prom-
nent cumberland owners on the Ken
nebec, in speaking of the value of
timberlands The speaker was no
less a person than E. p. Niles of
Skowhegan, who was in this city on
official business.
Long years experience in the timber
business has given him a knowledge
of conditions and this coupled with an
unusual foresight has caused his
opinions to be respected everywhere,
and especially by the men who are
connected with the pulp and paper
mills.
Continuing with his conversation Mr.
Viles said that in Franklin county
there is already an unusual demand
for the birch wood. That demand
has not yet reached Somerset county
but the owners of timberiands are con-
fident that it will before long.
BY birch timberlands, Mr. Viles did
not mean that all birch timberlands
would be as valuable as all spruce
but that those timberlands located in
places where the birch is accessible
would be as valuable as the acces-
sibe spruce timberlands. That is
just where the difference lies between
them. In former years, it was those
spruce tmberlands located near the
river banks that were most valuable.
That was on account of the POSSIBLE
ity of getting out the timber without
so much expense that the profit would
be taken off before it reached the mills
where it was wanted for manufacture
ing.
On the other hand the value of
birch timber lies in it's being adjacent
to railroads. This is on account of
the weight Of the birch The birch is
so heavy that it cannot be worked in
the drives for it will sink, if there is
long drive ahead. before the drive
reaches the place where it is to be
manufactured.
Already there is something of a
movement among manufacturers Of
novelties to buy birch timberIands.
especially those located along the
railroads. And it is so confidently
believed that the demand will further
increase that the owners Of the birch
timberlands are rather loath to part
with their property of this nature.
1t is just at this point that the men
who have been in the business for a
number of years are making double
profit from their first investment AS
has been rehearsed SO many times
that it is now am old story, the second
growth on the spruce timberlands is
birch. For years the operators have
been working on; the spruce lands. SO
that where the spruce is all cut off the
owners have realized a good interest
on their original investment and even
with that much gain have the original
land on their hands.
When the spruce is cut away it
takes but a very few years for the
second growth of birch to appear and
now that the birch timberlands bid
fair to increase to a value nearly the
equal of the spruce the cumberland
owners have the bright prospect of
another good interest on the original
investment. though the first intention
Of buying the timberlands was wholly
to gain the profits of the spruce cut.
1t is a notable thing that the men
who are now trying to buy birch tim
berland with a view to using the birch
for manufacturing purposes are plan
ming to erect the factories on the
ground. so that when the birch finally
leaves the locality on which it grew it
will be in the finished product. That
the movement for this idea of locating
the manufactures of the place where
the timber grows is increasing, is seen
by the fact that, this year, several
firms have erected factories up in the
wilderness OF the State.
The reason for this is very evident.
The reduction of expense is the main
feature, for it is much less expensive
to ship the manufactured product out
than it is to have the logs hauled to
the mill and then after the first haul
to make the second haul of the manu-
featured product
The reason for the increase in the
value of the birch timberands is that
the demand for birch novelties is in
creasing steadily as is shown by the
birch handles on coffee pots, the birch
handles on sadirons. and the thousand
and one things that come into daily
use and are now considered the neces-
| sites of life.