Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1900-03-02


A serious famine threatens the paper
industry of the United States. Various
causes have conspired to lessen the
product of the mills, while the demand
for print paper and the other ordinary
grades is unprecedented.
The conditions led to secret meet
ing Of the leading paper manufacturers
of the United States yesterday at the
Great Northern hotel, to consider what
could be done to avert the famine
threatened by the shortage in wood
pulp, which, II 1t is not relieved, will
cause the vast paper mills of the coun-
try to shut down and cripple seriously
every industry which depends upon the
product Of the mills. Nearly all OF
the leading paper manufacturers of the
country were present, and the principal
topic Of interest was new fiber for
the manufacture of paper, to take the
place of the wood fibre now in
such universal use. What the new
fiber is, the paper manufacturers would
not say. They averred that at present
the process by which 1t is manufacture
cred is in crude stage, but they dis
cussed 1t as the only visible solution
Of present difficulties.
Great Lack of Material.
mot for twenty years has such
serious condition confronted the manu-
facturers of paper, and there Is great
danger that we may be forced to close
our mills for lack Of material" said A.
d. Schaeffer Of the Hartford City Pa
per company, who presided over the
meeting. Various causes are respon-
sible for this condition. The principal
one is that wood pulp, from which the
lower grades Of paper is manufactured,
is so hard to get that there is a con-
slant scramble for material. Recent
inquiry Of the pulp mills at Sault Ste
Marie, the largest pulp mills in the
world, develops the fact that there 10
not a pound for sale there, and other
mills are as hard pressed The rapid
cutting of the forests of the Eastern
and middle Western states, and the
stopping of the supply from Canada
is largely responsible for the threaten
ed famine. Added to the scarcity of
timber is the recent mild weather,
which has made it impossible to bring
the pulp wood which has been cut to
market. A large palt of the seasons
cut of the forests Of Wisconsin and
Michigan, upon which the middle
Western states depend for pulp wood,
Is now lying on the bare ground and
cannot be moved until snow comes.
Another great danger comes in the
possibility of heavy fall of snow fol-
lowing this long dry season. A fall of
eighteen inches of snow would cover.
up the pulp wood already cut SO that
1t would be next to impossible to dig
it out and float it down the river to the
mills.
Labor Also Scarce.
"a great scarcity of labor in the pin
cries has also made the movement Of
pulp wood to the mills slow. Com
panies cutting pulp wood have spent
thousands of dollars importing men
into the pineries to cut pulp wood
only to lose them when they got there.
Boys Of eighteen and nineteen are be-
ing largely employed in the work.
Canada has bsen the source of sup
ply for many Of the Eastern mills,
but that source of supply has been cut
off as the outing of timb@ on crown
lands has been prohibited and the
province Of Quebec makes the importer
pay $1.00 per cord duty, which makes
the material too expensive. The only
solution we can see Is to adopt new
fiber as a substitute for wood fiber.
That Is the subject of discussion. We
have one in view, but do not care to
talk of that now.
Another difficulty which confronts
Eastern manufacturers is lack OF
water upon which they depend FOR
power. That, too, is the result OF the
cutting away of the forests. The mills
of the middle West are not embarrass-
ed in this respect to the same extent
as the Eastern mills.
1--WE have not come together to form
any combination or to raise prices.
The demand naturally governs prices.
The sole object is to avert famine II
possible, for famine would hurt the
producer as much as the consumer"
c. Brockelbank, vice president and
Western manager of the Manufacture
ers' Paper company of New York, with
offices in the Rookery building, con-
firmed the statements made by William
Schaeffer concerning the trade.
Condition Is Serious.
"If present conditions In the pineries
continue, there will be serious short /
age of pulp wood in the Vest until .
next fall" he said. 1T has been sim
ply impossible to get the spruce, from
which wood pulp is made, to market &
It grows in the swamps of the pineries.
and the winter has been so open that
1t has been impossible to haul it to thes
rivers, down which it is '1oated to tbs
mills, as wagons would sink to the Z.
hubs in mud and water Only contin-
ued cold weather can relieve the condi-