Rocky Ford enterprise., 1900-03-01
A NEWSPAPER FAMINE
SCARCITY OF PRINT PAPER
MAY BRING 1T ON.
0rsat Shortage Of tho Material from
which II Is Msds-CanAdisn supply
Of Wood Puip Shut on Entirely for
the Present.

(From the Chicago Daily Inter-0cean.)
A serious famine threatens the paper
industry OF the United States. Various
causes have conspircd to lessen the
product OF the mills. while the demand
for print paper and the other ordinary
grades Ii 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 II is not relieved. will
cause tho 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 tho 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
hbcr Is. the paper manufacturers would
not say. They averred that at present
the process by which II is mnnutactur-
cred Is In n crude stage. but they dis
cnsscd II ns the only visible solution
Of present difficulties.
Gr-a, Lack Of Material
No; for twenty years has such n
serious condition confronted the manu-
fncturcrs OF paper. and there Is great
danger that We may be forced to close
our mills for lack OF material" said A.
ID. Schncfcr OF the Hartford City Pa
per company. who presided over the
meeting. Various causes are rcspon-
siblc for this condition. The principal
one Is that wood pulp. from which the
lower grades OF paper Ia manufactured.
Is so hard to get that there is a con-
s,nnt scramble for material. Recent
inquiry Of the pulp mills ut sault ste.
Marie. tho largest pulp mills In tho
world. develops the .act that there Is
not pound for sale there. and other
mills arc rs hard pressed. The rapid
/ cutting of tho forests OF the Eastern
and middle Western states. and the
stopping of the supply from Canada
is largely responsible for tho threaten
cd famine. Added to the scarcity OF
timber Ia the recent mild weather,
which has made II impossible to bring
the pulp wood which has been cut TO
market. A large part of the seasons
cut OF the forests OF Wisconsin and
Michigan. upon which the middle
Western states depend for pulp wood.
Ia now lying on the bare ground and
cannot be moved until snow comes.
Another great danger comes in tho
possibility of n heavy fall of snow fol-
lowing this long dry season. 4 fall OF
eighteen inches of snow would cover
up the pulp wood already cut so that
II would be next to impossible to dig
II out and float II 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
panics cutting pulp wood have spent
thousands of dollars importing men
into the pincrics 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 been the source of sup
ply for many OF the Eastern mills.
but that source OF supply has been cut
of rs the cutting OF timber on crown
lands has been prohibited and the
province of Quebec makes the importer
pay S1.90 per cord duty. which makes
the material too expensive. The only
solution We can see is to adopt a new
fiber as n 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.
I'VE have not come together to form
any combination or to raise prices.
The demand naturally governs prices.
The sole object is to avert n famine II
possible, for a famine would hurt tho
producer as much as the consumer
J ]. c. Brockelbank. vice president and
Western manager of the Manufactur-
ers' Paper company of New York. With
offices in the Rookery building. con-
firmed the statements made by William
Schaeffer concerning the trade.
Condition Il serious.
III present conditions in the pineries
continue, there will be a serious short
age of pulp wood in the West until
next fall" he said. at has been sim
ply impossible to get the spruce, from
which wood pulp is made, to market.
1t grows in the swamps of the pineries.
and the winter has been so open that
It has been impossible to haul 1t to the
rivers, down which 1t Is noated to the
mills. as wagons would sink to the
hubs in mud and water. Only contin-
ued cold weather can relieve the condi-
ton"