Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-18
THE TIM B Err TRAD E
WHICH HAVE LED
TO ITS EXTENSION.
The Amount Cut IL approximately
Two Per Cent of Our Ma
tiOnal Resources.

ne NsuOuht Sut -
Two Per Cent of Our Ma
tiOnal Resources.
"The Lumber Trade Of the United
| States" is the title of a monograph just
| issued by the treasury bureau of statistics.
| The lumber industry and trade, 1t finds.
| has within quite recent years changed
from a small scale of production to one in
which machinery, a large outlay of capt.
tai and a farsighted policy of develop
ment of properties are becoming controlling
factors. This change is due partly to the
growth of domestic demand and partly to
the fear of prematurely eXhausting our
timber resources. The existence of sur
plus capital looking for new fields of in
vestment has had tendency to eliminate
the small-scale lumberman; and the policy
of European states in rigidly limiting the
annual cut Of lumber to something like the
rate of increase in the growth of forest
has forced European lumber-consuming in
terests to come to the United States and
Canada, especially for hard woods and
lumber for building purposes. As a result,
the foreign lumber trade of the Cnited
States has grown enormously. Within
quite recent years it has developed from a
local to a worldwide commercial move
ment.
In the foreign trade the Atlantic ports,
the gulf ports and those on the northern
Pacific coast have shared most literally
More lumber is now being shipped from
these ports and from the country as a
whole than at any previous time IN the
history of the country. The total exports
of timber. lumber and manufactured Wood
for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1900,
amounted to $50,39S, 4l6. Imports OF cor
responding products. however, amounted 10
I n.,S h.,1n hT
exactly $}0.o00,o00 of exports of this class
over imports. About half of these imports
come from Canada, consisting mainly OF
plankS, boards, logs and shingles as the
four principal items. Another prlnclpal
feature in our timber imports is the tropi-
cal timber, including Cuban mahogany ana
cedar. Mexican mahogany AID cedar, ana
mahogany from Central and South Amer
lea and Africa.
Not Wasteful Cutting.
Ane wooded area of the United States. &C
cording to the United States geological sur
Vey Is O94 1876 square miles, or 81 per
cent Of the land area. From this standing
supply of timber it is estimated that from
$40 $50 o.tn 900 to 200 900 o9O, 0tto of board
measure feet of lumber are available. The
annual lumber cut has been estimated Tor
the year 1899 at 40,oou.Gtp,UO of B. NJ.
feet; that is cut approximately per
cent of our national timber resources an
nually. OF this cut. 13.o00.0oa000 are cred
tied to the lake region, 1oOo,Ho,ooo to
the southern states 6o0O.0GU,ND to the
northwest and North Atlantic states, 5000
OUt0no to the central states. 4,01,OOO,o~
to the Pacific states, and 2.o0O,0OO,0Oo to
/ the noun ain states, according to the New
Orleans Lumber Trade Journal.
These figures are, however, only an APP
proximation on the part of those familiar
with the industry as a whole; yet they IN
dictate that our timber supply is not diSap-
pearing at an alarming rate, provided the
destructive waste OF forest fires can be pre-
vented.
The Timbered Territory.
The timbered territory of the country
covers five different sections, from
which commercial distribution Is made
| Beginning with New England, the out
put of Maine is still the leading feature
of this section; and the middle states, from
the Adirondacks and northwestern Penn
sylvania still supply 4 considerable market
of more or less local character. The great
est areas of standing timber are found in
the southern states, where the long leaf and
the short leaf pine and the cypress are the
| leading features. In the lake region of the
! northwest. including Michigan, Wisconsin
| and Minnesota, we have the largest output,
| where the white pine and hemlock are the
| leading features. The Pacific coast section
includes the pine and fir forests of Wash
irgton and Oregon and the redwood OF
| California the leading kinds of timber.
The Rocky mountain states are as yet Of
subordinate commercial Importance com
pared with the southern, nOrthWes tern and
Pacific states. 4 comparison of southern
exports of timber lumber and manufac-
| lures thereof with the total from the
| United States shows that southern ports
| furnish IS per cent of the saWn timber
! ported 81 per cent of the hewn timber
| II per cent of the logs. etc; 6S per cent of
| the boards, deals and planks, q per cent of
the 1oists and scantlinss, u per cent OF
| the shingles, ~ per cent of the slaves, 10
| per cent of all other lumber and 10 per cent
! of the manufactured lumber-a remarkable
| exhibit of the progress which southern
| lumber products have made in our foreign
| trade.
| numbering on a Large Scale.
On the Pacific coast numbering on a large
scale has been carried to high degree of
perfection, especially in the state of Wash
! ington in the Puget sound country. in Ore
| gon on the Columbia river. and In northern
| California in the Eureka redwood district.
| In the distribution of lumber by water Ia
! coma Is the chief outlet on the Puget
| sound. The redwood Of California is mar
keted very largely through San Francisco
| and Eureka. Portland, Ore, shows the
| heaviest shipments by rail of any point on
! the Pacific coast.
| In the central states Minneapolis Is the
| principal center of lumber production and
/ distribution for the white pine region In
! point of production Michigan, Wisconsin
! and Minnesota are about equal, and are
! still the leading lumber producing states of
! the Union. FROM lne!n tae eastward move
| ment By way of the great lakes amounted
! to ,03s, O57 900 feet by way Of ST. Mary s
Falls canal in 1893 Within these states
the most extensively developed wood In
! dustries have arisen. Nearness Of raw ma
terial has given furniture making. the man.
ufacture of vehicles and various other wood
| industries an advantage which no other por-
| ton of the world enjoys.
| This report does not share the view that
| the country is in danger of timber fam
| inc. 1t takes the view that as soon as the
| level OF timber land values rises to the
| level of lumber prices indiscrminate cut
ting Will be largely abandoned, the moro
| farsighted policy of scientific forestry will
prevail and forest fires will be systematic
| ally prevented or controlled.