The evening times., 1901-01-18
NO FEAR OF A TIMBER FAMINE
Some Interesting Facts Concerning
The Americnn Lumber Trnde


the American Lumber Trnde.
The Lumber Trade of the United states
is the title of monograph just issued
by the Treasury Bureau of Statistics The
lumber industry and trade. it finds. has
within quite recent years changed from
a small scale of production TO one in
which machinery. a large outlay of CAPT
tai mi faT-sighted policy Of develop
ment of properties are becoming control
lag factors. This change is due partly 10
the growth Of domestic demand and partly
to the fear of prematureIy exhaus ing cur
timber resources. o The existence Of sur
plus capital looking for new fields of in
vestment has had a tendency to eliminate
the small-scaIe lumberman; and the poll
ey of European states IN rigidIy limiting
the annual cut of lumber to some hing Ike
the rate of increase in the growth Of for
est has forced European lumber-consum-
ing interests to come to the United States
and Canada. especially for hard woo1s and
lumber for building purposes. As re-
suit the foreign lumber trade of the Unit
ed States has grown enormously. Within
quite recent years il has developed from
a local 20 a worldwide commercial move
ment
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 ended June so.
1900. amounted to $50, ,59S,416 Imports of
corresponding products, however. amount
ed to $26. .591 ,9O8 showing a balance OF al
most exactly $50 600 600 of exports of this
class over imports About half of these
imports come from Canada. consisting
mainly of pIanks, boards. logs, and shin
giles. as the four principal items. Another
principal feature in our timber imports is
the tropical timber, including Cuban ma
hogany and cedar. Mexican mahogany ard
cedar, and mahogany from Central and
South America and Africa
The wooded area of the United States.
| according 10 the United States Geological
Survey is ], 1,094, ,496 square miles. or 81 per
cent of the land area. From this stand
ing supply of timber 1t IS estimated that
! from 1880 billions TO 1900 billions Of
( board measure feet of lumber are aYaila-
! ble- The annual lumber cut has been es-
! tinated for the year 1899 at 40 billions
| of B. NJ. feet; that is. We cut approIi-
mately 2 per cent of our national timber
resources annually Of this cut, 13 bill
/ b.IIors to the Southern States, s billions
! to the Northwest and North Atlantic
I StateS billions TO the Central States
. to tht Pacific States. and 2 billions to The
/ Mountain States, according to the New
! Orleans Lumber Trade Journal These
/ figures are, however only an approxinla-
/ tion Cn the part Of these familiar with the
/ Industry as a whole; yet they in iieate that
/ our timber supply is not disappearing ar
/ an alarming rate, provided the destructive
waste Of forest fires can be prevented. The
/ timbersd territory Of the country covers
! 5 different sections, from which CONNER
! ciaI distribution Is made. Beginning with
/ New England the output of Maine is still
1 the leading feature Of this section; and
! the Middle States. from the Adirondacks
| and northwestern Pennsylvania still sup
| ply a considerable market Of more OF less
| local character The greatest 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,
I and Minnesota we have the largest out
! put, where the white pine sn1 hemlock are
| the leading features TIE Pacific Coast
section includes the pine and fir forests OF
! Washington and Oregon and the red wood
/ OF California as the Iea5ing kinds OF tim
| Der. The Rocky Mountain States are as
/ vet Of subordinate commercial importance
! compared with the Southern. Northern.
/ and Pacific States. 4 comparison Of
/ Southern exports of timber. lumber and
/ manufactures thereof With the total from
! th9 United States shows that Southern
ports furnish IS per cent OF the saWn tim
| ber exported; 81 per cent Of the hewn
/ timber; II per cent of the logs. etc; IS OF
/ the boards, deals. and planks, II per cent
| OF the ioists and scantlings: 81 Per cent
| Of the shingles; 70 per cent Of the slaves;
| Is per cent CT all other lumber and 70 per
! cent Of the manufactured lumber re-
markable exhibit OF the progress which
| Southern lumber products have made in
/ our foreign trade
! On the Pacific Coast numbering on
| lar~e scale has been carried 10 a high de-
Ga II perfection, especially in the State
-of Washington, in the Puget Sound coun-
/ try, in Oregon on the Columbia River. and
| in northern California in the Eureka red
| wood district. In the distribution Of lum-
| Der by water Tacoma is the chief outlet
| on the Puget Sound The redwood OF Cal
! ifornia is marketed 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 centre 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 them the eastward
| movement by way Of the Great Lakes
amounted to 1.03S. .057. eco feet by way Of
| St Mary's Falls Canal in 1899. Within
| these States the most extensively devel-
/ oPed wood industries have arisen. Near
ness of raw material has given furniture
/ making. the manufacture of vehicles and
! various other wood industries an advan-
| tage which no other portion of the world
| enjoys.
| This report does not share the view that
| the country IS in danger OF q timber fam
| inc Il takes the view that as soon as the
| level of timber land values rises TO the
| level of lumber prices indiscriminate cut
| ting will be largely abandoned: the more
| far-sighted policy OF scientific forestry
! will prevail and forest fires will be sys-
| tematically prevented or controlled.