The leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1895-1905, 1901-01-16
TIMBER WEALTH OF SOUTH
MISSISSIPPI.

In the paper of Hon. w. II. Hardy, of
Hattiesburg, submitted to the south
ern industrial convention in New Or
leans, there is so much that Is good
that IL is hard to discriminate In clip
ping from it. What 1t says, however,
about the piny woods region of Mis-
sissippi cannot fail to be read with
pride by all Mississippians, and with
wonder and admiration by those who
do not live in the State:
"The long leaf pine region Of Misis-
sisippi lies almost entirely south Of
the A. and V. r. R., extending from
the Alabama line west to the southeast
ern boundary of Kinds county, thence
southwesterly to Mississippi Valley Rail
road, thence south to the gulf, embra-
cling twenty five counties covering an
area of about 5000 square miles, or
little less than one-third of the total
area of the State.
If we deduct from this area 20 per
cent. on which there grow hard woods,
IA per cent. from which the pine has
been cut and per cent. for the farms,
buildings, etc, we have left 90 per
cent. of standing pine, or an area
of about 5000 square miles, and as
there are GAO acres to the square mile,
we have the following table:
Number of acres of standing pine,
5,s6OOOO. Estimating 1000 feet to the
acre, gives 23,O40OOO,OO0 feet. At $40
per 1000 feet, it is worth s23, 400, 100000.
"There are now in operation on the
various lines of railway traversing
this region the following mills with
an annual output as follows:
"On the Mobile and Ohio, fourteen
saw mills with an annual output of
about 100000 feet.
"On the New Orleans and Northeast
ern, fifty mills with an annual output
of about 3OO,OOO,OO0 feet.
"On the Illinois Central, thirty four
mills with an annual output of about
25OOOOOO0 feet.
"On the Gulf and Ship Island,
seventy mills with an annual output
of 35OOOO,OOO feet.
"Two letters of inquiry failed to elic-
it any response from the Louisville
and Nashville, but l assume the
yearly output on that road amounts to
about 100000 feet, making a grand
annual total of about 1,OO0,0OO,OOO feet
Estimating this lumber f. o. b. at $40
per 1000 feet it yields the round sum
of s10,O00,000, equal to one-fourth of
the entire cotton crop of the State.
"Taking the estimate of standing
pine hereinbefore given, and the pres
ent rate of consumption, it will take
twenty-five years to manufacture the
merchantable pine now standing; if we
add to that the growth of the smaller
timber during these years it is not un
reasonable to say that at the present
rate of consumption it will take thir
ty years to denude the pine forests OF
Mississippi. 1 have been unable to
get the necessary data to enable me to
give the number of planning mills and
single mills, but there is large mum.
Der and they are increasing in number
every year and doing most profitable
business. Neither have l been ena-
bled to collect the data from which to
make any reliable estimate of the vol
ume of business done in the manufac-
ture of rosin and turpentine, but the
business is very large, and of late
years very remunerative, and is con-
stantly on the increase.
SIS it any wonder that the pine re-
gion of Mississippi is today, perhaps,
the most prosperous portion of our
great State? The increase of popula-
ton in this region during the last de-
cade shows general average of about
40 per cent. Though many portions of
it have increased from 80 to 70 per
cent?
"The statistics of wealth have not
yet been issued by the government,
and hence no comparison can be made
to show the increase over the previ-
ous decade, but it is safe to say that it
has been much larger than the in
crease in population"