The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1914-07-28
ENGLISH SHlPBUILDERS CALL
FOR LARGE QUANTITIES AND
BOOST ACTIVITY.
Nine GULF COAST MILLS
AGAIN START OPERATIONS
Local Lumbermen Look For Car Short
age, But None Has Appeared so Far
DENY Reports Of CoIIusion to Linz
it Production-Dreyfus Mill Nearly
Finished.

The boom in the lumber market has
hit the export trade before it has
reached the interior trade. 1t is re-
ported in several of the lumber trade
journals that as result of the greatly
improved condition Of the foreign mar
kets during the past month nine Gulf
Coast mills have begun operations
again or are about to begin. The
shipbuilders of the United Kingdom
are calling for large quantities of Mis-
sissippi, Louisiana and Florida lumber.
The interior trade is far from bad
as compared with the situation sew
eral months ago.
E. T. Batten, secretary of the Yel-
low Pine Lumber Association, says
the local manufacturers will begin the
month of August with better pros
poets than any month so far this year.
There is a good demand, he says, for
car materials and there has been a
slight advance in the price during the
past week or ten days.
| Expect Car Shortage.
| Local manufacturers are making
what preparations they can for a cal
shortage by shipping all the lum
Der possible now. The car short
age has not yet made itself fell
here but reports of the enormous
wheat crop in the west lead the manu-
facturers to think there will be a cal
shortage before September l. 1t is
reported that on one day last week
1900 carloads of wheat came
into Chicago, and that that was
only a little above the average. The
lumbermen know that the railroads
will be taxed to their limit to supply
the cars for the wheat crop and they
are anxious to facilitate the rapid
handling of cars as much as possible
A car shortage this year will not
cripple the industry as much as il
has done in the past because the
stocks at the mills are low and badly
broken.
The reason for the low condition
of the stocks is evident. During the
dull state of the lumber market which
has prevailed since the first of the
year the mills have made no special
effort to increase the output of the
mills because they knew that they
would be unable to sell it. Conse
quently the stock in the mill yards
and sheds have not accumulated
They have been allowed to run dowr
and become broken where there has
been any unusual demand.
No collusion, Say MiIImen.
The mill owners are quick to re
sent the charge that there has beer
any collusion on their part with one
another to limit the production con
trary to the law. They say that the
limit has been fixed for them by the
natural condition of the market ant
their inability to sell what they man
ufacture.
By competent men it is predicted
that the mills will be able to operat,
right through car shortage this yea
because, on account Of the low stat,
of the stock, they will have room t,
store the surplus which may accumu
late above what they can ship out.
The car shortage will be evidence,
first by lack of box cars. There ar
only few grades of lumber. however
that absolutely require box cars. Mos
of the other grades can use fiat cars @
gondolas. Box cars are required 70
the dressed lumber and small stul
principally.
Dreyfus Mill Nearly Finished.
The Dreyfus Mill, south of the city
is rapidly being pushed toward con
} pletion and will no doubt be operat
, ing shortly. The logs will be haule
, over the Gulf and Ship Island railroa
} from Make.