The New York herald., 1922-02-19
DULLEST IN MAINE
WOODS IN 40 YEARS
Three Lumbermen to Every
Job and No Rafting on
PenObscOt.

Special Dispatch to THE New York HERALD.
BANGOR, Feb. 1S.--''The dullest winter
in more than forty years is what en-
ployment agents say of this season in
the Maine lumber woods, and men
familiar with the industry say that less
than half the usual quantity Of pulp
wood and only few million feet of long
logs will come down the Penobscot this
spring. while like conditions prevail all
over the State. There are no small
operators In the woods. and the big
pulp concerns. heavily overs.ocked with
wood cut last year and earlier. have
this winter curtailed operations so per
cent.
From present Indications less than
10,000.000. feet Of long logs will come
down to Bangor this year. and 1t is said
that for the first time since the Bangor
boom was established. eighty years ago
there will be no rafting there this sea-
son. In the flush days OF the lumber
trade. when Bangor sent away from
lS0.000,00 240.000.000 annually,
this boom employed hundreds OF men
at sorting out and rafting the logs
of different owners to the saw mills in
and below the city. In recent years the
volume of business has steadily dwindled
until this season. 1t Is said. only one
small mill will have any logs to raft
out here.
The slump in woods operations has
sent wages down with a bang from the
fabulous war time rates. Two years
ago men were getting as high as SO
and s3.50 a day for work that now COM
mands only 81 to s1.25 day. and.
whereas In war time. and even in 1919
and 1920-21, there were more Jobs than
men. this winter there have been three
men to one Job. It Is a lean and hungry
time. indeed. for the axemen.
In olden times the best of native
woodsnen were glad. when November
came around and a long winter faced
them, to get sic to s24 month to go
into the woods. walking most OF the way
60 to 100 miles. from Bangor to the
scene of operations, with their dunnage
bags on their backs, and satisfied with
o bunk in log house and a diet COM
posed chiefly of pork and beans. They
went to work with the first streak OF
dawn and kept at II as long as they
could see q tree. And they we're the
worlds best woodsmen.
Long Hours, Low Pay.
In that day the price Of spruce stump
age (the right to cut) was s1.25 to So
a thousand feet, on a very liberal scale
The men who drove the logs to boom
got $1.75 to $3.50 a day. and they were
experts, every one. The rafters at Old
Town and Bangor the overhaulcrs, tho
saw mill men and everybody else who
touched the log or the manufactured
lumber worked long hours for low
wages. the saw mill men from dawn to
dusk for $40 n month and board. Ves-
.sels carried the lumber from Bangor to
Boston for as little as s1.25 a thousand
feet, seldom getting more than s1.75; TO
Long Island Sound ports for so cents
more and to New York for s2.25 to S2.75.
On this basis of cost of production
logs were sold at a profit at Sc TO SO
q thousand feet In boom for hemlock
and $40 to s1s for spruce. and lumber
was 80 cheap that any one could build
some sort OF q house. Thousands of
common laborers In Bangor and the
neighboring towns improved the oppor-
tunity OF cheap lumber and correspond
ingly cheap land to get homes. and most
OF those dwellings are standing to-day.
for they were built OF good materials
much better than can be had to-day.
even at high prices. There are in some
Y these old houses \hewn pine sills l2x12