Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-12-27
BUILDING
Continued From First Page.)

ton, discourage black market op'
orators and attract labor.
For its part, National OPA say.
lumber costs have gone up 10 pei
cent since 1939-some 40 per cent
before price control and the re.
naming 80 per cent under ceiling
price rises granted by OPA.
Short Supply Studied.
Our price schedule was worked
out in conference after conference
with the best brains of the indus.
try" an OPA official said. For.
est Service studies show the cost.
price relationship has had little
bearing on production. Mainly re.
sponsible have been the tight la.
Dor supply, lack of equipment ane
bad weather in the South"
To give you an idea how much
lumber goes into a moderate-pric,
home. dealers supply these esti
mates:
Frame dwelling-3,ooo board fee
Of yellow pine, for framing; 900 fee
Of hardwood flooring, such as oak
900 feet of interior finish lumber
such as fir or Western pine.
Brick and frame dwelling-50t
feet less of yellow pine.
Brick dwelling-1.5O0 feet less vel.
low pine
District wholesale dealers say
lumber of these types is almost i'm.
possible to get"
Black Market Moves In.
OF the yellow plne-rough lum-
berthe bulk comes from the South
and Southwest. It is here that the
black market has moved in to choke
off legitimate sales.
Trucks travel directly to the
small, so-called ground mills
which produce about 10 per cent OF
all yellow pine-and haul away
production at over-ceiling prices
For that reason, dealers say. very
little Of the lumber produced in the
small mills is reaching legitimate
wholesale channels.
AS for the larger mills producing
yellow pine. it is commended, much
Of this production has been diverted
to retail lumber stores opened by the
mills themselves. In this way, II
was said, the mills are able to save
the wholesalers and retailers mar.
gins. Result: The lumber is usec
in areas near the mills and thu
scarcity grows in Washington.
y Friends Get 1t. -
occasionally" one dealer said
these larger mills ship a carload OF
two to wholesale friends. But you
have to be a good friend to get it."
Adding to the loss in legitimate
wholesale channels, these sources
say, is the fact that production is al
a lower ebb than during the war
due to labor shortages.
The same labor shortage condi.
ton is holding down production Of
hardwoods from the Appalachian
area, including West Virginia, Ken.
lucky and Tennessee, dealers say
Adding to the problem of whole.
salers seeking flooring, suppliers ex.
plain, is the fact that an "inexcus-
able" differential in the ceiling or
finish" lumber and flooring makes
Its S. per 1000 feet fore profitable
for mill owners to turn out finish
lumber than flooring.
Here OPA interjects that wherever
differentials exist, they are differ
entails Of long standing which hac
the support of the industry" Also
an OPA ofilcial pointed out, cost.
price relationships are under con.
slant scrutiny to eliminate inequali.
ties.
As for scarcity of Western pine
and flr for doors, doorjambs, mold
ing and interior finish, work stop.
pages have been chiefly to blame
suppliers claim. The result is an.
other splitting headache that throbs
maddeningly as the home-building
industry seeks to gear up for the jot
ahead.
Tomorrow: Millwork.)