HARDWOOD RECORD 



33 



strength and the prospects are in the main re- 

 assuring. 



Asli and otlier woods are going forward in 

 fairly large quantities, while the local state of 

 affairs is entirely satisfactory. The domestic 

 inquiry for walnut continues and has helped to 

 strengthen values for this wood abroad. Stocks 

 are about large enough to meet the require- 

 ments of the ti"ade and the better grades of 

 lumber and logs are disposed of without the 

 slightest trouble. The local demand for ma- 

 hogany appears to be unabated. Its compara- 

 ti'^-'e cheapness tends to keep it prominently in 

 the foreground. The car question is much im- 

 proved and siiipments can be made with a fair 

 <iegree of promptness. Altogether, hardwood 

 conditions are very encouraging. 



Pittsburg. 



The hardwood situation in tliis city is im- 

 proving. Both inquiry and the class of buyers 

 are indicative of a strong market this spring. 

 Salesmen on the rnad throughout the Greater 

 Pittshiu-g district report very bright prospects 

 for spring building and a disposition to buy 

 strong among the yard dealers. There is a 

 very active demand for No. 1 hardwood from 

 the \ew England manufacturers as well as 

 from the furniture factories over the country. 

 Since February 1 several wholesale firms note 

 a decided increase in this trade, which is in 

 many ways the most satisfactory branch of 

 their business. The number of liigh class resi- 

 dences, store buildings and repair work sched- 

 uled for early erection is evidence that there 

 will be a good midyear mai-ket for the better 

 grades of hardwoods. Unilroad and street rail- 

 way comp.anies arc still holding off a little in 

 their purchases owing to the bad weather, but 

 their plans already announced show that they 

 will he large buyers of heavy hardwood in the 

 spring and summer. All this leads lumbermen 

 here to expect much heavier demands than last 

 spring. 



Prices are strong, with advances expected in 

 the near fnture. Manufacturers who have run 

 short on their year's supply are trying to re- 

 plenish at extra prices and are also placing 

 larger order for next season on account of their 

 unfavorable experience this year. Oak is sell- 

 ing well, especially the higher grades, and chest- 

 nut has been a strong factor in the local trade 

 for two weeks, ifapie flooring holds a good 

 place in the lists with the bulk of orders in- 

 creasing. I'^inishing woods are in better call 

 than for several weeks. The hardwood mills 

 of Western Pennsylvania are having the most 

 prosperous year of their history for they have 

 only to name their price and state what they 

 have to get a customer at their plants. Deal- 

 ers in ties and poles are holding up a little 

 with a view to getting better prices when the 

 better weather brings construction work to the 

 front. Birch, walnut and hickory are being 

 sold in minor quantities at good prices, and ash 

 has been quite a leader in the market this 

 month. The local yards are beginning to stock 

 up more heavily witli hardwoods, as they see 

 the early demand for a large quantity of flrst- 

 class building lumber. 



Buffalo. 



Hardwood dealers are doing well all along 

 the line, with every prospect of a better year 

 than last. Prices are generally strong and the 

 demand is steadily improving. There liave not 

 been the recent big advances in hardwood 

 prices as in pine, so that tliere is little fear 

 that they will topple over, as may happen to 

 pine if anything goes wrong with business 

 generally. 



In fact there is complaint that the prices, 

 especially of oak, are not as high as they 

 should bo, considering the big prices paid for 

 logs and the growing scarcity of timber. Chest- 

 nut, so long a popular substitute for oak, has 

 come up to plain oak in price, and being now 

 scarcer than oak it can no longer stand in the 



way of the oak trade. Supplies of birch will 

 never again be plentiful. Though slow in 

 coming into favor, birch is now a very popular 

 wood and hard to get. 



There is a little stir in basswood, the big 

 surplus seeming to have disappeared, but some 

 time must elapse before basswood will be back 

 in its old place again. The dumping of so 

 much Michigan maple on the Buffalo and Ton- 

 awanda markets is still felt and though there 

 seems to be less surplus this year, the prices 

 remain low. Ash is a good seller always, with 

 l)lack ash only an occasional visitor. Cherry 

 and walnut are always in demand and some- 

 how manage to be in pretty good stock for 

 scarce woods. 



Poplar continues to improve slowly, with no 

 prospect of running very high, though the sup- 

 ply is not large. There is a good demand for 

 cypress and those who hold gum and cotton- 

 wood are doing well with them, though north- 

 ern trade in these is limited. 



The rapid advance of hemlock has set some 

 hardwood mills to offering various cheap hard- 

 woods, such as beech and sound-wormy chest- 

 nut for dimension stuff and it appears that 

 norway pine is i^eing picked up for the same 

 purpose, though that is now pretty high. 



Cinciimati. * 



The hardwood market in the past two weeks 

 has exhibited further improvement. Offerings, 

 as a rule, have been very light in stock 

 ready for shipment and business has been 

 handicapped to some extent in consequence. 

 Prices have been firm in every direction, with 

 the tendency higher because of the limited sup- 

 plies of dry shipping lumber. The export trade 

 is showing signs of increased activity, although 

 no large orders have been received so far with 

 the bulk of business from this source confined 

 to quarter sawed and plain oak. Tlie domestic 

 demand has been fairly well distributed among 

 the different classes of hardwoods, with possibly 

 [jlain red and white oak in one or two inch 

 thicknesses attracting the greatest attention. 

 Stocks in both these items show further deple- 

 tion and holders are not pressing the market : 

 on the contrary, they seem disposed to hold 

 their stocks, as values are constantly growing 

 stronger. Spoke and handle manufacturers 

 have been liberal purchasers of ash, in nearly 

 all grades and thicknesses, and business has 

 been on a greater scale than usual at this sea- 

 son of the year. The request for cypress has 

 been urgent and as dry stocks are low this 

 wood has had a firm undertone. The supplies 

 of Cottonwood have not been increased and with 

 Ihe demand broadening higher prices seem in- 

 evitable. Firsts and box boards have been 

 features in this connection. Red gum is meet- 

 ing with fair absorption and there has been 

 firm maintenance of prices. Poplar continues 

 to work into a better position each succeeding 

 day. High grade and common and culls have 

 sold equally well. 



Detroit. 



Hardwood market conditions in Mijchigan 

 have improved somewhat during the past thirty 

 days, but not to the extent they seem to have 

 done in some other sections. One peculiar de- 

 velopment of the remarkable demand for build- 

 ing material of all kinds has been the intro- 

 duction of hardwood hearts for bill stuff. One 

 large firm in Bay City is having such stock 

 manufactured and is shipping it into the state 

 for framing purposes. One of the larger De- 

 troit concerns has also opened up quite a trade 

 in the same class of material. A Bay City 

 firm has sold all the cull beech and maple it 

 will produce this season to one of the box 

 factories for shooks. This latter is a market 

 which hardwood has reached only to a very 

 limited extent heretofore. 



The result of the above tendency has been a 

 firming up of the market on hardwood culls, 

 there having been an advance of from 50 cents 



to $1.50 at mill points. Dry stocks of bass- 

 wood have been very largely consumed, and 

 prices have advanced. There seems little doubt 

 that baswood will, within the next few months, 

 sell at as high a figure as two years ago. Most 

 otiier h.ardwood items remain about stationary 

 in price and demand, except thick maple, which 

 is in somewhat better request, and most holders 

 have marked up prices a little. 



Saginaw Valley. 



The hardwood market is strong. Stocks of 

 dry lumber are not large, and as many of the 

 sawmills are not in operation in eastern Michi- 

 gan there is no accumulation of stock. A num- 

 ber of manufacturers have contracted a good 

 portion of their stock for months ahead. Last 

 spring maple was slow and somewhat weak, but 

 at present it is active at an advance of a dollar 

 a thousand aud millions of feet are sold ahead, 

 some manufacturers having contracted all they 

 will cut this season. Basswood is also doing 

 much better and large blocks of it have been 

 contracted for to be cut. Ash and oak are 

 scarce commodities in this region and have al- 

 ways been firm with a good demand. Beech is 

 looking up some and the little birch on tlie 

 market is stronger. There has been depression 

 ill the cooperage business incident to overpro- 

 duction during the past year and this has caused 

 more elm lumber to be manufactured and hence 

 that commodity is rather slow. 



The weather has been favorable for handling 

 lumber, and cars have been more plentiful since 

 the beginning of the year. Dealers and manu- 

 facturers are in a hopeful state of mind ana 

 believe the year is going to be a good one for 

 the trade. 



Ashland. 



Demand for all grades of lumber is excep- 

 tionally good for this season of the year. Stocks 

 are badly broken, and nearly all of the mills 

 in this section are refusing orders for straight 

 carload lots. There does not seem to be any 

 contention as to prices, and if one has the 

 stock he can get his own figures. 



Firsts and seconds poplar are very scarce, the 

 supply considerably below the demand. Firsts, 

 seconds, saps and selects are moving right along 

 at new list prices. Xo. 1 common is moviug 

 much better than thirty days ago. 



The winter has been unusually open aud mild 

 in consequence of which there has been more 

 building than has been known for .years and 

 there is large demand for all kinds of building 

 materials. 



St. Iiouis. 



The hardwood market at this point is dis- 

 tinctly stronger than two weeks ago. Demand 

 shows some improvement, principally in oak and 

 ash, and prices are much firmer on nearly all 

 the leading hardwoods. Ash is in better re- 

 quest. Poplar is coming into its own again, and 

 holders of choice stock expect a good call for 

 it in the early future. Gum has lost none of 

 its grip on buyers' favor, and is steady in the 

 matter of price. Quartered red oak is figuring 

 more largely in the sales account, and is belug 

 substituted for white oak in places where the 

 users considered the prices of the latter pro- 

 liibitive, Cottonwood is in improving demand, 

 in all grades, and is strong as to values. Quite 

 a number of the larger buyers are now coming 

 into the market, and there is every indication 

 of a brisk spring trade. 



Bristol. 



Trade conditions in Bristol and territory 

 tributary thereto are very satisfactory, and it 

 is declared by prominent wholesale dealers 

 and manufacturers that business is better now 

 than at any time within the past two months, 

 and that prospects for even better conditions 

 are bright. The dearth of cars has to some 

 extent been alleviated by the strenuous efforts 

 of the transportation companies, and the sup- 

 ply has been materially augmented by heavj' 

 orders to the car factories. 



