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Published in the Interest of the American Hardwood Forests, the Products thereof, and Logging, Saw 

 Mill and Wood-working Machinery, on the 10th and 25th of each Month, by 



THE HARDWOOD COMPANY 



Henry H. Gibson, President 

 Burdis Anderson, Sec'y and Treas. 



Entire Seventh Floor Ellsworth Building 

 537 So. Dearborn Street. CHICAGO 



LIBR> 

 NHW Y 

 BOTAN 



QAkD 



Vol. XXXIII 



CHICAGO, FEBRUARY 25, 1912 



No.^ 



' v cMKiaa3iistBre:aiBrewMiWit ' »»^^ 



General Market Conditions 



Reports from trade centers the country over indicate .in aggre- 

 gate of hardwood business that constitutes a good volume, although 

 the orders are made up of a mass of small sales. What is Icnown 

 in the trade as "the big buyer" apparently has not 3'et turned 

 loose in making purchases, although some requisitions of consider- 

 able size are out from railroad and corporation sources. This 

 state of affairs, considering the remarkabl}' cold and inclement 

 weather that has prevailed for the last month, is very surprising. 

 Trade apparently is coming back, without any more excuse than 

 when it diminished in volume three years ago. There was no 

 apparent basic reason for the decadence in the volume of busi- 

 ness then, and it is hard to explain why there should be as good 

 a volume of business today as there is, save on the presumption 

 of the short supply of hardwoods and a possibility of sharp neces- 

 sity for lumber by various wood remanufaeturing industries. 



Values generally are enhancing and practically every desirable 

 item of hardwood is in remarkably short supply, save quarter- 

 sawed oak, and that stock is fast going off to normal. There is 

 apparently a cessation in the manufacture of small and inferior oak 

 logs into quarter-sawed stock. Material of the character that is 

 being made at this time is being produced only from high class 

 body logs. 



There is a little speculative element manifest in the trade, as 

 was evidenced a couple of weeks ago, when one buyer placed 

 orders for nearly two million feet of good ash in the Memphis 

 district, which will take up a large portion of present and pros- 

 pective stock of this wood for months to come. This buyer 

 believes that ash is cheap, and thought it worth while to buy a 

 chunk of it. It is more than likely that time will demonstrate 

 that his judgment was good. 



There is another feature in the trade of more than passing 

 importance, and that is the marked bulge in mahogany values 

 that has obtained during the last few weeks. It is recognized that 

 the foreign market is practically stripped of logs, and stocks on 

 this side are lower than usual. Furthermore, it is realized that 



there is an increased demand in the furniture and interior finish 

 trade for this aristocrat of woods. Hence there is a present 

 advance in price of from five to ten dollars a thousand, with good 

 indications that values will go much higher within the next few 

 months. Mahogany, so far as price is concerned, has been a 

 featureless wood for years, and it is interesting to note that it is 

 now commencing to command a price commensurate with its 

 basic qualities. High prices on mahogany also mean a good deal 

 for the producers of high-class American woods, as should the 

 price go too high, it will again turn fashion to the use of oak and 

 other standard American varieties. 



The prevailing fashion of Circassian in interior finish and furni- 

 ture divides honors equaUy with mahogany, and those who are 

 fortunate enough to possess Circassian for veneer making are 

 enjoying an excellent and profitable trade. 



The general volume of the veneer and panel business in evidence 

 is fair to good, but prices are still ranging low in proportionate 

 value to the higher types of hardwood lumber. 



The hickory handle trade is featureless, but there is a very 

 good volume of business in maple, birch and ash broom and tool 

 handles, although prices on these varieties are still low. 



There is an increased call for furniture and other hardwood 

 dimension materials, and there seems to be a disposition on the 

 part of buyers to acknowledge the worth of well-manufactured 

 dimension stock in such a substantial manner as being willing to 

 pay considerably more for it than they have in the past. Furni- 

 ture and other manufacturers could not make money any faster 

 than by being willing to pay enough for dimension stock to war- 

 rant the entrance of a good many people into this line of produc- 

 tion. In this way they could secure permanent supplies of cut-up 

 stock in lieu of full length lumber, and be able to effect an 

 economy of well towards ten per cent in their lumber supplies. 

 The time is surely coming when the manufacture of dimension 

 material will be about the best thing going in the lumber busi- 

 ness, but both manufacturers and users still need much education 

 before this end is accomplished. 



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Entered as second-class matter May 26, 1902 

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