22 



THE HARDWOOD RECORD. . 



gone ta Lexington. Ky.. to attend the meet- 

 ing of the poplar dealers, who are to meet 

 tliere on April 17. 



Gum luml)er is al.'io moving with gi-eat 

 freedom, and the demand is steadily im- 

 proving. Several manufacturers of this 

 wood have alread.v advanced prices in 

 vie^v of the good demand. Thin red gum 

 is also very active, .ind the export market 

 seems to be opening up. Ked common giini 

 is still easy sale, but there is room for im- 

 provement in comuKiu sap gum. Mill cull 

 gum is bringin.g a good price. 



Ash luml>er still c(mtinues to improve. 

 This is true particularly of stock thicker 

 than inch and in tii-sts and seconds and 

 common. 



The demand for oak lumber is about the 

 .same as it has been for some time i)ast. 

 and that is ver.v good. Common plain red 

 and white are easy sale and at market 

 prices. Firsts and seconds plain oalc is 

 also in good deman<l at very good jirices. 

 Quartered white oak is bringing top-notch 

 prices, and at that the supply seems to 

 fall .short of the demand. The improve- 

 ment noticed in quartered red oak is still 

 in evideni-e. 



The other hardwoods are about holding 

 their own. 



At the Gibson House, on Monday even- 

 ing, April H. the Cincinnati lyumbermen's 

 Club held their monthly meeting and l)an- 

 quet. An elegant repast was .served, and 

 the attendance was exceedingly flattering. 

 Rev. T. Y. Pendleton was the guest of the 

 club and delivered <|uite an interesting 

 talk, which was greatly appreciated by 

 the memliers. 



Among other things brought up for dis- 

 cussion was the annual meeting of the Na- 

 tional Hardwood Lumber Asvsociation. and 

 the following committee, composed of 

 Jlessrs. .Tames Buckley. W. A. Bennett and 

 H. P. Wil)org, was apiwinted to ascertain 

 railroad rates, etc.. and also to find out 

 who will attend fnmi the local colony. 

 The secretary was instructed, b.v vote of 

 the club, to notify the Xational Hardwood 

 Luml>er Association that the Cincinnati 

 lumbermen were opjiosed to any changes 

 being made in the inspe<-tion rules. It was 

 also proposal to attend the meeting in a 

 body. The following members were pres- 

 ent at the meeting: T. B. St(Mie. B. Bram- 

 lage, W. B. Hay. C. U. Hall. A. D. Mc- 

 Leod. E. .T. Thoman. 1. Masher. .T. W. 

 Darling. W. A. Bennett. V. V. Korn, F. M. 

 Possell, C. W. Tondinsou, .1; W. Pierce, G.- 

 Morgan. .T. B. Cochran, T. .T. Moffett, C. 

 Barr, H. P. Wiborg. C. T. Morse. I>. T. An- 

 derson. .7r.. .Tames Buckley. C. W. Blair. .T. 

 Hanua. Ij. A. Spahu. Jlyron Banning. B. A. 

 Kipp and rtev. T. .T. Pendleton. 



NASHVILLE NEWS. 



Nashville. Tenn. April 1.5. 1002. 



The Nashville trade is good at strong 

 prices. The dealers are keeping a firm 

 front and getting very nearly everything 

 they ask. Poplar, chestnut and oak are 

 scarce in dry stock, and cpiotatious rule 

 high with little varying. 



Mr. Lieberman. of Lieberman. Loveman 

 iV- O'Brien, states that they are having a 

 splendid trade in lumber, but that the bo.x 

 business run in connection with their plant 

 is quiet, and prices not proportionate witli 

 the high pi-ice prevailing on lumber. 



The Davidsun-Benedict Company are <lo- 

 ing a good business in lumber, ami are 

 behind a long ways on orders. Tlieir fur- 

 niture faetor.v is also busy. 



Mr. T. P. Bomer. who has charge of the 

 liox department of the last Arm, said that 

 tliey were having no trouble in finding a 

 demand for the output of their factory, 

 and had recentl.v begun receiving some 

 large orders from the nortliern cities. Their 



box factor}' is cow occupying, in addition 

 to its regular space, that which was for- 

 merly occujiied by the carpentering depart- 

 ment, which has been movetl into a new 

 liuilding. This greatly enlarges their ca- 

 pacity. 



There are rumor.Si of a large pending 

 timber deal in the middle section of 

 Tennessee, by which another large mining 

 and timber developing cunipany is about 

 to be launched. Tlie nnitter will come to 

 a focus within tlie next wei-k or two. 



Mayfield & Trimm of Northport. Ala., 

 have sold to Capt. T. P. Ayers of this city 

 S(JO acres of land on Cypress Creek for a 

 consideration something over three thoti- 

 .sand dollars. 



T. T. Adams of (Jreenville. Tenn.. who 

 has been operating some fifteen or twenty 

 mills about T)el Bio. has ])urcliased KMI.OOO 

 aires of timberland in Greene and Cocke 

 count.v from the Tennes.see Coal. Iron and 

 l!aih-oad Company. 



Mr. .Tohn \V. Love, of the Benedict-Love 

 Company, that will operate in South Caro- 

 lina on large timber purchases recently 

 mentioned in the Record, states that the 

 firm will have its mills read.v to saw there 

 by the opening up of summer. 



Secretiiry of State Morton has granted a 

 charter to do the Valley Lumber Company 

 of Linden. Perry ciuinty The incorpora 

 tors are: C. A.DeNine. T. D. JIcMicken. 

 .1. A. Donelly, A. P. Craig and Fred Mc- 

 Carter. 



L. F. Drayer. a traveling lumber inspec- 

 tor and representative of the Farrin-Koru 

 Lumber Company of Cincinnati, died this 

 week at Dyersbnrg, Tenn.. of smallpox 

 contracted in a lumber camp near that 

 tnwn. 



Mr. Ragau. of tlie Blair iVr Failey Com- 

 pany, of Terre Haute. Ind.. has been here 

 prospecting, with a view to moving a large 

 cdoperage plant in the tight-barrel line to 

 this city. 



ST. LOUIS SITUATION. 



St. Louis. Mo.. April 10, 1!)02. 



Your correspondent is unable to Hud any- 

 one in St. Ixmis who talks other than very 

 encouragingly concerning the present trade 

 situation, and the outlook and tlie nni.iority 

 of the wholesalers who Inive been inter- 

 viewed on the subject are dei-idedly enthu- 

 siastic. Orders for all classes of stock are 

 being bookeil in large numbers and it has 

 reached a point where the volume of bns-i- 

 ness is only limited by the ability-, or 

 rather the inabilit.v. to find the stock with 

 wliich to fill the order.s. Everyone states 

 that it is no trick at all to sell lumber 

 (►r to sectu'e high prices if the lumber is 

 .■ilready on hand, and in condition to ship. 

 This latter is the most serir)us prol>leni the 

 hardwoo<l people have to face at the pres- 

 ent stage of the game, and 'they state that 

 all of their efforts to increase their stocks 

 have been pracricall.v unavailing. Of course, 

 tlie.v are continually buying in large (pian- 

 tities. Imt their sales have ,-\lso l)een con- 

 tinually larger than their purchases of 

 salalile stock, so that they are now in verj- 

 bad shape so far as dry lumber is con- 

 cerned. Local stocks of green lumber are 

 in ver.v fair shape, and the dail.v purch.-ises 

 are increasing them, lint it has reached a 

 point where innumeralile orders are being 

 turned down tlnvjugh sheer lack of ship- 

 jiing dr.v lumber with which to fill them. 

 It is a situation which has good features, 

 in that it has resulted in a general advance 

 in prices all over the country, but it is a 

 decideil disappointment to the many not to 

 be able to take advantage of these prices 

 after the unsticcessful year which they 

 have .iu.st passed through. 



Every effort is beiug made by the local 

 wholesalers to increase their stocks. An 



army of buyers has been in the sotithern 

 country every since the first of the year, 

 and this has been continually added to 

 from time to time as the dealers became 

 more anxious to buy. It is reportetl that 

 prett.v much all of the desirable lumber 

 in the southern countiT is now in s-trong 

 hands, and cannot be purchased except 

 at very high prices. Nothing that is dry 

 enough for immediate consumption can be 

 f(uun_l. and the nni.iorit.v of those needing 

 luml>er have been devoting their time to 

 the placing of contr.-icts for the cuts of the 

 smaller mills. Here in the cit.v those who 

 handle on a commission basis have been 

 doing very little business, for the reason 

 tliat so many buyers are at the mills there 

 is nothing left for sale on commission, ex- 

 cept the veriest trash. It is a snap to sell 

 whatever lumber comes in implaced, as 

 all of the yards anil fa<-tories are so much 

 in need of stock that they will pay the 

 top prices without a grumble for desirable 

 lumber. In the way of factory consump- 

 tion an immense annrant of lumber is be- 

 iug used at the present time, and there is 

 comiilaint from the box. furniture, wagon 

 and planing mill people at the difficulty 

 lliey are having in placing orders for their 

 re(juirements. There have been rather 

 heavy re(-eipts of bo.x material, liut there 

 is an urgent call for more. 



The oak situation has changed too little 

 to warrant lengthy comment. The demand 

 includes practically all items, although 

 there is less strength to the call for quar- 

 tered red than with other items. This lat- 

 ter, nevertheless, has improved consider- 

 .•ible during the past month or more, and 

 anything offered which is of good width 

 and gra<le will find a ready market. Qu.ar- 

 lered white is probably the strongest oak 

 (•(unmodit.v and it is stated around town 

 that there is practically no dry stock in 

 jiile in St. Louis. Any thickness is wanted 

 and a high basis of values prevails. Plain 

 oak is especiall.v strong in both white and 

 red. one-inch stock being wanted in all 

 grades and three-inch white being called 

 for in firsts and seconds. There is also a 

 strong demand for car oak and other di- 

 mension stock, and a nundier of tlie local 

 jiiople are doing a heavy business along 

 tliis line. 



Cypress and j)oplar hold up very firmly, 

 and the dealers state that the same ques- 

 tion of supply and demand rules as with 

 other woods. Both are moving at high 

 ju-ices. with no indications of a slump in 

 sight. 



Cottonwood and gum have been coming 

 in (TUite freel.v during the early part of the 

 nujiith. but it is now reported that the re- 

 ceipts will probably decline, as there is lit- 

 tle unsold lumber remaining at the mills, 

 ex<-ept that which is now being sawed. 

 Tliere is general relief that the spring rush 

 of winter-cut stock is over without any 

 effect uiion prices, and it is now felt that 

 even higher prices are within the range 

 .»f possibilities. Ash. hickory, maple, elm,' 

 sycamore and the (rtlier wooils handled in 

 St. I>ouis are al)out the same as last re- 

 ported, the first two-nained being very 

 tirm. while the others are not in strong 

 evidence in present receipts. 



h. .1. Taussig reports that he has sold 

 the harilwood stock of the Louis Werner 

 Saw :\Iill Company to the Waldsteiii Lum- 

 ber Coiniianv. the deal amounting to the 

 Iransfer of sometliiiig like l.CMXt.OOO feet of 

 quartered and plain oak. 



\V. W. Jlilne. of the Milne Lumber Com- 

 pany, will be married to-night to Miss 

 Helen M. Blentlinger. Rev. W. W. Duck- 

 worth orticiating. Mr. Milne is one of the 

 successful yotuig hardwood men of St. 

 Louis, and he hj^s a host of friends in this 

 city who wish him the greatest i>o.ssibl6 

 happiness. 



