October 25. 1921 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



55 



The whulo situation, huwever. is hctter^ — much better iu fact — ami 

 there is a feeling hereabout that the improvement of the past sixty days 

 will continue, and that if the threatened railroad strike does not materi- 

 alize, business iluring the fall aiid winter will be very satisfactory. 



PITTSBURGH 



Hardwood meu are feeling a wholt- lot haiipii-r because of the big build- 

 ing boom which has strucli Pittsburgh again. More than $15,000,000 of 

 building has l)een brought out of the pigeon holes since September 15. 

 This is all in hitj buildings costing from $500,000 to §2,000,000 each. The 

 movement in smaller building projects has not yet gotten well under way, 

 and it will likely be near springtime before house-building is going 

 "right." These buildings however, are going to give hardwood men a lot 

 of business a few months hence, and make up altogether the most encour- 

 aging feature of the lumber situation that has been noticed here for a long 

 time. During the past two weeks there has been some improvement in 

 industrial trade due to the fact that many mills and factories are now 

 running in pretty good shape. The glass factories especially are doing 

 better than at any time for two years. Altogether, the industrial situa- 

 tion seems to be "nn the way," although it is recognized that things must 

 move rathtT slowly for a few months yet. Industrial trade has been 

 slightly improved, but retailers are still buying hardwood only when they 

 must. Tri-state mills are cutting quite a lot of hardwood especially oak. 

 but most of this will not be ready for market until after the first of 

 the year. 



BALTIMORE 



Conditions in the hardwood trade here continue to show improvement. 

 Of course, it cannot be determined at this time what the effect of the rail- 

 road strike will be. if it materializes. But unless there is general inter- 

 ference with the movement of stocks by a tying up of the transportation 

 facilities of the counfry, there is every indication that the improvement 

 in hardwoods will be continued. Stocks are being drawn upon to an 

 extent that holds out some prospect of developing a positive shortage. 

 as the mills are not pushing operations and the output is probably still 

 very much below the capacity of plants and very likely also under the 

 current rate of consumption. At any rate, the increasing 'inquiry has 

 causetl a stiffening in the quotations, and the reaction from the low 

 figures has attained rather definite proportions by this time. An intend- 

 ing buyer who asks about prices and gets the information desired, or who 

 maintains that the figures asked are too high, is very apt to come back 

 and put himself into the way of entertaining further proposals; or, as 

 has often happened of late, he will place the order at the amount men- 

 tioned. Xot so long ago it was almost invariably a case of inviting 

 quotations from a number of sellers and then working one against the 

 other, with the ideas of the buyers always downward. The higher grades 

 of hardwoods still have the call, but the progress made in the direction 

 of better returns is beginning to affect the lower classifications also, and 

 No. 2 common is quite frequently iu demand now. The producers are 

 feeling the beneficial effect of the change for the better in various ways, 

 and arrangements are even being made to increase the output. The for- 

 eign trade, likewise, has made some further advance in the direction of 

 more acceptable returns, with stocks lower than they were and with the 

 time when material additions to assortments must be made apparently 

 brought decidedly nearer. Moreover, the importers in the United Kingdom 

 and elsewhere are learning that they cannot place reliance on recessions 

 in the quotations, but must familiarize themselves with the idea of having 

 to pay more, just as the level of values is going up in the United States. 

 Production costs have been reduced to some extent, to be sure; but they 

 have not fallen so much as to justify the prices that have governed many 

 of the transactions in hardwood lumber in the recent past. 



CINCINNATI 



Conditions in the hardwood market continue to be encouraging. Hard- 

 wood salesmen are more cheerful than a year ago. They are, selling some 

 nice bills to industrials, a little to railroads and quite a bit to the retail 

 yards. The inquiries are more numerous weekly from a large range of 

 industrials and for large amounts. Furniture concerns are beginning to 

 buy in larger quantities. Upper grades are scarce and hard to buy. Prices 

 are advancing on certain items, particularly those that are scarce. Some 

 concerns report advances from $5 to SIO on good quartered oak. A survey 

 of the trade disclosed that this item was scarcer than any of the others 

 on the list. Poplar is selling well, while red gum is very active. Sap 

 gum is picking up and the same is true with ash. Plain oak is good in 

 the red and white of the top grades. The flooring trade continues to be 

 the real bright spot in the trade. As a result of the proposed railroad 

 strike many buyers are asking that their orders be shipped before the eml 

 of this month. A majority of the lumbermen are of the opinion that the 

 strike is nothing more than a bluff on the part of the i-ailroad employes. 

 There is not as much low grade lumber being offered as a month ago and 

 this has tended to stabilizt* the market. Retailers report an increase in 

 their trade and say that they are looking for some nice orders for the 

 winter months. Manufacturers say that their inquiries are increasing 

 right along, and they believe that the month of October will bring in 

 a larger volume of trade than the months of September and August. It 

 can be said that concerns willing to accept current quotations are finding 



Foster-Latimer Lumber Co. 



OFFER THE FOLLOWING 



DRY HARDWOODS 



Regular Widths and Lengths 

 SOFT ELM 



4/4" No. 2 & Better 12 months dry 



5/4" No. 2 & Belter 12 monllis dry 



6/4" No. 2 8c Better, largely No. 1 12 months dry 



8/4" No. 1 & Better 8 months dry 



10/4" No. 1 & Better 12 months dry 



12/4" No. 1 & Better 6 months dO' 



4/4" No. 3 12 months diy 



6/4" No. 3 10 months dry 



WIRE, PHONE OR WRITE FOR PRICES 

 MAIN OITICE AND MILLS 

 MELLEN, WISCONSIN 



A Few Bargains in Dry Hardwoods 



offered by 



Wheeler-Timlin Lumber Co. 



HARD MAPLE 



12/4 No. 1 & Btr., S" & wdr., 8' & Igr., 3-S mo. dry 3 



10/4 No. 1 & Btr., S" & wdr., 8' & Igr., 18-20 mo. dry. 4 

 6/4 No. 1 & Btr., 5" & wdr., 8' & Igr., 18-20 mo. dry. 10 

 S/4 No. 1 & Btr., 5" & wdr., 8' & Igr., 3-6 mo. dry. ... 5 

 4/4 No. 1 & Btr., reg. widths St lengths, 3-12 mo. dry 5 

 10/4 & 12/4 No. 2 & 3, reg. wd. & Igths., 12-20 mo. dry 2 



6/4 No. 3, regular widths & lengths, 12-20 mo. dry 10 



4/4 No. 3, regular widths & lengths, 12-20 mo. dry... 10 



We arc sawing at both Wittenberg and Dorchester mills 

 can get out special items ut Northern Hardwoods 



cars 

 cars 

 cars 

 cars 

 cars 

 cars 

 cars 

 cars 



and 



MAIN OFFICE, WAUSAU, WISCONSIN 



VESTAL LUMBER 

 & MFG. COMPANY 



INCORPORATED 



Soft Textured Oak 



Poplar 



Black Walnut 



Tenn. Red Cedar 



KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE 



BAND MILLS AT VESTAL 



A SI'IUIRB OF KNOXiaLLK 



FONDE, KY., & DUFF, TENN. 



