March 10. 1922 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



57 



well as orders, were better than tor some weeks past. It Is claimed 

 locally that oak is more promising than it has been in a long time with the 

 furniture trade. Poplar is also active. lUim is holding its own, and 

 walnut and mahogany are moving very well. Glued up stocks and veneers 

 have been unsettled and demand has not been steady. However, business 

 as a whole is very fair, and prospects brighter than they have been since 

 early last fall. 



NEW ORLEANS 



Hardwood lumbermen in and aliont the Crescent City for the past month 

 have been a bit disappointed over the failure of general market conditions 

 to show at least substantially the improvements which for several months 

 had been anticipated for them by this time, but probably the blackest cloud 

 has appeared upon the trade horizon within the past week or so in the 

 form of further price reductions. 



This tendency has been really outstanding within the past fortnight at 

 least. In fact, throughout the extreme southern and southwestern terri- 

 tory the situation has assumed no small degree of real gravity, hut the 

 consensus of opinion of leaders of the various phases of the industry is 

 that the tendency is definitely checked at the time of this writing. 



Take the following stable items, for instance, as an indication of the 

 adversi' price tendency : The price of common reil gum is reported by 

 manufacturers to have dropped an even $10 per thousand feet at the mills 

 recently. Common white oak is reported to have shown a similar tendency 

 and to exactly the same amount. .Sap gum in both Nos. 1 and 2 common 

 has declined ?5 per thousand, and there have l)een other reductions, which, 

 though not so great, were nevertheless substantial. 



Troduction probably is improving slightly, but gradually. But the 

 activity among the buyers is scarcely holding its own, if, indeed, it might 

 be rightfully said in some quarters even to be keeping the snail pace set 

 during the fall months and continuing through the mid-winter. 



MILWAUKEE 



From the standpoint of producers of hardwoods, the last two to three 

 weeks have experienced climatic conditions that have Imposed a severe 

 hardship upon industries, particularly with respect to woodwork. The 

 entire northern part of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan was buried by one 

 of the heaviest snowfalls on record late in February. The blizzard was 

 accompanied by a sleet storm which tied up telephonic and telegraphic 

 as well as railroad connections for days, making it extremely difficult to 

 maintain communications in a business way or for men in the camps to do 

 their work. The effect of the storm, nevertheless, was beneficial in the 

 way of bringing more nearly ideal conditions for getting logs out of the 

 woods to rollways for loading on cars to mills. 



The demand for hardwoods is fairly active. About the only chaugc 

 which has been noted is the increased call for the upper grades. .\t the 

 same time, the poorer qualities have been moving more slowly. The furni- 

 ture trade in Milwaukee and in Sheboygan, as well as the in other principal 

 centers of this industry, has been taking moderate quantities and orders 

 are increasing slowly but steadily. The automotive industries are much 

 better buj'ers since March 1 than at any time in five or six months, and this 

 trade is forging ahead against obstacles at a rate that is regarded by 

 observers in other industries as indicating a healthier condition. 



It is too early to expect much demand for hardwood stock for new 

 construction, but the prospects are deemed very favorable for a good 

 building year. Flooring mills are operating at good capacity on bookings 

 and the expectancy of a much better call at the beginning of spring and 

 the opening of the active construction season. Interior woodwork manu- 

 facturers are putting in some fresh stock to replenish their supplies. 



Prices rule generally steady to firm. As might be expected, there is 

 some deviation from the accepted standards by interests anxious to get rid 

 of odd lots or to move slow-moving grades by offering discount inducements. 

 In the main, hardwood manufacturers find themselves unable to go very 

 far afield because their costs are very high and records of logging expense 

 especially show that lumber must sell for no less than at present to get an 

 even break. 



TORONTO 



Trade in Canadian hardwoods is a little slow in opening up, although 

 there has been a vast improvement of late and the feeling in the trade i^ 

 that there is good business ahead in the near future. Already furniture, 

 wagon and automobile body manufacturers are showing considerable in- 

 terest in the market and in some cases are buying, while in others there is 

 a steady flow of inquiries indicating that a general buying era is about 

 to set in. It is worthy of note that there is a surplus of low grade 

 lumber, chiefly one inch stuff. The flooring manufacturers are among the 

 largest consumers of hardwood just now and are proving good customers 

 of the wholesale hardwood dealers. One dealer declared that his ship- 

 ments since the first of the year had materially exceeded those of the 

 corresponding period of last year. It is generally conceded, however, 

 that business at the moment can only be had by hard digging. The days 

 when the lumber salesman could sit in his office and book orders over 

 the phone are no more and travelers on the road are up against severe 

 competition. 



'-f. 



VESTAL 



Lumber 8C Mfg. 

 Company 



Knoxville, Term. 



t 



White Oak Timbers 



8-16 ft. long— 18-30 ft. long 

 Sound and Square edge 



SWITCH TIES 



BAND MILLS: KNOXVILLE, DUFF, FONDE 



r 



Delta Hardwoods 



FORTIFYING THE FUTURE 



OF YOUR BUSINESS BY PURCHAS- 

 ING ONLY THE BEST GRADE OF 

 HARDWOODS CAN BEST BE AC- 

 COMPLISHED BY GETTING IN 

 TOUCH WITH US. THE QUAUTY 

 OF OUR OUTPUT IS BEYOND DIS- 

 PUTE. WE HAVE STUDIED TO 

 PERFECT OUR MANUFACTURING 

 FACILITIES AND THEY ARE OF THE 

 BEST. OUR STOCK IS OF A SPLEN- 

 DID TEXTURE AND OF UNIFORM 

 COLOR. 



MAY WE SERVE 

 YOU? 



Doable Band Mills 



The 



BREECE 



Manufacturing Co. 



I Arkansas City, Ark. 



N. 



