May 10, 1917 



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Lumber Cut in Two Years 



The Forest Service has published the figures showing the country 's 

 output of lumber for the years 1914 and 1915, in bulletin 506. The 

 compilation was done by J. C. Xellis. 



The figures go rather fully into the cut by mills of different sizes. 

 Five classes are recognized as follows: 



Class 1, with annual output from .50,000 to 500,000 feet. 



Class 2, with annual output from 500.000 to 1,000.000 feet. 



Class 3, with annual output from 1,000.000 to 5,000,000 feet. 



Class 4, with annual output from 5,000.000 to 10,000,000 feet. 



Class 5, with annual output over 10,000,000 feet. 



In 1915 the number of mills of each of the classes, and the total cut 

 of each class that year, are shown below : 



Class. _Yo. of Mills. Cut in 1915, feet. 



1 21,263 3,974,334,000 



2 4,198 2,941,264,000 



3 3,191 6,201,864,000 



4 453 3,224,448,000 



5 846 20.669,746,000 



The production of lumber by states for the years 1914 and 1915 is 



given in the table below : 



State 



1915 

 (29,951 

 mills! 

 M ft. b. m. 

 United States. .17,011,656 

 Washington . . . 3.950,000 

 Louisiana ....3,900,000 

 Mississippi ...2,300,000 

 North Carolina. 2,090,000 

 Arkansas ....1,800.000 



Texas 1.7.50,000 



Oregon 1,690,000 



iVlaojma 1,500,000 



Virginia 1.500,000 



Wisconsin .... 1.210,000 



California 1.130.000 



Florida 1,110,000 



Michigan 1,100,000 



Minnesota ....1,100,000 

 West Virginia. 1,100,000 



Maine 1.000,000 



Georgia 1,000,000 



Pennsjlvania . 950,000 

 South Carolina 800.000 

 Tennessee .... 800,000 



Idaho 777,000 



Kentuck.v .... 560.000 



Production Br Species 



The country 's output of lumber by species for 1914 and 1915 is given 

 in the table below. 



Lumber Values 



A table has been prepared showing the average miUrun value, at the 

 mill, of the principal species. The table is shown as follows: 



Arerni/e value of lumber per thousand feet, boanl measure, by kinds 

 of icooJ, for specified years, 1S09 to ISI'k 



AUkin.ls 



Softwoods: 



Yellow pine 



Douglas fir 



White pine 



Hemlock 



Spruce 



Western ycllow 

 pine 



Cypress 



Redwoori 



Cedar 



Larch (tamarack) 



White fir 



Sugar pine 



Balsam fir 



Lodgepole pme. 

 Hardwoods; 



Oak 



-Maple 



Re-lguin 



Chestnut 



Vellovv poplar.. 



Bircli 



Bee«.Ji 



BasS" oo J 



Elm 



Ash 



Cottonwood 



Tupelo 



Hickory 



Walnut 



Sycamore 



12 41 



10.59 



47 U 



13.14 

 16. 5« 



14.32 

 19. M 

 M.34 

 16.10 

 10. ;« 

 10.94 

 17.40 

 13.79 

 13.57 



IS. 73 

 15.21 

 12.54 

 16.17 

 22 45 

 16.52 

 14.01 



15 sy 



16 98 



22 15 



17 36 

 12 25 



23 35 



48 47 

 13. 1% 



14.36 

 11.68 

 19.13 

 13 68 

 17.02 



13 62 



20.09 



14.13 



■14.45 



'11.96 



9.86 



(') 



19.63 



15 5« 

 13 60 

 16.62 

 24 00 

 17.43 

 13 61 

 19.26 



16 87 

 20 27 

 20.44 

 13 61 

 23 29 



(•) 

 (•) 



S15.0S I (16.30 



13.87 



11 us 



13 88 

 20.54 



13 99 

 13.86 

 11 S7 

 10.64 

 17.52 

 13.42 

 12.41 



19.14 



15 49 

 U 11 



16 63 

 25 46 

 16 61 



14 09 

 19 20 

 17.13 



21 21 

 18 12 

 12.46 



22 47 

 31 70 

 13.16 



13.29 

 13.09 

 18.93 

 13.86 

 16.62 



14.26 

 20.51 

 15.52 

 15.53 

 12.33 

 11 52 

 18 68 



14 48 

 14,88 



16 76 

 16.16 

 12.26 

 16 23 

 24.71 

 17.37 

 14.34 

 20 94 



15 67 

 22.47 

 17.78 

 12.14 



14.10 I 



(IS 38 S15.3 



12.69 

 12.44 

 18.16 

 13.95 

 16.91 



15.39 

 20.40 

 14.80 

 19.95 

 12.68 

 13.10 

 18.14 

 13.99 

 16.25 



20.50 

 15.77 

 13.20 

 16 12 

 25.39 

 16.95 

 13.25 

 19.50 

 17.52 

 24.44 

 18.05 

 11.87 

 30. SO 

 42.79 

 14.77 



12.66 

 11.97 

 18.17 

 13.65 

 16.25 



SI2.K <11.13 



9.96 

 ■9.51 

 14.93 

 11.91 

 14.03 



11.30 

 17.50 

 12.83 

 14.35 

 11.39 



(') 



17.51 

 14.94 



10.87 

 13.78 

 18.99 

 15. 44 



(') 



16.86 

 14.45 

 18.77 

 14.92 



(•) 



23.94 

 45.64 



CI 



8.46 

 8.67 



12.'«» 

 9 9» 



11.27 



9.70 

 13.32 

 10. U 

 10.91 



8.73 

 (') 

 12.30 



13.78 

 11 83 



9.63 

 13.37 

 14.03 

 12.00 



(■) 



12.84 



11.47 



15.84 



10.37 



(') 



18.78 



36.49 



11.04 



' 1912 values based on limited number ol reports. 

 ■ Western red cedar only. 

 ' Western larch only. 



* Data not ob<amecf. 



* Southern cottonwooJ only. 



Some Ancient Lumber Business 



The capture of Bagdad, by the British and the passing of Meso- 

 potamia under the rule of a civilized people, may open a market for 

 American lumber in that region, which covers some 200,000 square 

 miles that were once the garden spot of the world. It is even claimed 

 as the site of the Garden of Eden and the place where Noah built 

 his ark. 



The ruins of that vast region have never been half explored. The 

 Turks granted permits grudgingly and alwaj's placed obstacles in 

 the way of explorers who wanted to dig in the ruins. One result 

 may be looked forward to with interest. Excavations will throw 

 more light on the lumber business in that region in ancient times, 

 for there must have been a timber trade in spite of the fact that 

 brick was the chief building material. 



Wood technologists have identified the wood of some of the old 

 door beams pulled out of mud of forgotten cities near the mouth of 

 the Euphrates river, in the ancient country of Chaldea. The species 

 of wood came as a surprise, for it proved to belong to the Andaman 

 Islands in the remote East Indies. It was a mute testimony to the 

 importance placed on wood as a building material in remote antiq- 

 uity; for, the route which ships must have taken to carry the timber, 

 following around the whole coast of India as they were obliged to 

 do before the invention of the compass, was about 7,000 miles each 

 wa3', or 14,000 miles for the round trip. The ships of ancient times 

 could not carry more than 10,000 or 12,000 feet of lumber at a load. 

 A voyage of at least two years was required to land a cargo at its 

 destination. We know nothing of freight charges 6,000 years ago; 

 but if they were measured by modern standards, it may be imagined 

 what the timber cost, laid down on the banks of the Euphrates or 

 Tigris, three thousand j'ears before the days of Xebuchadnezzar. 



Another interesting fact may be inferred. The native forests of 

 Mesopotamia must have been exhausted before that remote date; 

 otherwise, contractors would not have brought timber from islands 

 of the eastern Indian ocean. Then, just about when was lumbering 

 at its height in Mesopotamia? 



The new order of things that will likely follow the war may stimu- 

 late development and exploration in that cradle of the human race, 

 and doubtless many surprises are in store. 



If scrap is worth more for fuel than for anything else, and if it 

 is used for fuel, is it wasted? 



—13— 



