Juue 10. 1917 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



41 



roads, especially in New England, and this has Ihh-u taken advantage 

 of to rush a number of cars of lumber. But in other sections the im- 

 pediments in the way of a distribution persist, and the users of hard- 

 woods are at times embarrassed. Prices continue on the rise, and no 

 difficulty whatever is experienced by the sellers in getting the figures 

 asked, as long as they are not wholly prohibitive. The mills are 

 hampered by scarcity of labor, which is giving rise to increasingly serious 

 conditions. Even the plants that are willing to pay the rates of wages 

 demanded find it very hard to get workers in adequate numbers, and 

 many of the mills fall more or less below their nomial capacity, while 

 the inquiry for stocks is rather on the increase. The hardwood man 

 with ample stocks to draw upon and in a position to make shipment 

 stands to make money, for the prevailing quotations are far beyond 

 anything ever before experienced in the trade. Hesitancy in the matter 

 of giving an order for a lot of lumber is very apt to he followed by a 

 further marking up of the quotations, and no one is willing to predict 

 that the top limit has been reachi-il. **' 



^ COLUMBUS > 



The hardwood market in Ohio territory has been firm during the 

 past fortnight. Prices have advanced. Buying on the part of retailers 

 and factories is good. The volume of trade is about equally distributed 

 between the two with all purchasers requesting immediate shipment if 

 possible. I^ospects are rather bright. 



Retailers are showing a disposition to increase stocks in view of ex- 

 pected shortage when the government enters the market. As a result. 

 dealers are placing orders both for immediate and deferred shipment. 

 Dealers' stocks are ample for the present, especially in view of curtailed 

 building operations. Rural dealers are the best customers at this 

 time. s 



Factories making boxes and furniture are buying liberally and the 

 same is true of implement and vehicle concerns. Automobile factories 

 are buying rather actively also. The car shortage is holding up ship- 

 ments to a large degree and considerable inconvenience has resulted. 

 During the past few days there has been an improvement in the car 

 supply but this is believed will be only temporary. Many carloads are 

 at the mills, awaiting shipment to northern markets. Collections are 

 fairly good, as money is plentiful. 



Plain and quartered oak is in good demand. Poplar is strong and 

 prices are advancing. Chestnut is one of the strongest points in the 

 trade. Ash. basswood and other hardwoods rule firm and scarce. 



=-< CINCINNATI >= 



While some branches of the luinher market may have suffered rather 

 keenly in the past couple weeks in this section, the hardwood trade 

 here seems to have been benefited through the requirements ot war. 

 Revival of talk regarding a return to river lumber shipping to offset 

 the depressed condition created by the car suortage and embargoes 

 has helped somewhat. Cincinnati lumbermen believing that steady even 

 though slow river shipments even if no further north than Cairo or St. 

 Louis will materially benefit this market. The greatest trouble here is 

 the uncertainty of shipments — speed no longer is a factor, the lumber- 

 man long ago becoming resigned to the fact that it was useless to 

 attempt to hurry delivery under present conditions. But they believe 

 that with river navigation, a steady stream of lumber from the South 

 would result. The entire uardwood list nas moved pretty steadily 

 during the past two weeks. The implement manufacturers are ordering 

 more liberally indicating the increase in their business due to the 

 farming movement. Implement dealers here say that folks who never 

 saw a plow or harrow before are buying them to work their suburban 

 lots, which of course results in many repeat and larger orders from the 

 manuiacturer by the retailer and wholesaler. The call from the fur- 

 niture factories picked up the last week or ten days, this constituting one 

 ot the most agreeable features to the local market. The furniture 

 industry was considerably oft a tew weeks back, but judging from 

 the quartered oak, gum, birch and walnut orders put through recently 

 there need be no future worry from this end of the lumber business. 

 Higher grade items are getting the heaviest call and prices do not 

 seem to cut much figure. When the lumber is obtainable and shipments 

 anyways near prompt, the buyer seems willing to pay any reasonable 

 figure demanded. Quartered oak probably is moving the best of all the 

 hardwoods, the furniture concerns being a great factor in its movement. 

 Cottonwood is moving in much better volume and more steady than a 

 while back, probably reviving to a greater extent than any other 

 item which had been moving slowly. The scarcity of labor, the high 

 prices ot all building material and the ever uncertainty as to the future 

 in war time has put a rather serious crimp in the building industry 

 here, but where the lumber trade loses in this direction it is making up 

 ..cim other consuming industries such as implement, furniture, auto, 

 etc. ^^^lile the higher grades seem to have the best call, there is a 

 heavy demand and steady increase, for the lower grades of gum and 

 other woods from the box manufacturers. The box people, it seems, 

 are fairly swamped with orders tor all kinds of boxes and crating — war 

 orders playing a big part in this business. The interior finishers in 

 the building industry, while feeling the effects of the decline in building 

 operations, nevertheless, are doing a fair amount of business right now, 

 their demand for birch, maple and other interior trim woods being 



YOU WANT WIDE STCCK--wr HAVE IT 



Payson Smith Lumber Co 



MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. 



FOR QUICK 

 SHIPMENT 



Northern Stock 



3 cars.. 

 2 cars . 

 6 cars, 

 l!/2' 



8 cars 11/2" No. 3 Com. & Bet. 



3 cars .~ 2" No. 2 & Bet. 



SOFT ELM 

 I car 11/2" No. 2 & Bet. 



1 car 1 '/z" No. 3 Com. 



HARD MAPLE 



2 cars I" No. 2 & Bet. 



2 cars 1 " No. 3 Com. 



3 cars 2" No. 2 & Bet. 



Southern Stock 

 RED OAK 



2 cars 3/4 Com. & Bet. Plain 



1 car 4 '4 No. 2 & Bet. Plain 



WHITE OAK 

 I car 2" No. 2 & Bet. Plain 



Payson Smith Lumber Co. 



MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. 



CHICAGO OFFICE 

 166S Old Colony Bldg. J. C. Moffat, Rep. 



DETROIT OFFICE 



Henry Clay Hotel. P. M. Youngblood, Rep. 



BIRCH 



" Com. & Bet. Red 

 .... 1" No. 2 Com. 



No. 1 Com. & Bet. 



"' '?:fe: 



BCAUTIFUt 



WC MEAN THE OAK NOT THC MAI 



PAVSON-SMITH LBn.-CO. 



MINNKAPOLia. MINN. 



Walnut 



Of Character and Color 



Manufactured at Kansas City, U. S. A. 



Large Stock of All Grades and Thickness 



Thirty-five years' experience 



IN WALNUT ONLY 



Prompt Shipment, and 

 Guaranteed Inspection 



FRANK PURCELL 



515 Dwight Building. KANSAS CITY, MO. 



All Three of Us Will Be Benefited if You Mention HARDWOOD RECORD 



