October 25, 1915. 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



33 



tunately, much of the surface of the state is flat and erosion is not so active 

 as It would be in a mountainous region. 



The state abounds in both hardwoods and softwoods. Because Minne- 

 sota now leads all other states in the production of white pine lumber, the 

 belief prevails that white pine is al)Out the only timber tree grown there. 

 That is erroneous. Very 'large areas of excellent hardwoods exist. Taper 

 birch, sugar maple, basswood, and trees of the poplar group, like aspen 

 and balm of Glle.id, iire produced In large amounts in .Minnesota. 



Franklin H. Smith Reports on Australasia 



Regarding the worl< of Franklin M. Smith, commercial agent of the I''or 

 est Service, in his navels and investigations through the far East and 

 Australasia, the Forest Service has tlie following to say : 



For many months I'"ranl<lln IT. Smilh. a commercial .".gent of the Bureau 

 01 Foreign and Domestic Commerce. Itepartment of Commerce, has been 

 traveling in the far Kasl and .Australa^Jia. conducting a thoroughgoing 

 investigation into the markets there for the products of .American forest>. 

 In his report on Cliina, which lias just come from the |jress, he reviews 

 in detail ii:e lunibei- situation in the great oriental Itepublic. Mr. Smitli 

 Is optimistic with rcspei't to China, believing that the future will witness 

 a largely increased use of .Vmerican woods. "The population," he says, "is 

 slowly shaking olV tlio old order of existence and turning toward the new — 

 toward greater agricultural and industrial activit.v — absorbing new ideas — 

 and adoDting modern methods. With Increasing development along many 

 lines and with the extension of the railroads, with their civilizing and 

 tr.ade-creating effects, there must of necessit.v come a larger, wider call for 

 lumber. The United States with its durable, easily worked and compara- 

 tively cheap timber will, with i>riiier precautions, control this trade." 



Yet, notwithstanding the conlidence here expressed and the fact that tin- 

 United States already gets about lialf of the Chinese business, Mr. Smith 

 sounds a note of admonition. He points out the desirability of a standard 

 list price, advises closer adherence to grades, touches on tlie possibility 

 that new competitive sources of supply may come up, and emphasizes the 

 need of direct representation in the Chinese field and of a campaign of edu- 

 cation to acquaint prospective purchasers with the superior qualities of 

 American woods. 



Mr. Smith's new booklet is entitled "China and Indo-China Markets for 

 American Lumber" and is No. 104 in the Special Agents' Series. The 

 practical, pertinent intorniation contained in it includes many tables of 

 import and export statistics and a careful examination of the situation in 

 each of the principal markets, .\ttention is given to railroad demands tor 

 timber, the market for boxes, barrels, and shooks, and practically all other 

 aspects of the trade that are of Interest to .American manufacturers. Five 

 cents is the price of this publication, obtainable from the Superintendent 

 of Documents, \\'asbington, D. C. 



The Billboard Big Outlet for Lumber 



Accounts from New Orleans state that the recent hurricane destroyed a 

 good many billboards in that city and other coast towns, which will have 

 to be reconstructed in the near future. Here Is an opportunity for the 

 advocates of new energy in the lumber business to show that they are able 

 to have every last one of these billboards constructed of wood rather 

 than of wood frames with cheap metal of some kind stretched over the 

 surface. 



Lumber Tariff Reinstatement Policy 



It is rumored at Washington, I). C, that there is a pAssibility of the 

 lumber tariff being put back on the books. There is every evidence that 

 there will be a keen fight on to this end when Congress again convenes. 

 It is natural to expect that those senators and congressmen from lumber 

 producing states will be especially interested in the reinstatement of the 

 lumber tariff, particularly when it is so very apparent from an unpreju- 

 diced study of conditions that protection of this sort is an absolute 

 necessity. 



A Successful Reforestation Effort 



The Canada Lumbci-man in a recent issue contains an account of the 

 reforestation policy of the Laurentide Company, Ltd., of Grand Mere. 

 Que, The report says, "To a considerable extent the lands planted were 

 previously cleared for cultivation, but found upon trial to be unsuitable 

 tor agricultural purposes. About 401) acres have already been planted to 

 trees, mostly Norway spruce with some Scotch white and red pine. The 

 oldest of these plantations was made in 1913, and all have been success- 

 ful. The only failure has been in fall planted red pine. The Scotch pine 

 has made good growth, and tne white pine has started well. With the 

 Norway spruce there has been less than five per cent loss and they have 

 begun to grow nicely. These plantations are guarded by fire lines and 

 roads, and a special ranger is kept on duty continuously from snow to 

 snow." 



Italy Places Gigantic Lumber Order 



Details of the big order for .\merican lumber recently placed by the 

 Italian government have been spread pretty much all over the country. 

 The order calls for .50,500,000 feet to be split up between boards, timbers 

 and ties as follows : 29,000,000 feet of boards, 15,500.000 feet of timbers 

 and 6,500,000 feet of cross ties. The order is mainly for yellow pine. 



Loblolly Pine Bulletin 



The geological survey of North Carolina, co-operating with the United 

 States government, has published a bulletin of 176 pages descriptive of the 

 loblolly pine (Pinus IwduJ as it grows in North Carolina. The bulletin is 

 worth careful reading by all persons interested in this pine. Much more 

 attention is given to the growth and care of the tree than to the manufac- 

 ture and use of the lumber, and the report is of more service to the owner 

 of loblolly land than to the manufacturer of the wood. The bulletin was 

 written by W. W. Ashe. 



Baltimore Exports for September 



The report of exports from this city for September shows some unusual 

 trade developments or the lack of them. In the first place, shipments of 



logs are altogether wanting, foreign buyers evidently having use only for 

 manufactured lumber and being too busy on other things to do any sawing 

 themselves. In the next place it proves that as against September of last 

 year there was a heavy increase in the exports of oak lumber, in spite of 

 reports about congestion on the other side, and that while poplar did not 

 figure in the statement for September, 1914, at all. not less than 90,000 feet 

 was sent abroad last month. Very gratifying gains in the forwardings of 

 short leaf pine and spruce are disclosed, and it is seen that a big busi- 

 ness in staves was done, the value of these shipments greatly exceeding 

 those of any other month in years. Just why staves should have attracted 

 so much attention is not known, the war evidently having given rise to uses 

 not previously developed. Altogether, the exhibit, while again emphasizing 

 the fact that September is a rather quiet month in the export trade, also 

 strengthens the evidence that since the first shock of the war the export 

 liusiness has made fairly steady headway, the value of the exports last 

 month exceeding those of a year ago by $36,000, and, in fact, almost 

 doubling them. This is a greater relative gain than for any previous month 

 during the war iieriod, and suggests that the retarding effect of the great 

 conflict is being gradually overcome. The ccmparative statement is as 

 follows : 



September, 1915. September, 1914. 



Quantity. Value. Quantity. Value. 



Lumber, i.ak (feet) S.")0,000 ,$31,017 .'{13,000 .^il^.^iOO 



Lumber, white pine (feet) .... 20,000 1,050 25,000 700 



Luml)er, short leaf pine (feet). .'iO.OOO 995 



LumbiT, poplar (feet) 90,000 2,980 



Lumber, spruce (feet) 132,000 3,960 S6.000 3,154 



Lumber, all others (feet) 133,000 6,422 84,000 4,185 



Shooks, all others 1,340 1,340 



Staves 394,820 22,440 4.142 625 



Lumber, all others 230 757 



Doors, sash and blinds 590 151 



Furniture 165 18.100 



Trimmings 317 



.\ll other manufactures of 



wood 7,564 4,278 



.$79,570 

 Substituting Mahogany for Walnut 



.$43,459 



The British arms makers are substituting mahogany tor walnut for 

 rifie stocks, where sufficient walnut cannot be had. There is not much dif- 

 ference between the two woods in cost by the time they are delivered in 

 Fngland. Walnut Is preferred to all others, but it has become necessary in 

 some instances to seek for substitutes. 



Oak Gaining Favor 



The r.,ondon Timber in speaking of the hardwood market there says 

 there are indications that oak is obtaining more favor now in the furniture 

 world tlian has been shown toward it for several years, and some are pre- 

 dicting that the next favorite among the furniture woods is to be oak. 

 If this guess is right, it will probably also mean the use of more oak in 

 planing mill work for interior trim. 



Alaska's Timber Resources 



The railroad now under construction in .Alaska from Seward to Fair- 

 banks will open large tracts of timber for cutting. It is estimated that 

 20,000,000 acres of good forest are found in Alaska, and four times 

 that area of scattered timber. Sawmills are preparing to follow the rail- 

 road builders into the country and in a few years tlie output of that 

 region will hold an important place in the country's lumber cut. The 

 principal wood is spruce, but there are fairly large quantities of others, 

 including paper birch. 



Successful Grape Shipments in Sawdust 



The shipment of California table grapes in redwood sawdust has proved 

 a success, but is somewhat expensive. A keg that contains thirty-five 

 pounds of grapes costs ninety cents for the container and the contents. 

 The freight and refrigeration to Chicago costs seventy-one cents. The 

 grapes sell for $2.50. This leaves eighty-nine cents for commission and 

 profit. It is cheaper than shipping in cork waste iroiii Spain, but the 

 margin of profit is not very high, considering the investment and the 

 ordinary uncertainties of the trade. 



Looking Toward America 



-\ late issue of the London Timber .\cu:s says that the development of 

 the American trade will need to be carefully watched. Many English firms, 

 who formerly took no interest in transatlantic wood, are turning their 

 attention to this source of supply, as it is quite possible that contingencies 

 may arise next year rendering the North Sea route more difficult, while 

 allowing the .Atlantic business to be carried on as before. Canadian sales 

 are still hampered by the freights, which, of course, are much higher than 

 from the Baltic, but if Swedish sellers put up their prices to too high a 

 level, encouragement will be given to the exporters there and in the United 

 States, and greater efforts will be made to increase the output. 



Looks Like Meanness 



The most shining example of meanness Drought to public view for some 

 time is contained in an article recently published in London Timber. An old. 

 wooden-legged man who ekes out a precarious living by selling matches was 

 recently fined sixty-two cents as punishment for allowing his wooden leg 

 to stick out and obstruct a highway when he sat down to rest. 



