6o Forestry Quarterly 



precisely the date, at which the men, daubed in ridicule "forest 

 denudatics", by the American Lvimberman, had placed it 20 

 years before. The realization of the limited supply then stand- 

 ing came suddenly and brought prices nearly to a level with that 

 of fancy woods. A famine is a time of high prices, and the 

 rapidity of rise notes the growing scarcity of supplies. From 

 1890 to I goo the price for Uppers rose from $44 to $57.50, or 

 2^ % per annum ; from 1900 to 1903 the phenomenal rise to $80 

 took place, or at the rate of 6% per annum, and at present the 

 price hovers between $80 and $95. 



It should be added that the decline is probably even greater 

 than the figures indicate, for the later statistics are probably 

 closer to the truth than the former, which may be understate- 

 ments. 



The cuts of hemlock and hardwoods in the three States have 

 during the years 1900 to 1905 remained practically the same, 

 with slight annual variations, hemlock around 1.25 billion feet, 

 hardwoods from 800 to 1,000 million feet. 



The figures are the American lyUmberman's, the reflections are 

 the Editor's. 



Incidentally we recall the following language of the same 

 journal used about one year ago : " While no careful comparison 

 has been made to demonstrate the fact, it is extremely probable 

 that were all of the white pine mills operated at full capacity 

 the timber of Wisconsin and Minnesota would be exhausted in 

 comparatively a short time, some operators going so far as to say 

 that five years would see the end of the white pine production." 



Northern Lumber Output of 1905. American Lumberman. Feb. 24, 

 1906. 



Not less instructive than the change in 



Stumpage cut is the change in stumpage prices for 



Prices. White Pine, for which the same authority 



records the following as fair averages : 

 From 1850 to i860 White Pine was sold by the acre. Between 

 i860 and 1870 values were adjusted on a stumpage basis of 25 to 

 50 or 75 cents per M., and in Michigan by 1870 $2 to $2.50 were 

 attained. From 1870 to 1880 the advance was only 25 to 50 

 cents, but stumpage of Wisconsin and Minnesota had come with- 

 in $1 to the Michigan prices. From 1880, after the Census fig- 



