396 



TIMBER RESOURCES OF MAINE. 



present generation were cutting off their wood for the Boston market. All have now 

 reached their last tree, and are bringing wood for their own fires from distant points 

 on the coast. Now these same farms have nearly ceased to produce aught for man or 

 beast, and domestic animals have nearly been banished from them. 



This impairment of values is by no means local in extent, nor limited 

 to agricultural interests alone. Its effect may be especially seen in the 

 ship-building interests of that State, which, although still carried on to 

 a large extent, must now depend for its principal supplies upon a dis- 

 tant timber-market. The circumstance that gave the first impulse to 

 this business was the abundance and excellence of the timber, which 

 gave to Maine the familiar designation of the "Pine-tree State," and sug- 

 gested a pine tree as the central figure of the State seal. 



The following data concerning the lumber production of Maine are 

 derived in part from an article in the Kennebec Journal (Augusta), of 

 December 2G, 1877 : 



On the Kennebec River. — The average production for several years has 

 been about 125,000,000 feet. In the winter of 1877 the cut of logs was 

 reduced to about 60,000,000, and this reduction was forced upon the 

 lumbermen by the continued depression of business. The arrange- 

 ments for the winter of 1878 were for 50,000,000, but the lateness of snow- 

 fall makes it probable that it may prove even less.^ The production 

 was 76,000,000 in 1867, and 113,000,000 in 1876. At the present time 

 there are very few old logs manufactured on the river. Usually, the lum- 

 bermen carry over logs enough to supply the mills until the opening of 

 navigation (about the Isfc of May), when the new logs come down ; so 

 that few of the mills will next season be able to start up before the 1st 

 or middle of June, 

 had gone into the woods with about 250 teams. 



On the Penobscot River. — The number of feet of lumber manufactured 

 at Bangor and vicinity during the last twenty-two years, as shown by 

 the official records, has been as follows : 



1856 

 1857 

 1858 

 1859 

 1860 

 1861 

 1862 

 1863 

 1864 

 1865 

 1866 

 1867 

 1868 

 1869 

 1870 

 1871 

 1872 

 1873 

 1874 

 1875 

 1876 

 1877 



Green pine. 



Feet. 

 85, 411, 378 

 60, 875, 020 

 16, 230, 129 

 73, 054, 637 

 87, 386, 610 

 29, 402, 742 



49. 288. 178 



49, 788, 162 



43. 289. 179 

 35, 137, 683 



50, 903, 269 

 40, 429, 849 

 41, 202, 167 

 30,796,811 

 22, 999, 000 

 35, 613, 000 

 37, 570, 000 

 25, 553, 985 

 18, 5(19, 443 

 17, 049, 884 

 15, 001, 624 

 10, 655, 443 



Dry pine. 



Feet. 

 17, 000, 089 

 14,941,023 

 13, 223, 715 



10, 424, 752 

 10,314,565 



8,616,185 



11, 732, 569 



12, 806, 074 



11, 557, 327 

 13, 158, 539 



12, 671, 142 

 10, 777, 325 



9, 107, 232 

 10, 184, 100 



7, 030, 000 



6, 770, 000 



8, 580, 000 



7, 032, 863 

 5, 663, 861 

 5, 285, 965 

 4, 613, 948 

 4, 048, 709 



Sprnce. 



Feet. 

 66, 526, 983 

 56, 725, 284 

 62, 045, 696 

 77, 432, 074 

 88, 027, 510 

 72, 026, 900 

 90, 135, 783 

 108, 904, 447 

 100,774,936 

 107, 505, 867 

 154,571,243 

 139, 445, 478 

 152, 931, 455 

 133, 756, 759 

 149, 103, 192 

 163, 121, 675 

 176,933,649 

 129, 277, 908 

 135, 226, 015 

 116, 664, 487 

 82, 087, 987 

 85, 480, 149 



Feet. 

 11, 323, 386 



12, 557, 680 

 16,166,907 



15, 275, 553 



14, 662, 811 

 9, 874, 824 

 7, 421, 392 



16, 622, 364 

 12,814,830 

 14,078,934 

 19, 005, 952 



15, 830, 706 

 17,553,912 

 IG, 103, 240 



22, 881, 000 

 21, 987, 000 



23, 370, 000 



17, 337, 597 

 17, 382, 608 

 15, 662, 793 



13, 417, 632 

 17, 683, 444 



Feet. 

 180, 262, 230 

 145, 109, 000 

 147, 666, 447 

 176,187,016 

 200, 391, 526 

 130, 529. 651 

 158, 577, 922 

 188, 122, 047 

 174, 436, 272 



169, 881, 023 

 237, 147, 606 

 206, 48.3, 358 

 220, 794, 766 

 l!tO, 840, 908 

 202,014,102 

 229, 491, 675 

 246, 453, 949 

 179,202,353 



170, 786, 932 

 154, 663, 129 

 11,5, 121, 191 

 117,867,745 



' This anticipation of an open winter was more than realized, and at the time of writ- 

 ing this note (May 1,1878) accounts from lumber regions throughout the Northern 

 States agree in representing the amount of logging done, as everywhere much below 

 the average of common winters. As most of the lumber sawed during the summer 

 comes down with the spring floods, the production for the current year must necessarily 

 be relatively small. 



