OF VIRGINIA 



forest and water transportation resources in further manufacturing 

 as much of their rough lumber as they might, it would be well to 

 recognize the fact and to take measures to profit by it. 



Besides the 2,100,000,000 feet which Virginia's sawmills produce 

 annually, and 20,000,000 feet cut into veneer, it requires 257,000,000 

 feet of forest material for the makers of slack staves and heading, 

 and 13,000,000 feet for the manufacturers of tight cooperage stock. 

 The aggregate amounts to nearly 2,390,000,000 feet, which does not 

 include the drain on the forests for such products as cross-ties, pulp- 

 wood, mining props, and telegraph poles. Arbitrarily fixing the 

 quantity for these at 300,000,000 feet, the total amount of wood contrib- 

 uted annually by Virginia's forests would aggregate approximately 

 2,690,000,000, feet. Expressed in dollars and cents this amounts to 

 more than $25,500,000, making the value of the annual timber crop to 

 exceed the combined values of the tobacco and wheat crops, and 

 equal to considerably more than two-thirds of the corn crop as re- 

 ported by the Department of Agriculture for 1910. With agriculture, 

 therefore, Virginia's forests are one of her greatest sources of wealth. 



The following' pages show that the wood-using industries take a 

 part of this lumber after the saw mills lay it down, and by additional 

 manufacture further add to the commercial activity and prosperity 

 of the State by making commodities of greatly increased value. This 

 added value is estimated to be more than $10,000,000, making the 

 forest products worth over $35,000,000. In 1911 wood-using fac- 

 tories paid over $20,000,000 alone for their raw material, and 

 according to the last Census 'their total capitalization, together witih the 

 sawmills, amounted approximately to $25,000,000. If the timber is 

 allowed to disappear, the life of these industries, and of the sawmills 

 which are dependent upon the forests for their raw material, is limited ; 

 and if measures are not taken to insure the continued growth and pro- 

 tection of the forests, the industries will ultimately have to shut down, 

 and the State will suffer-from the consequent loss of business. Nearly 

 every year fire rages in Virginia's forests and the annual loss to the 

 State is not less than $350,000. The forests cover an area of 15 mil- 

 lion acres or equal to one-half of that of the State and are estimated 

 to be worth over $100,000,000. 



A large part of these areas are better suited for growing 

 harwood or softwood tirrtber than for farm crops. The State, 

 therefore, can profitably grow as well as manufacture timber. 

 Virginia can maintain its present lumber yield and at the same 

 time furnish cheap raw material to factories. This will not only 

 insure a continuance of the present industrial activity, but an even 



