THE NAVAL STORES INDUSTRY. " 3 



Previous to 1800 very little of the crude turpentine was distilled 

 at the point of production. Tapping operations were conducted, 

 so far as possible, along navigable streams and inlets. The crude 

 turpentine was then shipped to Wilmington, Philadelphia, and New 

 York, and there reshipped to England for distillation. Up to the year 

 1820 the production of turpentine and rosin was quite unimportant 

 and limited to the demands of domestic industries. The rosin manu- 

 factured was worth very little, the price dropping to 25 cents a barrel 

 and even lower, so that it could no longer be handled at a profit. 



Copper stills were introduced in 1834, and greatly improved 

 manufacturing conditions. Previously the distillations had been 

 conducted in crude cast-iron retorts that gave very poor results, 

 both as to quantity and quality of the products. 



Up to the year 1838 the industry had not advanced south of the 

 Cape Fear River, the belief being that the pines farther south would 

 not flow .sufficiently. This error was soon discovered through a 

 few experiments, and the practically untouched belt of longleaf pine 

 forest extending from the Carolinas to Texas was gradually invaded. 



Increasing demands for turpentine in the varnish and paint indus- 

 tries; its utilization as a solvent for rubber and as an illuminant when 

 mixed with alcohol, and the passage of the British free trade law of 

 1846 combined to stimulate production. In proportion as the de- 

 mand for turpentine increased a greater amount of rosin was manu- 

 faetured than eould be utilized in the arts, and so went to waste. 



The Civil War had a depressing effect upon the industry. Only 

 about two-thirds of the number of establishments reported for 1860 

 were in operation in 1870. 



STATISTICS OF PRODUCTION. 



Except for the period between 1860 and 1870, the naval stores 

 industry has had a steady growth, so far as the value of its products 

 is concerned. The market prices are subject to great variation, 1 not 

 only according to supply and demand, but also through manipulation 

 on the exchange. Figure 1 shows the high and low prices by years 

 since 1901 for turpentine and for two grades of rosin. 



During the last five years the average annual production, in round 

 numbers, has been 31,800,000 gallons of turpentine and 3,700,000 

 barrels of rosin. Over half of the products are exported, this country 

 largely supplying the world. France, Austria, Spain, Portugal, India, 

 Greece, and other comitries also produce naval stores, but the 

 amounts are relatively small, as may be seen from Tables 1 to 4, which 

 show the exports and imports of turpentine and rosin by various 

 countries from 1901 to 1912. 



1 During the season 1909-10 the lowest price of turpentine per gallon was 35J cents, while during 1910-11 

 the high-water mark of $1.07 was reached. The lowest quotation ever posted by the Savannah Board of 

 Trade was on Sept. 4, 1896, when turpentine brought but 22 cents a gallon. 



