2 BULLETIN 232, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Attention is called to the fact that the statistics for different years 

 are not exactly comparable on account of the varying number of 

 small mills which made returns in the different years. In 1899 and 

 1909 the enumeration was exceptionally complete, special agents of 

 the Bureau of the Census canvassing the mills in connection with the 

 decennial census of manufacturers. Further, mills reporting less than 

 50,000 feet of lumber were omitted from the statistics for 1910 and 

 later, and the census of 1904 was limited to merchant mills, thus ex- 

 cluding probably a somewhat larger proportion, while for the other 

 years previous to 1910, except 1904, all mills for which reports were 

 secured are included in the statistics. The figures for 1907, 1908, 

 1910, 1911, and 1912 were secured by correspondence methods which 

 make the figures for those years more nearly comparable. 



The census for 1913 is characterized by the grouping of mills into 

 capacity classes and concentrating efforts upon an attempt to secure 

 as complete a census as possible by correspondence from the mills in 

 the larger classes, without attempting to follow up reports from 

 thousands of small mills. It is believed that if the figures are separated 

 in this manner in this and succeeding presentations of annual lumber 

 statistics a ready means of comparison of the production of the mills 

 in different years will be afforded, even though the number of small 

 mills reporting may vary considerably. 



Table 1 shows the lumber cut for each year since 1899 from which 

 data have been compiled and the number of active mills reporting 

 each year. 



Table 1. — Number of active mills reporting and quantity of lumber, 1899-1913. 



Year. 



Number of 

 active mills 

 reporting. 



Lumber 



(quantity, 



M feet b. m.). 



Year. 



Number of 

 active mills 

 reporting. 



Lumber 



(quantity, 



M feet b. m.). 



1913 



i 21, 668 

 29, 648 

 28,107 

 31,934 

 48, 112 



38,387,009 

 39,158,414 • 

 37, 003, 207 

 40,018,282 

 44, 509, 761 



1908 



31,231 

 28,850 

 22, 393 

 18, 277 

 31,833 



33, 224, 369 

 40, 256, 154 

 37, 5.50, 736 

 34, 135, 139 

 35,084,166 



1912... 



1907... 



1911 



1906 



1910... 



1904 



1909 



1899 







1 In 1913 the number of active mills includes only those cutting lumber, while the figures for the other 

 years include mills cutting lath and shingles as well as lumber. 



In 1913, 21,394 mills reported a production of 38,387,009,000 board 

 feet, as against 39,158,414,000 feet reported by 29,648 mills in 1912, 

 and 37,003,207,000 feet reported by 28,107 mills in 1911. Although 

 about 8,000 fewer mills reported in 1913 than in 1912 many were 

 exclusively shingle mills, while most of the lumber mills not report- 

 ing were of small capacity and the inclusion of their reports would not 

 change the total production in the same ratio. 



The production in 1913 of nearly as much lumber as in 1912 is of 

 special significance in view of the business conditions which have 



