How Lrumber Lrooks

Seattle, Washington, January 13, 1944-The weekly average of West Coast Lumber production in December (5 weeks) was 147,765.000 board feet, or 97.3 per cent of 19391942 average, ac'cording to the West Coast Lumbermen's Association in its monthly survey of the industry. Orders averaged 158,867,000 board feet; shipments, 161,118,000. Weekly averages for November were: Production 162,157,000 board feet (106.8 per cent of the 1939-t942 average); orders, 152,835,000; shipments, 161,601,000.

Favorable logging weather through most of December aided the West Coast lumber industry in its determined fight to produce lumber for the war, to the last board. The December production was 25 per cent over that of a year ago. The industry ended the year with a cut of 7,9N million feet of lumber. This makes the third year of production substantially in excess oI l94O and the years preceding it back to l9D.

As at the beginning of 1943, the West Coast mills :rr.c still vastly oversold, in their efforts to supply war recluirements. There are over one billion feet of unfilled orders on the mill boards, while the aggregate of sawmill stocks has been reduced a further 2O per cent. \Mar requirements for lumber have changed materially during the year but shorv no signs of lessening. The war plant in the United States, the cantonments, warehouses, hangars and shipyards, have largely been completed. But the offensive phase of the war has brought insatiable demands for expendable items like boxes and cases for supplies going overseas, military truck bodies, pontoon bridges and the rough and ready requirements at forward bases. Every fresh point of attack by the American forces means that still more lumber is needed for these offensive requirements; and the vast plans of attack in Europe during the present year are foreshadowed in the current demands upon West Coast sawmills.

For the same reasons there is yet no prospect that more West Coast lumber can be made available in L944, for civilian home and farm building, beyqnd the urgent defense housing which must be completed as an essential part of the war itself. Much as the West Coast manufacturers would like to divert more lumber to their former distributors for everyday civilian needs, they are still debarred from doing so by orders of the High Command. In fact, the control of lumber usage by War Production Board orders, allocations and priorities is be.coming more drastic and is being extended to more of the national production. It is evident that lumber must serve the guns until there is a decisive change in the military situation.

The Western January 15, 94 feet, shipments

Pino Association for the week ended mills reporting, gave orders as 60,791,000 56,575,000 feet, and production 45,131,000

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