THE CALIFOR}-IIA LUMBERMERCHANT

Advcrtiring

J. E. MARTIN Mgr. Sal Franeitco Office

W. T. BLACK Mgr. Portlraod Office

How Lumber Looks

A "hrmdred million dollar rainr" coming right at the time that it war most needed, and doing the greatest amount of good, and no harrn, has helped the situation in every line of business, in California.

Prospects are bright for burinesc for the balance of February and for March and the baLance of the Spring and Summer montts.

Buytng has been brisk the first two weeks in this month, the dealers reem to have accepted the fact that low stocks and a good retail dernand necessitater laying in rtocks and giving the wholesaler some business, and we Lefieve that the millmen and the wholesalerr have no particular kickr coming on the prices t{rey have been getting for thir recent business.

Building predictions for the opening months of 1926 seem to have been justified by the present outlook. Every city in duction has been held down since the fust of January suffi' ciently to keep approximately four hundred and fifty mil' lion feet of lumber in the log which would have otherwise beerr forced into a searonably slow market. The effects of the production regulation have surpassed what any one had hoped for.

The intermittent, atop and rtert sawing rchedules which the mills have had during tfie past four weeks heve kept everybody guessing. Buying has been difficultand aggravating and has necersitated more ltran the usual arnount of spreading around of orders in order to get placement and prompt shipment and the strange thing is, t'he volume of new business coming in has been lisht at that.

Whether or not the first six monthr of this year will be profitable now rests entirely in the hands of the mills in the state has shown a healthy ectivity, and projects for a good volume of new work would indicate that the lumbermen could make some money thir year.

Shipments have been lighter thir month, not lighter than January but less than any nrontfi in 1925. The docks are not loaded and the surplus that arrived in December has been nicely cleaned up. Orders are now being placed for immediate delivery.

Cutting orders are still hard to place with the mills in an independent attitude toward this kind of business. Uppers of all kinde in Fir are rtrong, probably account the heavy Eastern demand for almost any kind of Pacific Coart woods.

The following word carne from Portland, just as this was being written and gives a very good insight into the attitude in thet section:

The geneal outlook ir.growing brighter daily.

In the firet place in thc face of weather conditionr which have been ideal for the manufacturing of lumber, the pro-

Oregon and Washington. They have done a good job so far and it would be a pity to see the excellent results obtained lost entirely through not carr5ring the production regulation on in February until the early spring buying can get under way. At present there is no appa.rent intention to increase production until such a time as the actual demand warrants it.

During the past few days California har had a "fifty million dollar rain." It has come at jurt the right time to insure heavy crops, and wires frorn lumbermen in the Bear State predict a heavy consumption of lumber during the ne:rt six months.

Building permits on the Atlantic coast make rure thet they will r-equire at least as much Pacific Coast lumber during the first half of this year as they did in the seme months of 1925. That market ir temporarily taking advantage of the untimely arrival of unsold lots and while thir most ruinour practice will have rome effect on eady ryring mill placemcntr itwill roon dirappear when building getr undcr way.