The AIofthloest

Bv C. C. CROV Publisher, Crow's Pocitic Coost Lumber Digest, Portland, Oregon

The celebration of an anniversary is supposed to be, if I am not mistaken, the occasion for rejoicing. No one wants to celebrate a cycle of gloom and I am therefore reluctant to write an article for The California Lumber Merchant whi,ch will be a wet blanket on the otherwise cheerful pag:es of an excellent birthday issue, but I ,cannot portray the condition of the lumber market in the Notthwest without painting a word picture which will be of a very doleful nature.

The past twelve months have been extremely unsatisfactory for Northwest lumber manufacturers. The slump which began in October, 1929, hung on doggedly through 1930 with the demand slowly falling off and prices continuing to lose ground. An extensive produ'ction regulation program which met the shrunken demand in an admirable way was not suffi,cient at any time to give the mills the upper hand and by the late fall months everyone was reconciled to slack business until spring of this year when it was hoped that a general revival would place the lumber industry back on its feet. February and March saw the market fairly well stabilized and gave plenty of ground to the belief that the usual seasonal bulge in buying would be felt in April, May and June. Unfortunately, instead of business picking irp a noticeable weakness developed the middle of April, and May proved to be the most disastrous month experienced since the slump began. Prices, which were already below the cost of production for a majority of mills, declined further and gradually more operations closed for indefinite periods.

So far June has added nothing cheerful but there is much to lead students of the market to believe that prices will by the first of July be as low as they will go. During the past two weeks several of the largest operations in the Northwest have announced plans which call for a complete tie-up on the first of July with prospe,cts that they will remain idle the balance of this year regardless of what the market does, and numerous other concerns are contemplating simi- lar action. With production already below 45/o of normal it seems a safe prediction that not over 35/o'of the usual footage will be turned out during July and August. When it is borne in mind that mill inventories of some items of retail yard stock, especially No. I common dimension and boards, are below normal it will be seen that should the demand remain where it is it ig not improbable that the buying of mixed cars for quick shipment itrroultr ttt" su-mer months will be harder than at anv timi since the slump began.

Prices on fir are down to what was considered rock bottom twenty-five years ago and operating losses have long since.become mu,ch greater than those to be suffered by re-maining idle and ablorbing fixed overhead charges. -

Many of the best sawmills in the Northwest lave now been closed for over a yeat. Their crews are completely disorganized, as will be those of the concerns that aie pri- pa_ring to- shut down for indefinite periods on the firsi of July. Such operations will not go to the expense of getting started again until t.here has been a very marked improve-ment in prices, for the idle plants are now divided into two classes: well financed concelns that have tired of continued losses and poorly financed concerns that will not be able to get money to operate again until there is abundant evidence that lumber can be sold at a profit.

The Northwest lumber industry has been hard hit during the past eighteen months. There has been widespread unemployment and wages have suffered severely. Men who have.formerly_found employment in the millj and camps are filtering off into other lines of work and the reorgani/a- tion of crews will present a serious problem. In thJmeantime, the rvise builder will take advlntage of his abilitv to buy lumber for less than the cost of production for it is not improbable that when the recovery cbmes it will take olace quickly and prices will rebound, as has been the ""rd following practically every_depression in the past, similar to the one now being experienied.

First introduced 4 years ago

-now largest seller on market

Largest seller, fastest selter, because b c r tGuaianteed 90y'o ot more red heartwood with l(f'/o oil content. And packed in metal-bound cartons for good measure.

Fu qtotatins,"or!!l:{fj;::" ;*r,"," catil onia

E. J. STANTON & SON J. E. HIGGINS LBR. CO. Lor Angelcr San Francilco ffio.c,F,BglYrr 6,6. lvrANUFACTUIT,EFLC F}BO

THE EAST\TOOD

HIS atractive PhiliPPinc Doot auggertr thc dayr when towering cacder were built for the recurig of i$ people from their enecrier"

HE EASTVOOD ir one of the Philippine LAMINEX derigor noted for the aristocratic, ctraightt slender ribbon grain that ic asoci' ated with the moct exPendve hard' woods.

HIS door can be erPPlled also in Vertical Grain Fir, and the face can be either grooved or plain.

NICOLAI DOOR SALES CO.

Selling Dealer Trade Exclusively

"Red" Wood

?r

(tThe campaign is onwatch the results. gpRedwood Anzac Siding-the siding with a personality.tt