| 1909 | 1904 | 1899 | |
| MATERIALS | |||
| Total cost | $165,442,341 | $111,251,478 | $70,530,236 |
| Pulpwood, cost | $33,772,475 | $20,800,871 | $9,837,516 |
| Wood pulp, purchased: | |||
| Tons | 1,241,914 | 877,702 | 644,006 |
| Cost | $43,861,357 | $27,633,164 | $18,369,464 |
| Ground— | |||
| Tons | 452,849 | 317,286 | 261,962 |
| Cost | $9,487,508 | $5,754,259 | $4,361,211 |
| Soda fiber— | |||
| Tons | 154,626 | 120,978 | 94,042 |
| Cost | $6,862,864 | $5,047,105 | $3,430,809 |
| Sulphite fiber— | |||
| Tons | 626,029 | 433,160 | 273,194 |
| Cost | $27,184,726 | $16,567,122 | $10,112,189 |
| Other chemical fiber— | |||
| Tons | 8,410 | 6,278 | 14,808 |
| Cost | $326,259 | $264,678 | $465,255 |
| Rags, including cotton, flax waste and sweepings: | |||
| Tons | 357,470 | 294,552 | 234,514 |
| Cost | $10,721,559 | $8,864,607 | $6,595,427 |
| Old and waste paper: | |||
| Tons | 983,882 | 588,543 | 356,193 |
| Cost | $13,691,120 | $7,430,335 | $4,869,409 |
| Manila stock, including jute bagging, rope, waste, threads, etc.: | |||
| Tons | 117,080 | 107,029 | 99,301 |
| Cost | $3,560,033 | $2,502,332 | $2,437,256 |
| Straw: | |||
| Tons | 303,137 | 304,585 | 367,305 |
| Cost | $1,460,282 | $1,502,886 | $1,395,659 |
| All other materials cost | $58,375,515 | $42,517,283 | $27,025,505 |
| PRODUCTS | |||
| Total value | $267,656,964 | $188,715,189 | $127,326,162 |
| Newspaper: | |||
| In rolls for printing— | |||
| Tons | 1,091,017 | 840,802 | 454,572 |
| Value | $42,807,064 | $32,783,308 | $15,754,992 |
| In sheets for printing— | |||
| Tons | 84,537 | 72,020 | 114,640 |
| Value | $4,048,496 | $3,143,152 | $4,336,882 |
| Book paper: | |||
| Book— | |||
| Tons | 575,616 | 434,500 | 282,093 |
| Value | $42,846,674 | $31,156,728 | $19,466,804 |
| Coated— | |||
| Tons | 95,213 | ([2]) | ([2]) |
| Value | $9,413,961 | ([2]) | ([2]) |
| Plate, lithograph, map, woodcut, etc.— | |||
| Tons | 6,498 | 19,837 | 22,366 |
| Value | $555,352 | $1,458,343 | $2,018,958 |
| Cover— | |||
| Tons | 17,578 | 22,150 | 18,749 |
| Value | $1,982,853 | $2,023,986 | $1,665,376 |
| Cardboard, bristol board, card middles, tickets, etc.— | |||
| Tons | 51,449 | 39,060 | 28,494 |
| Value | $3,352,151 | $2,764,444 | $1,719,813 |
| Fine paper: | |||
| Writing— | |||
| Tons | 169,125 | 131,934 | 90,204 |
| Value | $24,966,102 | $19,321,045 | $12,222,870 |
| All other— | |||
| Tons | 29,088 | 14,898 | 22,503 |
| Value | $4,110,536 | $2,928,125 | $3,673,104 |
| Wrapping paper: | |||
| Manila (rope, jute, tag, etc.)— | |||
| Tons | 73,731 | 86,826 | 89,419 |
| Value | $6,989,436 | $6,136,080 | $5,929,764 |
| Heavy (mill wrappers, etc.)— | |||
| Tons | 108,561 | 96,992 | 82,875 |
| Value | $4,380,794 | $4,035,588 | $4,143,240 |
| Straw— | |||
| Tons | 32,988 | 54,232 | 91,794 |
| Value | $870,419 | $1,389,348 | $2,027,518 |
| Bogus or wood manila, all grades— | |||
| Tons | 367,932 | 228,371 | 203,826 |
| Value | $19,777,707 | $10,099,772 | $9,148,677 |
| All other— | |||
| Tons | 179,855 | 177,870 | 67,338 |
| Value | $10,202,035 | $8,774,804 | $3,293,174 |
| Boards: | |||
| Wood pulp— | |||
| Tons | 71,036 | 60,863 | 44,187 |
| Value | $2,639,496 | $2,347,250 | $1,406,130 |
| Straw— | |||
| Tons | 171,789 | 167,278 | 157,534 |
| Value | $3,750,851 | $4,367,560 | $3,187,342 |
| News— | |||
| Tons | 74,606 | 38,560 | 32,119 |
| Value | $2,215,469 | $1,174,216 | $930,531 |
| All other— | |||
| Tons | 514,208 | 253,950 | 131,777 |
| Value | $17,539,768 | $9,070,531 | $4,829,316 |
| Other paper products: | |||
| Tissues— | |||
| Tons | 77,745 | 43,925 | 28,406 |
| Value | $8,553,654 | $5,056,438 | $3,486,652 |
| Blotting— | |||
| Tons | 9,577 | 8,702 | 4,351 |
| Value | $1,186,180 | $1,046,790 | $580,750 |
| Building roofing, asbestos, and sheathing— | |||
| Tons | 225,824 | 145,024 | 96,915 |
| Value | $9,251,368 | $4,845,628 | $3,025,967 |
| Hanging— | |||
| Tons | 92,158 | 62,606 | 54,330 |
| Value | $4,431,514 | $3,013,464 | $2,265,345 |
| Miscellaneous— | |||
| Tons | 96,577 | 106,296 | 49,101 |
| Value | $6,869,169 | $6,729,820 | $2,795,841 |
| Wood pulp made for sale or for consumption in mills other than where produced: | |||
| Ground— | |||
| Tons | 310,747 | 273,400 | 280,052 |
| Value | $5,649,466 | $4,323,495 | $4,433,699 |
| Soda fiber— | |||
| Tons | 155,844 | 130,366 | 99,014 |
| Value | $6,572,152 | $5,159,615 | $3,612,602 |
| Sulphite fiber— | |||
| Tons | 444,255 | 376,940 | 271,585 |
| Value | $17,955,748 | $13,661,464 | $10,451,400 |
| All other products, value | $4,738,549 | $1,924,195 | $919,415 |
| WOOD PULP | |||
| Quantity produced (including that used in mills where manufactured), total tons | 2,495,523 | 1,921,768 | 179,535 |
| Ground, tons | 1,179,266 | 968,976 | 586,374 |
| Soda fiber, tons | 298,626 | 196,770 | 177,124 |
| Sulphite fiber, tons | 1,017,631 | 756,022 | 416,037 |
| EQUIPMENT | |||
| Paper machines: | |||
| Total number | 1,480 | 1,369 | 1,232 |
| Capacity, yearly, tons | 5,293,397 | 3,857,903 | 2,782,219 |
| Fourdrinier— | |||
| Number | 804 | 752 | 663 |
| Capacity per 24 hours, tons | 10,508 | 8,569 | ([3]) |
| Cylinder— | |||
| Number | 676 | 617 | 569 |
| Capacity per 24 hours, tons | 6,316 | 4,740 | ([3]) |
| Pulp: | |||
| Grinders, number | 1,435 | 1,362 | 1,168 |
| Digesters, total number | 542 | 517 | 426 |
| Sulphite fiber, number | 348 | 309 | ([2]) |
| Soda fiber, number | 194 | 208 | ([2]) |
| Capacity, yearly, tons of pulp | 3,405,621 | 2,644,753 | 1,536,431 |
| Ground, tons | 1,809,685 | 1,515,088 | ([2]) |
| Sulphite, tons | 1,250,983 | 885,092 | ([2]) |
| Soda, tons | 344,953 | 244,573 | ([2]) |
Table from United States Statistics of Manufacture for 1909, Showing Rapid Growth of Paper Industry.
The comparative statement follows:
| Kind of Wood. | Quantity, in Cords, of Pulpwood Consumed | |||
| 1911 | 1910 | 1909 | 1908 | |
| Total | 4,328,052 | 4,094,306 | 4,001,607 | 3,346,953 |
| Spruce, domestic | 1,612,355 | 1,473,542 | 1,653,249 | 1,487,356 |
| Spruce, imported | 903,375 | 902,407 | 768,332 | 672,483 |
| Hemlock | 616,663 | 610,478 | 559,657 | 569,173 |
| Poplar, domestic | 333,929 | 315,717 | 302,876 | 279,564 |
| Poplar, imported | 34,295 | 45,359 | 25,622 | 22,653 |
| Balsam fir | 191,779 | 132,362 | ([1]) 95,366 | ([1]) 45,309 |
| Pine | 124,019 | 105,882 | 90,885 | 84,189 |
| Beech | 44,320 | 44,265 | 31,390 | ([2]) |
| Maple | 36,979 | 42,621 | ([2]) | ([2]) |
| White fir | 36,493 | 30,845 | 37,176 | ([2]) |
| Cottonwood | 25,043 | 31,099 | 36,898 | 45,679 |
| All other | 88,268 | 97,092 | 151,179 | 140,547 |
| Slabwood, etc, | 280,534 | 262,637 | 248,977 | ([3]) |
[1] Balsam.
[2] Included in “All other.”
[3] Included with other wood by species.
The high point of importation of chemical wood-pulp was reached in 1914, when approximately 3,600,000 tons came in from Europe and 92,000 from Canada. In January 1916 owing to the war, imports for the month from Europe dropped from an average of 30,694 tons to 12,985 tons, while Canadian pulp increased from an average of 7,654 to an actual importation for the month of 28,833 tons.
Although the use of wood now so heavily overshadows that of rags that it almost seems as though the latter were being slowly abandoned, this is of course only relatively true, their consumption being actually greater than ever. The mere cost of the rags in 1909 was slightly in excess of the total value of all paper products recorded in the United States Census for 1850, a circumstance which leads us to wonder at the timely discoveries which made wood cellulose available.
It is evident, however, that to some extent paper history is already beginning to repeat itself. The visible supplies of wood are markedly less, as evidenced by their increasing costs, and we are forced to a much more active attitude than one of mere speculation as to what new sources may become available to supply our demand for paper, which has lately been increasing in the value of the annual products by almost 11 per cent.