1 would state for your information that since the beginning of 1898 rates
have been advanced on southern pine lumber to points north of the Ohio Kiver
4 cents per 100 pounds, which means an advance of $1 to $1.50 per I^IOO feet,
according to the kind of lumber shipped, whether dry and dressed or rough and
heavy. This is a tremendous tax to lay upon southern lumber manufacturers,
because they have to absorb it in their prices. To make this clear to you I will
make the following statement of average prices received by our company for
each year from 1893 to 1904, inclusive:

Statement of average prices per thousand feet received for their lumber produc-
tion (not including lath) l>y Eastman, Gardiner <& Co., of Laurel, Miss., after
deducting freight, for each year from 1893 to 190Ji, inclusive.
1893
1S94
1895
1896
1897
1898



$9.37
8.14
8.83
8.24
7.99
8.79



1899 $9.71

1900 10.27

1901 10.83

1902 11.89

1903 - 11.32

1904 10.64



When you consider that wages have advanced 25 per cent and pine timber
lands 100 per cent during the above period, you will see that lumbermen are
not and have not been in any condition to bear these heavy advances in freight
rates.
To assure you of the correctness of the above statement, we shall be willing
to submit the same to you or anyone else by affidavit, and you can further con-
firm the statement in a general way by interviewing any of the northern lum-
ber dealers who are and have been handling southern ' pine lumber for a
number of years.
