Of course, in a great many cases a single concern manufactures several of the varieties of paper named. Associations. A considerable number of the wrapping paper manufacturers of the United States are affiliated with the Wrapping Paper Manufacturers' Service Bureau. Geographical distribution.-Bogus or wood manila is produced chiefly in Maine, New York, Wisconsin, and New Hampshire. Wisconsin is the principal kraft State. Real manila is manufactured mainly in New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Heavy mill wrappers are made chiefly in Pennsylvania, New York, Wisconsin, and Ohio. Most of the straw paper output comes from Ohio and New York. Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and New York produce the largest amounts of other kinds of wrapping paper. History of the industry.-The history of the domestic wrapping paper industry has no particular tariff significance, except perhaps in the growing dependence on other nations for chemical wood pulp. This dependence arises from the development of bogus manila and kraft production and the increasing domestic shortage of wood pulp. The tendency is away from the use of jute and hemp wastes and toward increased use of chemical wood pulp. It is not a tariff problem, however, that is engendered in this shift of dependence on raw material, but rather a problem of developing new and reliable sources of supply. In this connection the proposed reforestation of denuded areas in the Eastern and Lake States and the tapping of the Western States and Alaska's pulpwood forests are of much significance for the future. Domestic production and consumption.-The total production of wrapping paper in the United States increased from 535,252 short tons, with a value of $24,542,373, in 1899 to 881,799 tons, valued at $49,372,753, in 1914. After 1914 there was no increase until 1920 when production was 831,889 tons. In 1921, a year of abnormal depression, only 651,605 tons were produced. The increase in wrapping paper production in the last 22 years has proceeded at a rate much slower than that of any of the other important kinds of paper. Where newsprint nearly tripled, fine paper more than tripled, book paper nearly quadrupled, and paper boards more than sextupled their output between 1899 and 1920; wrapping paper increased its output by almost one-third. The increasing substitution of cartons for paper in wrapping articles in the retail trade partly accounts for the slow increase in production. The paper board industry has here profited at the expense of the wrapping paper industry. Appended tables (p. 25) show production by States and by varieties for census years 1899 to 1919. Although in 1914 bogus manila was made in greatest quantity, in 1919 kraft paper led in amount of production. Production of manila paper (from rope, jute, tag, etc.) and of heavy wrapping paper (mill wrappers, etc.) increased between 1914 and 1919. The production of straw wrapping paper, important in 1899, had almost ceased by 1919. Next to newsprint and book paper, wrapping paper uses the greatest supplies of wood pulp. The greatly increased demand for newsprint paper after the war reacted to diminish the supply of raw material for wrapping paper. During the first three quarters of 1920 high-grade sulphite and sulphate pulp were so difficult to obtain that manufacturers of kraft and the better grades of wood manila were unable to meet the full demand. This shortage of wood pulp is discussed in the survey on wood pulp. The ultimate remedy for such shortages will have to be reforestation in the East, the development of the pulpwood forests of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, or increased supplies from Canada. There is plenty of old rope and bagging for manufacturing genuine manila paper, as well as plenty of waste paper and waste fiber of other kinds for the cheap grades of wrapping paper. The domestic industry supplies practically the entire American demand, imports amounting to less than 1 per cent of production. Domestic exports.-Printing paper and wrapping paper have the widest foreign markets of any kinds of paper. From 1916 to 1920, 3 to 4 per cent of the wrapping paper made in the United States was exported. In the fiscal year 1914 only four-fifths of 1 per cent was exported. Exports jumped from 11,515 short tons in the fiscal year 1915 to 32,422 short tons in the fiscal year 1916 and remained at about the same level up to the calendar year 1919, when they increased to 37,458 tons. The year 1920 showed a decrease, with exports of only 30,632 tons. In 1921 there was a decrease to 13,022 tons, or to 1.66 per cent of domestic production. American wrapping paper is sent all over the world. Since 1915 Cuba has been the largest recipient. FOREIGN PRODUCTION. An appended table (p. 26) shows that the world's production of wrapping paper in 1906-7 totaled 1,932,080 short tons. Next to the United States production of 561,800 short tons in that year came Germany's output of 341,290 tons, France's 248,260 tons, the United Kingdom's 197,540 tons, and Austria-Hungary's 102,320 tons. None of these nations, however, is at present in a position to compete with the United States in the domestic market. Canadian production of wrapping paper increased from 50,360 short tons in 1917 to 61,180 tons in 1918, but decreased to 59,697 tons in 1919. Of the 1919 production, 33,394 tons, or slightly more than half, consisted of kraft; 5,460 tons were heavy mill wrappers; 9,427 tons were bogus or wood manila. Almost negligible amounts of true manila and straw wrapping paper were produced. Canada has possibilities for considerable development in wood-pulp wrapping paper manufacture. It probably costs somewhat less to produce it in Canada than in the United States. The extent of Canada's development in this branch of paper manufacture will be determined largely by the American demand and tariff policy. So far, however, most of Canada's sulphate and sulphite pulp for wrapping-paper manufacture has been sent to the United States to be made into the finished paper. The following table, compiled from the Papermakers' Directory of All Nations, shows the number of mills in all the different countries of the world producing the principal kinds of wrapping paper. The figures are for the year 1920. From the table above it will be seen that the western European nations, notably Italy, France, and Germany, possess a large number of mills manufacturing wrapping paper of unspecified grade. In Italy, the number of mills on wrapping paper is greater than in the United States. But the average European mill is considerably smaller than the American. This fact explains America's much larger output. In manila production, the United States possesses nearly two-thirds of the world's mills; of kraft mills, nearly onethird of the world's total. In bag paper mills the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany are about even. The United States owns all the express paper mills, three-fourths of the mills producing mill wrappers, and 21 out of the 27 straw wrapping paper mills in the world. This table has been prepared on a somewhat different basis from the previous table, which shows the number of mills in the United States manufacturing the different kinds of paper. However, it gives some idea of the comparative number of mills in different countries, except that mills in disturbed countries such as Russia are listed as before the war. IMPORTS. Import trade in wrapping paper is of small importance. In the fiscal year 1914 imports were 1.66 per cent of production. From then until 1921 they decreased almost continuously. In the fiscal year 1914 they amounted to 18,258 short tons dutiable and to approximately 7,000 tons free. They had decreased to 2,271 tons in the calendar year 1920, which represents 0.22 per cent of production. In the calendar year 1921, however, they increased to 0.71 per cent of production. 1 Up to 1915 Sweden was the largest exporter of wrapping paper to the United States. In the fiscal year 1914 she sent us 8,389 short tons dutiable, or 46 per cent of our dutiable imports, in addition undoubtedly to a considerable amount admitted free of duty.2 Canada, which first began to send wrapping paper in the last quarter of the fiscal year 1912, developed her export to the United States so rapidly that in the fiscal year 1914 she ranked second to Sweden. In that year wrapping paper imports from Canada amounted to 5,186 tons dutiable, or 28 per cent of dutiable imports and probably about half that amount of free imports.2 Norway, Germany, and Spain ranked nearly equal as sources of most of the remainder. During the war the wrapping paper exports to the United States of the countries other than Canada declined to almost nothing. Canada's exports decreased also; in the calendar year 1919 they were probably not more than a third their volume in the fiscal year 1914. The total wrapping paper imports in the calendar year 1919 were 2,401 short tons, of which Canada sent 2,369, or 99 per cent. In 1920, however, imports from Europe began to revive. In 1921, out of 5,707 tons of wrapping paper imported into the United States, 2,875 tons came from Sweden and 1,410 tons from Germany. Practically none came from Canada. PRICES. In an appended table (p. 29) are shown the prices of the principal kinds of wrapping paper from 1910 to April, 1922. Until 1916 prices were exceedingly steady. In the early part of 1916 they mounted rapidly, those of kraft and true manila increasing in the greatest proportion. The rise continued into 1917. During the latter part of 1917 they decreased, but not to their former level. The year 1918 showed another increase. During 1919 they increased again but rather slowly. This increase continued fairly steadily up to September, 1920, for every kind of wrapping paper listed except No. 2 jute manila and imported kraft, the prices on which remained steady from January to September, 1920, at 11 and 15 cents per pound, respectively, and screenings, the price of which decreased in early September after a steady rise during the year. September prices remained practically unchanged through the middle of December. The only prices that decreased from December, 1920, to January, 1921, were those on jute manila and kraft. Prices remained 1 The latter figure has been computed by dividing the value of free imports for consumption in 1914 by the average value per pound of wrapping paper imported under a 25 per cent duty in the same year. 2 Imports of free wrapping paper in the fiscal year 1914 were not segregated by countries and were reported only by value. (See table p. 28.) remarkably firm for a period of business depression. Between January, 1921, and April, 1922, prices on all grades decreased. Except in the case of jute manila, the decrease was very marked. TARIFF HISTORY. Until the act of 1909 wrapping paper was not separately provided for in the tariff schedule. It bore an ad valorem duty of 25 per cent by the acts of 1883 and 1890, 20 per cent by the act of 1894, and 25 per cent by the act of 1897 as paper not specially provided for. By the act of 1909 wrapping paper was separately specified; 35 per cent was fixed as the rate of duty. The Canadian reciprocity act of July 26, 1911, admitted free from Canada wrapping paper valued at not more than 4 cents per pound, provided Canada placed no export duties or restrictions on such paper or the wood or wood pulp from which it was made. This privilege was extended by judicial construction to other nations under most-favored-nation agreements. The 1913 tariff terminated the Canadian agreement and reduced the general tariff on wrapping paper to 25 per cent ad valorem. It is questionable whether the general tariff has had any effect one way or the other on imports of wrapping paper, for these imports have decreased steadily since the 1913 tariff went into effect, although it lowered the duty from 35 to 25 per cent ad valorem. War conditions have tended to obscure the effect of the change in tariff through their depressing effect on exports from Europe to the United States. A sudden growth of wrapping-paper imports from Canada took place shortly after the removal of the tariff barrier on July 26, 1911. The following table shows by quarters the value of our free imports of wrapping paper for consumption from Canada during the entire free period: July 26, 1911, to Sept. 30, 1911. In this case, the influence of tariff removal in encouraging imports seems to be definitely established, although the actual shipments from Canada did not begin until eight or nine months after Canadian wrapping paper went on the free list. The law went into effect on July 26, 1911. Up to March 31, 1912, the United States imported no wrapping paper from Canada. In the last quarter of the fiscal year 1912 free wrapping-paper importations from Canada began. These increased at a very rapid rate until the 1913 tariff law, imposing a 25 per cent duty on all wrapping paper, n. s. p. f., went into effect. The figure for the period from July 1 to October 3, 1913-$366,757-also includes imports of free wrapping paper from other countries during the period July 28 to October 3, 1913; there is no doubt, however, that imports from Canada in that quarter increased over the previous * Includes also imports of free wrapping paper from other countries between July 28, 1913, and Oct. 3, |