HARDWOOD RECORD 



fined to their own field, and would It not be 

 better for the wholesale and retail trade alike, 

 if they were held to their field of wreckage 

 material? 



I have briefly outlined some of the methods 

 of selling lumber that ought to be discussed be- 

 fore an organization of this kind. We are or- 

 ganized for a purpose. That purpose is mutual 

 progress and advancement in our respective lines 

 of the lumber business. We can learn from one 

 another and by comparison of the various meth- 

 ods adopt those ideas which are best adapted 

 to do the greatest good to all of us. I respect- 

 fully submit the paper for your earnest thought 

 and consideration. 



l.s THE C0M.MISS10X Man a Detkiment? 



No one here tonight will suspect me of over- 

 stating the case when I say that among you 

 there is not one, or hardly one who does not 

 hold a biased view of the question under discus- 

 sion. There is good reason to believe that the 

 majority have a very decided opinion on the 

 subject, and that this opinion is an adverse one. 

 Your answer to the question. Is the commission 

 man a detriment? would be an emphatic yes. 

 But. to judge of the merits of the case, one 

 must look at it from all points of view. We 

 must place ourselves on the standpoint of the 

 utter outsider : for only by a careful, unbiased 

 consideration of all the facts can one arrive at 

 a trustworthy conclusion. Perhaps this is best 

 done by looking upon the commission man as 

 one of that vast army of enterprising spirits, 

 who at all times under the leadership of the 

 captains of industry, have chosen the North 

 American continent for their battle ground. We 

 will then study the evolution of the commission 



On the earlier pages of our history there Is 

 written, In large letters, the name of the Hudson 

 Bay Trading Company. In emulation of the 

 East India Companies of Western Europe. It 

 sought to acquire a monopoly of an infant trade 

 in an empire as vast, yet so unknown, that with 

 the exception of the coasts, no white man's feet 

 had trod the land. Its agents, or, as they were 

 called, factors, who were employed on a com 

 mission only, developed the trade, and with it 

 the country, to an enormous size, and by their 

 organization the Hudson company within a few 

 decades become a power so strong that not only 

 was It able to fight and defeat competition in 

 open battle with armed men, but also prevent 

 the settlement of what is known today as the 

 state of Oregon and the provinces of Manitoba 

 and British Columbia. It became such a detri- 

 ment to the country at large that the Canadian 

 government, finally submitting to the wishes of 

 the people, bought some of the company's rights 

 and grants at the enormous price of £300,000 

 and 50,000 acres of the most fertile land. About 

 the same time, but less than fifty years ago, 

 petroleum was discovered in this country. Al- 

 though the Indians had known and used naphtha 

 before the discovery of America, it never had 

 been found in sufficient quantity to become a 

 commodity. A large number of enterprising men 

 went at the time Into the oil mining business, 

 but, owing to the lack of demand tor the prod- 

 uct, they dragged along for fifteen years until 

 one man. seeing the groat opportunities, founded 

 the most gigantic commercial enterprise In the 

 world, founded it on a strict commission basis, 

 developing the coaloll trade and its by-products 

 to an unlooked-for magnitude. When, later, 

 this same enterprise drifted from being commis- 

 sion dealers to owners of oil wells, when, by its 

 large investments all over this country. It con- 

 trolled not only oil, but also railroads, life in- 

 surance, banks, and legislatures. It became a 

 detriment to the welfare of the people at large. 

 And now to the lumber business. Twenty years 

 ago cypress lumber was practically unknown to 

 the large majority of consumers of lumber, until 

 through the efforts of the Cypress Selling Com- 

 pany, an agency representing a number of manu- 



facturers, the good qualities and possible uses 

 of cypress were extensively advertised, its trade 

 developed and made profitable to both manu- 

 facturer and dealer. I think these three of 

 many examples that I could name were it not 

 for the time allowed me. will prove sufficiently 

 that the commission merchant was an absolutely 

 necessary factor in the development of trade, 

 when the business was still in its infancy and 

 crude methods prevailed. 



The commission man was the logical fore- 

 runner of the present jobber, which is proven 

 best by the fact that a number of lumber dealers 

 of the present day started business as commis- 

 sion men. I shall go back to the original sub- 

 ject: Is the commission man a detriment V But 

 before doing so, 1 wish to state that what we 

 erroneously call commission men today covers 

 three distinct classes : The commission man, the 

 broker and the scalper. The first named, who 

 received and sold lumber on consignment, and 

 who was not only a necessity but a beneflt to 

 the trade, is a thing of the past, and has in a 

 sense been superseded by the broker or agent. 

 This broker, of course, is often a most useful 

 instrument to the jobber, who through his 

 agency is not only able to secure large lots of 

 lumber for bis stock, but also is able to sell 

 some of his surplus stock through the same 

 agent. The broker, however, must not be con- 

 founded with a scalper, who. without capital, 

 without business expenses, sells here and there 

 a carload of lumber at the smallest possible 

 margin to users of lumber, thus establishing bis 

 cheap price as the standard market price for 



at least the next two or three weeks, and who, 

 for this reason, is, in my opinion, a most dis- 

 turbing factor in the trade. I am afraid gentle- 

 men, that I have not answered the question 

 under discussion to your satisfaction, not calling 

 the broker who is the only commission man to 

 be considered today, a detriment, and I wish to 

 state in explanation that I am well aware of 

 the fact that the broker will not sell only to 

 the dealer, but often he will sell to the con- 

 sumer of lumber, liecoming thereby a new and 

 un-looked-for competitor ; but if in this case 

 you consider him a detriment to the trade, you 

 must not overlook the fact that for the same 

 reason the large manufacturer of lumber who 

 has either a sales office in any lumber center 

 or sends out his traveling men to solicit orders 

 from consumers of lumber, would also have to 

 be called a detriment, while I only consider him 

 a strong competitor, who has come to stay, and 

 has to be reckoned with. The lumber business 

 has, during its short existence, undergone great 

 changes. The commission man has disappeared 

 and has been superseded by the broker. The 

 broker will also disappear in time when he will 

 have outlived his usefulness. I can see this 

 time coming, and In fact we are drifting towards 

 it. It will be the time when jobbers of lumber 

 will be manufacturers and when manufacturers 

 of lumber will all sell direct to consumers. 



In conclusion. I will ask those who hold dif- 

 ferent views, particularly the yard dealers, 

 which of you have not in recent years bought 

 or sold lumber through a commission merchant 

 or through a broker? 



Hardwood Record Mail "Bag. 



Record read- 

 ers .IS will be of enough general Interest to 

 warrant publication. Every patron of the paper 

 is Invited to use this department freely, and 

 Bu attempt will be made to answer queries per- 

 taining to all matters of Interest to the hard- 

 wood trade In a succinct and Intelligent man- 



will be supplied with the address of the con 

 cern on application to this office. — Editor. 



Seeks to Purchase Handle Plant. 

 nsninG. Pa., Oct. :i. 1! 



OS. — Secretary 

 IlAM>Lr. Manlkactureks' Associ.vTio.v ; If you 

 know of any tool handle machinery of a full 

 equipped plant or of a partly equipped plant 

 that we can buy reasonably. I wish you would 

 advise us. There are probably some handle 

 works that have quit business, and If you know 

 of any we would thank you very kindly to 

 furnish us their address. 



Thanking you in advance for this information, 

 we wish to re.iiain, COMPANT. 



The secretary of the Handle Manufacturers' 

 Associatiou, believing that he could best scr\e 

 the above correspondent by publishing this 

 letter, does so — and invites any one wishing 

 to sell their handle works to advise him of the 

 details and the matter will be placed before 

 the Pittsburg inquirer. — Editor. 



Wants Ash Bolts. 



Harvakd. III., Sept. 30. 1908.— Editor IIaud 

 WOOD Uecord ; We are contemplating buying 

 nsh lumber in short bolts and wish you would 

 advise us, if possible, where we might be able 

 to secure ash lumber In this shape. We could 

 get along with bolls as short as 48 inches. 



Any infoi-nialion you can give us on the sub- 

 ji'ii win be greatly appreciated, and If you 

 iliink necessary please make mention In the' 

 ncivs columns of j'our paper what our needs 

 nie In this line. 



— MANtiFACTuniNO Company. 



Readers of the Record interested in sup- 

 plying a prominent Illinois manufacturing 

 concern with the ash bolts they wish to secure 



Figuring on Handle Business. 



Mlhireesboi!!), Tenn., O.t r,, 1008.— Serr. 

 tary Haxdi.e Maxlfactlrurs' Associ.vtic.n 

 We expect to erect a plant for the manufactiUL- 

 of bandies for brooms, rake, hoe, fork and hook. 

 W(^ shall be pleased to have you advise us 

 what kind of woods are used for this stock and 

 send us dimensions of same and other Inforina 

 tion you think would be bcneflclal to us in ili' 

 elding this matter. Company. 



The foregoing letter has been received by 

 the secretary of the Handle Manufacturers' 

 Association, and though he has given consider- 

 able specific information to the inquirers, he 

 has also taken the liberty to advise them that 

 it is his belief that they had better investigate 

 the handle situation very carefully before they 

 start a new plant in this line of production. 



As a matter of fact, the handle supply of 

 tli" country is in excess of the demand at the 

 present time, and there is very little money 

 to be made out of the business even by ex 

 perienced producers. 



There are scores of other lines of manufac- 

 ture that promise better financial results for 

 the next few years than does a new handle 

 factory. — Editor. 



Large Timber Purchase. 



D. M. Farris, acting for the newly organiziil 

 Cherokee Lumber Company of Nashville. 

 Tenn.. has recently purchased from Sharpe & 

 Horn, real estate firm of that city, several 

 thousand acres of fine oak and poplar timber 

 located In Colbert county. Ala. The consider- 

 ation.' while not disclosed. Is said to be a very 

 large one. The Cherokee Lumber Company, it 

 Is stated, will develop the trade at once, and 

 a big sawmill and other Improvements will 

 be Installed. 



